Blog by Mary Kay Hopkins

Those traveling East-bound on Interstate 10 have quite a treat in store as they come off the I-10 bridge separating Westlake from Lake Charles. This is because Lake Charles offers the only white-sand inland beach along the Gulf Coast! West-bound traffic takes the Lakeshore Drive exit as well.  Th...

Veteran's Memorial Park in Lake Charles, LA is a tribute to those who have sacrificed for our freedoms. As indicated on the city of Lake Charles website, it is "...a place where veterans and their families, and citizens of this city and state, can gather to reflect and pay tribute to those who ha...

The Southwest Louisiana Convention and Visitor's Bureau (CVB)  has long been an important resource.  My respect for executive director Shelly Johnson and crew is extreme.  For many years, the CVB produced results out of an incredibly small office. The only redeeming quality about their former hom...

Over time, I've written numerous "points of interest"  posts as well as suggestions as to great restaurants in downtown Lake Charles. It occurred to me recently that there are a tremendous number of  "Reasons to get off Interstate 10 in Lake Charles." So many, I dare not try to predict a number f...

I just posted a blog about MacFarlane's Celtic Pub, which is under the same roof as The Brick House. Lake Charles is blessed with many venues for your special event.  The Brick House on Ann Street is one of them! Of course, I'm a fan of downtown Lake Charles and greatly appreciate the renovations...

While gathering some intelligence about The Brick House and the Danny O'Flaherty concert held there on Friday, I recently had reason to stop in at MacFarlane's Celtic Pub. Having observed their busy parking lot, I was anxious to enter this most-impressive establishment that is fairly new and adjo...

I was not prepared to be captivated last night by Celtic Balladeer Danny O'Flaherty. The ticket purchase to the O'Flaherty concert was out of a desire to do something nice for my long-time friend and neighbor, Kathleen. We had celebrated her 88th birthday a few days before, so, when I noticed the...

I'm one who has not heard Daniel O'Flaherty sing.  This  grieves my 88 year old neighbor, Kathleen. Kathleen's maiden name was "Sweeney", she embraces all things Irish, inclusive of St Patrick's Day porch parties and a display of her many leprechauns and other Irish related items and she LOVES Da...

Lakeside Mixed-Use Development Approved subject to financing. I'm not going to "go there" with all my thoughts about some of the near 2-hour debate at last night's city council meeting.  At the end of the day, the Lakeside mixed-use development on the South side of the Civic Center was approved i...

Knowing the zoning of  the location you are considering as well as the surrounding areas is not always on the top of a residential buyer's mind, but it is worthwhile to consider. The City of Lake Charles makes it quite easy to determine the zoning of property via the zoning map that is posted on-...