U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy discusses economic development grant, meets Acadiana mayors

BATON ROUGE – U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) announced Thursday that the Iberia Parish Airport Authority is being granted $2 million from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Delta Regional Authority. The grant will be used to help build a 200,000-square-foot hangar at the Acadiana Regional Airport in New Iberia, among related projects, according to a news release.

The new hangar will allow Aviation Exteriors to expand its operations at the airport, creating 200 new, full-time jobs paying between $50,000 and $75,000 each, with benefits.

“Two hundred people will have new, better-paying jobs,” Cassidy said in the release. “They’ll learn how to do those jobs at the local community college. They will be able to stay in Louisiana. This happens when communities work together to use the infrastructure bill.”

As part of the IIJA, the DRA received $150 million to support economic development projects in 252 parishes and counties throughout the South. The $2 million DRA grant to help fund the hangar is part of a $73 million package, with funds from the Federal Aviation Administration, Louisiana Economic Development, Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, and other sources. Completion of the hangar is expected in 2027.

The expansion will allow Aviation Exteriors to double its workforce from 200 employees to about 400, the release said. The company performs heavy maintenance on aircraft and converts passenger planes to cargo planes, along with aircraft painting services.

The new hangar will expand the conversion and heavy maintenance services. Most of the new employees will be aircraft maintenance technicians. Aviation Exteriors partners with South Louisiana Community College to train its workers.

Cassidy toured a hangar at Acadiana Regional currently being used by Aviation Exteriors, to see how they convert airplanes. He was joined by DRA Chief Administrative Officer Josh McNemar, Iberia Parish President Larry Richard, Aviation Exteriors President Joseph Ng and Iberia Parish Airport Authority Director Moe Songy, among others.

“Delta Regional Authority is pleased to be a partner in the very important work taking place at the Acadiana Regional Airport, with hopes of creating new opportunities for the people who live and work in, or near, Iberia Parish,” Dr. Corey Wiggins, DRA Federal Co-Chairman, said on the release. “With our $2 million investment, we look forward to how the hangar expansion project will bolster economic development, create economic diversity and support workforce development across the Acadiana Region.”

“I appreciate all of the work that Senator Cassidy is doing to help bring infrastructure to Iberia Parish,” Richard said. “The $2 million dollar grant from Delta Regional Authority will go a long way in enhancing the ARA expansion which will include constructing a state-of-the art maintenance repair and overhaul facility, expanding the aircraft apron, upgrading essential infrastructure and creating hundreds of new jobs at the completion of the project.”

“It is an honor for Avex to welcome Senator Cassidy to witness firsthand the aircraft maintenance and conversions we perform,” Hernandez said in the release. “We greatly appreciate the State’s support and eagerly anticipate the construction of the new hangar, which we believe will be a catalyst for the growth of the local aviation industry in south Louisiana.”

“The Acadiana Regional Airport and Iberia Parish Airport Authority would like to thank Senator Cassidy and the Delta Regional Authority for their support with the $2,000,000 grant for this tremendous economic development project,” Songy said. “I would also like to extend our thanks to the Acadiana Planning Commission for their tireless efforts in helping the submission of the grant application. This grant will be instrumental in the construction of a 200,000 square-foot MRO (maintenance, repair, and overhaul) hangar which will bring at least 200 well-paying jobs to the region and will bring a much-needed boost to the economy in the Acadiana area. Senator Cassidy’s long-standing support of the airport and Acadiana in general is paramount in the economic growth of the region.”

Later, Cassidy traveled to Rayne to meet with Mayor Chuck Robichaux and other mayors in the region. They discussed how Louisiana can use the IIJA to make improvements to cities and towns throughout Acadiana.

“Met with Acadiana Mayors, Police Jurors, and Council members. Some are already benefiting from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill,” Cassidy said in the release. “Everyone wants to address real needs in their communities. We are working together to make life better for people in Louisiana.”

In Acadia Parish alone, more than $58 million has been granted for road projects in the parish, including nearly $55 million for slab repair for the I-10: Jeff Davis PI-I-49 project. Hundreds of thousands of dollars have also been awarded to airports in Crowley and Eunice.

Present at the roundtable were mayors from Rayne, Crowley, Duson, Elton, Estherwood, Kaplan, Lake Arthur, Maurice, Vinton and Welsh, as well as members of the Rayne and Crowley city councils and the Acadia Parish Police Jury. Mayor Robichaux welcomed Cassidy as he arrived.

“I am excited that Senator Cassidy took time out his busy schedule to visit Rayne and allow me to organize an invitation to the mayors of LMA District G to gather for this luncheon to discuss hot topics in the Senate that could affect local municipalities,” Robichaux said. “The LMA District G participants were pleased with the outcome of the impromptu meeting.”

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Cassidy announces $2 million grant for Acadiana Regional Airport hangar