About ten minutes east of the city of Lake Charles are the remains of an abandoned water park. The decaying structures are clearly visible from the busy I-10 freeway and for years drivers have wondered about it's history and why it was left for dead.
The Pirate's Cove Water Park actually has a rather interesting story behind it. A story that has been repeated over and over again, unfortunately, here in Louisiana. It's just another example of how government bureaucracy in this state killed an enterprise before it could ever get off the ground.
Construction on the park began in 2008 and it was scheduled to open sometime in 2010. The sprawling complex was envisioned as an oasis from the hot summer heat that would feature luxurious amenities like a 900 foot long lazy river, a giant splash pad for the kids and eventually a five star hotel. The Pirate's Cove would have been an obvious tourist destination that could have brought much needed tax dollars and employment opportunities to the area.
As the story goes the owner of the property ran into zoning, licensing and permit problems with the city and the state of Louisiana from the get go. All of these struggles have been documented at length on the park's Facebook page. It seems that the owner fought an endless battle with state and local authorities over issues regarding everything from safety, hooking up to the city water supply to what kind of plastic the water slides were made of. This went on for over a decade until 2019 when the builder believed that he had done everything necessary to open and his last post on Facebook stated that applications for employment would be posted soon.
That was the last time that anyone heard from the owners of Pirate's Cove.
It is believed that a dispute with the local water district plus more state and local permits that were needed to open finally killed the project.
Today the property is in ruin from flooding, hurricanes and overall neglect. What Mother Nature didn't destroy vandals have ransacked and looted. Despite rumors online that the project is still ongoing and that it will indeed open for business one day, a tour of the grounds reveals damage so severe that it would take a fortune to repair what remains.
I personally find it appalling how state and local government here in Louisiana makes it almost impossible to start a new business. You would think that they would do everything in their power to help something that would bring both tourism and employment opportunities to the region flourish. In this case the bureaucrats were very short sighted trying to grab fees from permits and licenses up front instead of reaping the benefits of all the tax dollars a place like this would generate over the decades to come.
It just goes to prove that if you have a dream, don't try and make it come true in Louisiana.
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