Empowering Louisiana’s Future. Strengthening Every Corner
Driving Louisiana’s community and economic development
to create an improved and sustainable future.
One Association. Eight Districts.
WHO WE ARE
The LAPDD works as a versatile conduit, collaborating with local, state, and federal agencies to help local leaders accomplish their community and economic development goals.
Some of its key responsibilities include: pursuing and managing funding for local community projects; managing state programs, researching and tracking growth trends and patterns to address public needs; developing short and long-range community enhancement plans; mapping, and collecting feedback and advising officials on challenges and solutions.
A Joint Endeavor
From 2022 to 2024 the Planning Districts worked with federal state and local agencies to improve broadband throughout Louisiana.
2022 – 2024 Statewide Broadband Partnership
Research, Speed Testing, Mapping, Plan Development, & Regional Outreach
BEL Commission
The BEL Commission serves as the projects’s central framework, fostering collaboration and setting shared goals for expanded broadband services.
LDOTD
As the fiscal agent, LDOTD manages funds and hosts a data hub portal for PDDs, contributing expertise to statewide mapping efforts.
LAPDD
LAPDD, through its 8 PDDs, conducts regional surveys and provides technical expertise for robust analysis, contributing to statewide broadband implementation and strategy development.
AN LAPDD INITIATIVE REALIZED
Bridging Digital Divides
Ensuring Universal Broadband For All
A United Initiative
The LAPDD has an extensive history of working to improve broadband in Louisiana. In 2016 the LAPDD set a goal to implement last-mile broadband access and next generation ultra-high speed broadband. To achieve this, the LAPDD sought, under the Governor’s leadership, to convene a state sponsored telecommunications summit of the telecom companies and other key state leaders (e.g., key legislators, local elected officials, etc.). Additionally, it spearheaded a myriad of localized initiatives aimed at connecting businesses and residents, pursued avenues to secure vital funding to aid expansion, and played a central role in facilitating community conversations to identify unique challenges and opportunities within each region.
The onset of the 2020 pandemic underscored the pressing need for comprehensive broadband solutions. Leveraging additional funding opportunities, the LAPDD swiftly mobilized efforts to address the widespread broadband disparity, meticulously documenting the extent of the issue and submitting applications to mitigate its impacts.
The LAPDD GIS professionals provided the early version of known broadband accessibility in Louisiana. In 2021, the Delta Regional Authority through an innovate online crowd-sourcing platform launched a year-long effort to gauge broadband accessibility in it’s eight state region. The LA PDD’s mapping teams determined appropriate federally available mapping sources and formatted, categorized, and labeled maps to create visually appealing maps that showed broadband access as well as download and upload speeds reported by broadband providers. Other layers were determined useful, such as areas where grants for increased broadband infrastructure had been granted (RDOF, CAF I, CAFII, USDA and later GUMBO), speed testing data retrieved from a Delta Regional Authority initiative using Geo-Partners, Ookla data speed tests, parcel data from Whitestar, post-secondary school locations, hospitals, locations, DOD sites, American Community Survey broadband access data, and base map layers for addressing, Census blocks, water, roads, etc.
A state-wide mapping project using ESRI ArcPro was produced demonstrating known broadband accessibility and speed prior to the September 2022 data release from the providers.
Louisiana Broadband Accessibility
As identified in 2022
The LAPDD developed several maps and compiled data which was given to the Louisiana Department of Transporation and the Division of Administration. The ArcGIS Online mapping project was the baseline data incorporated into the updated project which is now being served through ConnectLA.
Louisiana Negative Map
Here is one of the maps developed to demonstrate the coverage gaps in Louisiana. Gaps are in red.
Moving the Broadband Needle
Help us get Louisiana from 46th in Broadband coverage, speed, and price to #1.
What is your broadband?
Broadband (broad bandwidth) is any connection that allows data to move quickly from the internet to your device. Think of it as an internet pipeline, much like a water or sewer pipeline.
“Every page, image and video on the web comes to your home device as small pieces of data, or packets. How fast these packets move on the network is measured in Megabits per second, abbreviated Mbps. Broadband technology can move those packets to and from your home much more quickly than dial-up access using a modem and telephone line. A broadband connection has two speeds: download and upload. Download speed is the speed of getting information from the web to your computer, and upload speed is the reverse.” - FCC
What is your connection like?
LAPDD’s 4 Pillars of Digital Equity
Accessible Application
Ensuring access to reliable internet
Affordable & Sufficient
Creating affordable internet
Digital Skills
Improving skills for both users and platform creators
Devices
Ensuring affordable options are available
Our Next Steps
To fulfill the four pillars of our broadband goals, significant additional efforts are required. In order to further bolster the endeavors of both state and federal agencies in facilitating universal broadband access across LA by 2029, the LAPDD will undertake the following actions:
Advocacy
The LAPDD will persist in identifying and disseminating information about opportunities to advance our broadband objectives to the public and leaders alike.
Developing Regional Priorities
The LAPDD will persist in identifying and disseminating information about opportunities to advance our broadband objectives to the public and leaders alike.
Identifying Gaps
We Need You
Tell Us About Your Broadband Challenges
Take a few brief moments to tell us about your internet experience.