Morgan City Council clears way for 2021 Shrimp and Petroleum Festival

The area’s biggest Labor Day party is returning in 2021.
A year after it was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Louisiana Shrimp and Petroleum Festival will resume with the 86th anniversary of the event.
While the announcement was made at the end of March that the festival planned to proceed with plans for its 2021 event, the festival received official approval by the Morgan City Council during its monthly meeting Tuesday to hold the event Sept. 2-6.
“Things are going to look fairly normal,” festival Executive Director Hailee Thomas told the mayor and council. “We are taking COVID precautions as well as kind of scaling back from a budget perspective, but overall, we’re just super excited to be back this year. I know we all missed it last year.”
The festival approval was one of three events that was discussed Tuesday and requests granted.
Also during Tuesday’s council meeting, a request was granted to hold a Juneteenth Bike Ride June 19 in Morgan City.
Juneteenth Committee members Ruby Maize, Courtney “Schola” Long and Danika Long appeared before the council to get permission to hold the event.
It will begin at 8 a.m. at the former Sumpter Williams School and continue through Morgan City before reaching Jimmie Johnson Memorial Park under the elevated U.S. 90 bridge near Fifth Street.
Maize said a bike ride was held in 2019, and it was a success. However, the event was not held in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the event, participants will stop at about six different current or former African American businesses where they will learn about each.
Juneteenth commemorates the moment in history when slavery was banned in America.
“It’s not a recognized national holiday, but it is a day that we commemorate to show support of this effort, and that’s what we want to here in Morgan City is show African American owned businesses that started here, that’s still going on here,” Maize said.
At Jimmie Johnson Memorial Park, participants will be addressed by a speaker, and refreshments will be served.
“This is a bike ride for all, for all of the public,” Long said. “If you don’t know a lot of the history of this area, please join us. … I would love to see many faces out there with us.”
The registration deadline is June 10. To register, call Ruby at 985-498-0050 or Trina at 985-498-6003.
Also Tuesday, the council approved a request by Morgan City Main Street to close Front Street from Greenwood to Freret streets from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m. on July 24 for a vendor’s market during the Bayou BBQ Bash. No businesses will be blocked by the booths.
Vendor fees will be used for Main Street projects.
For the city’s 4th of July Lake Jam that is scheduled for July 4 at Lake End Parkway, the council granted approval for alcohol sales so that a special events alcohol license can be secured from Louisiana Alcohol and Tobacco Control. Morgan City Main Street will be selling the alcohol as a fundraiser, Mayor Lee Dragna said.
The Boy Scouts will sell water and soda, and there will be approximately four food vendors onsite.