LAPLACE — Brother and sister duo Alvin and Dot Barrie are opening Jazzy 2 Bar & Lounge with a promise to bring casual but classy entertainment to the mature adults of St. John the Baptist Parish.

Geared toward a 30 and up crowd, Jazzy 2 Bar & Lounge is projected to open late next month at 1036 W. Airline Highway Ste. 127 B, off of Cambridge Drive in LaPlace.

Each owner brings business experience. Prior to moving to LaPlace after Hurricane Katrina, Dot owned Dot’s Peppermint Lounge in New Orleans.

She also owned Dot’s Spot Bar and Lounge in Lutcher and Jazzy Bar in New Orleans, the latter of which was operated by Alvin from 2013 to 2015. The siblings are ready to return the family-owned business to LaPlace with a clean, laidback atmosphere and a focus on community outreach.

“I feel as though there have not been enough nice, social clubs for the middle aged and senior citizens to go sit, talk and enjoy themselves,” Dot said. “We will have a very clean and comfortable place where people can dress to impress. We’re going to have oldies but goodies music because that’s our age group. People will be able to listen to each other without having to talk over loud music.”

Family owned businesses like Jazzy 2 come with the advantage of a built-in support system, according to Dot.

“We’ve run successful businesses, and we have family participants giving each other ideas and support,” Dot said.

Dot’s daughter, Kim “Jazzy” Jackson, is helping her mother and uncle open Jazzy 2.

She said her family looks forward to building connections with local businesses.

“We’re looking to do more of that this time around,” Jazzy said. “We’ve been in St. John Parish for some years now, so we’re thinking of how we can grow within the community. We would like to host fundraisers. We can collect canned goods from clients for food drives and participate in the Parish’s back-to-school drives.”

It takes experience and networking to build success, according to Dot, who said she and her brother have the support of friends in and outside St. John the Baptist Parish.

“Our goal is to continue building relationships with other businesses in the River Parishes so we can drive business through everyone’s doors,” Dot said.

A constant through Dot’s businesses has been holiday spirit. For Christmas, Halloween and other holidays, the business will be decorated, and customers are encouraged to dress up and enjoy themed drinks.

For information on Jazzy 2 Bar & Lounge employment opportunities, call 504-275-0216.