BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – Teens and kids wanting to visit the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge will soon have to have an adult accompany them on Friday and Saturday evenings.
Officials with the Mall of Louisiana announced that beginning Friday, June 28, a Parental Guidance Required (PGR) program will be in effect at the Mall of Louisiana on Friday and Saturdays after 4 p.m.
As part of the program, officials say guests under 18 years old will be required to be accompanied by a parent or supervising adult who is at least 21 years old while they are on the shopping center property, including in the parking lot and exterior sidewalks.
To accomplish this, a spokesperson said mall security will be stationed at all entrances, including department store entrances, during PGR hours to check IDs for those visitors who look younger than 18 years old. Optional wristbands will be given out to let the trained public safety officers know a visitor’s age has already been verified.
“We strive to provide a safe shopping experience for every visitor and are constantly evaluating our comprehensive security program to meet the changing needs of our customers and merchants. Therefore, we will be implementing our Parental Guidance Required (PGR) program,” said Gene Satern, senior general manager of the Mall of Louisiana. “I want to stress that everyone is still welcome at our center, but on weekends moving forward we require families to shop together.”
According to officials, anyone who cannot provide a valid photo ID must be accompanied by a parent or supervising adult. Each adult can only accompany up to four people under 18 years old and must remain with them the whole time.
Announcements will reportedly be made starting at 3 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays to give unsupervised youths time to complete their shopping or dining before PGR begins. After 4 p.m., anyone who appears underage and is not wearing a wristband or with an adult will be asked for their ID.
Teens who work at the mall will receive their own wristbands, so they can move freely within the property, said the spokesperson.
The Mall of Louisiana is located at 6401 Bluebonnet Boulevard in Baton Rouge.
Fellow mall area Perkins Rowe already has a policy in place for underage visitors.
According to Perkins Rowe, visitors 17 years old and younger must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian after 8 p.m. daily. Valid ID must be provided as proof of age.
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