BROUSSARD, La (KLFY) — The City of Broussard is the first community in Acadiana to be named a development-ready community.

Ray Bourque, Mayor of Broussard says that being development-ready means improvement is coming.

“What it means to the city of Broussard is that we took the time to take a close look at what Broussard assets are and where we can make improvements to help our own local economy, and package our assets to be able to attract new developments to our city,” Bourque said.

The development-ready community program guides communities through the creation and implements a multi-year strategic plan.

“It’s very important for our city to always be looking at a 5 to 10-year plan for improvement,” Bourque said. “We can try to diversify our own local economy and know how to package ourselves to attract new businesses and new developers to our community.”

“The Broussard Chamber is dedicated to helping businesses both large and small achieve their fullest potential, and one of the ways we do that is constantly seeking out unique opportunities for us, to not only grow our community but grow the economy as well,” said Stacy Romero of the Broussard Chamber of Commerce.

With this new certification, Broussard is ready to compete for more economic opportunities while working together and forming productive partnerships with organizations and community members.

“It’s not only about businesses,” Bourque said, “it’s about quality of life for the residents in Broussard and attracting people to live in Broussard.”

During the public meetings, residents spoke about improvements to Julian Park, a school that’s being built, and the envision Broussard downtown development project.

“Not only are we looking to improve our downtown space, but we are also looking to increase the traffic that we have coming into our city businesses,” Romero said. “We are attracting diverse new businesses into Broussard, then the businesses that are currently here are going to continue to thrive. We are going to be attracting families and other people to come and work and live here. It’s a win for everyone.”