Bunkie OMV branch moves into city-owned location

The Bunkie bureau of the Office of Motor Vehicles is now open in its new location at 220 S.W. Main St. The town-owned building is next to Parrino’s Drug Store and opened Jan. 27. Parking is available on Main Street or behind the OMV next to Capital One Bank on West Church Street.

Mayor Bruce Coulon said he and retired Fire Chief Joey Frank began the process in November 2018 to move the OMV into the building Capital One Bank had donated to the city. The state gave its permission in early 2019.

The Town Council decided in June to move the OMV out of the rented space and into the vacant town-owned building on Main Street.

The local OMV branch and the town of Bunkie have a longstanding relationship going back decades. Bunkie paid the rent, utilities and maintenance costs to keep the office in town. The state paid for the employees to staff the office.

The state assessed a special $2 fee for transactions at the Bunkie office that was paid to the town to offset the costs of maintaining the branch location.

That unique relationship helped the Bunkie office weather several budget cuts that closed many other small OMV branches around the state.

“The building wasn’t being used and we thought this would be a good use for it,” Coulon said.

The remodeling costs associated with the move were paid out of funds accumulated from the OMV fee given to the municipality.

Moving the OMV to the new location will save the city $650 a month, which Coulon said may be enough to hire a second employee “to do reinstatements for all of Avoyelles Parish.”

He said a grand opening event will be held in the near future.