Although the Capital Region’s modest job growth of 0.6% in 2012 is forecast to increase to between 1.4% and 1.6% this year, BRAC President/CEO Adam Knapp says Baton Rouge’s high homicide rate is a big concern and could be impeding new businesses. We don’t hear it as much from site consultants; we hear it from companies looking to expand here, says Knapp, who addressed the Rotary Club of Baton Rouge today. Knapp says BRAC is working on developing policies related to crime with the Baton Rouge Police Department, mayor’s office and district attorney’s office. He adds that opening the downtown jail full-time could help prevent crime. On tax reform, Knapp says Louisiana already has strong incentives for businesses, adding it could still make more gains; specifically, he suggests the corporate franchise tax on equity be done away with. Continued job growth will be driven by the industrial construction sector, Knapp says, but technological growth could help push it to somewhere in the neighborhood of 2.8% in 2014. “And we believe these numbers are on the low side,” Knapp says. In the meantime, BRAC continues to recruit professionals to the Capital Region. “That challenge still remains: to get talent here,” Knapp says. For 2012, Knapp also notes, the Capital Region created $78.1 million in direct new payroll, 1,128 new jobs and $3.5 billion in capital investment. “We had one of our best years ever in economic development,” he says. —Adam Pearson
Editor’s note: This story has been changed since its original publication to clarify and correct a statement about business expansion related to crime.
