Houma selected to pilot state LED program

Houma was one of 12 cities in Louisiana recently selected to participate in a new six-month state program called the Louisiana Development Ready Communities Pilot Program that helps local economic development agencies foster plans to improve area economies.

“(The program) takes plans we already have in place and further refines them,” said Terrebonne Economic Development Authority CEO Mike Ferdinand. “And it will create new ones. The strategic planning process never ends.”

Louisiana Economic Development kicked off the program yesterday with a meeting in Crowley for participating cities in the southern part of the state, Ferdinand said.

“If you look at the number of economic development projects-expansion, relocation, new facilities-it’s a competitive economy, but there are more communities competing than there are projects,” said Skip Smart, LED’s director of community development.

“A business seeking to locate looks at the capacity of the region to support that business,” he said. “We’re helping communities to be development ready to enhance their competitiveness in the global marketplace, to be as development ready as they can be.”

LED launched the program on Aug. 7 at the Louisiana Municipal Association Annual Conference in Alexandria.

In the program, LED staff and outside business consultants will work with local agencies to perform economic assessments of participating communities, Smart said, and aid in creating marketing plans to attract business and strategic economic development plans. The state agency will also help establish leadership development programs.

As part of the community assessment portion, LED and local economic development agency staffs will evaluate the strength of economic sectors in the area such as health care, education and the workforce, Smart said.

Creating strategic development plans involves agencies asking where they want to be in five years and what steps and resources will be needed to achieve goals, he said.

The marketing plans will help cities promote themselves as attractive areas for business.

“When we get (Web site) hits, we look to help them rise to the top,” he said.

Creating leadership development programs has obstacles, Smart said. “It’s the same vision as in the strategic plan,” he said. “Getting people to work together is big but we’ll do what we can to help them succeed.”

Among the LED staff working with TEDA as part of the program will be Anne Perry, LED’s Bayou Regional director. An economic development representative from Entergy will also be part of the local team.

Entergy is one of the main private partners working with the program in Houma, Smart said.

“(The program) is not costing any money but staff time,” he said, “and specific resources as needed. We put together a resource team to work with each community. The real cost is the time spent on these initiatives.”

Also as part of the program, site selection consultants will help the participating cities perform economic assessments from the viewpoint of a site selection consultant seeking to locate a business in the community.

Smart said TEDA’s application to LED successfully identified what the local agency wanted to accomplish through the program. “The application rose to the top,” he said. Twenty five cities applied.

Smart said LED staff will follow up on Houma and the other participating cities to ensure that the economic development plans resulting from the program are being implemented.

“Lots of communities put strategic plans on the shelf,” he said. “It doesn’t get implemented. It’s worthless not to implement it. We will be following up so the community will have accountability for itself.”

Ferdinand said, “You have to review where you are in the process-it’s necessary in the current business climate-and adjust for plans. (The program) is helping us update and continue our mission. It’s an opportunity.”

Other cities in south Louisiana selected for the program include Crowley and New Iberia in the Acadiana Region and Slidell in the Southeast Region. Houma was selected from the Bayou Region.