The city of Lake Charles hosted a public meeting Tuesday for property owners along the Mardi Gras parade routes in the City Council Chambers. Katie Harrington, public information officer, Lake Charles, said that the planning for Southwest Louisiana Mardi Gras has taken place over the course of many months.

“Mardi Gras is the hallmark of Southwest Louisiana, and I think we all get to experience it from different sides of it. There’s the Krewes side, the parading side, but for us here at the city there’s the logistical planning side of it.”

When planning for SWLA Mardi Gras, public safety is a major factor, Harrington said. One major change for SWLA Mardi Gras 2024 to amp up safety is the barricade schedule.

“The commitment to working together to make every effort to provide an environment that is conducive to a safe and family-friendly Mardi Gras is stronger than ever. … As our Mardi Gras celebration continues to grow each year, it’s imperative that we heed the advice of our public safety officials and make changes to our route security efforts.”

Sgt. Scott Dougherty, LCPD, Traffic Division, said that the parades that happen over the weekend sometimes have a larger attendance than the ones on Mardi Gras. Due to the large attendance, barricades will be put out along the entire parade route on Friday, Feb. 9, and stay up throughout Mardi Gras weekend; Ryan Street between Clarence and West Sale streets will be one lane each way from Friday until Tuesday.

Command Centers will be set up throughout the parade route. The Ward 3 Marshal’s Office will have one on the north end of the Event Center. The LCPD will have a main Command Center at Immaculate Conception Cathedral School, Ryan and 7th streets, and a secondary Command Center on Mardi Gras Day at Home Furniture, 1314 Ryan St. The Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office will have three: Ryan and 18th streets, Golden Hooks, south of Ryan and College streets and the old K-Mart parking lot, Ryan and Sale streets.

Parade rules are as follows: No littering, no glass containers of any kind, leave your pets at home, leave all valuables at home, no open fires or BBQ pits in or on vehicles of public right-of-ways, do not pour hot coals on the ground, stay behind all police lines or curbs, do not join, chase or follow floats, no bikes, skateboards, rollerblades, hoverboards or Smart Balance Wheels along the routes and do not obstruct sidewalks.

Harrington said that the Public Works crews are the “unsung heroes of Mardi Gras in Lake Charles.”

“I think it’s a hallmark of our city that you can pass down Ryan St. an hour or two after a parade has rolled through and you can’t even tell that a parade has been there.”

Following each parade, the street sweepers will be escorted by law enforcement for about 45 minutes to clean up the roadways.

Bagged litter and trash will be picked up by Public Work starting at 7 a.m. on Wednesday, February 14. All bagged litter and trash should be placed at the curb after the parades.

Parade Schedule

The city has released the 2024 Mardi Gras parade schedule.

The KPC Parade starts at 11 a.m. on Saturday, February 3. It begins and ends at KPC Hall, 2526 Opelousas St.

The Lake Charles Mardi Gras Parade begins at 1 p.m. on Sunday, February 4. It will start at the Lake Charles Event Center and travel down Broad St, to Shattuck St, turn onto Belden St. and move to Ryan St before turning onto Pine St. to return to the Event Center.

The Mardi Gras of SWLA Merchants’ Parade is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Friday, February 9 and the Children’s Parade for 1 p.m. on Sunday, February 11. At 5 p.m. on Mardi Gras, Tuesday, February 13, the Mardi Gras of SWLA Krewe of Krewes Parade will begin.

All three of these parades will use the Ryan St. Parade Route; It will begin at the north end of Bord du Lac Drive, cross over onto Pine St., turn right onto Ryan St. and continue south on Ryan to Sale Rd.

There are multiple other parades happening over Mardi Gras Weekend.

The walking parade for children, the City of Lake Charles Children’s Mardi Gras Stroll, will take place at 10 a.m. on Saturday, February 10 on First Ave, starting at the LCB Cougar Stadium. Later that day, the Cumulus Broadcasting Krewe of Barkus Parade will start at the intersection of Broad and Ryan St. at 1 p.m. After the Barkus parade, the Krewe of Omega Parade departs from the Lake Charles Event Center at 2 p.m. It will travel down Broad St. to Enterprise Blvd, turn onto Mill St. and return to the Event Center.

At 1 p.m. on Mardi Gras, the Mardi Gras of SWLA’s Second Line Stroll Walking Parade will go from Pine and Ryan St and travel south down Ryan St. to Dr. DeBakey Dr. At 2:30 p.m. Jeeps on Parade will travel down Ryan St. from Pine St. to Sale Rd. Then at 3 p.m., the Motor Gras Parade will begin at Pine and Ryan St. and head south to Sale Rd.

For a full list of Mardi Gras parades and events, visit www.swlamardigras.com.