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40 reasons to celebrate

Business Report threw a reception for 40 up-and-comers under 40 years old--and honored more than 320 people who won the award in the past--at the Sheraton Atrium in downtown Baton Rouge. More than 600 people joined the Top 40 under 40 party, with entertainment by Baton Rouge Magnet High's jazz ensemble and a keynote speech by newly elected U.S. Rep. Bobby Jindal.

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THE PRESIDENT'S FORECAST MESSAGE

Company presidents, local CEO's, business owners, managers and other leaders forecast the economic climate or 2005, including the outlook for their own industry and company.

MELVIN "KIP" HOLDEN

Mayor-President-elect

City of Baton Rouge

Parish of East Baton Rouge

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Since my election as your Mayor-President, our Transition Team and I have been working to remove barriers and develop a vision for Baton Rouge, so together we can build America's next great city. We have assembled a strong, bi-partisan team of professionals from throughout East Baton Rouge Parish to reach out for input and ideas on solving the problems that hinder our success. The positive responses and enthusiasm of our citizens has been gratifying, and I am more optimistic than ever that we will succeed.

In my administration, economic development will receive new focus with a dedicated Economic Development Department in the Mayor's Office and a close partnership with the State and other Mayors to market Baton Rouge as part of a vibrant region.

In the first quarter of 2005, we will assemble university officials, business leaders and state economic development professionals to enlist their help in our economic development plans. I will convene a Small Business Summit to find ways local government can cut red tape and help create new jobs, with special focus on young start-up companies and women-owned businesses. We will advance technology solutions for strong schools, safe neighborhoods and more effective traffic management.

I have already begun working through the National League of Cities and U.S. Conference of Mayors to gather best practices from progressive cities across the country as we reorganize the Department of Public Works, address our traffic problems and examine technology options available to increase efficiency in government. I also met early with local realtors to strengthen our resources and ability to market existing office and warehouse space and land available for development through an online database.

The cities in the South that are flourishing are the ones investing and bringing downtown areas to life, and I am committed to vigorously supporting downtown and inner city revitalization efforts.

In doing these things, we not only improve our quality of life, but also attract jobs that will keep our children at home.

I sincerely appreciate the honor of serving as your Mayor-President and invite you to join us in working together to build a better Baton Rouge for us all. Happy New Year and may God bless you and your family.

STEPHEN MORET

President and CEO

The Chamber of Greater Baton Rouge

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Change is in the air. Baton Rouge has a host of new leaders, including a new mayor-president and school superintendent, as well as a new chancellor at LSU. And I'm thrilled to be joining The Chamber as your new President & CEO.

Despite high natural gas prices, which have placed enormous pressure on our petrochemical sector, the capital region will continue to grow in 2005, albeit at a somewhat slower-than-normal pace. The Direct General expansion, which The Chamber helped land, will be a significant job creator. Small businesses, although facing pressure in some areas, will continue to grow around the region. A number of exciting real-estate developments will be kicking off, and downtown will continue its remarkable comeback. Pennington Biomedical Research Center has exciting growth plans in the works.

One of the biggest challenges facing our region is the continuing ozone nonattainment situation. The Chamber is directly addressing this issue by pursuing an expanded legal effort designed to shield our region from onerous penalties (e.g., conversion to reformulated gas and huge penalty fees for industrial facilities) so that the state's emission-monitoring plan has time to succeed. We need to solve the problem rather than accept crippling economic sanctions that do not directly address the root cause. If successful, this effort will benefit not only East Baton Rouge but also our regional partners in Ascension, Iberville, Livingston, and West Baton Rouge.

At the state level, we will be carefully monitoring the growing Medicaid fiscal crisis. Without significant restructuring of the program, it could negatively impact funding for LSU, Southern University, and the Baton Rouge Community College, as well as our local charity hospital, in late 2005. We hope to add our voice to this debate to ensure the best outcome for our region.

Over the next few months, we'll be taking a hard look at what we do as a Chamber. We will be comparing our current organization to leading Chambers in other cities to learn what has worked elsewhere and how we can improve what we do here. As we work to develop a more robust economic-development effort, we will attempt to do so working hand in hand with our new Mayor-President, Kip Holden.

Our goal is to re-energize The Chamber and its impact on the capital region. We plan to increase our contribution to regional economic development, to develop and promote an agenda for our city-parish, and to expand our efforts to improve the quality of public education. We also will work to ensure that the programs we offer our small-business members are relevant and timely.

Please call or email me (381-7125 or stephen@brchamber.org) with your ideas, comments, or questions. If you're not already a member, I invite you to join The Chamber and get involved with our efforts to advance the Baton Rouge region. With your support, your advice, and your leadership, we can build a solid foundation for the future growth of our region.

CHARLES LANDRY

Managing Partner, Baton Rouge Office

Jones Walker

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Jones Walker is a proud partner of the Baton Rouge community and enthusiastically supports the continued growth of our city and its neighboring communities. Jones Walker actively supports many of the ongoing and newly completed projects that are making Baton Rouge an even greater place to live and work. The expansion of the Centroplex Convention facilities, the Shaw Center for the Arts, the renovations of the Capitol House hotel and the continued expansion of the Capitol Park complex are just a few of the developments that are serving not only to revitalize downtown, but to make our central business district second to none in our region. Jones Walker is deeply committed to working with the region's business and civic groups to grow and develop our community.

Our attorneys and staff support over 80 different local civic and charitable organizations including the Chamber of Commerce, Baton Rouge Area Foundation, United Way, Swine Palace, CABL and Boys and Girls Club, and have many of our Jones Walker family serving on their boards.

We wish to thank Mayor Simpson and Allison for their efforts to make Baton Rouge a better community for its citizens, and congratulate Mayor-Elect Kip Holden.

We believe that the Greater Baton Rouge region will continue to be on the move and lead our State of Louisiana in 2005.

ROBERT S. GREER, JR.

President and CEO

LEMIC Insurance Company

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LEMIC has evolved from its inception in 1982 into a compact, tightly-controlled company with a plan for future growth and competitive business operations. The company has been writing workers' compensation insurance in Louisiana for the last 22 years, and began writing in Mississippi in 2002 and in Arkansas in 2003. We have had a tremendous year growing from $48 million to $56 million in total assets, and growing our surplus from $17.2 million to $18.5 million. We have also written over $32 million in premiums--up from $27 million just one year ago. All of this was done through a network of independent insurance agents in the states of Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas.

LEMIC has a very dedicated and loyal staff of employees which serve our policyholders. As we look forward to a great 2005, we wish you a very happy and prosperous New Year.

LEONARD WYATT

City President

AmSouth Bank

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