Lafayette Parish School System Board Approves $54.8 Million for Broadmoor, Paul Breaux Construction
LAFAYETTE, La. — The Lafayette Parish School Board signed off on final construction budgets Thursday for three building projects, locking in guaranteed maximum prices that let work move forward on a new middle school and elementary campus and two elementary wing additions.
The board’s consent agenda carried all three items unanimously. The Broadmoor Elementary wing addition came in at $7,657,100. The Paul Breaux Elementary and Middle School project landed at $37,664,042. The combined Westside/Milton wing addition was set at $9,503,850, putting the total construction commitment across the three projects at roughly $54.8 million.
What the Three Budgets Cover
The Broadmoor and Westside/Milton items fund new permanent classroom wings, part of a district-wide effort to move students out of portable buildings and into brick-and-mortar space. The Paul Breaux figure covers construction on the elementary and middle school project tied to the new K-8 campus already under construction in north Lafayette.
Superintendent Francis Touchet told the board the vote sets the projects in motion.
“It will allow us to be able to proceed, as far as getting the actual project started and making sure that these amounts that we are basically asking for is approved so that these projects can actually begin and end for the beginning of the 27/28 school year,” Touchet said.
Part of a Broader Push to Retire Portables
Broadmoor’s new wing traces back to a package the school board approved more than $30 million in renovations for last fall, covering Broadmoor, Ernest Gallet and Westside elementary schools along with a new gym at Milton.
That funding was pitched as a safety measure, moving students out of outdoor portable buildings and into permanent classrooms. Thursday’s guaranteed maximum prices for Broadmoor and Westside/Milton line up with that earlier commitment, though LPSS has not said publicly whether the two votes cover the same scope of work.
A New Campus for North Lafayette
The Paul Breaux money ties into a larger rebuild already underway. LPSS broke ground in June on a new Paul Breaux K-8 School behind the current J.W. Faulk Elementary campus. The 66-classroom facility will consolidate students currently zoned for J.W. Faulk Elementary, Dr. Raphael A. Baranco Elementary and Paul Breaux Middle School onto one site built to hold up to 1,200 students, with room for music, band, art and athletics.
School board member Amy Trahan called the groundbreaking a long-term investment in the north Lafayette community, where the three existing schools currently operate on separate campuses.
Timeline for Completion
Touchet’s comment ties the Broadmoor and Westside/Milton wings to the 2027-28 school year. The Paul Breaux K-8 campus, already under construction, is on a separate timeline and is scheduled to open in January 2028.
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