New economic improvement survey available to the public

LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) - The Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance wants to hear from you. The group has launched a survey to gather ways to improve our region’s economic opportunities.

Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance CEO Scott Walker says they want public input from across all five area parishes. Which means residents in Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, and Jeff Davis Parishes are all eligible for the survey.

He says the survey is to help put together a strategic plan that will provide more jobs and economic development.

“The work that we’re doing is to understand where we want to head as a region, and then how we get there. What are those strategies and goals and tactics that we need for this region to achieve long-term success,” said Walker.

This regional planning process comes after the launch of Louisiana Economic Developments in March.

The statewide initiative is called ‘Positioning Louisiana to Win’ and is focused on long-term business growth.

“It’s a part of it, and so what the state has asked is for regions like ours to become proactive in the creation of plans that are in alignment with theirs. So it’s absolutely a part of it,” said Walker.

He says they will be using the same consulting group as the state.

The plan aims to bring in more investment revenue into the local economy, hopefully bringing more visitors and residents to Southwest Louisiana.

“We have this great investment cycle that’s commencing with the LNG projects and other construction projects that are going to come to fruition, and the question is really how do we use that to create long-term success.”

The Southwest Louisiana Alliance plans to use information gathered from the survey as it completes an economic plan over the next few months.

The organization hopes to have the plan done by the end of the year and launch it by January.

To access the survey, you can find it on their website HERE.