When it comes to economic vitality, Baton Rouge, La. has always had a lot going in its favor. The city’s standing as the northernmost inland port on the Mississippi River able to accommodate ocean-going tankers and cargo carriers has been among its upsides. So is its petrochemical and refining capabilities, its status as home to groundbreaking biomedical research from Louisiana State University, and its ability to attract corporate headquarters in fields ranging from outdoor advertising to the quick-serve restaurants.
All these qualities have contributed to Baton Rouge being named one of the top 20 North American cities for economic strength by Brookings Institution, one of the top 10 cities in the U.S. to launch an entrepreneurial venture by CNN and last year the seventh fastest-growing U.S. city, with net migration of 4.6%, by U.S. News & World Report.
Still the Louisiana capital has often been overlooked as just another of America’s “small big cities.” But that’s begun to change since the arrival of Amazon’s $200 million state-of-the-art fulfillment center, known as BTR1, which opened on the huge parcel of land once occupied by the city’s Cortana Mall. The center’s launch in the middle of last year has served as a lesson in what the planting of a major logistical hub by a big corporate entity can do to reshape the future of work, life and business in a region.
Business boom
Since last June, the Baton Rouge Area Chamber (BRAC) has witnessed a boom in business activity. Forty new business licenses have been filed within a one-mile radius of the Amazon fulfillment center, and 197 licenses within a two-mile radius of the hub. New businesses that have sprouted within that two-mile circle since October 1, 2021 more than doubled their collective sales between 2022 and 2024, soaring from about $32.8 million to more than $67.8 million this year. Meanwhile, sales tax collections grew from $657,000 in 2022 to $1.36 million in 2024, a surge of 107%.
The huge fulfillment center also serves as an anchor of what is called the “Florida Corridor,” a strip of the city’s Florida Street undergoing a determined redevelopment effort targeting the attraction of new businesses and top talent to the district. But those who assume BTR1 is merely a watershed in Baton Rouge business history are selling it short, those in the know report. The center’s arrival will ultimately prove nothing less than a transformative economic development opportunity for the city’s entire region.
Thriving ecosystem
“The Amazon BTR1 facility is set to transform one of Baton Rouge’s most traveled corridors,” says Lori Melancon, Baton Rouge Area Chamber president and CEO. “This project has not only generated over 1,000 jobs for our community but has also catalyzed economic growth and redevelopment. The influx of businesses, from local eateries to essential services, is creating a thriving ecosystem that enhances the quality of life for residents in the surrounding area.”
Amazon BTR1 has exerted an undeniable “economic ripple effect,” adds Jake Polansky, director of strategy and research at BRAC. “If you look only at the new businesses that have popped up within a two-mile radius of the facility over the last three years, this group generated around $70 million in revenue in 2024. This translates to nearly $1.5 million in sales tax revenue for the city.”
Tanner Lee, operations manager for BTR1, noted the fulfillment center’s team members represent the core of Baton Rouge’s community, a great number of them possessing deep roots spanning generations in the city. Given the economic growth and increased revenues the center has generated, they’re likely to plant even deeper roots.
That could help boost odds this small big city isn’t overlooked much longer.
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