Agency hopes to attract new manufacturer

Frank Russell began at Libbey Glass when he was 20 years old.

“In 1974, I started working on the loading dock. We had boxcars that we would fill with glassware and send to their distribution center.

By the time Frank retired in 2016, he had worked his way up to plant manager.

“It was a great place to make a living, and a great place to develop and hone your skills. It gave an opportunity for people to develop their leadership skills. Almost all of our supervisors came from the hourly ranks and from union jobs. It was a great opportunity for them to develop those types of skills.”

But there hasn’t been that opportunity for anyone since late 2020, when the plant closed. However, there is an effort underway to make the 54 acres on Jewella Avenue attractive to another manufacturer. The North Louisiana Economic Partnership (NLEP) has purchased the site — and all that comes with it.

“Our main function is to recruit well-paying jobs and capital investment into the region of northwest Louisiana,” said Justyn Dixon, NLEP’s president and CEO. “To do that, we have to have attractive assets.”

To the untrained eye, there’s not much that’s attractive about the abandoned, dilapidated facility. But Dixon’s professional eye is very trained.

“It sits right on Interstate 20. It is zoned industrial. It has industrial power, industrial water, industrial wastewater and industrial gas already running into the facility. That’s what a lot of the manufacturing companies we are trying to recruit into the area are looking for. To get those assets to a site can take upwards of two years. All of this is already in place.”

With a combination of state and matching money, NLEP’s purchase cost around $7 million. That doesn’t include the “tens of thousands of dollars” the organization has spent on legal work, maintenance and security. Add in the fact that the property has a rail spur, and Dixon believes the expenses will end up being money well spent.

“To bring a rail spur into a site is probably 10-plus million, and that doesn’t touch the water. That doesn’t touch the wastewater. That doesn’t touch the power. That doesn’t touch getting it available on Interstate 20. What we paid for it, everybody wants to pay less; I did, too. But what we paid for it is much lower than what it would take to get all those assets in place that are currently in place.”

The plan is to hire a company to help with any environmental issues that may be present, then demolish the structures occupying the grounds.

“We’re looking at a phased-in demo. The warehouse is not horrible. I’ve done deals where we’ve bought facilities like that and redeveloped them. But usually, when you’re talking about a company that is going to come in and spend hundreds — if not billions — of dollars, they like to have a clean slate.”

At its height, Libbey Glass employed 1,200 people. While Dixon has respect for those former workers and the jobs they performed, his job is to stay focused on the NLEP’s mission.

“When I look at historical value, I look at economics. (Libbey Glass) was employing hundreds of people who made good wages and had good benefits. We don’t have that anymore. I’m not here to protect any kind of historical building. I can take you into that facility, then take you to Fibrebond (a manufacturer in Minden, La.), and you will quickly realize it’s antiquated. New manufacturers are looking for open space and high ceilings, not cut-up, moduled-out, added-on-at-random-type facilities.”

Since he took the job four years ago, Dixon and NLEP have been involved in four major projects, including the Amazon Fulfillment Center. He’s seen how an investment like this one can pay off.

“Those four projects alone have created over 2,000 jobs and an annual payroll of $250 million. That’s a lot of revenue. That generates sales tax. That generates property tax. That generates revenue for us to make things better in northwest Louisiana. ... That’s why we do what we do.”

It’s too soon to say when — or if — the NLEP can sell a new manufacturer on the idea of operating a plant on the old Libbey Glass site.

“Our intent is to begin marketing it immediately, in hopes of attracting some company fairly quickly. But you also have to realize that time is on your side, and time is against you. But if you don’t have the asset, you’re not even in the game.”