Consultant: Solar plant, port and airport projects could reshape New Iberia economy; study due in weeks

Joe Borgstrom, a principal with Place and Main Advisors, told the New Iberia City Council that his firm is under contract to produce an economic development analysis and retail market study for the city and that it has begun field work.

"My name is Joe Borgstrom. I'm a principal of the firm, Place and Main Advisors," Borgstrom said. He told the council the firm completed its first day of field work in New Iberia and had met with the port authority, the airport authority, the Industrial Development Fund and the parish president as part of the study.

The study will include a retail market analysis and, in partnership with the University of Michigan Office of Economic Development, an "in‑plan" economic impact analysis tied to a proposed solar manufacturing facility, Borgstrom said. He said the firm is "probably about a month away from the first draft" and that the goal is to deliver that draft "before the fourth."

Why this matters: Borgstrom and the mayor framed the study as a tool for economic marketing and for quantifying likely job and retail impacts from several projects in the city and parish. Council members and the mayor described activity at the port and airport and developers’ interest as reasons the city needs data to court new investment.

Borgstrom said the firm is analyzing customer origin with a geofence for a roughly 30‑minute drive time around the city; that measure will be used to estimate retail demand and "retail leakage" (retail dollars leaving the market). He said the study will project market demand five years forward to identify opportunity categories for recruitment.

He also discussed the possible employment effect of the solar project. During the meeting Borgstrom referenced "3,000 jobs" when describing how multiple projects together could affect the local economy. He said the city's median household income is "roughly" $35,000 but when asked about wage impacts he described "individual jobs worth 60 to 65, maybe as high as ..." — the audio there was unclear — and said the new positions would have a significant effect on quality of life for those workers.

Council members and the mayor said the study will provide tools for marketing the community to developers, realtors and investors. Borgstrom characterized the developer meeting as productive and said the firm will provide materials investors can use.

Related to incentives, the council also considered Resolution No. 25‑62, appointing Mayor Freddie Decor to the Local Industrial Tax Exemption Program committee on the city's behalf. The council described the committee as a multijurisdictional body that reviews incentive requests and makes recommendations to the state; its voting membership typically includes representatives from the school board, the sheriff's office and parish government, with the city mayor participating when a project is inside the city.

Action on the appointment was moved and seconded during the meeting; the transcript records the motion and second but does not provide a recorded vote tally in the meeting text.

What happens next: Borgstrom said a first draft of the retail and impact analyses is expected in about a month; the council will have that report to shape outreach to potential investors and to inform future incentive or permitting discussions.