GONZALES — The Ascension Parish government says that its contract with a contractor for a roundabout at the intersection of La. 929 and La. 930 has been cancelled, but the project is still intended to be finished with a new contractor.

The cancellation, announced Monday, came after "careful evaluation of the project status and construction progress," government officials said. They added that they have ended their contract with the project's contractor. In a news release, the government said that they decided to "move forward in a different direction to complete the project."

The project itself has not been cancelled, officials clarified. 

"The parish's position has consistently been that intersection improvements are still needed at this location due to traffic and safety concerns identified through roadway evaluations and traffic studies," the parish said. "The decision was related specifically to the construction contract and the need to reopen the roadway network as efficiently as possible ahead of the upcoming school year."

The roundabout was already under construction at the time of the cancellation of the contract, with two other roundabouts in Gonzales also being worked on at the same time.

The parish government said it will work with state officials and project teams to assess what work still needs to be done to reopen the intersection as quickly as possible while developing a plan to finish construction. 

"Our priority is making sure this intersection is safe, functional, and completed in a way that best serves our residents,"  Ascension Parish President Clint Cointment said. "We understand residents have experienced inconvenience during construction, and we are committed to moving this project forward responsibly and transparently."