ST. LANDRY PARISH
Parish Offices
118 South Court Street
Opelousas 337-948-3688
https://stlandrypg.org
Chamber of Commerce
109 West Vine Street
Opelousas 337-942-2683
https://www.stlandrychamber.com
Nestled in central-southwestern Louisiana in the heart of Cajun Country, picturesque St. Landry Parish is bordered on the east by the beautiful Atchafalaya River. Interstate 49 and Louisiana Highway 190 intersect in the parish, ensuring easy commutes to regional destinations including the City of Lafayette. Home to a diversified economy and a traditional agricultural economy, the parish has seen significant growth with major business wins like the Wal-Mart Distribution Center, employing 1,300 and moving 400 trucks each day to generate $89 million annually. Evangeline Downs Race Track and Casino has added the gaming industry to healthcare, oil production, services, tourism, and lumbering as significant activities.
Services
Healthcare services and facilities are exceptionally well developed in St. Landry Parish, home to the Opelousas General Health System. Taking for its mission, “Our family caring for yours,” OGHS emphasizes compassionate, patient-centered care supported by state-of-the-art technology. The full-service medical center covers two campuses to offer a 241-bed medical center and the region’s most comprehensive healthcare services. Patients have the advantage of specialties like Dr. Gerald E. Posner Center for Women’s Health, the da Vinci® Surgical System for minimally invasive surgical procedures, the Cancer Center with its multi-disciplinary team approach, a 16-bed Intensive Care Unit, a Wound Treatment Center, rehabilitation and therapies, senior services, pediatrics, community education, and two emergency rooms. The main campus ER is dedicated to trauma and critical care while the south campus ER focuses on less serious injuries and illnesses. The City of Eunice is home to another full-service hospital, Acadia Medical Center, a 52-bed acute-care medical facility with a primary service area of more than 25,000 people. The hospital is conveniently located near the new 40,000-square-foot Physician’s Plaza for easy access to primary and specialty care. The hospital features all private rooms and a comprehensive list of inpatient and outpatient services. Nearby Lafayette is a hub of advanced facilities and resources including Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center, Lafayette General Health, and the Regional Medical Center of Acadiana.
St. Landry Parish is justly proud of its educational system, from progressive public school districts to private schools that include the historic Academy of the Sacred Heart, a Catholic day and boarding school for girls. Founded in 1821, the school is the oldest in Acadiana and the second-oldest in the nation west of the Mississippi River. Many other options for a private education are available in the parish from preschool through high school. Opportunities for a higher education begin close to home at Louisiana State University at Eunice, maintaining associate-degree transfer agreements with every state-supported university in 100 areas of study. One of the premier choices in this region for a four-year research institution is the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, covering 1,300 acres with its 145-acre main campus and specialized centers that include University Research Park, New Iberia Primate Research Center, the Center for Ecology and Environmental Technology, and Edith Garland Dupre Library—one of the state’s most technologically advanced university libraries. The second-largest university in the state, UL Lafayette enrolls nearly 18,000 students in bachelor’s and graduate degree programs including doctorates. Lafayette is also home to Southern Louisiana Community College and the private two-year Remington College.
Lifestyle
St. Landry Parish is a place like no other, from the Saturday Night Live Radio Show at Liberty Theater to the finest in Cajun and Zydeco music or the Atchafalaya Gateway towns of Krotz Springs and Melville. Every city, every community has a point of pride in St. Landry Parish. Eunice is home to a number of fine museums, Grand Couteau preserves stunning architecture, and Cannatella’s Grocery & Hardware has been serving the people of Melville since 1923. Opelousas is the parish seat and largest city, providing the largest number of attractions including the Historic Delta Grand Theatre, now hosting a full calendar of performing arts events. The city is also home to the Creole Heritage Folklife Center, preserving the traditions of the African-American community and Creole culture. Le Vieux Village in Opelousas is another local treasure, a recreated village of historic structures donated by area families that hosts a number of popular events and activities. Shoppers will delight in charming historic main streets lined with restaurants, cafes, shops, bookstores, boutiques, and antique dealers.
Not every attraction in St. Landry Parish is historic, as evidenced by the wildly popular Evangeline Downs Racetrack & Casino. Gaming areas combine with live thoroughbred and quarter horse racing, with great music and food in casual and fine dining settings. Mojo Sports Bar has 20 televisions and a mammoth TV wall. Outdoor recreation is outstanding in and near the parish. The Indian Bayou Area is a 28,000-acre public access area in the heart of the Atchafalaya Basin with areas for hiking, all-terrain vehicle trails, and hunting. The vast Atchafalaya Basin encompasses the Sherburne Wildlife Management Area, covering 40,000 acres in a four-parish region to provide a picturesque backdrop for hunting, fishing, off-roading, trapping, camping, hiking, cycling, bird watching, and nature photography. A shooting range complex is open all year and boat launches are available on Big Alabama and Little Alabama bayous. The Thistlethwaite Wildlife Management Area has a 17-mile tract with 11,000 acres of land for birding and nature walks. Quiet, small rural communities like Arnaudville, Leonville, Cankton, Melville, and Palmetto dot the landscape, expanding the options for country living in close proximity to urban resources. Serving as a gateway to the vast Sherburne Wildlife Management Area, Krotz Springs nestles along the Atchafalaya River. Those who are looking for big-city amenities that are delivered in a small-town package of historic charm will find no better place to call home than St. Landry.
COMMUNITY PROFILES
Grand Coteau
Town Hall
337-662-5246
Chamber of Commerce
337-942-2683
https://www.stlandrychamber.com
The small town of Grand Coteau is distinguished as being one of the few primarily rural districts on the National Register of Historic Places. Well-known for the beauty of magnificent trees that create lovely alleys, groves and gardens, the town preserves more than 70 homes and buildings of architectural significance that blend the finest examples of Creole, French, Acadian, Anglo-American, and Victorian styles. Majestic religious institutions are particularly abundant since Grand Coteau and Catholicism have deeply entwined roots dating back 175 years. The Church of St. Charles Borromeo designed by New Orleans architect James Freret may be the crown jewel, although many are drawn to the shrine of the Miracle of Grand Coteau located on the grounds of the still-operating girls school, the Academy of the Sacred Heart. St. Charles College was founded in 1837, serving today as an inspirational retreat housing a Jesuit seminary and spirituality center. Both visitors and local residents have the advantage of local shops, boutiques, antique dealers, and wonderful cuisine all housed in charming historic buildings.
Eunice
City Offices
337 457-7389
https://www.eunice-la.com
Chamber of Commerce
337-457-2565
https://www.eunicechamber.com
Spanning Acadia and St. Landry parishes, the City of Eunice is the self-proclaimed “Heart of Acadiana!” Newcomers will discover a vibrant small city with great food, wonderful music, and friendly neighbors. One of the highlights in Eunice is the beautifully restored 1924 Liberty Center for the Performing Arts, listed on the National Register of Historic Places and hosting cultural events including the internationally famous “Rendez-Vous des Cajuns” performances of Cajun and Zydeco music and humorists. The crawfish industry thrives in this area as well, celebrated in the World Championship Crawfish Etouffee Cook-Off. Eunice is home to the Cajun Prairie Habitat and the Prairie Acadian Cultural Center for Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve. History springs to life in other venues like the Cajun Music Hall of Fame, Eunice Depot Museum, and the Nutcracker Museum. Louisiana State University at Eunice is rated among the nation’s top community colleges, the proud home of the championship Bayou Bengals baseball team and Bayou Bengals women’s basketball and softball teams. The city is also home to an outstanding regional healthcare facility, Acadia Medical Center.
Opelousas
City Offices
337-948-2520
http://cityofopelousas.com
Chamber of Commerce
337-942-2683
https://www.stlandrychamber.com
The bustling center of government, healthcare, education, commerce, and entertainment for St. Landry Parish is the well-developed City of Opelousas. Grand historic architecture and cultural enrichment combines with mouth-watering cuisine and some of the best music in Louisiana in this lively and colorful city. Opelousas is known for many things, from flamboyant celebrations like the Spice & Music Festival and the Yambilee Sweet Potato Festival to Zydeco music. Neighboring Plaisance attracts thousands of visitors to the Original Southwest Louisiana Zydeco Music Festival each summer. The Opelousas Historic District is particularly charming with brick sidewalks dating back to 1830 and streets lined with antebellum, Victorian, and turn-of-the-century homes and buildings. Historic treasures dating back to the 1700s include St. Landry Catholic Church and the Michel Prudhomme Home. The Creole Heritage & Folklife Center, Louisiana Orphan Train Museum, Opelousas Museum & Interpretive Center, and Le Vieux Village de Poste des Opelousas preserve the area’s rich past. Le Vieux Village springs to life with Music & Market events that combine live entertainment with a farmers market. Other highlights include wonderful parks and recreation centers, modern and historic commercial districts, a restored performing arts center, a full-service hospital, and lovely neighborhoods.
Port Barre
Town Offices
336-585-7646
https://www.townofportbarre.com
Chamber of Commerce
337-942-2683
https://www.stlandrychamber.com
Port Barre credits its early development to its status as a steamboat landing area. The town refused to die when that era ended and reinvented itself as a saw mill center for vast timber operations. When oil was discovered in the Hazelwood field in 1928, the community saw another surge of growth. The opening of Highway 190 placed the town along a major route to Baton Rouge, literally creating new avenues of opportunity. Today, Port Barre is a thriving small community with local industries that provide local and regional employment. The town is a gracious host to those who arrive to celebrate special events including the Lions Club Cracklin Festival in November or tourists destined for the Bayou Teche RV Park at the junction of Bayous Teche and Courtableau. The small camping park is located on the site of an historic French Trading Post. Veterans’ Memorial Park is another point of pride for Port Barre, home to one of the largest and oldest oak trees in the nation—listed in the National Historical Register.
Sunset
Town Hall
337-662-5296
http://www.sunsetlouisiana.com/town-info
Chamber of Commerce
337-942-2683
https://www.stlandrychamber.com
Once known as the Sweet Potato Capital of the World, Sunset evolved over the decades into an agriculture center for soybeans and corn. Billing itself as the “friendliest town in Louisiana,” this welcoming community offers basic conveniences that serve the surrounding rural residents as well as those who live in the heart of town. Napoleon Avenue is the commercial center for Sunset, lined with medical and office buildings, pharmacies, banks, supermarkets, insurance companies, beauty salons, and law offices. The Sunset Community Center provides a gathering place for meetings and events. Local points of pride include the circa 1904 Brinkhaus Home, the annual Celebration of Herbs and Gardens by the Sunset Garden Club, and the “biggest little Mardi Gras Parade” in Louisiana sponsored by the Sertoma Club. Residents enjoy the intimacy of a small town just 10 miles north of Lafayette and 10 miles south of Opelousas along Interstate 49.
Washington
Town Offices
337-826-3626
http://townofwashingtonla.org
Chamber of Commerce
337-942-2683
https://www.stlandrychamber.com
In a parish brimming over with historic sites and grand architecture, the town of Washington stands in a class of its own for elegance, grace, and charm. Some even say Washington is to Louisiana what Williamsburg is to Virginia. More than 80 percent of this once thriving steamboat town is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, showcased in home and walking tours through magnificent residences and buildings that now house boutiques, restaurants, bed and breakfast inns, and antique shops. Highlights include the Antique Schoolhouse Mall, Magnolia Ridge Plantation, and the Old Steamboat Warehouse on Bayou Courtableau. For much of the 19th century, Bayou Courtableau served as the largest inland port between New Orleans and St. Louis. Because the bayou was navigable south to New Orleans and northward by flatboat to the rich agricultural area, Washington flourished as a center of commerce and transportation. Other St. Landry Parish cities surpassed Washington for population growth and modern development, which only makes Washington even more irresistible as a timeless remnant of a glorious past.
