News

LAKE ARTHUR — Lake Arthur may be one of Jeff Davis Parish’s best-kept secrets, but a new national survey suggests travelers are beginning to take notice. The lakeside community ranked No.

WELSH — Officials here approved keeping the town’s property tax millage rates at their previously established levels for 2026. The decision came during a recent town meeting as Mayor Karl Arceneaux and the Welsh Board of Aldermen considered Resolution 012-2026, which sets the property tax millage rate for the town.

— Louisiana opioid-related deaths have fallen 59% since 2022, even as federal survey data rank the state last among the 50 states and Washington, D.C., for opioid misuse. The Louisiana Department of Health said opioid-related deaths declined 59% from 2022 through 2025, compared with a 46.2% decline nationally.

WELSH — The Welsh Fire Department has improved its fire protection rating from Class 4 to Class 3. This feat is an achievement, Fire Chief John Hall said, that is the result of years of training, documentation, equipment maintenance and commitment from the department’s volunteer firefighters.

Jeff Davis Parish officials are working to establish zoning and permitting requirements for battery energy storage facilities and data centers before either type of development arrives in the parish. The Police Jury’s Ordinance Committee recently agreed to recommend adding battery storage facilities and data centers to the parish’s I-1 light industrial zoning classification while continuing work on more detailed ordinances governing how the facilities could be permitted, operated and eventually decommissioned.

LAKE ARTHUR — Lake Arthur officials will again seek contractors for electrical upgrades to the town’s wastewater lift stations after receiving no bids for the project during its first round of advertising.

A false graphic circulating on social media claims that a new Louisiana law requires drivers under a certain height to use booster seats in their vehicles. Officials with the Louisiana State Police are warning residents that the information is not true.

A Block Off Broadway Community Theatre is holding auditions in search of its next big star. ABOB is preparing for its next production, “Knock ’Em Dead,” and is inviting area residents to audition for a chance to be part of the cast.