Historic Plaquemine Lockmight not have lifted a ship since 1961, but back in downtown Plaquemine, life has turned back to the water. Since its opening in 2006 the walkways, lawns, boat docks and fishing pier of Plaquemine’s Bayou Waterfront Parkhave made the banks of Bayou Plaquemine the focus of community life again. Now the park hosts music concerts, public events, canoe races, and a July 4 festival, too.
“We’d turned our back on Bayou Plaquemine,” explains Kristine Hebert, Plaquemine’s Main Street manager. “The Park refocuses local attention back on the waterway in a positive fashion.”
And now the park offers even more.
“This is the third phase,” explains Plaquemine Mayor Mark “Tony” Gulotta of the newest addition. “ It’s a 12,000 square foot open air pavilion.”
The pavilion was created by refurbishing the old Nadler's Foundry and Machine Shop building adjacent to the park that was no longer in use. The business was founded in 1888 and was once the largest employer in Iberville Parish. The refurbishing includes a meeting facility, performance space, barbecue grills and restrooms—a welcome addition especially during the parks major events like the St. Jude Car Show and Fourth of July celebration, each of which attract thousands of attendees.
“People have been getting married at the waterfront park since it was created,” the mayor added, noting that the new pavilion gives wedding couples another facility to make a beautiful wedding setting even more perfect.
The park is located at 57845 Foundry Street, just as you enter Plaquemine for the north. For more information on upcoming events (like the 14th Annual St. Jude "Labor of Love" car show on April 14) or to reserve a park facility for your own event call (225) 687-3116.
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