More than half of West Bank parks recently renovated

Renovated and state-of-the-art parks and paths are on the horizon for the West Bank of St. Charles Parish.

Out of the 18 park and recreation sites on the West bank, over half have been recently renovated or are being improved in the coming months.

Duane Foret, director of Parks and Recreation for the parish, said that while nine of the parks have recently received new equipment and facilities, six other projects are still on the way.

Monsanto Park, Keller St. Park, JB Green Park, Des Allemands Park and Fashion Plantation South Park have all received new equipment and new facilities, like pavilions and ball fields. Rathborne Park, Killona Park, and Ashton Park are all in the middle of renovations that will make them gems in their respective communities. Improvements are also planned for the Ama Grain Park and Boutte Park that include new playground equipment, seating and field lighting.

And the parish has been getting busy with the improvements – construction at Boutte, Rathborne and Ama parks should all be complete in the next couple of months.

Foret said that the West Bank Bridge Park is hands-down the finest recreational facility in the entire parish.

“The West Bank Bridge Park stands out as our most prized asset in our park structure,” Foret said. “Not only does it provide many recreational sports offerings…it also offers community enhancement events in the parish.”

The large park under the Hale Boggs Bridge in Luling has facilities and equipment to accommodate almost any event.
Parishwide events have been hosted there throughout the years, including Relay for Life, ARC Festival, United Way Bridge Run and Battle for the Paddle, Rotary Club’s Alligator Festival, Special Olympics and more.

The park includes ball fields, batting cages, a walking path, multi-use fields, tennis courts, volleyball courts, playground equipment, pavilions and picnic tables. But Foret said that the parish still isn’t done building.

A new 50-by-125-foot pavilion with lighting and an exhaust fan and three new horseshoe pits are still in the park’s future. Foret said that renovations should be complete in the next few months.

According to a recent survey of over 500 parishioners, Foret said that over 85 percent said that they had visited a parish park in the past year.

“Parks and Recreation are a vital part of our community, they provide a higher quality of life and many are benefits for all age groups,” Foret said. “Participants that are active in parks and recreational…programs have a tendency to be physically and mentally healthier.

“Parks help to lower juvenile crime rates, instill community pride and a sense of belonging, conserve green space, and attract tax paying businesses and residents, which in turn enrich our parish.”