Ray Bourque: Get to Know Your Elected Officials

Broussard Mayor Ray Bourque, a lifelong resident of Broussard, Louisiana, began his public service as a city council member from 2011 to 2019. He was elected mayor in November 2018 and took office in January 2019.

An alumnus of St. Cecilia Catholic School, Bourque is an active member of the Knights of Columbus and a Sacred Heart Catholic Church parishioner. He has been married for 31 years and is the proud father of two children and a grandfather.

In addition to his public service role, Bourque co-owns a printing and sign company in Lafayette, bringing over thirty years of experience in the industry.

As mayor, Bourque currently holds the position of First Vice President of the Louisiana Municipal Association (LMA), which he began in July 2024. Mayors from across the state elected him second vice president in August 2023. He is set to assume the role of President of LMA for the 2025-2026 term.

Since 2021, Bourque has been actively involved in and instrumental in reviving the Mid-Sized Cities Mayors’ group. He is currently forming the Small Town Mayors Alliance.

During his administration, Bourque asserts his pride in the city’s strong and responsible finances. Despite the absence of a property tax, Broussard achieved a general fund surplus and received clean audits for four consecutive years.

“I don’t know that we have any of our clients that are that strong in the general fund…and we do about 40 city audits, including the city of Lafayette. This is phenomenal.” – Burton Kolder, Kolder, Slaven & Company, LLC, Certified Public Accountants

Key Accomplishments under Bourque’s Administration

Bourque lists the following accomplishments during his administration:

• Initiating and guiding the downtown revitalization plan.
  • The city has earned the 2023 LMA ‘Community Achievement Award—For Outstanding Community Improvement in Community Development’.
  • Revitalization has started on the Main Street Corridor. The city developed a master plan for downtown revitalization, ‘Envision Broussard,’ to enhance the city for future development. Revitalization plans for Main Street are being done in multiple phases. Phase 1 is complete and includes a new city gateway, historically accurate lighting, multi-use pathways, pedestrian rest stops, and improved drainage. Phase 3 is underway.
• Developing and launching the Water System Improvement Master Plan.
• The Property Insurance Association of Louisiana (PIAL) and the Louisiana Commissioner of Insurance improved the city’s Public Fire Protection Classification to Class 2 under the state’s fire protection rating system.
• City of Broussard – 8th Safest City in Louisiana (Safewise.com) // 2nd Cleanest City in Louisiana (Louisiana Garden Club Federation).
• The city purchased four buildings for the new City of Broussard Public Service Complex. It will comprise the Broussard Police Department, Broussard Fire Department Headquarters and Station #2, Public Works Department Headquarters campus, and a city staff training facility, giving police officers, firefighters, and city workers the workspace and resources needed to perform their duties.
• Author of the Broussard Retail Ready Initiative, a joint venture between the City of Broussard, the Broussard Economic Development Corporation (BEDC), and the Lafayette Economic Development Association (LEDA) that conducts due diligence on strategic sites to expedite development.
  • Broussard’s Retail Ready initiative includes identifying utility providers, zoning requirements, traffic counts, floodplain information, potential incentives available, confirmation of no existing hazardous history, contact information for all stakeholders, the permitting department, and all relevant city staff. Louisiana Economic Development (LED) selected the initiative to promote under the Louisiana Development Ready Community initiative, which aims to help communities across the state market their most desirable sights.
• LED designated Broussard as Louisiana’s 47th Development Ready Site in 2021. The city has six Ready and Available Certified Sites established while working with the LEDA, LED, and the BEDC for economic development within Broussard. SafeSource Direct, a manufacturer of person protection equipment, began operations on one site in 2021 and will employ up to 1,300 workers at Broussard’s first Certified Site.
• To help preserve Broussard’s culture, the city acquired the Valsin House, home of Broussard’s founder, Valsin Broussard, for historical preservation. The Valsin House, where a French Table is held monthly, will be used as a tourism center. An annual Beausoleil Festival was also established.

For anyone wanting to contact Bourque, he can be reached at (337) 837-6681, by emailing mayorbourque@broussardla.com or RayBourqueBroussardMayor on Facebook.

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If any elected official serving Broussard or Youngsville, Louisiana, would like to participate in the Get to Know Your Elected Officials series, please email info@bylocalnews.com.