At the October 25 Lake Charles City Council agenda meeting, Mayor Randy Roach presented Lori Marinovich and Missy Billiot with  plaques marking their certification  as Economic Development Finance Professionals (EDFP) from the National Development Council. The certification is for individuals working in economic development and includes a concentration of studies in numerous fields: business credit analysis, real estate financing, loan packaging, deal structuring and negotiating and the creation and implementation of development programs.

Each of the four EDFP Certification Program courses are five days in length and conclude with an exam. Upon successful completion of all four courses, the candidate is awarded the EDFP Certification. 

Marinovich is an assistant planning director for the City and has been the executive director of its Downtown Development Authority since 2001. A graduate of Louisiana State University with a bachelor’s degree in landscape architecture, she oversees several opportunities including state incentive programs such as Restoration Tax Abatements, Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits and  Enterprise Zone/ Quality Jobs applications for the city.  

Billiot has worked in the City’s finance department since 2002 and is currently the accounting manager. Among many other duties, she is responsible for managing the City’s finances associated with its capital projects. She is a McNeese State University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in accounting, and she is a member of the Government Finance Officers Association of Louisiana. 

Marinovich and Billiot join an estimated 70,000 professionals working in the fields of economic and housing development who have graduated from the program. Participants come from diverse backgrounds including city and state governments, public agencies, community-based organizations, professional organizations and banks.