LACASSINE — Jeff Davis Parish economic development officials are hoping two development-ready sites off U.S. 90 in Lacassine will attract industrial and manufacturing businesses to the area.
The two sites — T .O. Allen Industrial Park North and T.O. Allen Industrial Park South, totaling 704 acres — were declared certified sites under a Louisiana Economic Development program Friday during a joint news conference with One Acadiana and the Jeff Davis Parish Economic Development Office.
“Not only are these the first sites to be certified in Jeff Davis Parish,” said Jeff Davis Parish Economic Development Director Marion Fox, “but one of them is the largest site in our nine-parish region and stands as one of the most attractive industrial development sites in the state.”
Jeff Davis will move to the top of the LED site-selection list, she said. The sites are between two interstate interchanges, with U.S. 90 running through both. The sites also have access to a nearby railroad.
They are ideally located within Lacassine for industrial or manufacturing operations, said One Acadiana President and CEO Jason El Koubi, who worked with local officials to seek the designation. The new sites bring the total of certified acreage for the Acadiana region to 1,523.
“When a business is considering locating in our area we know it’s important that we have good transportation infrastructure,” he said.
“We know it’s important that we have a good workforce, but at the end of the day if you don’t have a physical landing pad that is appropriate for a large-scale business enterprise, you will not be competitive.”
Having the sites “certified ready” reduces the selection time and risk and makes an area more marketable for locations and expansions, El Koubi said.
“If they can get something to bring jobs in and get people working and earning an income, that will be good,” said Gayle Godeaux, whose family owns the farmland being developed for the sites.
Ronnie Petree, chairman of the Jeff Davis Parish Economic Development Board, said initiatives like site development are important to building the region’s economy and attracting new businesses.
“This opportunity today is the first step in what I hope will be the state of many new businesses locating in this area and an opportunity to bring our children back home to live and work and for the families of our region to prosper,” Petree said.
Harold Letz, whose great-uncle Thomas O. Allen is the properties’ namesake, said his uncle would be proud with what the family has done with the property.
“He probably never envisioned it would be an industrial park,” Letz said. “But I think he would appreciate it.”
Allen raised cattle and grew rice and other crops on the land until his death in 1966.