Mayor-President Josh Guillory has named interim directors for the newly created Drainage Department and the Traffic, Roads & Bridges Department (TRB). Brian Smith will oversee the Drainage Department as Interim Director and Warren Abadie will serve as the Interim Director of TRB. Appointed to the position early January, Chad Nepveaux will continue to serve as Interim Director for the newly reorganized Public Works Department.

With 25 years of experience in LCG’s Department of Public Works, Smith has served in several capacities, most recently as the Drainage Superintendent. Abadie is a certifiecd Professional Engineer with 15 years of experience in Public Works and most recently held the position of City-Parish Transportation Engineer. Nepveaux is also a tenured Public Works employee with 28 years of experience, having served in several divisions of Public Works during this time, specifically as the Street Superintendent prior to the Interim Director appointment.

According to Guillory, “It was important to elevate the work of drainage maintenance and traffic, roads, and bridge maintenance to the department level to increase accountability and create efficiencies at the ground level. I’m grateful to both Councils for their support of the reorganization. These Interim Directors all come from within the ranks of Public Works and are incredibly knowledgeable of the inner workings of their fields. I am confident that these new Interim Directors are the right leaders in the formative stages of their respective departments. This reorganization is the first major step towards focusing more assets on the priorities that affect our great city and parish.”

The newly organized departments were proposed by Guillory and unanimously approved by both Lafayette City and Parish Councils at the Jan. 21 joint meeting. This measure moved the important work of drainage maintenance and traffic, road and bridge maintenance from the larger Public Works Department to the newly envisioned departments. Issues related to capital improvement projects, environmental quality (which includes waste collection and code enforcement), facilities and vehicle maintenance, and parking and transit continue to be overseen by Public Works.

To view Guillory’s presentation to the Council’s, click here.

More From 97.3 The Dawg