2006 SWLA Partnership for Economic Development Chair Mayor Randy Roach and 2006 Chamber SWLA Chair Bill Willis of what was then Women & Children’s Hospital sign the paperwork to form the Alliance. Observing the ceremony are business and community leaders from Southwest Louisiana.)
THE STORY OF THE ALLIANCE In 2006, under the leadership of George Swift, Chamber SWLA business leaders and regional elected officials formed the Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance. “We were still recovering from Hurricane Rita, but we were doing better in our efforts than other regions because everyone – city, parish, and business community – were working so closely together to bring our region back,” said George Swift, President/CEO of the Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance. “It was a great feeling, this rush of accomplishment, and we all wanted it to continue. At the time, the Chamber SWLA was losing its president and I was
asked to step in. It just made sense to build upon this momentum and take advantage of this opportunity to make a real and lasting change for our region. To that end, we created the Alliance and our region has been growing by leaps and bounds since.” “The Alliance is made up of the Chamber SWLA, its Foundation, and the SWLA Partnership for Economic Development,” continued Swift. “It wasn’t just a name change. It was a sign that the business community and public entities – parish and municipal governments – would work together in an unprecedented fashion to drive development. We reached out to our fellow partners in economic development like PTAC, SCORE, and the Small
Business Development Center to make sure we were all working together to develop the next wave of entrepreneurs and support our existing business community. After Hurricane Rita, our regional leaders knew what we needed to drive growth. We needed a one-stop business development center. The land was donated by McNeese State University. The building was fully funded through recovery funds by Calcasieu Parish, the City of Lake Charles, the Alliance, and a U.S. Commerce Department Grant. It opened its doors in August 2013 to an eager audience.”
Continued on page 40 38 thriveswla.com
Thrive
2018 - Annual Issue