<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">LAKE ARTHUR — Mayor Robbie Bertrand said the town finalized the purchase of the old Capital One Bank this week and may use it for a new town hall. The building is across from Town Hall on Arthur Avenue.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">“We are looking into and starting to explore the options of what we want to do with the building now that we own it,” Bertrand said. “The possibility of making it the new city hall has been talked about. We are looking into the feasibility of that now.”</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The bank building is newer and bigger than Town Hall and “perfectly situated,” he said.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">On Wednesday, the town council tabled plans to accept a proposal for architectural services from a Shreveport-based company. Alderman Robert Palermo asked that the item be tabled to allow the council more time to consider options and research the project.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The town also needs more time to consider the feasibility of the project, Bertrand said.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The current town hall could be used to ease overcrowding of the Lake Arthur Police Department, which shares the building.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">“The Police Department is cramped,” Bertrand said.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The price of the old bank was once considered too high for the town, but it dropped and the town bought it for $125,000, he said.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The reduced price also made the building more attractive to others, including some whose plans were not in the best interest of the downtown area, Bertrand said.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Owning the building will give the town more control on what is located there, even if it is not turned into a new town hall, he said. The building has been vacant for about two years.</span>