FEMA’s two “floatel” vessels moored at the City Dock downtown are temporarily relocating today to make space at the dock for the Queen of the Mississippi, which is scheduled to arrive with 150 passengers around 4:30 p.m. for a three-hour stop.
The Queen is the first of two paddlewheel-style cruise ships that will visit the city in the coming days. The 450-passenger American Queen is scheduled to dock here Saturday.
The return of the river cruises at the end of summer is usually a welcome development for downtown and tourism officials, signaling the start of the fall tourist season.
This year, with the River Center serving as a shelter for flood victims and the City Dock occupied by the two FEMA supply vessels, accommodating the paddlewheelers has posed a bit of a logistical challenge.
However, Downtown Development District Executive Director Davis Rhorer says FEMA has worked with the city, DDD and Visit Baton Rouge to come up with a plan: The federal agency will move its so-called floatels away from the dock and anchor them in the middle of the river while the cruise ships are docked here.
“Coordination is key at this point,” Rhorer says. “But I think we’re OK at this point and have it all figured out.”
River cruises typically spend a couple of hours moored at the City Dock. The smaller of the two, the Queen of the Mississippi, has a longer stop and its passengers mill around the downtown area on foot. The larger American Queen takes its passengers on a bus tour.
One attraction cruise ship passengers won’t be able to visit on their stop downtown is the USS Kidd. The World War II-era battleship has been closed since River Road was partially closed to accommodate flood victims staying at the shelter.
The Louisiana Art and Science Museum, which is also affected by the partial closure of River Road, announced Monday it has cut back its hours of operation for the time being.
Rhorer says while use of the City Dock and the River Center for flood relief has caused disruptions downtown, the problems are not insurmountable.
“We just have to make sure we plan ahead,” he says. “But it’s important to remember that this is a very traumatic thing. It’s very disruptive and emotionally very draining for those who have been affected so we need to be very supportive as a community.”
—Stephanie Riegel
