Lafayette's Seller Disclosure Form Doesn't Ask About the I-49 Connector

Say you made an offer this month on a property along Lafayette's Evangeline Thruway. Which line on the seller's disclosure would tell you a planned interstate runs through that block?

None of them asks directly. Louisiana's 2026 Property Disclosure Document, which the Louisiana Real Estate Commission made effective January 1, 2026, has no question about proposed highways, planned road projects or possible expropriation. Meanwhile, the I-49 Lafayette Connector's draft environmental study already lists, area by area, how many homes and businesses the recommended design would displace. The information exists in great detail, just not on the form a buyer reads before closing.

The closest the form gets

Section 1 of the 2026 LREC Property Disclosure Document covers land. Its nearest question reads:

"Are you aware of any rights vested in others? Check all that apply and explain at the end of this section."

"Right of way" is one of the boxes under that question. A right of way that already exists is a different thing from a highway still in federal review. The form also says its answers rest "only upon the SELLER's actual knowledge of the property" and that the seller "may not know about all material or significant items affecting the property."

So if a buyer wants to know whether a parcel sits in the Connector's path, they have to find out themselves. The public documents are a place to start.

The draft plan counts displacements by area

The project is a 5.5-mile extension of I-49 from I-10 to Lafayette Regional Airport, roughly along the Evangeline Thruway and U.S. 90. The Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement was published in the Federal Register on July 24, 2026. The Current reported that it recommends Alternative C-6, the roundabout design, as the preferred alternative.

Appendix E of the draft splits C-6's displacements by area:

The Downtown table also lists two private nonprofits and one public property.

The distribution is uneven. Mudd Addition alone accounts for 52 of roughly 93 displaced residential units. Even that number is more concentrated than it looks. The acquisition table for Mudd Addition counts 28 residential parcels, and a footnote says those include one parcel with 23 units and one with 3. That puts about half of the area's displaced units on two properties. The tables report counts by census tract and block group rather than by address, so a buyer looking at multi-unit rentals near the corridor still has to compare a specific property against the project maps.

The tables separate full takes from partial takes. Northgate, for example, shows only two residential displacements, but 20 commercial/industrial parcels in the partial-acquisition rows. A partial take can mean losing a strip of frontage, parking or access while the building stays. A small-business buyer would want to know about that before signing a lease or a purchase agreement.

The first dollars go to the south end

In October 2026, Mayor-President Monique Boulet and DOTD Secretary Glenn Ledet Jr. announced the first funding tied to Connector construction. According to The Advocate, the package is a $28 million federal grant, $21.5 million from DOTD and $500,000 from Lafayette Consolidated Government, and it pays for preconstruction work at the Kaliste Saloom Road and U.S. 90 interchange. That work includes detailed engineering, design, traffic analysis, corridor preservation and property acquisition. The interchange is expected to be the first section built. It is estimated at about $350 million and includes an elevated section over the railroad tracks.

The Current described the interchange as reshaping 2.2 miles of Kaliste Saloom and 3.5 miles of U.S. 90, and put the full Connector at $2.5 billion. So the first piece costs about one-seventh of the total. The Connector will be built in phases as money arrives.

Starting at the south end means the corridor gets resolved unevenly. The draft's southernmost area, South of Pinhook, shows 3 residential units and 5 businesses displaced. The areas with the largest displacement counts depend on funding that, in Secretary Ledet's words to The Current, is "expected to be identified over the next two legislative sessions," and that funding is only for the interchange. Mudd Addition and McComb-Veazey together carry 76 of the displaced residential units in the draft, and neither has a construction date to plan around.

That uncertainty is itself a cost. Boulet told The Current she hopes the project will boost investment along the Evangeline Thruway, a corridor she associates with blight and disinvestment going back to the highway's construction in the 1950s. For property in the segments north of the interchange, the draft says what could be acquired, and no funding yet says when.

The dates that are actually set

These are the milestones the public record supports as of publication:

1. July 24, 2026. The Draft SEIS appeared in the Federal Register.
2. September 2, 2026. DOTD held an open house and public comment session. The transcript and materials are posted on lafayetteconnector.com.
3. December 22, 2026. The extended comment period closes. Comments go through the project site's form or to [email protected], and every comment received will be addressed in the Final SEIS.
4. First quarter of 2027. The Federal Highway Administration is expected to issue the Record of Decision.
5. After the Record of Decision. Final design of the Kaliste Saloom interchange begins. The Advocate reported Ledet saying construction "could begin by 2028." The Current quoted him saying the goal is "a shovel-ready project within the next couple of years" and that groundbreaking could come within five years.

DOTD offered a comparison for how long building takes. The Current reported that the U.S. 90 interchange near Broussard, a less complex project, came in at $136.5 million, and that if it is any indication, construction could last at least two and a half years once started. If you're comparing addresses, DOTD's I-49 Virtual Meeting shows a scale model of the full 5.5 miles, including walls, barriers and piers.

What the state's acquisition rules say

If DOTD eventually needs a parcel, its Right of Way Section handles acquisition, relocation assistance and property management. The department's acquisition and relocation brochure, revised January 15, 2026, lays out several points that bear on buying near the corridor:

• An offer has to be based on an approved appraisal, and that appraisal must disregard any effect the future project has had on the property's value.
• For a partial take, the written offer has to state separately what is paid for the part taken and any damages to the rest. If the remainder has little or no value or use, the agency must offer to buy it, though the owner can keep it.
• Occupants get at least 30 days' written notice to move. A residential occupant generally can't be required to move until at least 90 days after a comparable replacement dwelling is available.
• Relocation benefits can't be paid until DOTD acquires the property. Moving or buying replacement housing before the agency authorizes it could forfeit those benefits.

The first point matters for anyone weighing a purchase price. Under the brochure's own terms, a discount a buyer gets today because a highway might come is not what the appraisal is supposed to reflect later. The project's corridor preservation plan also looked past the roadway itself. It sorted land into Level I for the right-of-way footprint, Level II for the next 500 feet, and Level III for affected areas beyond that. A property can be outside the displacement tables and still be close enough to feel the construction.

This post is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. If you own property or are considering a purchase near the corridor, confirm your situation with a real estate attorney, appraiser or lender before you act.

If you're weighing a home, rental or commercial space near the Evangeline Thruway, Reign Realty can go through the Appendix E tables with you, compare the address to the project maps, and help you write the questions about the Connector into your offer before your inspection period starts. Work With Us.