Moving Forward

After a challenging but productive year in 2016, St. Landry Parish is positioned to take advantage of a rebound in the energy industry in the short term and for steady growth over the next decade, according to parish leaders.

“Finally, there are positive signs for Acadiana overall with a projected stabilizing of oil prices for 2017 and 2018,” according to Bill Rodier, St. Landry economic development director.

“Despite many of the big challenges around us, St Landry Parish has continued a steady overall growth, which leaves us very well positioned to take advantage of the improvement of our area’s key oil and gas industry sector,” he said.

“I believe a big part of us being in this position is that St. Landry’s leaders have stayed focused on a larger picture. We continue to look at building the framework for continued growth over the next five, ten, fifteen years, and beyond,” Rodier said.

Parish President Bill Fontenot agrees, saying, “We are a parish filled with opportunity to improve locally and as a part of a regional plan, and we are steadily building upon our many assets to create even more opportunities for all of our citizens.”

And despite a less than robust regional economic climate, St. Landry was able to record new jobs and businesses in 2016.

The year got off to a quick start with the opening of a Walmart Neighborhood Market in Opelousas and groundbreakings for a Love’s Travel Stop in Port Barre and a Go-Bears casino truck stop in Grand Coteau. C & G Containers Scientific broke ground in April in Grand Coteau, Nissan Opelousas began work in September in the recently created Harry Guilbeau economic development district just south of Opelousas, and LeMoyen Mill and Timber LLC announced in the fall that it will convert an old lumber mill into a wood products plant.

“Each of these have brought new investment into the parish and have created good new jobs for our people,” Rodier said. He noted particularly that several of the projects were in the I-49 corridor, which he thinks is the key to economic development in the parish.

“We continue to promote active development at the major interchanges on the I-49 corridor by working with the mayors, boards and community leaders about planning and building capacity for development.,” Rodier said in a year-end report to the St. Landry economic development board. “There has been significant progress with the actual and planned development on four of our major interchanges. We will be continuing our focus on building this capacity throughout 2017. It is likely that most of I-49 along the frontage roads will have a major makeover in the next five years.”

He noted that as of the end of the year 21 businesses were actively looking at investing in St. Landry Parish, and that a number of them are particularly attracted to central St. Landry because of the intersection of I-49 and U.S. 190, which gives good road access to the north, south, east, and west.

Road, rail, and water access are also important to developments in the eastern part of the parish, where the Hazelwood Energy Hub is under construction, the Port of Krotz Springs continues expansion, and work nears completion on a 500-acre Nexus Energy Park.

2016 has also seen profitable work toward building and creating small businesses in St. 

Landry and providing the support and solid economic base necessary for their success, Rodier said.

“As we solidify our priorities for 2017, we will continue to collaborate with public and private sector businesses, organizations and agencies toward meeting the needs of the small business community,” he said.

“2016 has been packed with challenges for our region, for our state and for our nation,” he said. “I am happy to be able to say that we have come through the year stronger than ever and in a better position to take advantage of the good things that we see coming to Acadiana.”