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Soon after moving to Lafayette for a job at a law firm, Bryan Dupree came across a group of French tourists downtown.
Dupree, who speaks French fluently, answered a few questions for the tourists but couldn’t help them find a place to purchase a postcard.
“This sort of light bulb went off,” Dupree said. “And I thought, ‘We’ll create a place where you can buy a postcard.'”
The concept has expanded considerably since that November day last year.
Now, it’s blossomed into Beausoleil Books and The Whisper Room, a bookstore and speakeasy-style bar set to open in October at 302A Jefferson St. The 3,000-square-foot storefront most recently housed Cloves Indian Café.
Read the rest of Megan Wyatt’s article at The Advocate.
Downtown is the place where Acadiana comes to celebrate culture AND do business! Here at Downtown Lafayette Unlimited our goal is to help orchestrate these celebrations. Not only are we celebrating our community this fall with events such as Downtown Alive! and ArtWalk but over the past month, we have celebrated new ownership of beloved historic buildings as well as 10-year business milestones and more!
Read Clair Taylor’s article for The Acadiana Advocate here.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricanes Laura and Delta impacted the construction, the developers behind the old federal courthouse redevelopment in Downtown Lafayette knew the project would take a lot of work. J. Dyke Nelson, the architect behind the project, said he had to wear a hazmat suit the first time he came out and saw the property.
Perficient, a digital consulting firm with an office in downtown Lafayette, hired 50 graduates from its training bootcamp held last fall.The second Bright Paths Program, an initiative designed to advance STEM education and career opportunities for underrepresented constituencies and communities, was offered at its Lafayette and Detroit locations. Students completed software engineering coursework, learned about the consulting business, connected with mentors, and engineered their own innovative applications, company officials announced Thursday.
SchoolMint will move into a temporary space in downtown Lafayette and could soon land a permanent home possibly later this month. Company CEO Bryan MacDonald said the company will move into the first floor of the Lemoine building, 214 Jefferson St., and hopes to have employees working there on Feb. 1.
In the blistering summers of Acadia Parish, Meg Arceneaux would watch her grandfather sit in his truck and go about business telling others what to do. She was fascinated with how he operated his work, hoping to one day own her own business.
As Acadiana recovers from the economic downturn brought on by COVID-19 and flagging oil and gas prices, the region will likely rely on a few key businesses to help spearhead the recovery.
Vestal, the planned live fire concept restaurant in downtown Lafayette owned by award-winning Lafayette chef Ryan Trahan, will open in early April, he said. Trahan announced on Facebook Thursday he is accepting applications online to staff the restaurant, which will be at 555 Jefferson St. in the former Antlers location.
Since the iconic Don’s Seafood in Downtown Lafayette closed in 2020, there has been a lot of curiosity about what would happen to the building. Since the 1930s, the restaurant was a staple of the district and a favorite dining destination for locals and visitors. Wonder no more.