New Orleans Metro Region
Connecting Louisiana to the WorldConnecting Louisiana to the World
The New Orleans Metro region is a cultural and commercial powerhouse. Made up of three parishes (counties), this region is at the center of world-class transportation infrastructure and celebrated higher education institutions — from the Port of New Orleans to Tulane University. And, with over 60 available, shovel-ready sites throughout the region, diverse industry leaders from chemical manufacturing to aviation know there is room to grow in the New Orleans Metro.
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Located on the northshore of Lake Pontchartrain near major interstates, Gulf South Commerce Park is Louisiana’s most accessible site for large-scale logistics and distribution, advanced manufacturing, R&D, sustainable businesses, and health and science companies.
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On top of being a development-ready site, the North and South St. Joe Industrial sites are within a 15-minute drive of one of the largest labor force and population captures in Cleco’s service territory.
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This large, level site — near a motivated community and the new I-12 — is an exciting opportunity for industrial development.
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Booming Business in the Bayou
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In 2018, Site Selection magazine named Louisiana second among U.S. states for infrastructure investments to support economic growth — and those investments have paid off, particularly in the New Orleans Metro region. The deep-water Port of New Orleans alone generates around $100 million annually and is now the fourth largest port in the U.S. While J.D. Power ranked the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) the number one large airport in North America in customer satisfaction.
The New Orleans Public Belt Railroad (NOPB), a Class III switching railroad, also has unmatched access to six Class 1 railroads, 2 Class III railroads and Amtrak. And, with direct connections to five major interstates and coast-to-coast driving via I-10, I-55 and I-59, the New Orleans Metro is within 11-hours driving distance from the 11 top markets in the United States.
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Although, on average, U.S. labor force participation shrunk by 1.2% between 2011 and 2020, the New Orleans Metro region’s workforce actually grew by a profound 4.4% and was named the #1 most productive U.S. city by the Kenan Institute. While these numbers are impressive, it is the region’s workforce quality that draws employers.
Each year, the five most prominent universities and colleges in this region — Tulane University, University of New Orleans, Southeastern Louisiana University, Loyola University New Orleans and Delgado Community College — award 3,500 degrees in business, computer science, engineering and manufacturing — the most awarded by any Cleco region. And, considering approximately 23.1% of the workforce is young working age, this region’s talent has shaped up to be one of the youngest and most educated bases in Louisiana.
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The New Orleans Metro Region is home to over 5 opportunities zones across 3 parishes (counties). These community development zones offer a federal tax incentive for investors to re-invest their capital gains into growing, lower-income communities around the country. The city of New Orleans also offers a comprehensive list of tax credits and incentive programs for property development that generates long-term benefits, like affordable housing, blight reduction and increased tax revenues to the city.
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