BROUSSARD, La. (KLFY) – A new Lafayette Parish elementary school is on its way.
The school board, along with the city of Broussard, signed a purchase agreement for the land Wednesday for the new Martial F. Billeaud Senior Elementary School, Billeaud Elementary for short.
It may be a farmland now, but school officials said by 2019 the corner of Marteau Road and Fairfield Drive will be the new Billeaud Elementary, stretching across 17 acres.
It’s a deal between the Lafayette Parish School Board, the Billeaud Company and the city of Broussard.
The new school’s land is costing the city and school system $467,000.
The school system said they’ve already had this money planned in their budget and have been working towards this for over a year.
Superintendent Donald Aguillard said the school will hold 600 students but will eventually be able to hold 1,000 students.
He said a new elementary school is necessary to keep up with the growing population of south Lafayette Parish.
With the school comes the possibility of new developments.
President and CEO of the Billeaud Companies Steven Hebert said they have plans to possibly build a new neighborhood, grocery store and retail shopping center to grow the area.
“There’s already a ton of development in and around that area. I think it’s going to be really good for the citizens to really spur new development,” Billeaud said.
While these new developments are still years away, crews are expected to break ground on the new school in about four to six months.
The school system is underway with designs for the new elementary school. The school is set to open in August 2019.