A Baton Rouge construction firm has gone to court seeking to block a competitor from signing a contract to build a ninth-grade academy at Central Middle School.

Cangelosi Ward General Contractors filed the lawsuit Wednesday against the Central school system.

The firm is seeking a permanent injunction as well as damages and court costs. The case has been assigned to state District Judge Wilson Fields, but no court date had been set as of Thursday afternoon. Read More

Steve Maher, AIA, waits to testify on behalf of AIA Louisiana's support of HB 1048

The hundreds of unionized plumbers who crowded State Capitol halls Wednesday will have to come back next week as a state Senate committee postponed voting on legislation they opposed.

Members of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and International Affairs voiced reservations about the legislation that would replace the Louisiana State Plumbing Code with the International Plumbing Code.

Commerce Chairman Danny Martiny, R-Metairie, said he wasn't sure the two sides would ever come together with a bill that both could support."I still see a very deep divided line between the parties," Martiny said.Republican State Rep. Erich Ponti, a Baton Rouge construction contractor who sponsored House Bill 1048, agreed."We're not going to get to the point where everybody sings kumbaya," Ponti said, adding he nevertheless would try.

The panel voted to wait until next week. Read More

A proposal to create a statewide elevator inspection system for Louisiana started advancing Wednesday in the Legislature, winning support from the Senate Commerce Committee.

Louisiana doesn't require regular safety inspections of elevators, and while some municipalities have set their own regulations, most parishes are without rules for annual checkups to make sure elevators and escalators are operating properly.

State Sen. Ben Nevers, D-New Orleans, is sponsoring Senate Bill 602 to establish the statewide inspection system, which is supported by elevator manufacturers.

"The only reason I'm here is about the safety of the citizens in this state," Nevers said.

The committee advanced the proposal without objection, though some senators questioned the price tag of creating a statewide system and the need for it. Nevers' bill likely goes next to the Senate budget committee for review, where more debate is expected of the financing plans. Read More