Louisiana: New Teamwork Approach is Paying Off

Waterway and infrastructure development in Louisiana was the focus of a key panel discussion September 29 at the annual conference of the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA).

The conference was held September 28 to 30 at the New Orleans Marriott in New Orleans, La.

The session, titled “Navigating the Future: How Louisiana’s Waterways, Infrastructure and Economic Engine Drive Global Trade,” emphasized that New Orleans is the critical gateway between the Gulf and America’s heartland via the Mississippi River and the inland waterways system. Julia Fisher Cormier, executive director of the Port of South Louisiana and chair of the Louisiana Ports & Waterways Investment Commission, moderated the discussion. She spoke with Paige Carter, chief business development officer for Louisiana Economic Development, and Glenn P. Ledet Jr., secretary of the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development.

Carter highlighted how a new teamwork approach across Louisiana’s regulatory agencies is giving the state a competitive advantage when it comes to advancing and closing project development.

“We can uphold regulations to the highest standard, and we can ensure that we’re building the safest, most sophisticated industrial properties, and we can do it quicker because we work together,” Carter said, explaining that instead of sequential agency reviews and decisions, these multi-agency processes are occurring in parallel, delivering multiple endpoints at the same time.

She highlighted that Louisiana is $90 billion ahead of Texas this year regarding new industrial developments.

“How do you outpace a state like Texas?” she asked rhetorically. Again, she credited Louisiana’s new focus on ending silos, sharing information and focused teamwork.

Ledet reiterated Carter’s comments, noting new success on starting a major Interstate 10 project this year, which he said has been on the books for 30 years.

Carter said Louisiana is now able to better take advantage of three factors that siting experts seek for major projects. The first is connectivity, being able to access overseas and domestic markets. She called the Gulf-Mississippi passage the “spine of domestic delivery.”

A second critical factor is power.

“Every project opportunity starts and ends with power,” Carter said.

She said Louisiana remains a regulated market, but that the state is looking at every “innovative approach to bringing new electrons onto the grid.”

The third asset Carter mentioned is taking full advantage of the state’s Port Priority Fund, allowing officials to “proactively invest in port infrastructure.”

This is paying off, she said, with Louisiana announcing huge projects with SpaceX and Meta.

Carter and Ledet described how economic development and transportation leadership hold quarterly meetings on project development. Those meetings include personnel from the entire executive branch, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Public Service Commission. This team reviews the top 10 projects statewide.

“We Gantt chart timelines,” Carter said. Then, the team outlines which agencies take which actions. Next steps reflect this teamwork and take advantage of all perspectives and full transparency. The goal, Carter said, is “to put commerce into the market, to create as much opportunity for the state of Louisiana as possible.”