Small Town Louisiana
Sponsored by Louisiana Economic Development
Doubling Down!
Rural Northeast Louisiana is enjoying the Success of New and Homegrown Projects
By Lee Burlett
Like many parts of the rural South, Northeast Louisiana has faced the challenges of restarting its economy. In four short years, three of Northeast Louisiana's largest employers, State Farm, Guide Corp. and International Paper, closed their operations in the region, eliminating 2,400 well-paid jobs. Then came the recession.
The multiple parishes that make up the Northeast Louisiana region, one that is bordered by Arkansas to the north and Mississippi to the east, represent an area that has been particularly hit hard ... in the good times. But when push came to shove during this recession, local and state economic development leaders worked together to land some of the South's most visible projects to that part of the state. Even more, at about the same time, investment in homegrown businesses saw huge returns. Today, the region represents one of the finest examples of successful rural economic development in the South.
The first big bombshell that signaled Northeast Louisiana's economy was back from the depths came in the form of one of the South’s most innovative projects. In June of 2009, the first next-generation car plant ever announced in the South was made in Monroe, La. the largest metropolitan area in the region.
V-Vehicle Company, a new startup automaker funded in part by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB) and other well known companies and individuals, including T. Boone Pickens, announced in June it would refit the former Guide plant in Monroe in order to assemble a new automobile that as of yet has not been unveiled. KPCB, the California-based venture capital firm, has had a few other successes in its funding efforts, namely Google, Intuit, Quicken, Amazon.com, Intel, Electronic Arts, Genentech, and Sun Microsystems.
With help from Louisiana Economic Development, the Northeast Louisiana Economic Alliance and the former Guide plant's owner, Ruston, La. businessman James Davison, the V-Vehicle deal was done. An estimated 1,400 jobs could be created by V-Vehicle and capital investment in the project is estimated at $248 million.
The second new industry bomb to make news in Northeast Louisiana in 2009 came from ConAgra Foods Lamb Weston. The notable food processor is investing $210 million and creating at least 500 jobs for the first large-scale processing facility in the world dedicated to high quality, frozen sweet potato products. The project is being built in rural Delhi, La. Upon completion, the ConAgra Foods Lamb Weston facility is expected to become the largest private employer in Richland Parish as well as one of the 10-largest private sector employers in Northeast Louisiana.
After landing ConAgra and V-Vehicle, Northeast Louisiana wasn't done in 2009. CenturyLink, a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Monroe, La., announced in late November that it will keep its headquarters in Louisiana and add 350 new jobs. In July, Louisiana-based CenturyTel acquired Kansas-based EMBARQ to form CenturyLink. Since the merger, Louisiana officials have been working with the company in an effort to keep its headquarters in Louisiana.
Following the three aforementioned large projects was Gardner Denver Thomas' (GDT) new 80,000-square-foot facility expansion in Monroe. GDT is consolidating the company's Thomas Product Division from Sheboygan, Wis., to Monroe, La. The deal allows the company to retain 70 jobs in Monroe and create more than 200 new jobs in the expansion.
New projects are not the only ones that have found rural Northeast Louisiana of late. Homegrown successes, particularly companies that have hatched from Northeast Louisiana-based university environments, have emerged, too. There are several noted centers of higher learning in the region, including the University of Louisiana at Monroe, Grambling State University and Louisiana Tech University.
Network Foundation Technologies (NFT -- or NiFTy TV), based in Ruston, La., has developed a new kind of Web broadcasting technology that delivers an affordable, easy-to-use, around-the-clock, television-style Internet broadcast. The technology has a catchy name -- NiFTy TV.
NiFTy TV was founded by Professor Mike O'Neal and Marcus Morton on the campus of Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, La. Morton is a graduate of Louisiana Tech, grew up in North Louisiana and returned to Ruston after selling his first technology company to EarthLink in 2001.
To get started, NiFTy TV used Louisiana Economic Development's Angel Investor Tax Credit Program, which rewards qualified individual investors for investing in wealth-creating businesses. The company is also utilizing Louisiana's Digital Media Tax Credit and the Quality Jobs Program.
Rural Northeast Louisiana's success in 2009 is undoubtedly one of the best small town South stories of the year. Tana Trichel, President and CEO of the Northeast Louisiana Economic Alliance gave us her take on the region's new found success. "Our state’s improved business friendly environment, which we have spent several years crafting, and our stepped-up recruiting activities are attracting some very major players and creating long-desired employment growth. We are still marketing Louisiana’s premier 6,500-acre Franklin Farm site near Monroe, La. We can certainly play with the big boys."
The site Ms. Trichel mentioned -- Franklin Farms -- is one of the South's most impressive supersites, giving the Northeast Louisiana region an attractive product for large industrial users that few rural areas can claim. Landing a large user on the Franklin Farm site would just about seal the deal for one of the South's most successful rural economic development stories in recent years.
For more information on other successful rural economies go to www.SmallTownSouth.com.