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Facilities director outlines district upgrades: LED retrofits, secure vestibules, playground and kitchen renovations
Summary
The district’s construction, maintenance and facilities department reviewed a year of projects including free LED retrofits with Entergy, secure vestibule installations, playground conversions to mulch, kitchen hood replacements and new agriculture and practice facilities.
Robert Gautreaux, who presented a year-end slideshow for the construction, maintenance and facilities department, outlined dozens of campus projects completed or underway across Lafayette Parish.
Gautreaux emphasized safety and operational upgrades as priorities: the district secured a utility-led conversion at six schools to LED lighting that the presenter described as “almost $2,000,000 of free work” and said the upgrades are expected to reduce energy bills by roughly 30%. He said secure vestibules with ballistic-resistant glass and reinforced walls were installed at multiple campuses and that fencing, canopies and covered walkways were added to reduce student exposure to rain during drop-off.
Other projects highlighted included playground upgrades (replacing pea gravel with mulch and adding borders); installation of a 90-by-80 indoor practice canopy at Acadiana High; an agriculture storage and operations facility at Carencro High built on an existing concrete pad; conversion of tile floors to sealed concrete for lower maintenance; a half-million-dollar kitchen hood upgrade at Paul Breaux (to meet industrial hood code requirements); restroom and sewer repairs; new storage buildings (30-by-40) for campuses (quoted at under $50,000 each); gym-floor replacements; painting campaigns across dozens of schools; and new outdoor pavilions and covered walkways.
Gautreaux said the department has been in place under the current leadership for nearly two years and that staff focused work by district. Board members and administrators thanked Gautreaux and his team for the pace and breadth of work; one board member said the additional savings and project completions made initiatives possible that were not previously feasible.
Ending: District staff said the slideshow represented a sample of work and that the department will continue to prioritize safety and facility maintenance. The district did not present a separate vote on these informational items; they were presented for the board and public at the meeting.
