BRAC joined Amazon and local and state officials in celebrating the company’s announcement of a new robotics fulfillment center in Baton Rouge on June 16. Amazon’s redevelopment of the former Cortana site will have a significant, lasting economic impact on the Capital Region. The construction of the $200 million facility alone will create an estimated 1,000 jobs and over $57.9 million in payroll for construction contractors. The overall economic impact of the project will be $2.9 billion between 2021 and 2040 and will support over 1,400 total jobs and $53.8 million in annual payroll – 1,000 of those jobs will be employed directly by Amazon, with a minimum pay rate of $15 per hour.
In addition to creating renewed economic activity in what was formerly a failing mall, BRAC’s economic impact analysis projects that the Amazon project will generate significant tax revenue for the City-Parish. Over the first 10 years, the project will generate $25.9 million in local tax revenues, including more than $12.2 million for East Baton Rouge public schools. Over a 20-year timespan, it will generate $65 million in sales and property taxes, nearly $31 million of which will go to supporting local public education.
The Amazon project is an example of the Capital Region successfully diversifying its industry mix: during the pandemic, logistics proved to be a resilient sector, with thousands of job openings and a smaller percentage of jobs lost than nearly any other industry. As the percentage of goods sold via e-commerce increases, Baton Rouge will continue to grow as a logistics hub due to attractive access to highways, ports, rail, and air freight. Our central location within a day’s drive of Atlanta and Houston give the region a strategic advantage in the growing area of logistics and distribution.
Andrew Fitzgerald
As Senior Vice President of Business Intelligence, Andrew focuses on research and analysis for BRAC’s business development and economic competitiveness teams, providing economic, demographic, and fiscal research to support business expansion and relocation efforts in the Baton Rouge Area and analysis of education, workforce, tax, and other economic and public policy issues.