Pitch made for state road repairs

Eunice Mayor Scott Fontenot and State Rep. Phillip DeVillier pitched the overlay of Maple Avenue — La. 91 — to the Joint Transportation, Highways and Public Works Committee during its annual “roadshow” stop in Lafayette.
The committee met Wednesday as a stop on its statewide tour to discuss next year’s transportation budget.
DeVillier said, “The road show is one way of putting on the record the roads people have called and asked for repairs or maintenance to be done on.”
The latest road show was the first for DeVillier as an elected official.
For Fontenot, it was his second and his focus remained on the rough-riding Maple Avenue from the Crowley turn to Bobcat Drive.
“I’m not sitting here asking for I-49 through Eunice,” Fontenot said. “I’m not asking for a big old overpass. I’m asking for 1.8 miles. That’s all I’m asking for. I said if any of you all ever drove down that road you would be asking for money too.”
The road is a main artery to the the Louisiana State University Eunice campus and public schools including Eunice High, Eunice Junior High, Eunice Elementary, Central Middle School, Highland Elementary and Head Start, he said.
“Will something get done? It is in their hands. We are going to keep pushing for it,” Fontenot said.
Eleven resolutions passed over a 10-year span from the city of Eunice were delivered to the committee on Wednesday, he said.
“As long as I’ve been having my driver’s license it has been in bad shape,” Fontenot said.
“When they are overlaying 30 miles of road between Lafayette and Eunice in the rural areas, why can’t you do a little portion through town. I don’t get that,” he said.
But it is not all gloom doom from Fontenot.
“I think something might happen,” he said. “It is a process.”
Gov. John Bel Edwards was in Eunice Tuesday and Fontenot was among those meeting “briefly” with him.
Jack Burson, alderman at-large, asked about overlaying Maple Avenue and the governor relayed the request in a text message and said he would do what he can to help, Fontenot said.
The mayor also requested work on La. 13 from the Acadia Parish line north to nearly the Evangeline Parish line.
DeVillier’s road wish list includes Maple Avenue, but spans his District 41 that encompasses portions of St. Landry, Acadia and Evangeline parishes.
“I think overall in my district if we can get them paving four or five highways per year it’s nice,” DeVillier said.
“You would think within a 10-year span you could get the majority of that work done and you just keep up with the maintenance,” he said.
Maple Avenue is not on the list of roads to be repaved, but DeVillier thinks the state Department of Transportation and Development is planning repairs on the road using maintenance funds.
The highway department also is in the process of replacing the bridge at Maple Avenue and Bobcat Drive, he said.
Also underway is road work on La. 35 from Church Point to Branch, he said.
Four roads in his district are in the process that results in repairs, he said. Those roads are La. 98 from La. 1111 to La. 367; La. 104 from La. 3277 to Bayou Nezpique; La. 97 from La. 98 to La. 368; and La. 367 from U.S. 190 to La. 370.
DeVillier said he submitted a list of roads to the committee derived from complaints he has received.
Those roads are:
La. 1104 and La. 754 from La. 95 to parish line;
La. 751 from U.S. 190 to La. 35;
La. 752 from La. 751 to La. 35;
La. 758 from La. 190 to La. 29;
La. 98 from La. 1111 to La. 367;
La. 97 from La. 190 to La. 98;
La. 3277 three miles west of La. 757;
La. 104 from La. 3277 to Bayou Nezpique;
La. 29 from La. 13 to La. 758;
La. 13 From St. Landry/Acadiana line to La. 374;
La. 91 from La. 13 to Robert Miller Road (Maple Avenue);
La. 755 (LSUE Drive);
La. 370 from Iota city limits to La. 370;
La. 13 from Soileau Road to North 8th Street;
La. 374 from La. 13 to Headless Bridge Road; and
La. 35 from La. 365 in Branch to I-10.