Business, industry leaders George Swift and Daniel Groft are optimistic about SW La’s future. – American Press

Southwest Louisiana has begun a new chapter as it continues to recover from business disruptions caused by the epidemic and subsequent climate disruptions.

“Despite everything we’ve been through, the area is strong and the people are strong,” said George Swift, president and CEO of the Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance. “We mustn’t forget that we have invested nearly $45 billion in projects that have created more than 15,000 permanent jobs and gained an additional industrial base.”

Swift said Southwest Louisiana has about twice as much in the pipeline coming in the next two to three years.

“We’re going to have another big boost in industrialization, plus we have a recovering economy where people are still buying a lot of building materials, furniture, appliances, etc. Sales taxes have been very good,” Swift said. “Business is generally good in the area.”

While many small businesses in the area have not returned, Swift said others such as the newly reopened Path of Henderson and the start of renovations at Capitol One Tower are coming on strong.

He cited the economic benefit the area would receive when the storm began mediating between policyholders and their insurers.

“We are well prepared for the future,” Swift said.

Southwest Louisiana continues to be a “global center of importance,” said Daniel Groft, director of the HC Drew Center for Business and Economic Analysis at McNeese State University.

“When you look at LNG export volumes, it’s down more than 15 percent in Cameroon,” Groft said. “This has really helped the port and the ship channel recover. We’re sending a lot of LNG to Europe, to Asia, everywhere.

“There are areas around the country that could give anything to that kind of industrial base, and I think we take it for granted because we’ve grown up with it and we’ve been around for generations,” Swift said. “If we didn’t have an industrial base, it would be less of everything because industrial work easily creates five to six jobs in the community – things like medical services, restaurants, service stations, insurance companies, car dealers, all of these feed into industrial jobs.

Groft said that the area is slowly and steadily coming into operation and that the industrial projects that have been announced will continue to grow once they complete their financial and construction plans.

“We’re above where we were in jobs before the hurricane; we’ve gained about 6,400,” Groft said.

While construction jobs have been booming since the storm, the hospitality sector is still down by about 1,600 jobs. Groft said the area should be above pre-epidemic levels in the next two years.

Despite the closure of the Isle of Capri, gaming revenues are also close to pre-pandemic levels, with revenues increasing per entry and continuing to remain at high levels.

“The game is a huge success because the revenue went to zero during the pandemic and they were shut down during the storm,” Groft said. “We are now at those previous levels even though the island of Capri is closed and we have one less gaming facility. Once up and running, Horseshoe will employ about 700 people and likely grow the market, not cannibalize it.

Groft said when the census was released, Southwest Louisiana Metropolitan Statistical Areas lost more percentage points due to immigration than any other MSA in the country.

“We’ve got to get people back, work, get a place to live and get our workforce back because Calcasieu as a whole has about 3 percent of the workforce that was working before the outbreak,” Groft said. “We have more job openings. Calcasieu has more job openings than unemployment.

Every business Swift knows is looking for workers, some cutting back on hours until their workforce needs are met.

McNeese State University and Sowella Technical Community College have courses necessary to train the workforce, and there are grants to help adults return to school, Swift said.

Future projects

Swift said the area needs “vision, focus and commitment” to accommodate some of the upcoming projects at work.

“Chennault International Airport has a lot of potential for development from the golf course, but it needs a lot of water and sewer capacity. So does Lacasseine Industrial Park and Bayard Airport,” Swift said. “

Swift said the area’s early leaders had a vision to create a shipyard, which made the area an industrial base.

“They had the vision and they made it happen,” Swift said. “The Chamber pushed for a junior college several years ago and turned it into McNeese State University. Our Chamber Bridge Task Force has been active for five years and is now in motion on the Interstate 10-Calcasieu River Bridge Project.

Swift said the area needs to focus on quality of life to keep people here and attract new ones in the long term.

“We have to keep our local people here,” Swift said. “This is a big deal. We need to have amenities that people like in the community, like parks and activities and bike lanes. We need to keep our young people here and attract new ones because we don’t have enough manpower to fill all the positions. We have to make ourselves a constituency.

Swift said the local economy is on a positive trajectory.

“Southwest Louisiana is a good state,” he said. Considering our past, we are good and have a strong forecast.

Swift said an indicator of the region’s strong economy is the volume of inquiries from businesses looking to relocate to the region.

“Many fast food restaurants want to come here and we have 32 industrial projects that we are working on,” he said. “In addition to Site Choice Magazine’s national recognition, we have been ranked among the top 20 economic development teams in the country, which puts us on par with Nashville, Austin and Baton Rouge. Our return is a testament to that.”

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Editor’s Note: George Swift and Daniel Groft will share additional insights and analysis on the future of the region’s infrastructure and economic health on Tuesday. American Press Commercial coverage.