re: Opening a reception hall/facility?

8-10K just to rent a hall for the night? That seems high.

I don't know about Baton Rouge. In NOLA, most of the wedding venues also include the catering, bar, DJ - the whole thing.

My cousin owned one for about a decade. Made really good money - but his background was as a chef and caterer. His wife did all the planning. Staffing was a pain - you don't want your servers to call in sick.

If you are just providing a space, I think your issues really are just the cost of building a large, nice space, and parking like the prior poster said.