Texas-Based Buc-ee’s Clears Major Hurdle for I-10 Expansion

Fans of the Texas-based travel center Buc-ee's will be glad to hear that if their travel plans take them east along I-10 they won't have to drive too far to get their fix of brisket and beaver nuggets. While Texas currently has 35 Lone Star locations of the mega travel center, if you travel east on I-10 outside the state, you'll find a "whole lotta" Louisiana you must drive through to find the Beaver.

But we have some good news it looks as though Texas travelers and fans of the over-the-top travel center Buc-ee's are a little closer to having the gap that is Louisiana closed. You see, as of today, there are no Louisiana locations of Buc-ee's.

There is one currently being built on I-20 near Ruston, Louisiana. But, if you want Beaver Nuggets and bathrooms fit for a king or queen you'd have to stay in Texas or head east into Lower Alabama.

We should mention that in the next few months, there will be an I-10 location of Buc-ee's opening in Harrison County, Mississippi. That travel center is at the Menge Avenue Exit off of I-10 about 30 minutes east of the Louisiana and Mississippi state line.

That location of Buc-ee's is expected to open by the summer of 2025. Let's hope the traffic engineers figured out the traffic flow for the Harrison County Buc-ee's because stopping at the Robertsdale, Alabama store during the height of beach season is truly an exercise in futility. Okay, it's frustrating for "Dad Drivers" who just want to get to the beach and not spend an hour and a half marveling at all the Buc-ee's stuff.

For years Louisiana fans of Buc-ee's have been petitioning the brand to build a location along I-10 between Houston and New Orleans. It looks as if the top brass at Buc-ee's are considering a tract of land near Lafayette, Louisiana. The proposed site would be near the Louisiana Avenue exit which is just a few miles from the I-10/I-49 interchange.

Tuesday night the Lafayette city council approved the development of a special taxing district for that area of the city where Buc-ee's is considering building. This taxing district should act as a considerable financial incentive for the company to locate a store at the Louisiana Avenue interchange.

The approved ordinance would mean that customers who shop at the "potential Buc-ee's" would pay 2% more for items purchased at the store. The extra 2% would help defray construction costs. This would likely be considerable when you see just how much money was spent in Harrison County Mississippi at that location.

Economic experts theorize that a new Buc-ee's Travel Center on I-10 near Lafayette would bring some 150 new jobs to the area. Buc-ee's has a reputation for paying well above the national average so that could be a rather large economic impact for the Acadiana area.

The action by the Lafayette City Council still does not confirm that a Buc-ee's will be built at the proposed site but it does clear the way to make the decision to build in Acadiana more economically feasible for the company.