We can't forget the size of our medical community. We are becoming a major health care provider. It is not just the two hospitals - we are seeing a lot of specialists moving into our area.

We have been seeing this movement for some time now - our hotels are full, our restaurants, the track is doing great business and not just from locals. We are seeing a lot of people from outside our area coming here. They are shopping in our stores, buying gas at our stations.

You see them clear the land for a subdivision one day, then you see roofs and then they're full. It is not taking years, it is happening practically overnight.

When things happen in the core, it has a ripple effect throughout the parish.