Mayor Landrieu Touts Economic Development
and Job Creation Wins for 2016
NEW ORLEANS – Yesterday, Mayor Mitch Landrieu applauded the successes
of the City’s economic development efforts throughout 2016. The Mayor’s Office
of Economic Development and the New Orleans Business Alliance (NOLABA)
continued to celebrate the attraction and retention of nationally-recognized
retailers and the continued distinction of New Orleans as an incubator for
economic innovation and growth.
“When I took office in 2010, we had a
clear goal— cultivate job growth and create opportunities for all New Orleans
residents,” said Mayor Mitch Landrieu. “Since then, we have added more
than 15,000 new jobs by attracting and retaining businesses that are committed
to hiring across New Orleans. We are showing the world that New Orleans can
support nationally-recognized retailers and serve as a hub for innovation.”
Rebecca Conwell, Senior Advisor to the
Mayor for Economic Development, said, “In
2016, we continued our focus on both national and local business retention
while also putting a concerted emphasis on small business support. Through our
efforts, the word is out that New Orleans is the place to be.”
Major Business Attraction Wins, Job
Creation and Drop in Unemployment Rate
In 2016, a number of local and national
retailers opened their doors in New Orleans, giving residents greater access to
fresh food, high-end shopping and health resources.
- Dryades Public Market
- Nordstrom Rack
- True Religion Jeans
- Marshalls
- Petco
- New Orleans Hamburger and Seafood
- CVS Lower 9th Ward
- Part and Parcel
- Higher Power Fitness
Since May 2010, the Landrieu
Administration has created more than 15,000 new jobs. As of October 2016, the
city’s unemployment rate dropped from 6.7 percent to 5.8 percent. Unemployment
of African-American men also decreased from 52 percent to 44 percent.
Louis Armstrong New Orleans
International Airport Continues to Grow
The City began the year by breaking
ground on the $807 million North Terminal Project, scheduled to be complete by
Oct. 1, 2018, in time for the 300th anniversary of the City of New Orleans. The
Louis Armstrong New Orleans Airport now provides service via 17 airlines to 59
non-stop destinations, including seven international destinations. Two new
non-stop services, British Airways and Condor, are reconnecting New Orleans
with Europe for the first time in 30 years. Additionally, today we added a new international direct flight to Honduras.
Strategic
and aggressive business attraction efforts pay off for New Orleans
The
city continues to earn accolades for creating an economy that attracts and
retains innovative retail and tech businesses.
- SmartAsset magazine: #1 in the Nation for Creatives and
#2 Tech Employment Growth in the U.S.
- U.S.
Chamber of Commerce, “Innovation That Matters”: Top 25 Cities Ready to
Navigate the Next Wave of the Digital Economy
Two digital software companies relocated to New Orleans in 2016.
-
Select Laboratory Software – Software developer out of North
Carolina that develops software used in toxicology and clinical
laboratories nationwide.
-
TOPXIGHT LA – A tech
incubator that focuses on deep machine learning, cybersecurity and
data analytics.
Additionally,
Collision, the largest tech conference in the U.S. experienced a 47 percent
attendance increase upon moving to New Orleans in 2016. Collision has since committed
to holding the conference in New Orleans in 2017
and in 2018.
City and NOLABA Bio and Health Services
Cultivation
- NOLABA hired
the state’s only economic developer solely focused on building a robust Bio and
Health Services Innovation industry cluster, Amritha Appaswami, who now leads
these efforts.
- The new Cobalt
Medical Center opened in Mid-City, a $24 million state-of-the-art
rehabilitation facility to treat traumatic brain injuries, concussions,
Parkinson’s disease and other conditions.
- Innovation
Louisiana was co-sponsored with New Orleans BioInnovation Center
to improve bioinnovation entrepreneurs’ access to services and capital
necessary to growth.
Nurturing New Orleans’ Small Business
Success
To support an ecosystem that encourages
the success of small businesses, the City of New Orleans, NOLABA and StayLocal
implemented a number of initiatives to create opportunities and provide
resources to local businesses.
- NOLABA launched the Anchor
Institutions Initiative in a strategic effort to connect local small
businesses with procurement and contracting opportunities with organizations so
deeply rooted in New Orleans that they are unlikely to move, such as hospitals,
universities and the Sewerage & Water Board.
- NOLABA launched a
dedicated small business workstream supported by a $375,000 grant from Surdna
Foundation.
- In 2016, NOLABA gathered
local economic development professionals to enhance collaboration and overall
effectiveness across the city,with the first event attended by nearly 40
economic development professionals from multiple organizations and agencies.
- This year, NOLABA co-hosted
educational sessions for entrepreneurs and small businesses with local experts
on the Fair Labor Standards Act overtime rule change and Louisiana Benefit
Corporation opportunities.
- In partnership
with StayLocal, the City of New Orleans released a Road Construction Toolkit
for New Orleans Businesses. The toolkit features important contact information,
practical tips and technical assistance so businesses can continue to thrive
during road construction.
- This year, the New Orleans Workforce Investment Board dedicated an industry subcommittee to increase employment opportunities in high-demand fields.
Supporting
Growth of DBEs
-
$88.6 million in City contracts were committed to DBE firms, representing 34.61% of all contracts awarded.
-
$42.7 million was paid to DBE firms, representing 39.05% DBE
utilization for City contracts
-
$18.9 million in City construction contracts were awarded to
DBEs as Prime Contractors
-
$14.4 million in goods and services contracts for the City were
awarded to DBE Prime Contractors
-
95 new DBE firms were certified.
- Graduates of the BuildNOLA training program were awarded over $3
million in public and private sector contracts
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