A popular paintball business has found a new home in East Baton Rouge Parish after a dispute with Livingston Parish officials forced its owner to close the former location in Walker last summer.
Justin King, owner of Guerrilla Warfare Paintball, recently purchased a 75-acre plot of land that was once intended for the 13th Gate Park on the east side of Joor Road, south of Mickens Road.
"People have messaged every week since we shut down asking for an update," King said. "Everyone is excited to have a local place to play at right here in Baton Rouge."
The city-parish Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously approved King's request to revise the commercial recreation use for the land. Metro Council now must give its blessing to the planned use for the land before King can open.
"I don’t anticipate any negative impacts with the residents, in fact, we’re excited to have an investment in entertainment in North Baton Rouge," said District 5 Metro Councilman Darryl Hurst, who represents the area.
The early assistance from city-parish officials has King optimistic that he'll avoid past mistakes that forced his business to close in Walker.
Guerilla Warfare Paintball's previous site was sandwiched between two residential lots and drew the ire of its neighbors as business boomed in early 2021. The complaints caught the attention of Livingston Parish officials and even the Louisiana Department of Health before Livingston Parish President Layton Ricks issued a cease-and-desist order against the business for violations of commercial business code and unapproved developments on the property.
King decided to close the business in June after efforts to get Ricks to rescind the order failed.
The business' new site should allow King to avoid the same problems that derailed him in Walker, he said.
The land was once a baseball field complex, leaving it with large fields where paintball tournaments can be held and existing infrastructure that only needs minor improvements, King said. The land is also ringed by woods, ensuring it will be out of site and earshot of anyone living nearby, King said.
"With Livingston Parish, I was honestly clueless from the start," King said. "Now, knowing what to do first is going to save me a lot of heartache later."
Hurst called the businesses plans to open in North Baton Rouge a win for an often overlooked part of the city. Guerrilla Warfare Paintball's tournaments draw teams from around Louisiana and surrounding states, providing an economic opportunity for the area, Hurst said.
"(King) sells out entire hotels for tournaments," Hurst said. "That is nothing but a godsend for North Baton Rouge."
King plans to use the former baseball fields to rotate arenas for speedball tournaments and build new battlefields, such as a constructed urban environment, for paintball enthusiasts to compete in, he said.
"There's some different designs and some new stuff, but the same feel of Guerrilla Warfare," King said.
