A Message From AEDF President Christopher Kane
Dear Algiers business and community leaders,
A year ago, the Algiers Economic Development Foundation (AEDF) Board of Directors embarked on an ambitious mission to continue the tremendous post-Katrina economic growth in our community. The fundamental focus of this year’s Board was to assist in creating an environment that promoted sustainable long-term growth. And while this mission is not complete, I’m happy to report that this has been a very successful challenge.
Over the past year, we have drummed the message: Algiers is a community of 50,000 widely diverse residents, 850 innovative small business, world-class education systems and facilities, and a community currently constructing over $1 billion in new economic development related projects. Algiers is the top site choice of the booming movie industry. Algiers is building new schools and medical services facilities. Algiers is developing new retail opportunities and opening new Louisiana based restaurants. And Algiers is home to Federal City, a job engine that will create an immediate 3,000 military jobs and an estimated 10,000 Federal and civilian jobs by 2018. Simply stated, blight is coming down and construction is happening in Algiers!
With this message, AEDF’s marketing and regional outreach committee has built a professional marketing campaign that will be launched this summer. The focus of the campaign will begin with reminding our City and her regional footprint of the excellent quality of life and business culture that Algiers has to offer. We will then aggressively work with regional and state economic development agencies, private sector leaders and political delegates on site selection opportunities for new businesses while solidifying the organic growth of our current business sectors. It is time to tell the great story of Algiers!
Besides the marketing and regional outreach efforts, AEDF has been busy working with three key economic development sectors. AEDF’s movie industry committee, the first committee of its kind according to the City’s Department of Film and Video, is in the process of providing our existing businesses the information and resources it needs to take advantage of Algiers’ greatest asset: its location. The movie industry committee is also working with the City of New Orleans to assess industry needs and assist in responding to the vast requirements of the thriving New Orleans movie industry.
AEDF’s education committee made a commitment a year ago to involve the business community in the classroom. In achieving its goal, the committee assisted Algiers’ education leaders with workshops for educators and business members. The committee worked with the BILD coalition and with Speaker Tucker to push for the GRAD Act, which passed. We assisted T.R.E.E. New Orleans, whose mission is to educate our local children about life science to inspire them to appreciate the natural world, in raising funds from the Algiers community to allow numerous children to participate in this years’ curriculum. The committee is hard at work on several key initiatives and partnerships for the upcoming year.
This past year, AEDF also formed a health care committee. This committee is made up of regional leaders in health care and locally elected officials. The committee is tasked with analyzing the existing gaps in Algiers’ medical services and to identify potential opportunities to participate in regional health care developments, such as NORBI and the revitalization of the Downtown Medical District.
While there is much more to report from this past year, such as the direct economic impact that Wednesdays on the Point has generated or the completion of the General Meyer Business Façade Improvement Grant program, I ask you to review the brief highlights of each committee in AEDF’s Annual Report. Most importantly, I challenge you to find a way to become more involved in our community. Perhaps one of the committees will interest you or you may have a project or idea that you would like to lead. Whatever the case, let’s take pride in Algiers and work together to sustain this awesome economic development momentum!
Sincerely,
Christopher J. Kane
2010 Chairman of the Board of Directors
