The City of Ruston, LA has been awarded a U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration grant for $3.5 million.

The grant is designed to help make disaster resilient infrastructure, and to make Ruston a hub for technology-based economic development.

The EDA grant, to be located in a Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Opportunity Zone, will be matched with $967,977 in local funds and is expected to create 350 jobs and attract $25 million in private investment.

“Ruston was severely impacted by a tornado in spring of 2019,” said Dana Gartzke, Performing the Delegated Duties of the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development.

“This project will help Ruston become more resilient to future natural disasters, support the development of Ruston’s a Smart Cities Innovation Testbed project in partnership with Louisiana Tech University, and further incentivize new business development in the region due to the project’s location in an Opportunity Zone.”