Guidelines for economic development of commercial property at England Industrial Airpark & Community
Statement of Principles
- The Authority pledges to promote economic development and reuse of the facilities located at England Industrial Airpark & Community.
- The Authority, through its Executive Director, will proactively recruit commercial enterprises to locate in Central Louisiana in the interest of creating new opportunities for employment and for the marketing of goods and services to customers outside of Rapides Parish.
Guidelines
- All prospects shall be reviewed as to their conformance with the Reuse Plan, Airport Master Plan and the long-term goals of the Authority.
- New economic activities created by prospects which are located outside of Rapides Parish will be afforded the highest level of flexibility as possible.
- The Executive Director, or his designee, is not authorized to consider any prospect from Rapides Parish for location at the Airpark, except as provided, as follows:
A business which requires a location in close proximity to England Airpark to support an existing or new business located at the Airpark. A non-profit business or governmental entity which requires use of a specific type of building which exists at the Airpark, such as, a healthcare facility, church, school, or recreational facility, etc. A business which is located in Rapides Parish but cannot be accommodated by the local private sector because of its space requirements, lease term requirements, timing requirements, location or quality of the needed facility. - Unless approved by the Board, Airpark buildings and property shall be offered for lease at fair market value, except as provided for in C (4), below.
- It is not the intent of this policy to restrict the Executive Director, or his designee, from considering any viable lease opportunity; and, therefore, a waiver of any of the provisions of this policy may be sought from the Board prior to engage in negotiations with a business prospect.
Implementation
- The Executive Director, or her designee, will create a database of all building and property located in the Airpark available for lease, according to class, highest and best use and location. Among other things, the database shall include a brief description of each building or tract of land, status of availability, physical condition, etc.
- At least annually, the Executive Director shall survey the lease market of Rapides Parish, excluding the Airpark, for comparable lease properties to establish an average market lease rate for each class and/or type of building in the Airpark.
- With the presentation of any lease for approval by the Board, the Executive Director, or his designee, shall provide a brief written justification of the lease rate as it relates to the appropriate lease amount for the property.
- Buildings which because of age, design, physical condition, or functional obsolescence are less marketable in the opinion of the Executive Director, or his designee, may be offered for lease during the initial term according to the following annual rent scale:
Vacant for 1 - 2 years - 5% below market rate;
Vacant for 2 - 3 years -10% below market rate;
Vacant for 3+ years - 15% below market rate.
Review
This policy shall be reviewed no less than annually for impact on the financial condition of the England Economic and Industrial Development District and compliance with its long range economic development plans and its impact on real estate market conditions in Rapides Parish.