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Parish Council Adopts 2020 Economic Development Strategy

At the last Jefferson Parish Council Meeting, the council voted to adopt The Jefferson EDGE 2020: Economic Development Strategy as the parish’s official economic development plan. A year in the making, the strategic plan moves the parish beyond the years of recovery that immediately followed the 2005 hurricanes. The Jefferson Parish Economic Development Commission’s (JEDCO’s) previous strategy was adopted by the council shortly after Hurricane Katrina and focused on short-term and long-term business recovery. According to Jefferson Parish Council Chairman Thomas Capella, “Having the recovery plans in place so soon after the 2005 hurricanes gave us a clear course to steer for getting  Jefferson Parish back to business. Now, we are looking ahead to 2020 and concentrating on quality of life and economic development initiatives.”

The multi-faceted strategy is based on five issues critical to the parish’s economic growth over the next ten years: land development and redevelopment, workforce development, transportation and regional initiatives, advocacy and business outreach/quality jobs.

According to Jack Stumpf, who served as The Jefferson EDGE 2020 Economic Development’s strike force leader, “The updated strategy takes a long-term approach through 2020 but also features action items that are currently underway emphasizing aggressive business retention and expansion, ongoing development of the Churchill Technology & Business Park, and the redevelopment of the Louis Armstrong International Airport’s buy-out properties.” As a founding business leader and co-chairman of The Jefferson EDGE in 2000, Stumpf marvels at what has been accomplished through the efforts of parish government, business and civic leadership and JEDCO.

The plan also calls for JEDCO to continue working cooperatively with parish government, municipalities and regional economic development organizations to preserve and attract jobs and to spur additional investment in Jefferson Parish. Specific action items, timelines and benchmarks are identified in the plan.

“Through our existing efforts to attract targeted industries, retain and grow our current business base and assist with financing and incentives, Jefferson Parish has earned a strong reputation as a business-friendly parish,” said David Martin, chairman of JEDCO’s board. “We are now well positioned to take a leadership position in the transformation of our entire region.”

Economic Development
(Jefferson EDGE 2020 Implementation Plan 3.16mb PDF)