Selling St. MaryTourism, development helping parish grow

Like Santa’s elves, the directors of St. Mary Parish’s chamber, tourism and economic development offices say they are busy responding to inquiries about what the area has to offer.

Meanwhile, the director and marketing director of the Port of Morgan City say that progress means turning over new dirt at their property.

And the general manager of the area’s largest employer said progress in 2010 is going to be determined by what happens in the coming months in Washington, D.C.

Chamber director Donna Meyer, tourism director Carrie Stansbury and parish economic development director Frank Fink are bullish on St. Mary Parish, and they are remaining that way, regardless of how gloomily the national media paints the nation’s economic picture.

In Meyer’s four years on the job, the chamber has grown by 200 members. “It’s the mom and pop shops that are driving our area,” she said. “We’re also busy because we’re networking among each other more. When I get a lead, if it’s tourism, I’ll call Carrie. If it’s business, I’ll call Frank. And if someone wants to join the chamber, I’ll get the call.”

Consolidating both sides of the parish and forming the St. Mary Parish Chamber of Commerce and improving the organization’s Web site have improved the operation.

“Just the other day, someone drove down to my office from Shreveport and wanted me to give him a tour of the area because our Web site tempted him to perhaps locate some of his interests here,” Meyer said.

A Web site – www.cajuncoast.com – is also driving tourists to the area, Stansbury said. “Our numbers increased and we utilized viral marketing at no expense. In August 2009, we had 10,000 visits and 33,000 page views. Since then, we’re seeing an approximate growth of 10 percent per month,” she said.

Tourism dollars have also “stayed steady,” which Stansbury considers a success, especially in the softened economy.

The area is also seeing tourism development growth. This year saw two new hotels open: the Sleep Inn of Berwick and a Hampton Inn in Morgan City – further evidence that the region is booming.

A new walking trail at the Bayou Teche National Wildlife Refuge and renovations to the Wendell Williams aviation exhibit at the Louisiana State Museum in Patterson are among the region’s new tourist projects. And the Teche Theatre in Franklin, originally built and opened as a cinema in the 1940s, continues to draw theatre buffs.

“Our home run, of course, is the Atchafalaya at Idlewild golf course, which continues to receive rave reviews by golfing publications as well as the golfing community at large,” Stansbury said. “With the addition of the hotels and these kinds of attractions, we can only become a stronger destination.”

Meanwhile, Fink is banking on a proposed gated, luxury apartment complex as the answer to the parish’s housing problem.

“My phone is ringing off the hook all day,” he said. “But we have no housing in St. Mary Parish, particularly in East St. Mary.

“Sure, unemployment rates are down in Terrebonne, Lafourche and Assumption. That’s because St. Mary Parish is employing at least 5,000 people from these areas,” he continued. “They work here, but they go home there.”

Fink said the gated community project should spawn more retail development in the parish.

“Rooftops mean retail – more people living here,” he said.

Investerra Contractors, represented by project manager Frank Alcaraz and general contractor Mick Wick, hope to build the 366-unit complex at La. Highway 182 and La. Highway 3125 in Garden City.

Outfitted with solar and environmentally-friendly materials, the project would be constructed in two phases. The first phase would include 156 one-bedroom, 1,000-square-foot apartments and 12 two-bedroom, 1,300-square-foot apartments.

Negotiations with the state are under way to buy the property and have it permitted and zoned for construction. The St. Mary Parish Council last week approved $3 million in bonds for infrastructure – sewage and water – on the property. If the infrastructure is installed but Investerra doesn’t buy the land, Council Chairman Gary Duhon said the property could be marketed to other developers.

At Morgan City’s port, marketing directors Jerry Hoffpauir and Cindy Cutrera said the site is an economic engine for the region.

“The Port of Morgan City has undergone a number of changes in the last few years and two particular events stand out,” Hoffpauir said, noting Cenac Offshore selected the facility as its U.S. base of operations for its M/V Blue Bill and InterMoor’s recent expansion.

Cenac is in the process of establishing regular ports of call to Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean from Morgan City, Hoffpauir said.

Cutrera said InterMoor’s $17.2 million capital investment will retain 250 jobs locally and create 320 new jobs with an average annual salary of $60,000 over the next seven years. Once the project is fully operations, the Louisiana Economic Development estimates 433 jobs will be created.

InterMoor is relocating its Amelia, La., operation to a 24-acre site owned by the port. It is expected to generate more than $8 million in new state tax revenue and nearly $7 million in new local tax revenue within its first five years of operation, Cutrera said.

InterMoor designs, supplies and deploys technically advanced mooring systems and provides rig-move and back-of-the-boat installation services worldwide.

Oceaneering International, another major economic player in St. Mary Parish, is watching laws coming out of the nation’s Capitol to determine its future. General manager Jerry Gauthier said 2010’s outlook “depends on what happens inside the beltway in Washington, D.C.”

“Cap and trade – well, it’s absurd,” Gauthier said, referencing a proposed plan by President Barack Obama to cap oil wells with high emissions into the atmosphere. “Do you think that countries like China and India are going to go for that? All in the name of Al Gore because oil wells emit toxins that harm the environment?

“You know there are wildfires every day in California that are probably emitting more toxins into the air, than anyone, and what can do they do about that?” Gauthier asked. “But this plan, if it passes, is going to penalize us and our neighboring parishes and, frankly, big parts of the southern states. I urge everyone to call their senators and congressmen to get them to oppose any instance of this bill,” he said.

“What’s my advice in this economy? Don’t be caught in a situation where you can’t service your debt,” he said. “That’s good business for anybody, and it’s been our philosophy since the mid-1960s.”