A neighbor for Port Wonder
Published 6:00 pm Wednesday, October 30, 2019
Crying Eagle Brewing Company plans to build a full-service restaurant and microbrewery on the lakefront, next to the proposed multimillion-dollar Port Wonder project, officials said during a news conference on Tuesday.
The proposed business will be located just west of the former Harrah’s Casino parking garage and will feature a rooftop bar, open courtyard and covered patio. Eric Avery, Crying Eagle president, said it will help “reshape the landscape of the lakefront.”
The City Council in September authorized advertisements of requests for proposals for a lakefront restaurant. After reviewing Crying Eagle’s proposal, CSRS, a city consultant, recommended it be accepted and to begin negotiations.
“We believe this is an incredibly worthwhile project,” said Mayor Nic Hunter. “With this announcement, and Port Wonder, we are creating an arts, culture and entertainment epicenter for our city.”
The City Council may consider a cooperative endeavor agreement on the project within the next two months, Hunter said.
The initial brewery was supposed to be built on the lakefront, but the idea was scrapped, Avery said. The East McNeese Street location has been open for more than three years. Hunter said it attracts more than 60,000 visitors annually, with 40 percent being from outside Lake Charles.
City Council President Luvertha August called the lakefront restaurant “a long time coming.”
“Hopefully, now, we’re on our way,” she said.
Avery said the restaurant will be family-friendly and will feature a modern industrial design. Once it opens, the existing brewery will continue to handle the bulk of production and distribution, he said.
Port Wonder
A groundbreaking for Port Wonder, a $20 million-plus lakefront development project, will happen “in the coming months,” Hunter said. The facility, first announced last November, will house the Children’s Museum of Lake Charles and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries’ Science Center and Educational Complex.
“You will soon begin to see quite a bit of activity on this site,” Hunter said.
Raising the base flood elevation of the lakefront property may also start by the end of this year. Hunter called this “a necessary first step” before construction of Port Wonder can begin.
“This work must be completed and allowed time to settle and compact,” Hunter said. “You have to let it sit for four to six months.”
Parking garage
Work to refurbish the old Harrah’s parking garage is still in the design phase, Hunter said. He said the structure is in good shape.
“It may not look like it, but it is solid concrete,” he said.
Renovating the parking garage is expected to cost up to $2 million, Hunter said. That is cheaper than paying an estimated $500,000 to tear it down, along with up to $8 million to build a new garage.
“Though it took a long time to get there, it was the financially responsible thing to do,” Hunter said. “We’re going to make use of this asset.”
On Tuesday, Oct. 29, Crying Eagle Brewing Company announced plans to build a restaurant and microbrewery next to the proposed multimillion-dollar Port Wonder project on the lakefront. Renderings produced by DesignVision.
On Tuesday, Crying Eagle Brewing Company announced plans to build a restaurant and microbrewery next to the proposed multimillion-dollar Port Wonder project on the lakefront. Renderings produced by DesignVision.
