West Baton Rouge gets its first development-ready site LED certified

A 204-acre parcel of land in West Baton Rouge Parish has been certified under an LED program that ensures potential developers can begin building on it within 180 days. BRAC and the West Baton Chamber of Commerce made the announcement this morning. The site—located north of Interstate 10 on Court Street, midway between La. 415 and La. 1—is the first in the parish to attain certification through the LED program. The certified sites program was created in early 2010 to identify and prepare information on property so that companies can quickly and easily evaluate the merits of a site. A certified site either has all utilities and infrastructure in place, or has approved engineering plans to provide the utility infrastructure within 180 days. In the past, LED says, Louisiana frequently lost new deals to other states because companies require their relocation or expansion to be operational in 14 months or less. BRAC began working to certify sites in the Capital Region at the start of this year, with a goal of getting eight to 10 sites certified each year for the next four years. This is the fifth site BRAC has helped gain certification in the region thus far. “Certified sites are crucial for the Baton Rouge area to succeed in securing new business,” says Iain Vasey, executive director of business development at BRAC. “This will allow the property to be heavily considered by prospects interested in relocating [to] or expanding in the Capital Region.” To read a recent Business Report story on the LED certified site program, click here.