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City moves to create Lanyap economic district that adds 1¢ sales tax to participating stores
Summary
The New Iberia City Council approved a procedural resolution that starts the process to create the Lanyap (Lanyard) Economic Development District, a developer-driven tool that would add 1¢ in sales tax at participating stores to reimburse developers for infrastructure and improvements; a formal ordinance to establish the district will return for a public hearing and vote.
The New Iberia City Council on Wednesday advanced the first step toward creating an Economic Development District in the Lanyap shopping area, approving a resolution that publishes the proposed boundaries and formally announces the city’s intent to create the district.
Andrew Jara, an attorney with Foley & Udell, told the council the resolution is procedural and “just announces the the city's intent to create an Economic Development District. It doesn't bind the city anything at this point,” and that the actual ordinance to create the district and a later public hearing would follow.
Mayor (presiding) framed the district as a tool to attract national retailers and said the district would impose an additional 1¢ sales tax only at participating stores to allow developers to recover infrastructure and development costs. “They will add 1 cent to the sales tax — only for those stores,” the mayor said, adding that the city would not keep the extra revenue and that it carries a sunset provision.
Council members and other speakers asked how existing businesses in the area would be affected; the mayor said property owners would improve facades, parking and lighting and that such upgrades generally increase traffic and benefit nearby merchants. One council member added that the tool is “open to everybody” and similar approaches have been used for other developments and TIF-like structures in the region.
Council and staff also clarified voting and legal requirements: if a district contains residential voters, a vote of the people may be required; the mayor and attorney said the proposed Lanyap district is commercial and therefore would not require a voter referendum. Jara reiterated that further ordinance language, detailed boundaries and fiscal impacts would be presented later and that the council will hold an additional public hearing when the ordinance is introduced.
The council approved the resolution to publish the proposed boundaries and directed staff to bring the ordinance establishing the district back to a future meeting for a formal public hearing and vote.
