An Overview of Central Louisiana
(Source:  La. Economic Development Dept.)

Location
The Central region is the crossroads of Louisiana with a population of approximately 250,000 and a diverse economy based in agriculture and forestry, but growing in added value manufacturing and supported by a strong government base including defense and corrections. The Central region is comprised of eight parishes (Avoyelles, Catahoula, Concordia, Grant, LaSalle, Rapides, Vernon, and Winn) located strategically in the center of the state and the center of the gulf coast region, the region spans from the Mississippi River across Louisiana with almost every major highway through Louisiana criss-crossing some portion of the region. This highway infrastructure, combined with rail and inland river service provide for a strategic location allowing for 3-day truck delivery to destinations which include Chicago, Illinois; Indianapolis, Indiana; and Jacksonville, Florida.

Alexandria is the home to federal and state government offices for the region, along with the government support office for Rapides Parish. The cities of Alexandria and Pineville serve as the medical center for the region and the retail center for the area.

Industries
Central Louisiana has long been a thriving center for agricultural and forestry related industries. Our timber industry, secondary wood products firms and pulp and paper mills continue to grow and expand as a result of our natural resources. As the site for the training and planning of the Louisiana maneuvers, Central Louisiana continues its military tradition today. The area is home to not only the U.S. Army at Fort Polk (one of the nation's premiere training facilities), but the Louisiana National Guard at Camp Beauregard. Defense related businesses and contractors have located in the area to support these installations.

The healthcare industry is another industry continuing to grow and expand throughout the region. Additionally many physicians are conducting clinical trials at several healthcare facilities, working to grow our biomedical industry. Four major hospitals in Alexandria - Huey P Long (Charity), Christus St Frances Cabrini, Rapides Regional Medical Center and the VA Medical Center - are connected by agreements throughout the region to provide specialized care and support to physicians in the region.

Our major industrial partners include Roy O Martin Companies, Jordache Ditto, Dresser, Riverwood International, Procter and Gamble, Boise Cascade, Hunt Plywood, Hunt Petroleum, Justiss Oil Company, Catahoula Manufacturing, Union Tank Car, Plastipak, Integrated Packaging Corporation, Willamette Valley and Calvary Industries.

Other major contributing entities to our economy include Fort Polk, the Pollock Federal Prison , the U. S. Marshall's Training Facility and Vidalia Landing.

Transportation
Highway transportation includes Interstate 49, connecting to I-20 in North Louisiana and I-10 in South Louisiana. The four-laning of area highways, including Louisiana Highways 84 and 28 and US Highways 165 and US 167 continue to improve the transportation infrastructure in the region.

Railways include Union Pacific, Kansas City Southern, Acadiana Railway, Central Louisiana Gulf, and Midsouth Rail, with a major switching facility for UP and KCS being located in Alexandria.

Water is abundant throughout the Central region with rivers, lakes and streams providing recreational, commercial opportunities. Three rivers junction at Jonesville is where the Little River, the Tensas and the Black River merge and then join the Ouachita to flow south. North of Simmesport, Old River Lock separates the Red and the Atchafalaya from the Mississippi. Just north of this structure that a hydroelectric plant that is fed by the Mississippi River. Locks and Dams located along the Red River have made the waterway system navigable from the Mississippi north to Shreveport. The port in the Central region is the Port of Alexandria.

Workforce
We offer businesses a ready workforce with 48% of the total population between the ages of 20 and 54. The median income level of the region had nearly doubled since 1985 and the area has experienced below average unemployment rates within the past year.

England Airpark , formerly England Air Force Base, is the model for base reuse. The Industrial Park has buildings available with various electronic and telecommunications internal networks. Additionally, the AirPark now serves as the home to commercial aviation for the region. A new commercial terminal, a state of the art private terminal, a military terminal and numerous runway improvements a have recently been completed.  Air Service is available via jet through Houston, Dallas  and Atlanta. Propeller connector service is available through Memphis.

Higher Education
There are two four-year universities and a network of technical colleges also serving the region.

Healthcare
Our quality of life is positively impacted by a thriving medical community with four major hospitals in Alexandria alone - Huey P. Long (Charity), Christus St. Frances Cabrini, Rapides Regional Medical Center and the VA Medical Center. These major medical facilities have affiliations with rural partner hospitals located in the surrounding parishes and primary care clinics to provide quality care throughout the region.

Summary
The Central region's fiber optic infrastructure is plentiful as Network USA, SunAmerica, and Entergy all own fiber running from Lafayette, through Alexandria along 1-49 and into Shreveport; Williams Companies/MCI/SBC and Bell South have north/south lines through Vernon parish; and BellSouth has numerous fiber lines running through Rapides and the surrounding parishes. Worldnet has established wireless networks that offer OC3 capabilities throughout Vernon parish, while Kinetix Broadband offers these services in Rapides parish. Furthermore, the downtown area of Alexandria has the capability of establishing fiber optics and all the elements necessary to have your business transmit voice, data, video, text, and graphics.

Industrial Parks in the Central Region are comprised of: Avoyelles Industrial Park (78 acres), Cottonport Industrial Park (8 acres), Vidalia Industrial Park (240 acres), and Grant Parish Park (700 acres), and the City of Alexandria Industrial Park has 21 acres available. All infrastructure is in place.

Cost of living in this region is consistently rated in the 90th percentile in the ACCRA Corporate Cost of Living Index, and housing costs consistently rated in the 80th percentile with low property taxes (homestead exemption).

Our federal designation as a Renewal Community offers businesses tremendous incentives to establish within the area and employ area residents. For additional information on this valuable program, please visit www.renewallouisiana.com.

The Central Louisiana Business Incubator collaborates with LSU Alexandria to serve start-up businesses.