Friends,

If you haven't already heard, New Orleans was featured as the most improved city in the nation on the Wall Street Journal MarketWatch’s “Best Cities for Business in 2011” list, a survey looking at over 100 metro areas in the country using 15 different criteria.

This year, the New Orleans region made the largest gain in the country, rising 44 positions, from 77th in 2010 to 33rd in 2011. As recently as 2009, the region was in the bottom 10 of the list.

MarketWatch notes, “Six years removed from the near-apocalypse that was Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans thinks it has picked itself up and dusted itself off. And now the city that got a lot of sympathy after most of it was deluged has rebuilt itself and gotten a new, pro-growth attitude. It’s showing up in the numbers. The Big Easy’s unemployment rate beats the national average, personal income growth is high, growth in economic output is above average and the city is beginning to attract businesses.”

This is what civic and business leaders are saying:

“Once again, the rest of the nation is taking notice to the positive economic momentum we see in New Orleans,” said Mayor Mitch Landrieu. “Our work to foster a better business climate in the city, promote entrepreneurship, and grow jobs here at home is paying off.”

“New Orleans’ recognition as the most improved city for business in the nation by the Wall Street Journal speaks volumes for the work we have collectively done to create an enabling environment for business,” said Rodrick Miller, President and CEO of the New Orleans Business Alliance, the City’s public-private partnership for economic development. “Together with our partners in the civic and business communities, we will continue our trajectory of great economic improvements.”

“Being named #1 most improved metro in the country by The Wall Street Journal is a great validation of our efforts as a community,” said Michael Hecht, President and CEO of Greater New Orleans, Inc. “We are particularly pleased that this top ranking was based on independent statistical analysis, which then supports the story we are witnessing everyday on the street.”

“This survey confirms that we are moving in the right direction, and I look forward to the future economic success of our great city,” said City Council Vice President Eric Granderson.

This new ranking adds to a growing list of recent accolades  for New Orleans including:

• Forbes named Greater New Orleans “America’s Biggest Brain Magnet
• Forbes named the New Orleans region the “#1 Metro for IT Job Growth in USA” and “#2 Best Big City for a Job”
• Site Selection magazine noted the city’s turnaround, calling it the “New Orleans Miracle”
• Southern Business & Development included the New Orleans area as its 2011 Co-Major Market of the Year
• Business Facilities included the New Orleans metro region as a Top 5 Logistics/Distribution/Shipping Hub”

 

To view the full article and “Best Cities for Business for 2011” rankings, click here.