Outdoor enthusiasts have a new recreational spot to visit this spring, now that BREC’s Frenchtown Road Conservation Area‘s new Nature Station is finally opening. After a long delay, it’s offering limited hours as the park system finishes hiring the facility’s staff and puts the final tweaks on operations. The center’s official grand opening will take place April 25, after which visitors can then expect regular programming, including night hikes and nine sessions of summer camps.
Registration for all BREC camps starts this Saturday, March 8. Along with new summer camps at Frenchtown Road Conservation Area, BREC will offer a spring break camp at the facility April 21-23.
Underway since 2020, the $2 million nature center includes exhibits on bottomland forest flora and fauna, animal encounters, meeting rooms, public restrooms and shaded picnic areas. Visitors can drop by for a self-guided hike on the 3.5 miles of trails within the nearly 500-acre site. The trails have been open for some time.
|
|
|
The conservation area is a wild, remote swath of land at the confluence of the Amite and Comite rivers in Central. Quiet and isolated, it feels like a legit escape from the hustle and bustle of Baton Rouge. BREC bought most of the land in 2009 for the purpose of creating a second conservation area similar to its popular Bluebonnet Swamp Nature Center, a 103-acre facility in the city that opened in 1997. Frenchtown’s hiking trails were first blazed in 2013, but even today, it remains a hidden gem.
That will likely change with the opening of the 4,200-square-foot nature center, which features interpretative exhibits with live, nonvenomous snakes, large educational classrooms and outdoor overlooks with views into the surrounding forest. It sits about 4 miles off O’Neal Lane on Frenchtown Road.
One of the most striking features of the surrounding land is its diverse topography. Visitors can experience pine woods, cypress swamps and beech and magnolia forests, says Kenneth LeCroy, special facilities manager of BREC’s CORE Conservation.
Five walking trails, including a large loop trail and smaller trails, showcase different features, like a bamboo grove. Overlooks along the trails allow for views of the Amite and Comite rivers. The park’s master plan calls for additional trails to be added in the future.
LeCroy says LSU researchers have also regularly used the area to conduct research. One ongoing study is on the prothonotary warbler.
“This is perfect habitat for them,” LeCroy says, “because these spots hold water year round.”
Introducing kids and adults to local ecosystems is a major focus of the conservation area. But you don’t have to be a nature nerd to enjoy it. It’s also a great place for a walk or picnic.
“It gives us an opportunity to enhance our sense of place,” says Central Mayor Wade Evans. “We’re big supporters of recreation. This ties in well with our goals as an administration to pursue greenways and pedestrian connectivity throughout our city.”
Evans echoed the sentiment that it’s taken the center an inexplicably long time to open. Construction started in 2020 and was completed in 2022.
“I can’t say what caused the delay, but I can tell you I would not have accepted it if it were under my administration,” he says.
|
|
|
BREC officials blamed a succession of pandemic-related setbacks, including supply chain challenges and rising building costs. They pointed out the need to build a new water well to support the center. The well was completed in 2023. The building also added an elevator for ADA accessibility, since it was built at a flood elevation of 12 feet.
“Last year, we began final preparations for operations and staffing after the water well and elevator passed their tests and we received the occupancy permit,” says Reed Richard, BREC assistant superintendent of planning and construction.
The Frenchtown Road Conservation Area Nature Station’s grand opening weekend is April 25-27, timed with the national City Nature Challenge. The competition pits Baton Rouge against 800 other cities for top honors in documenting the most local wildlife. Find more information at brec.org.