Several Calcasieu Parish parks have kiosks that inform visitors about the unique aspects and features of each park, including wildlife that can be seen, natural resources and activities that the parks offer.

Kiosks have been installed at Alligator, Holbrook, Intracoastal, Lorrain, White Oak and Prien Lake parks, said Anne Taber Klenke, adventure tourism director for the Southwest Louisiana Convention & Visitors Bureau.

The kiosks were funded using part of a $211,000 grant given to the Calcasieu Police Jury after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The money, administered by the visitors bureau, is being spent on tourism-related projects.

Shelley Johnson, the bureau’s executive director, said the idea for the kiosks came about during discussion with parish officials and visitors bureau staff. She said the kiosks give visitors “a much more user-friendly experience.”

“It tells them more about what they are seeing when they go to these parks,” she said. “When you invite a visitor to come here and they don’t know where to go and what to do, the signage is an important part of the visiting process.”

The kiosk at Intracoastal Park informs visitors of the park’s access to the Calcasieu River and Calcasieu Lake. It also mentions how the river contains white perch, bass and catfish, and that the lake is a good spot for catching red fish, speckled trout and flounder. It includes a map of the parish that shows the locations of the other parish parks.

Another kiosk will be installed at Prien Lake Park once the sidewalk project is finished, and one kiosk will be installed at Calcasieu Point Landing once the enhancement project is done, Klenke said.

Online: www.cppj.net/parks.

(Special to the American Press)