A brand new 700 acre industrial park, which is the first certified site in Northeast Louisiana, was announced August 31, 2011 in southern Ouachita Parish. Charleston Industrial Park promises to enhance the area's potential for attracting new employers and new jobs.
The industrial park is the largest of the five certified sites in Louisiana. The property underwent a vigorous review process by Louisiana Economic Development and an independent engineering firm to assure prospective companies there would be no surprises, and they could begin building within 180 days.
Kenny Anderson, who owns Charleston Industrial Park, believes the certification is a "game changer" in enhancing this area's potential to bring new businesses and jobs to the region.
"This is what can be accomplished when we all work together. The efforts of Entergy and North Louisiana Economic Partnership (NLEP), working with and through the State and LED, have led to the certification of this site. One of the things we will do here is to recruit out-of-state investment to create in-state jobs. This site will have a positive economic impact on the entire surrounding area and the State of Louisiana," said Anderson.
Manufacturer Announces a New $16.8 Million Facility in Northwest Louisiana
Ronpak, a leading manufacturer of custom printed paper bags, packages and food wraps, announced July 28, 2011 it will invest $16.8 million in its new manufacturing facilities at The Port of Shreveport-Bossier. Once opened, the facility will create 175 new direct jobs with a payroll of $50 million over 10 years. The manufacturing facility will also produce 500 new indirect jobs.
"I knew that after interviewing companies in the Shreveport-Bossier area, there existed a strong and vibrant workforce, a dedicated infrastructure at the Port, and a state of the art training system with LED FastStart. NLEP was key to the local company interviews as well as helping our employees feel welcomed and part of Shreveport-Bossier community," said Ron Sedley, Ronpak Founder and President
Teamwork by state, regional and local partners was critical to this project's successful outcome. Different partners took a lead role during different phases of the project. NLEP and its partners, SWEPCO, Entergy and Louisiana Economic Development first meet with Ronpak in California to interest the company in North Louisiana. The Port of Shreveport-Bossier and LED then led the effort to close the deal with Ronpak
Monroe-based InterMountain Merges with Pillar Hotels and Resorts
InterMountain Management LLC based in Monroe, LA announced an agreement with Pillar Hotels and Resorts to merge the two organizations into common ownership. The combined company will be one of the largest, independent, third party management firms worldwide and will encompass 308 hotels with more than 30,000 rooms under management. InterMountain also has 16 hotel development projects underway in various stages. Combined, InterMountain and Pillar will employ more than 9,000 associates across the U.S.
"The partnership between these two world-class companies will only make them both stronger and more formidable as we look to continue our aggressive growth in the hotel management and development space," said Dewey Weaver Jr., the owner and founder of InterMountain.
Chris Russell, Chief Executive Officer of Pillar, added, "While we plan to continue operating Pillar as a separate company out of Irving, TX, we look forward to creating synergies by building on the strengths of both organizations."
InterMountain is also a NLEP investor company, supporting economic development in North Louisiana.
