Will Louisiana Help Pay for Shreveport Mardi Gras Parades?

There is some good news for the Mardi Gras parades in Shreveport. It looks like the state will step in to help. Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser tells KEEL News he "will do what it takes to make sure these parades roll."

Leaders from the Krewes of Centaur and Gemini met with the Mayors of Shreveport and Bossier and several department heads last week to come up with a plan to keep the parades rolling. But there has been a big question about funding for security. Krewe Captains say the city was asking them to come up with money to fund security for the parades. But during last weeks' meeting, Shreveport Mayor Adrian Perkins said he would look to the state to help cover the cost of security.

Will the State Help Fund Shreveport Mardi Gras?

KEEL asked Nungesser if the state is going to come up with some cash to help for this year. He says: "we will do whatever we gotta do to bridge the gap. We are not gonna let that stop Mardi Gras in that region."

Nungesser says the Shreveport Mardi Gras will be the biggest and best ever. He adds:

The Shreveport Bossier region saw double digit increases before Covid in out of state visitors. You have a family friendly affordable Mardi Gras. I reached out to the tourism folks and told them to let them know what we need to do. We are not only going to fund what we need to fund, but we're going to promote it all over the world and make sure we have the best Mardi Gras in north Louisiana ever.

Last week, Mayor Perkins gave his team 2 weeks to determine a viable route change for the parades. Each Krewe also agreed to an earlier, 3pm start time in an attempt to keep the current route the same.

We have been asking for your opinion about the route. You can still chime in.

https://poll.fm/10946988

The parades roll on February 19 and February 26 of 2022.