Through a collaboration with Lafayette Consolidated Government (LCG), the Acadiana Planning Commission (APC), One Acadiana, Lafayette Economic Development Authority (LEDA), Downtown Development Authority (DDA), and the Community Foundation of Acadiana (CFA) the Lafayette Opportunity Zone prospectus is available to potential investors and the public at InvestAcadiana.org.
As a tool intended to attract investors, the Lafayette Prospectus is a comprehensive document describing the potential of Lafayette’s Opportunity Zones and the area at-large. The Prospectus paints a picture of the Opportunity Zones through details such as existing characteristics, demographics and investment opportunities within the seven qualified census tracts in Lafayette Parish. The document also outlines ideal investment projects within Lafayette’s Opportunity Zones that align with desired economic development and quality of life goals such as mixed-use developments that incorporate housing, retail, hospitality, arts and entertainment, healthcare and office space.
Lafayette Mayor-President Joel Robideaux says through the Opportunity Zone program, Lafayette is poised to attract significant and transformative investment to some of our most vulnerable communities. “The aim of the Prospectus is to ‘sell’ our best attributes to investors – our culture, our people, our ingenuity and work ethic – and how the investment combined with those attributes can both revitalize a community and provide an excellent financial return. I really see it as a financial investment and an investment in the people of Lafayette.”
The federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 established the Opportunity Zone program to drive long-term investment in low-income communities, spurring economic development and job creation. The program offers federal tax benefits to investors who place their capital gains into Qualified Opportunity Funds – the vehicle to invest in Opportunity Zones.
Focused on the region, One Acadiana played an important role in developing information on the 25 Opportunity Zone census tracts across the nine-parish Acadiana region via the InvestAcadiana.org website and regional prospectus. “The prospectus and information found on InvestAcadiana.org will serve as means for mobilizing public, private and civic resources in ways that can leverage the full economic and social impact of Acadiana’s Opportunity Zones incentive,” said Troy Wayman, President and CEO of One Acadiana. “We’re excited to organize with our partners and stakeholders around this unified vision for growth.”
Opportunity Zones are low-income census tracts nominated by U.S. governors and certified by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Lafayette Parish’s seven Opportunity Zones are located in the heart of the City of Lafayette, including the University Ave. Corridor, I-49/Evangeline Thruway Corridor, Downtown and the Oil Center.
To investors, the benefits of participating in a Qualified Opportunity Fund include temporarily deferring payment of taxes on capital gains (until Dec. 31, 2026), reducing their tax payment by up to 15% as long as the investment is held in a Qualified Opportunity Fund for seven years, and altogether eliminating taxes on gains earned through Qualified Opportunity Funds if the investment is held for at least 10 years.
For more information on the Lafayette and Acadiana prospectuses, including download of all documents, visit, www.InvestAcadiana.org.