Gaining. Momentum 2013ECONOMIC YEARBOOK. FINALLY, AFTER A RECOVERY THAT TOOK ITS OWN SWEET TIME to develop and progress,

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2 2013ECONOMIC YEARBOOK Gaining Momentum FINALLY, AFTER A RECOVERY THAT TOOK ITS OWN SWEET TIME to develop and progress, there are positive signs from all corners of the state. Not every community is where its leaders would like it to be, but most are better off than they were a year ago. In Metro Atlanta, healthcare and life sciences are thriving; the big news comes from pharmaceutical giant Baxter International, which will locate a sizable new facility in Stanton Springs Industrial Park at the junction of Walton, Newton and Morgan counties. Northwest Georgia is benefitting from increased manufacturing activity, especially among carpet and flooring companies. Northeast Georgia is anticipating a raft of suppliers attracted by the new Caterpillar operation. West Central Georgia is experiencing a resurgence on town squares and in industrial parks, part of the Kia juggernaut. Central Georgia is taking a more regional approach to economic development; and East Central Georgia is seeing growth in biofuel projects. Southwest Georgia reports activity in retail and agriculture, and Southeast Georgia is enjoying the benefits of a diversified economy. Stories in this year s Economic Yearbook were reported and written by Jerry Grillo, Ben Young, Karen Rosen, Randy Southerland, Christy Simo, Bobby Nesbitt and Don Sadler. The Simon S. Selig Jr. Center for Economic Growth at the University of Georgia s Terry College of Business provided the statistical information for the tables in the yearbook. This edition of the Economic Yearbook divides Georgia s 159 counties among eight regions introduced in 1996; each table lists counties alphabetically within their region. Population and income data for 2012 have been projected based on trends (income) and trends (population). Per capita personal income estimates were calculated based on revised population and income data from the U.S. Bureau of the Census and the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Estimates of population and per capita personal income for 2012 are based on extensions of existing trends and reflect growth or decline based on data that already have been recorded. Total population estimates are based on data through 2011 from the Census Bureau. County population projections for the year 2012 have been controlled to the reported state total for Employment data are for January-June average covered employment, defined as jobs, by place of work, covered under Georgia s unemployment insurance law, and are not comparable with other nonagricultural employment statistics. Employment estimates are based on information through June 2012, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data for per capita personal income, by place of residence, were derived from data through 2011 issued by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and are given in current dollars. Readers may visit the Selig Center website ( for additional information. Susan Percy, Editor 22 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

3 page 29 page 32 page 24 page 44 page 36 page 40 page 48 page 52 METRO ATLANTA 24 NORTHWEST 29 NORTHEAST 32 WEST CENTRAL 36 CENTRAL 40 EAST CENTRAL 44 SOUTHWEST 48 SOUTHEAST 52

4 METRO ATLANTA Moving Forward: Doug Hooker, executive director of the Atlanta Regional Commission The Boom Starts Here B Y J E R RY G R I L L O THE METRO ATLANTA REGION is Georgia s economic and cultural nucleus, a dense urban center within a demographically diverse suburban and exurban patchwork, stitched together by an asphalt web crawling with commuters in a slow hurry to get to work or home or lacrosse practice or wherever 2.5 million road warriors are going each weekday in this pulsing hub. Yes, the region s traffic problems are renowned. Yes, regional economic development leaders were frustrated when their newest, best hope to solve the mobility problems the proposed T-SPLOST referendum got a resounding thumbs down from voters last year. I d be lying if I said we weren t really disappointed, says Doug Hooker, executive director of the Atlanta Regional Commission. [The T-SPLOST] would have injected billions into the economy and addressed some major transportation issues. But, on the other hand, I can safely say that regional leadership is more focused and committed and determined about moving forward. A lot of that focus and commitment has been aimed at life sciences and healthcare, and the determination has paid off. Hospitals continue expanding or building anew. Healthcare service industries (such as IT services or products) are growing. And one project in particular, in a distant outpost of the metro region, will be affecting local economies for decades. Last April, Baxter International announced it would build a $1.3- billion facility to manufacture plasma-based therapies (for a variety of chronic and life-threatening ailments) in 24 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

5 METRO ATLANTA Stanton Springs, a 1,600- acre industrial park near Covington, creating 1,500 high-paying jobs when production gets started in We ve come in second place to the Research Triangle in North Carolina several times, but we felt like this would be the one, says Kevin Little, chairman of the board of commissioners in Walton County, where most of the plant will be located. Stanton Springs is a project of the Joint Development Authority (JDA) of Jasper, Morgan, Newton and Walton Counties, but Baxter s one-millionsquare-foot plant will occupy 162 acres (108 in Walton County, 54 in Newton). The physical footprint is in two counties, but this project will benefit the entire region, says Carol Henderson, director of innovation and technology for the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD). Helping to seal the deal is a package that includes property tax abatements, a Quick Start training center, job credits, infrastructure grants and other state and local perks that could add up to more than $210 million. We were getting zero tax dollars with nobody out there for the last 10 years, so we worked on a good incentive package that could compete with anybody s, with the understanding that a company like Baxter, and others who follow, are going to be here long after those tax breaks go away, says Little, who is also vice chairman of the JDA. The Georgia Economic Developers Association recognized the JDA with a Deal of the Year award, and it easily was. But across the region there were smaller but significant developments making an impact in communities throughout the region, especially in healthcare, and especially in Newnan (See South Metro Area Focus, page 83), where Piedmont Healthcare opened a 136-bed, $167-million hospital in May, Cancer Treatment Centers of America opened a $150-million hospital, and HealthSouth (an Alabamabased company) plans to build a $26- Good Incentives: Walton County s Kevin Little million, 50-bed rehabilitation hospital. Over in Carrollton, on the western edge of the region, Tanner Health System completed a $61-million, total renovation of its ER department. Another Carrollton company, Greenway Medical Technologies, went public in 2012 and is in the process of adding 400 jobs. Greenway is one of the state s fastest-growing companies in one of the region s fast-growing industries. Metro Atlanta has about 200 health information technology companies. Sam Williams, president of the Metro Atlanta Chamber, calls it, the exploding interface between technology and I APRIL 2013 I 25

6 METRO ATLANTA POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) * STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Barrow ,409 71, Butts ,993 23, Carroll , , Cherokee , , Clayton , , Cobb , , Coweta , , DeKalb , , Douglas , , Fayette , , Forsyth , , Fulton , , Gwinnett , , Henry , , Newton , , Paulding , , Pickens ,258 29, Rockdale ,158 86, Spalding ,699 64, Walton ,103 85, Region Total 2.4 4,269,047 5,195,209 NA 2.2 State Total 1.8 8,508,256 9,919,945 NA 1.7 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates. EMPLOYMENT AVERAGE ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT* AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Barrow ,717 14, Butts 0.5 5,324 5, Carroll ,930 36, Cherokee ,941 45, Clayton , , Cobb , , Coweta ,048 30, DeKalb , , Douglas ,855 36, Fayette ,601 37, Forsyth ,891 57, Fulton , , Gwinnett , , Henry ,351 49, Newton ,656 20, Paulding ,555 19, Pickens 2.8 5,838 7, Rockdale ,396 29, Spalding ,801 20, Walton ,122 18, Region Total ,099,774 2,135,286 NA 0.2 State Total~ 0.0 3,807,915 3,822,635 NA 0.0 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *January-June average covered employment (subject to the unemployment insurance law of Georgia), not comparable to other nonagricultural employment statistics. ~State totals include undistributed employment. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. healthcare. We have more of these companies than any other city. Healthcare (in all its forms) is still the fastest-growing industry in Forsyth County, where there are almost 1,000 businesses devoted in some fashion or another to the healing arts. Atlanta-based Northside Hospital is investing $51 million to expand its sprawling Forsyth campus, while next door to the west, in Cherokee County, Northside is building a $250-million hospital and a $30-million medical office building. Down in the urban heart of the region, Emory Healthcare is undertaking two ambitious projects, beginning site preparations for a new nine-story, 210-bed patient tower, the first phase of a $1.5-billion expansion plan. Emory Healthcare will also co-operate the Georgia Proton Treatment Center (with facility owner Advanced Particle Therapy), a $200-million cancertreating proton facility (only a handful in the U.S.) in Midtown, where another $560 million is being invested in six different mixed-use projects. And that s just the one-square-mile Midtown Core. There is a tremendous amount of momentum here, in terms of new construction, says Kevin Green, president and CEO of Midtown Alliance. The development activity is focused mostly on residential growth, with 2,000 (or so) apartments either coming on line recently or being delivered in the next 12 months. That includes about 400 units as part of the $200-million, multi-use Ponce City Market (former City Hall East, due for completion by mid 2014), and three 23-story developments. Just when you thought cranes were an endangered species, Green quips. I think we dug ourselves out of the recession ditch quicker than a lot of other areas. It s the power of people and place. The ditch is deeper in some places for some people. Evidence of housing bubble flotsam may be found all around: PVC farms, acres of land graded for houses and apartments that haven t seen the first two by four. Henry County, like others in the 26 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

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8 METRO ATLANTA region, has had a bellyful. The west side of I-75 in Henry County is packed with huge warehouses and distribution centers, some millionsquare-footers under way right now, serving Atlanta s insatiable appetite for logistics infrastructure. But Henry has routinely been ranked among the fastest-growing counties in the country based on residential growth. Then came the downturn and the foreclosures. None of the homegrown banks survived. We were hit hard, says Bob White, executive director of the Henry County Development Authority. We lost more than a third of the value of our tax digest as a result of the downturn. With less property tax coming in (and less sales tax), and after years of cutting to the bone (including layoffs, furloughs, wage freezes), county leaders in Henry did what other cash-strapped metro counties have done, a very unpopular move in a very conservative state they raised property taxes. It came down to cutting services or raising the millage rate, White says. Meanwhile, one of the other metro counties on the fastest-growing list, Forsyth, issued 1,809 single-family residential units, an increase of 66 percent over Metro Atlanta is a diverse region, oddly shaped, touching Alabama to the west and the mountain shadows to the north. The projects and prospects throughout are as varied as the 20 counties and hundreds of communities that make up one of the nation s great logistics hubs. A few recent examples: In DeKalb County, where the Office of Economic Development worked to bring in nearly $304 million of new investment to the county, they are cheering a $15-million expansion of the UPS facility on Pleasantdale Road, a project that kept UPS from relocating 700 jobs job retention matters. In Gwinnett, they re cheering the Momentum: Midtown Alliance s Kevin Green MIDTOWN ALLIANCE $43-million FedEx distribution center that opened in In Cobb County, they re cheering the completion of 100,000 square feet of hangar space for corporate aircraft at Mc- Collum Airport. And, of course, the new $1.4-billion international terminal at Hartsfield-Jackson opened last May, enhancing the region s global appeal and prospects and helping to drive development along I- 75 with a new passenger entrance to the new terminal, or what Grant Wainscott, director of the Clayton County Office of Economic Development calls, our side of the airport. For a metropolis dedicated to the automobile, there is some positive growth in that sector, too. Porsche broke ground in November on its $100- million North American headquarters at Aerotropolis Atlanta, the mixedused development on the site of the old Ford plant in Hapeville. And a former PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME longtime regional player has returned, sort of. In January, General Motors, which shuttered its massive Doraville manufacturing plant in 2008 (local developers are still considering that site) announced it was creating 1,000 jobs in Roswell and investing $26 million to turn an old UPS facility into an IT Innovation Center. According to GDEcD Commissioner Chris Cummiskey, the driving force (his pun) in GM s decision was Georgia s workforce development system, the research muscle of Georgia Tech, the University of Georgia, Clark Atlanta University, Emory, Morehouse, etc., and the technical college system. GM is creating new jobs in the $75,000-$85,000 range, Cummiskey says, for recent college grads up through senior management. I think it says something to the rest of the country about the quality of our workforce, our university system and our business climate. Companies are continuing to take a good, serious look at Metro Atlanta, and I see some great success stories ahead of us. AVERAGE ANNUAL PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PERCENT CHANGE (%) * STATE PERCENT CHANGE (%) COUNTIES ($) ($) RANK Barrow ,762 30, Butts ,914 25, Carroll ,223 29, Cherokee ,366 37, Clayton ,824 27, Cobb ,787 46, Coweta ,793 34, DeKalb ,227 40, Douglas ,771 29, Fayette ,492 44, Forsyth ,087 41, Fulton ,144 57, Gwinnett ,268 32, Henry ,451 30, Newton ,508 26, Paulding ,207 37, Pickens ,868 36, Rockdale ,386 31, Spalding ,476 28, Walton ,830 34, Region Average ,701 40,390 NA 1.6 State Average ,526 36,283 NA 2.3 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. 28 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

9 NORTHWEST More Activity: Jimmy Phillips, president of the Gordon County Chamber of Commerce Staging A Comeback B Y B E N Y O U N G NEW TECHNOLOGY AND A HOUSING THAW have accelerated a comeback in the hard-hit northwest Georgia region, which depends mostly on a cluster of big flooring companies, resulting in better-paying positions and more opportunity for advancement for industry employees. Green initiatives are producing dollars: Flooring company Mohawk, which is based in Gordon County s Calhoun, announced it would create 500 jobs at its Summerville plant in Chattooga County to improve its ability to manufacture recycled products. Mohawk is huge for us, says Jimmy Phillips, president of the Gordon County Chamber of Commerce. They are hiring to implement a new process of extrusion using a new technology from Germany as part of their green effort to expand their line of EverStrand carpet fiber, which is made from plastic bottles. The jobs will be phased in over five years and will require an unprecedented workforce training effort, using an on-site campus to train workers in conjunction with Technical College System of Georgia s Quick Start program. Once the workers are trained, they will be in a position to earn $16 to $25 an hour, up from the usual $8 to $10 range typical for flooring manufacturing. We hope it will raise our per capita income, says Phillips. We ve also had more midlevel commercial activity in 2012 than we ve had in the last five years, he adds. A four-story Marriott is coming in at Calhoun Premium Outlets at Interstate 75 exit 312, and I APRIL 2013 I 29

10 NORTHWEST our new Union Grove interchange at I- 75 is under construction. Many counties in the region are banking on the arts. Murray County has created a new arts council, Go Murray Arts, directed by community arts veteran John Christian. We hope it will bring in some new retailers and add some life to the city, says Dinah Rowe, president and CEO of the Chatsworth-Murray County Chamber of Commerce. Some $445,000 in grants from ArtPlace, a national nonprofit, are helping clean up the late folk artist Howard Finster s Paradise Garden near Summerville, a marvel of offbeat sculpture and painting. Haralson County, at the southern end of the region, has also incorporated the arts into its Grow Haralson initiative. The Smithsonian traveling exhibit New Harmonies will come to Bremen this year. April is Buy Local & Buy Chamber month, and the chamber s Tourism Team is working with the Highway 27 Association to draw tourism to the counties traversed by the corridor. Haralson is both Work Ready and Camera Ready, designations that put it at the front of the line for Georgia economic development prospects. The entire region will benefit from a $21-million grant to install fiber-optic cable along U.S. 27, which runs parallel to I-75; it s the latest in the Appalachian Valley Fiber Network initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Commerce. Walker County has seen several expansions $3 million in upgrades and 60 hires for United Synthetics, an industrial fiber maker in LaFayette; another $2.5 million and 60 jobs at LaFayette carpet maker Syntech Industries; and 100 jobs at the GE Roper stove and oven plant attributed to the fiber upgrades. Additionally, Phillips Machine Co. will invest $3 million to move into the former Blue Bird plant, adding 40 to 50 jobs. Businesses are eyeing industrial parks along U.S. 27, which has been widened to four lanes over the last decade to give trucks an alternative route to I-75. In cooperation with the [UGA] Fanning Institute, we re constructing a $100,000 speculative building in Cedartown North POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) * STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Bartow , , Catoosa ,024 64, Chattooga ,688 25, Dade ,658 16, Floyd ,597 95, Gilmer ,920 28, Gordon ,939 56, Haralson ,676 28, Murray ,167 39, Polk ,109 41, Walker ,841 69, Whitfield , , Region Total , ,371 NA 1.2 State Total 1.8 8,508,256 9,919,945 NA 1.7 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates. EMPLOYMENT AVERAGE ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT* AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Bartow ,087 31, Catoosa ,597 13, Chattooga ,613 5, Dade ,270 3, Floyd ,869 36, Gilmer 1.0 7,619 6, Gordon ,214 20, Haralson 0.9 6,410 7, Murray ,266 9, Polk ,861 10, Walker ,873 12, Whitfield ,259 52, Region Total , ,817 NA -0.9 State Total~ 0.0 3,807,915 3,822,635 NA 0.0 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *January-June average covered employment (subject to the unemployment insurance law of Georgia), not comparable to other nonagricultural employment statistics. ~State totals include undistributed employment. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. Industrial Park, and we ve submitted a 220-acre site for Georgia Ready for Accelerated Development certification, says Eric McDonald, president of the Polk County Chamber of Commerce and Development Authority. Southern Company will hire 1,000 construction workers to implement $700 million in improvements in Georgia Power s Plant Bowen in Bartow County. While the project will run out in three years, that is a big employment number for Bartow. In addition, Voestalpine, an auto supplier, will be the first tenant in our industrial park, says Melinda Lemmon, executive director of the Cartersville-Bartow County Department of Economic Development. They will supply BMW and Mercedes with parts, and we are honored they chose our community to invest $62 million and create 220 jobs. Lemmon is also thrilled that Bass Pro Shops will open a location in the county s LakePoint Development, an investment of $25 million that will create 200 jobs. We ve been working on that since 2009, says Lemmon. When it opens in 2014, LakePoint will be a big draw, 30 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

11 NORTHWEST including a wakeboard park and other attractions. Additionally, Cartersville Medical Center is building a $30-million expansion to double the emergency department, add a patient floor and fix up the building façade; the project is expected to bring 100 temporary jobs and 45 permanent ones to the community. Collectively, Lemmon sees 692 jobs coming to Bartow in addition to the construction work. Lowe s is bringing a distribution center to Rome, creating 600 jobs over the next three years for the $125-million, 1.4-million-square-foot facility, in what was named a Deal of the Year by the Georgia Economic Developers Association. Accessibility to corridors like U.S. 27 and I-75 was listed as a big factor in the North Carolina home improvement retailer s decision. Foss Manufacturing Company will add a new manufacturing plant in Rome, creating 150 jobs and investing $15 million, rehabbing a building once occupied by Mohawk. F&P Georgia expanded its machinery operation in 2012, creating an additional 100 jobs; its fifth expansion was driven by the region s workforce skills. Northwest Georgia seeks to benefit from a tri-state regional initiative to make the most of Chattanooga s Volkswagen plant, says Brian Anderson, president and CEO of the Dalton-Whitfield Chamber of Commerce. That massive project has employed 3,500 as of the end of 2012 and is likely to increase. We re trying to get ahead of infrastructure needs and the impact of such a large economic investment, so we ve pulled 16 counties together from Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama, he says. We have five counties in Georgia, and we seek to create a 40-year timeline of response efforts from the end of our three years of planning. VW has been good for the beleaguered carpet capital of the world; Mohawk s greening effort and a national housing thaw has also been good for business. Our ties to the regional initiative have created a significant uptick in project inquiries, in terms of number PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PERCENT CHANGE (%) * STATE PERCENT CHANGE (%) COUNTIES ($) ($) RANK Bartow ,708 27, Catoosa ,104 30, Chattooga ,889 24, Dade ,730 27, Floyd ,006 33, Gilmer ,891 27, Gordon ,196 26, Haralson ,684 28, Murray ,117 25, Polk ,616 26, Walker ,010 27, Whitfield ,439 28, Region Average ,995 28,456 NA 1.9 State Average ,526 36,283 NA 2.3 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. and diversity all kinds of advanced manufacturing, food processing and defense contracts, says Anderson. We see a robust transformation and reinvestment in technologies in the flooring industry, so when housing picks up they will be ready, he says. Our commercial sector is already doing well, and now forecasters are calling for 15 to 20 percent in single and multifamily home construction over the next three years that s a lot of volume, and 60 percent of the flooring business is new construction. Welcoming Suppliers: Cartersville-Bartow County s Melinda Lemmon Anderson says the region is transitioning into a 24-7 workforce and higher-quality jobs. He notes that the county has topped the unemployment rate charts for a long time. It wears on the community psyche. So to have some good news is nice. Our return to growth will remain slow, but I expect some big announcements in In terms of workforce, he says, So much of it is so high-tech, such as programmable logic controllers. In fact 300 to 500 of the new jobs coming to the region will pay $40,000 to $60,000 annually. Part of the retooling requires retraining, and our government and technical college system has to fast-track individuals that are pre-screened and identified to have a mechanical or electrician type background, to see if they have accelerated skills development. I wish we could have had those programs and jobs yesterday. But with VW, high-tech manufacturing and the carpet industry retooling, the training pace and pipeline fill hasn t caught up with those three high-demand positions. Once we get those 300 to 500 trained, there will be an ongoing need for 50 to 150 people a year in those positions such as an extruder operator making $20 to $30 an hour, Anderson says. This not only maximizes productivity with technology, but allows employees to move up and benefit along with the company. I APRIL 2013 I 31

12 NORTHEAST Reeling In A Big One B Y K A R E N R O S E N Far-Reaching Impact: Georgia Mountains Regional Commission s Heather Feldman, left, and Danny Lewis THE NEW $200-MILLION CATERPILLAR manufacturing facility near Athens has set in motion economic development opportunities that could spread like the wings of a butterfly throughout Northeast Georgia. The 265-acre property in Bogart straddles Clarke and Oconee counties, and nearby counties are clamoring to attract an estimated 25 to 30 suppliers and vendors to support the plant s production of minihydraulic excavators and small tractors. Caterpillar, which is expected to move into the building this spring, will employ 1,400 people by 2020; a projected 2,800 supply-chain related jobs will be created. Economic impact has been estimated at up to $2.4 billion per year. This is going to have a lasting and overall effect on this entire region, says Peggy Chapman, president and CEO of the Athens-Clarke County Economic Development Foundation. All I can do is judge by what Kia did in LaGrange. Some of the suppliers they brought in had 600 or 700 jobs. The potential for bringing in large industry is still there. Rusty Haygood, economic development director for Oconee County, announced his first supplier in early January. Industrial Finishing Specialists in Watkinsville will offer painting and paint removal. Initially, it s going to be 15 or 20 jobs, Haygood says, but they ve got a lot of potential to grow. 32 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

13 NORTHEAST Because Caterpillar will phase in different lines in the next few years, it will be a staggered approach, Haygood says. It s not as if all the suppliers will be looking to descend on the area at one time. An existing Caterpillar plant in Toccoa, which produces the metal seals, announced a $20-million, 44,000- square-foot addition and about 50 new jobs in We were extraordinarily proud, says Tim Martin, executive director of the Stephens County Development Authority. With competition sure to be fierce for new Caterpillar suppliers, burgeoning broadband capabilities could help generate a region-wide metamorphosis. The $42-million North Georgia Network was completed last November, and the smaller Northeast Georgia Network goes live this year with its first leg. While there was some availability of broadband, this will help level the playing field, Martin says. The Northeast Georgia Network eventually will be a 150-mile loop through six counties (Hart, Franklin, Stephens, Banks, Rabun and Habersham). Dwayne A. Dye, director of economic development for the Hart County Industrial Building Authority, says the network is really going to be a huge asset for us in attracting technically based businesses and companies that need a lot of computing power. In Habersham County, We re thinking about using that capacity to turn our existing industrial park into a technology park, says J.R. Charles, executive director of the Habersham County Economic Development Authority. The county would then find a new site, one of those big 300- to 400-acre industrial parks, Charles says, so we can really land the top projects. The Northeast Georgia Network received a $1-million OneGeorgia equity grant to go towards the $10-million project. The project will connect with the North Georgia Network, which serves the counties of Dawson, Forsyth, Habersham, Lumpkin, Rabun, Towns, Union and White with 260 POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) * STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Banks ,485 18, Clarke , , Dawson ,521 22, Elbert ,610 19, Fannin ,041 23, Franklin ,942 21, Greene ,984 16, Habersham ,421 43, Hall , , Hart ,286 25, Jackson ,940 62, Lumpkin ,048 30, Madison ,512 27, Oconee ,501 33, Oglethorpe ,152 14, Rabun ,458 16, Stephens ,625 26, Towns 1.2 9,532 10, Union ,349 21, White ,281 27, Region Total , ,498 NA 1.7 State Total 1.8 8,508,256 9,919,945 NA 1.7 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates. EMPLOYMENT AVERAGE ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT* AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Banks 4.5 3,205 4, Clarke ,477 63, Dawson 7.9 4,702 7, Elbert ,520 5, Fannin 0.4 4,961 5, Franklin ,604 6, Greene 0.1 4,664 5, Habersham ,134 12, Hall ,051 70, Hart ,092 5, Jackson ,901 18, Lumpkin 0.3 5,712 6, Madison ,364 1, Oconee 2.2 6,911 8, Oglethorpe 0.8 1,689 1, Rabun ,650 4, Stephens ,553 9, Towns 3.2 2,933 3, Union 2.2 5,303 6, White 0.5 6,007 6, Region Total , ,974 NA 0.5 State Total~ 0.0 3,807,915 3,822,635 NA 0.0 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *January-June average covered employment (subject to the unemployment insurance law of Georgia), not comparable to other nonagricultural employment statistics. ~State totals include undistributed employment. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. I APRIL 2013 I 33

14 NORTHEAST miles of high-speed fiber-optic Internet service. We re achieving capacities and speeds that frankly rival just about anything on the Eastern seaboard, Mitch Griggs, executive director of the Union County Development Authority, says of the network, which was infused with federal stimulus funds. We can drop 10 gigs on a business at the drop of a hat without any new construction required. Griggs says the next steps are marketing the availability of this network to the world at large and educating existing business on how to utilize it. Jackson County already has the tools to recruit both international and Georgia-based companies. Probably out of 26 active projects we have, half of them are Asian companies, says Courtney Bernardi, director of economic development at Jackson County Area Chamber of Commerce. In addition, children s apparel manufacturer Carter s located a multi-channel distribution center in Braselton. The deal will eventually mean 1,000 jobs and $50 million in investment. Two German companies have moved into Elbert County since 2010, MöllerTech and Hailo USA. We have a lot of metal working experience here, and we have plastics, says Anna Grant Jones, executive director of the Development Authority of Elbert County, Elberton and Bowman. She credits the local campus of Athens Technical College with providing great workforce training, including a welding lab that opened in January. Everywhere you go, people always talk about a shortage of welders. German hydraulic systems manufacturer Lupold opened a subsidiary in Hall County in August 2012, with plans for 60 employees, and German automotive parts manufacturer Kautex Textron announced an expansion in November that could add 100 jobs in Franklin County. Japanese company Kubota continues to expand in Northeast Georgia. Hall County is capitalizing on growth by developing road, water and sewer infrastructure for the new 520- acre Gateway Industrial Centre. PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PERCENT CHANGE (%) * STATE PERCENT CHANGE (%) COUNTIES ($) ($) RANK Banks ,677 27, Clarke ,661 25, Dawson ,148 32, Elbert ,473 29, Fannin ,016 29, Franklin ,113 29, Greene ,286 39, Habersham ,853 27, Hall ,922 32, Hart ,270 26, Jackson ,458 30, Lumpkin ,077 27, Madison ,817 29, Oconee ,431 54, Oglethorpe ,477 30, Rabun ,531 30, Stephens ,737 30, Towns ,973 35, Union ,981 31, White ,294 25, Region Average ,307 30,751 NA 2.7 State Average ,526 36,283 NA 2.3 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. Union County: The Development Authority s executive director, Mitch Griggs The health industry continues to flourish in Northeast Georgia. With its opening in July 2012, the Ty Cobb Regional Medical Center in Lavonia became an economic engine of the region, says Heather Feldman, director of economic development at Georgia Mountains Regional Commission. The $90-million investment also includes a medical office building to accommodate related businesses, such as that seen in Oconee County on the Highway 316 corridor. Medical offices have been opening quite rapidly over the last 12 to 24 months, Haygood says. The Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) Braselton, on the River Place campus, will be a 100-bed facility expected to open in spring 2015 and bring 570 jobs. Ethicon Inc., a medical company, announced in September that it will add a 100,000-square-foot facility in Athens, creating 75 jobs through The Johnson & Johnson subsidiary will also make improvements at its Cornelia site for a total investment of about $185 million. In addition to hospitals and medical providers, Northeast Georgia is increasing senior services, including living facilities. The Oakview Crossing development in Hart County will be a $40- million investment bringing 130 jobs. Dye says the Lake Hartwell area has seen an influx of retirees who originally moved from the Northeast to Florida. You call them the halfbacks, he says. 34 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

15 NORTHEAST They go to Florida, and it s hot and sticky. They want to live in an area that has four distinct seasons, but yet doesn t get a lot of the bitter cold. Where medical centers go, retail follows. A J Peters Grill & Bar in Lavonia, opening this year, will offer us a different level of restaurant opportunity that we haven t had here, says Lyn Brumby Allen, director of economic development for the Franklin County Industrial Building Authority. A new Hampton Inn will provide proximity to the Ty Cobb Regional Medical Center. Retail is booming in Oconee County, where a 485,000-square-foot retail center has broken ground. Lakeshore Mall in Gainesville, one of the oldest in the state, is undergoing a major redevelopment, with its big coup a Dick s Sporting Goods. In addition, Hall County is developing another half-million square feet of retail at New Holland Market in Gainesville. When people come here for the medical center, they often wind up staying for dinner, says Tim Evans, vice president of economic development for the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce. Downtown Athens is growing in leaps and bounds, Chapman says, with projects like the $24-million renovation and expansion of the Classic Center and a proposed $80-million mixed-use project southeast of downtown. Promoting local food networks and regional food hubs is a priority of the Northeast Georgia Regional Commission, says Burke Walker, director of planning and government services. Union County has opened a new cannery. Danny Lewis, executive director of the Georgia Mountains Regional Commission, cites King s Hawaiian Bakery, which became fully operational in Oakwood in 2012 and could eventually expand to 250 to 260 workers, as an example of the diverse manufacturing in the area. Every time I go through Kroger, I say, Do y all know that bread s made in Gainesville, Georgia? he says. It s a totally different market for us than building lawnmowers and tractors. I APRIL 2013 I 35

16 WEST CENTRAL Growth Catalyst: Harris County Chamber s Jayson Johnston at Johnson Controls, a Kia supplier Enjoying A Resurgence B Y R A N DY S O U T H E R L A N D THE FIRST THING PEOPLE LIKE to talk about in Georgia s west central region is the Kia juggernaut. In a down economy, the Korean automaker has become a central focus of economic activity with a bustling plant near West Point in Troup County and a recent commitment to spend a cool billion to keep the lines humming. While not so obvious or dramatic, there is also a resurgence on town squares and industrial parks throughout the region. From auto suppliers and call centers to small bookstores, local entrepreneurs are once again stepping up in the face of an uncertain economic climate. In the west central part of Georgia, there are projects that continue to help our economy grow and give the region some great successes, says Becca Hardin, executive vice president of The Valley Partnership in Columbus. One of the biggest boosts to development came in the form of a yes vote on the one-cent T- SPLOST (Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax). The region was one of just three in the state that passed it. Over the next I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

17 WEST CENTRAL years, the tax is expected to produce about $600 million to fund transportation improvements. About half of that amount will go to 11 projects in Columbus and Harris County. We re going to be creating construction jobs, and it s going to open up parts of our county for economic growth that have been struggling, says Hardin, who is also executive vice Economic Success: The Valley Partnership s Becca Hardin president of economic development for the chamber. In Columbus, the funds will enable interchange improvements on I-85 near Fort Benning. This roadwork will open up access to the new Benning Technology Park for military contractors. When it s up and running, the park is expected to add almost 2,000 new jobs to the area. Fort Benning is a huge economic engine, says Gary Jones, the chamber s executive vice president for economic development and military affairs. That $4.3 billion [economic impact] is just based on salary and contracts. There s no rollover factor. That s the current impact that they re having out there. The entire region cheered recent news that Kia Motors has pledged to invest $1.6 billion over the next 16 years to retool and expand its production capability. To make it possible, the Troup County Development Authority agreed to issue $1 billion in bonds coupled with a $600-million issue by the POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) * STATE INCREASE (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Chattahoochee~ ,043 11, Harris ,327 32, Heard ,207 11, Marion 2.2 7,400 8, Meriwether ,726 21, Muscogee , , Pike ,445 17, Quitman ,547 2, Schley 3.2 3,920 5, Stewart 1.5 5,424 5, Sumter ,362 32, Talbot 0.4 6,749 6, Taylor 0.1 8,837 8, Troup ,224 68, Upson ,624 26, Webster 1.6 2,389 2, Region Total , ,348 NA 0.6 State Total 1.8 8,508,256 9,919,945 NA 1.7 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. ~Data affected by military relocations. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates. EMPLOYMENT AVERAGE ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT* AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Chattahoochee 8.8 1,559 2, Harris ,299 3, Heard 0.4 2,596 2, Marion 1.7 3,823 2, Meriwether ,632 4, Muscogee ,835 93, Pike 1.4 2,131 2, Quitman Schley ,140 1, Stewart 0.0 1,120 1, Sumter ,467 10, Talbot Taylor ,035 1, Troup ,461 34, Upson ,048 6, Webster Region Total , ,859 NA -0.3 State Total~ 0.0 3,807,915 3,822,635 NA 0.0 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *January-June average covered employment (subject to the unemployment insurance law of Georgia), not comparable to other nonagricultural employment statistics. ~State totals include undistributed employment. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. West Point Development Authority for the improvements. In return for increased public safety and infrastructure improvements, Kia will pay West Point $6 million over 16 years and an additional $3 million to the county earmarked for a new career academy. This long-term commitment not only means that Kia will be staying put, but its many suppliers will also continue churning out parts as well. They continue to be that catalyst for growth and economic development, providing the opportunity for their Tier One support industries to continue to I APRIL 2013 I 37

18 WEST CENTRAL grow and the opportunity to bring more vendors into Harris County and this region, says Jayson Johnston, president of the Harris County Chamber of Commerce. Several of those suppliers have located near Kia in Harris County s Northwest Business Park, including Johnson Controls and Daehan Solutions. They and other Tier One suppliers have brought almost 11,000 additional jobs to the region. These include companies such as Korean auto supplier Mando Corp., which built first one and then a second plant in Meriwether County s newest industrial park near Luthersville. After investing $200 million in a facility that created more than 400 jobs, the company added a new casting operation. This $80-million facility will build electric power steering gears and electronic stability control modules. Together the two plants will employ around 1,000 workers when fully operational and become the county s largest employer. That gives us great geographic positioning for the attraction of additional industry, says Carolyn McKinley, executive director of the Meriwether Chamber of Commerce. Although West Central Georgia is made up of 16 different counties, local economic developers realize that they all benefit at least indirectly when a company arrives in the region. That doesn t mean they won t fight to land the company in their hometown, but losing out to a neighbor is not necessarily a bad thing, either. When Mando chose Meriwether over Troup, it was still a victory. Since the park is located on the county line, it buys utilities from Hogansville and employs county residents, according to Page Estes, president of the LaGrange- Troup County Chamber of Commerce. When our region gets a new company, we all win because people are looking for good jobs, says Estes. We realize that from a workforce development standpoint, we don t necessarily have all the right people to be able to move into the jobs that are out there, especially in advanced manufacturing. PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PERCENT CHANGE (%) * STATE PERCENT CHANGE (%) COUNTIES ($) ($) RANK Chattahoochee~ ,011 35, Harris ,417 50, Heard ,579 26, Marion ,292 27, Meriwether ,522 28, Muscogee ,418 40, Pike ,787 31, Quitman ,398 26, Schley ,060 19, Stewart ,710 24, Sumter ,082 29, Talbot ,176 27, Taylor ,981 26, Troup ,751 33, Upson ,667 28, Webster ,550 24, Region Average ,320 35,804 NA 4.1 State Average ,526 36,283 NA 2.3 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. ~Data affected by military relocations. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. Upsurge: Americus-Sumter County s David Garriga We ve had to rethink what we re doing and rely on our contiguous counties to be able to provide the workforce for these companies. Kia and other companies have allowed this region to grow its manufacturing base a sector that once seemed lost to America. In the past, manufacturing meant textiles that were eventually shipped to low-wage nations overseas. These days, the talk is of advanced manufacturing where technology can help erase the wage differences through greater efficiency. Troup County, for example, boasts one of the largest manufacturing sectors in the region, with 66 different companies employing almost 16,000 workers. Even counties that haven t won a Kia supplier are seeing an upsurge in manufacturing. Americus in Sumter County is now home to an expanded group of companies that includes Sak Marine Company, Hickory Springs Manufacturing Co., Container Marketing Inc., PharmaCentra and PetCareRx. About 10 years ago, we were heavily employed in manufacturing probably over 25 percent, explains David Garriga, executive director of the Americus- Sumter County Payroll Development Authority. In recent years we lost a substantial amount of the sector, but now we re seeing a lot of growth. We have an abundance of empty buildings, and that has created a market of its own because we have facilities that people can move into fairly quickly. During the economic downturn, those hit hardest tended to be the most rural counties. Many had already suffered losses with the flight of textiles and other manufacturers overseas. In recent years, the Kia effect has benefited some, but not others who are a little too far from the main plant. 38 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

19 WEST CENTRAL Pike County is one of those areas outside the zone where suppliers want to locate. As a result we re just really concentrating on [the industries] we have existing right now, says Christy Hammons, executive director of the Pike County Chamber of Commerce. While the county s largest employer, truck bed fabricator Supreme Corp., announced that it is adding back additional production lines and rehiring laid off workers, the focus here is on small businesses. In the county seat of Zebulon, you see a trend that has taken shape in small towns throughout the region. Spruced up downtowns are working to attract unique businesses that can bring customers from other counties and maybe even bigger cities such as Columbus, Macon and Atlanta. Here, one of the most successful small businesses is a bookstore. A Novel Experience opened downtown four years ago and quickly built up a loyal clientele that thinks nothing of driving many miles to check out its offerings. We ve got a plan for recruiting niche businesses, says Hammons. We ve been trying to get the spaces around the square filled. Zebulon hired a retail consultant to identify what businesses were best suited to fill out the downtown area. The top priority was one-of-a-kind stores that could become attractions in their own right. In this case, the bookstore was Exhibit A, as the overwhelming majority of its customers were from out of the county. Throughout West Central Georgia, there is a palpable sense of optimism that times are getting better. There are still concerns about big events far beyond county borders, but there is also a quiet resolve that no matter what happens they will keep moving forward. I APRIL 2013 I 39

20 CENTRAL Banding Together: Pat Topping with the Macon Economic Development Commission A Regional Approach B Y C H R I S T Y S I M O AS THE BAD ECONOMY CONTINUES to recede in Georgia s rearview mirror, a new word is cropping up on the lips of economic developers around the state: Regionalism. People are banding together, forming coalitions and organizations that are encouraging neighboring counties to look out for one another rather than compete and to think big for the future. Counties resources are stretched, and they understand that by partnering with a neighboring county, or even counties in the region, that they can have a bigger impact in economic development, says Pat Topping, senior vice president of the Macon Economic Development Commission. A lot of people understand that if we are just able to increase the awareness of the Middle Georgia region, that it will benefit all of us. To that end, the Middle Georgia Economic Alliance, comprising 11 counties in the region, is coming back online. It s been around for a while, but it s kind of been dormant, Topping says. Now we re trying to kick it back up again, because we see a lot of activity starting so we re reenergizing it. Rather than the counties fighting amongst themselves about who s going to get what industry, it s more of a regional approach, says Bob Hughes, president and economic development director of the Madison- Morgan Chamber of Commerce. It is 40 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

21 CENTRAL more ignoring county lines as much as anything else, and looking at it from an economic perspective. Counties along I-16 are also working with the Ports Authority of Georgia on the I-16 Corridor Alliance. Made up of 12 counties edging the interstate, including Bibb, Twiggs, Wilkinson, Bleckley and Laurens, the alliance seeks to market communities to manufacturing industries interested in locating between Atlanta s international airport and the Port of Savannah. Hopefully it will open up more looks for [these] counties, says Cal Wray, president of the Dublin-Laurens County Development Authority, who is also chair of the group. One county already benefiting is Twiggs, where Academy Sports + Outdoors expanded its existing operation by 500,000 square feet in Jeffersonville, creating 250 jobs. It s great for their community, Wray says. Throughout the corridor, you Pooling Resources: Roddie Anne Blackwell of the Putnam County Chamber can see that [happening]. Eventually, you will see distribution move farther up the corridor as the port gets deepened and as you have more activity and traffic through the port, giving more communities more of a chance to create those jobs. In Morgan and Jasper counties, officials are still celebrating the announcement that Baxter International will locate at the Stanton Springs business park the result of a group effort with Newton and Walton counties. The region is now hoping to draw similar companies to the area. Our purpose is to market I-20 as a biosciences corridor, says David Dyer, executive director of the Development Authority of Jasper County, building it out from Stanton Springs with the biolife sciences industries extending west to Atlanta and east to Augusta. The move toward a broader view is evident not just in the larger cities of the region, but also in the more rural areas. Because we re in a rural area and we re small communities, the only way we can have a major impact is if we all put our dollars together, says Roddie Anne Blackwell, president of the Putnam County Chamber of Commerce. Several counties have partnered to purchase land or market industrial I APRIL 2013 I 41

22 CENTRAL parks. The Joint Development Authority of Ben Hill and Irwin Counties continues to market the 214-acre Millennium Technology Pointe. Our regional efforts with Lamar and Butts counties on the Riverview Business Park has netted us several prospects, says Missy Kendrick, executive director of the Barnesville-Lamar County Industrial Development Authority. I think it s going to produce a positive outcome for us. Others are working to help businesses grow and expand. Montgomery County has partnered with Southeastern Technical College and neighboring counties on the Tri-County Regional Entrepreneur Support Team (Tri-CREST), which provides advisory services for existing and startup businesses. Our role is to help small business people start their businesses by providing them with assistance, knowing where they need to go to borrow money or how to put a good business plan together, says Joe Filippone, executive director of the Montgomery County Development Authority, who is on the organization s board. Pulaski Rivers Alive was created to help clean up the Ocmulgee River, which skirts Hawkinsville. Out of that effort has grown the Ocmulgee Blueway, a partnership with Houston, Twiggs and Bleckley counties that is researching ways to beautify the river and encourage tourism along its banks. Triumph Aerostructures-Vought Aircraft Division is expanding its Milledgeville facility, adding 250 jobs by the end of 2014 and representing a $36.6-million investment. In Putnam County, activity continues at the 135-acre Rock Eagle Technology and Science Park, which will be completed this spring. In Lamar County, Jordan Forest Products is expanding into a new 45,000-square-foot facility, adding 50 new jobs. Jasper County celebrated the groundbreaking for Norton Packaging, with 90 jobs. Tractor Supply is moving into a 690,000-square-foot regional distribution center that will net Bibb County 200 new jobs. Two other companies, Trimex POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) * STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Baldwin ,203 43, Ben Hill ,178 17, Bibb , , Bleckley ,757 13, Crawford ,553 12, Dodge ,771 22, Dooly ,207 14, Houston , , Irwin ,775 9, Jasper ,027 13, Jones ,909 28, Lamar ,289 18, Laurens ,634 47, Macon ,245 14, Monroe ,767 26, Montgomery 1.1 8,532 9, Morgan ,244 18, Peach ,348 28, Pulaski ,168 11, Putnam ,366 21, Telfair ,347 16, Twiggs ,503 8, Wheeler 2.0 6,584 8, Wilcox 0.7 8,766 9, Wilkinson ,126 9, Region Total , ,951 NA 1.0 State Total 1.8 8,508,256 9,919,945 NA 1.7 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates. EMPLOYMENT AVERAGE ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT* AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Baldwin ,370 15, Ben Hill ,020 5, Bibb ,836 79, Bleckley ,002 3, Crawford ,509 1, Dodge ,089 5, Dooly ,569 2, Houston ,627 57, Irwin ,500 2, Jasper ,577 2, Jones 1.0 3,211 3, Lamar ,522 3, Laurens ,930 16, Macon 6.8 7,774 6, Monroe 0.7 4,879 6, Montgomery ,631 1, Morgan ,111 5, Peach ,135 8, Pulaski ,823 2, Putnam 0.2 6,303 5, Telfair ,503 3, Twiggs ,537 1, Wheeler 4.5 1,094 1, Wilcox ,391 1, Wilkinson ,048 2, Region Total , ,687 NA -0.3 State Total~ 0.0 3,807,915 3,822,635 NA 0.0 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *January-June average covered employment (subject to the unemployment insurance law of Georgia), not comparable to other nonagricultural employment statistics. ~State totals include undistributed employment. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. 42 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

23 CENTRAL Positive Prognosis: Montgomery County Development Authority s Joe Filippone Group and Volunteer Pastilles, both expanded, adding a total of 30 jobs and a $5 million investment. Laurens County stayed busy this year: Green Power Solutions opened a $95-million plant that will bring 35 jobs. Best Buy s distribution center expanded, investing $5 million and creating 20 jobs. And Dinex Group opened its first U.S. manufacturing plant in Dublin, a $15- million facility creating 250 jobs. Overall last year, we had 21 new and expanding companies, 612 new jobs created and $260 million in investment, says Dublin-Lauren s Wray. The relationships we ve really worked to establish and create are really starting to create dividends. In Dodge County, the FAA has granted the Aviation Campus in Eastman approval to fly and test the TwinStar II UAV on a site near the Heart of Georgia Regional Airport. Hudson Pecan recently renovated and expanded its operations in Irwin County. Jimmy Davis, executive director of both the Macon County Development Authority and the Macon County Chamber of Commerce, says he s been fielding interest but nothing is set in stone yet. There s been a lot of movement, but no definite decisions made, he says, adding that the county is considering consolidating services with the city of Montezuma. Everything s off to a slow start, but it will pick up speed now. In Montgomery County, a 20,000- square-foot Fred s Variety Store opened, and Mount Vernon is getting started on a streetscape project. The county s prognosis is a good one, Filippone says. In times like this, smaller counties have a little bit of an advantage because the cost of doing business is a little bit lower. Ocilla is seeing more interest in its downtown as well. We ve had so many restaurants open, and the good thing is, they re locally owned, says Hazel McCranie, president of the Ocilla-Irwin Chamber of Commerce. Now, Wednesday night through Saturday night in our downtown, it s hard to find a parking place. In Peach County, Blue Bird sold 432 propane autogas buses to Student Transportation Inc. for use in Omaha, Neb. It s the biggest single order to date for the Fort Valley company s emissionreducing Vision buses. The county is also working with Macon s Central Georgia Technical College to build a workforce development center that will offer a commercial driver s license program. The $3.5-million, 18,000-square-foot facility will PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME accommodate 400 to 500 students. Georgia needs 16,400 professional drivers, says Charles Sims, director of the Development Authority of Peach County. So that would be a tremendous opportunity for young people who want to get into a very high-paying job. In Houston County, Perry Hospital is undergoing a $2.8-million expansion, and Hollingsworth & Vose recently added a line to its manufacturing capacity in Pulaski County. In Hawkinsville, the 26-unit Cotton Mill Lofts and a community market is bringing interest downtown. The city used a $650,000 federal HUD grant to help build and market the property. We re a smaller community, but what we ve done, we re doing right, says Lee Slade, president of United Pulaski, a public-private economic development partnership. We re an Archway Partnership, we re Entrepreneur Friendly, we re Workforce Ready. We ve done what we needed to do to market ourselves, and it s paid off. AVERAGE ANNUAL PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PERCENT CHANGE (%) * STATE PERCENT CHANGE (%) COUNTIES ($) ($) RANK Baldwin ,671 29, Ben Hill ,810 27, Bibb ,436 36, Bleckley ,378 30, Crawford ,852 32, Dodge ,146 23, Dooly ,074 20, Houston ,211 35, Irwin ,913 28, Jasper ,163 30, Jones ,136 35, Lamar ,617 26, Laurens ,354 29, Macon ,724 22, Monroe ,674 40, Montgomery ,922 27, Morgan ,575 36, Peach ,909 30, Pulaski ,966 26, Putnam ,710 32, Telfair ,992 17, Twiggs ,792 33, Wheeler ,884 17, Wilcox ,108 25, Wilkinson ,175 29, Region Average ,303 31,941 NA 2.6 State Average ,526 36,283 NA 2.3 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. I APRIL 2013 I 43

24 EAST CENTRAL JOHN D. SIMPSON JR. Wood Basket: The Development Authority of Washington County s Charles Lee Energized By Biofuel B Y C H R I S T Y S I M O WITH SEVERAL BIOFUEL PROJECTS kicking into gear this year in East Central Georgia, pine is starting to smell like money. The European continent is under mandate to decrease the amount of fossil fuels i.e., coal they use to manufacture electricity over there, says Charles Lee, executive director of the Development Authority of Washington County. To offset that, they are ramping up the use of wood pellets to generate the power. Known as the wood basket, this region of the state is seeing growth in an industry that didn t even exist a few years ago. In Washington County, the $60-million General Biofuels plant will manufacture about 440,000 tons of wood pellets each year, bringing 35 jobs to the county. Over in Warren County, Enova Energy Group will also be building a wood pellet manufacturing facility. The $115-million investment will include 65 direct jobs, with upwards of 300 indirect jobs created within a 60- to 80-mile radius, along with 400 construction jobs. Right now it s a big trend because of the ports mainly, and because we have the raw material we re in the middle of the wood basket, says O.B. McCorkle, president of the 44 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

25 EAST CENTRAL Warren County Chamber of Commerce and the Warren County Development Authority. There s a lot of pine, so they come here not only for the wood, but also [because] there s great transportation to the ports that s direct to Europe. While biofuel plants continue to crop up, another form of green energy is beginning to see the light in Washington County. Smart Energy is partnering with Jacoby Development outside Davisboro on the 80-acre Azalea Solar Farm, a $50-$100 million investment that will generate 75 jobs. The passage of last year s controversial T-SPLOST will have a big impact on the area, too most of the counties are part of the Central Savannah River Area or Heart of Georgia Altamaha regions, two of the three districts that passed the T-SPLOST in the state. Anytime you can improve your road network infrastructure, you improve economic development, says Jack Bareford, president of the Emanuel County Development Authority. It will give us an edge, because we re willing to invest extra money to making our road systems better. We re excited about it, says Washington County s Lee. With us being located between I-16 and I-20 we re about halfway between them there s not a good four-lane route connecting those two interstates north- POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) * STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Bulloch ,361 74, Burke ,626 23, Candler 1.5 9,772 11, Columbia , , Emanuel ,511 22, Glascock 2.0 2,618 3, Hancock ,829 9, Jefferson ,091 16, Jenkins ,543 8, Johnson 1.6 9,436 9, Lincoln ,375 7, McDuffie ,141 21, Richmond , , Taliaferro ,040 1, Treutlen 0.0 6,881 6, Warren ,270 5, Washington ,000 21, Wilkes ,695 10, Region Total , ,483 NA 1.1 State Total 1.8 8,508,256 9,919,945 NA 1.7 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates. EMPLOYMENT AVERAGE ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT* AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Bulloch ,312 21, Burke ,689 6, Candler 0.2 2,825 2, Columbia ,527 29, Emanuel ,283 6, Glascock Hancock ,628 1, Jefferson ,425 4, Jenkins ,541 1, Johnson ,974 1, Lincoln ,415 1, McDuffie ,499 3, Richmond ,407 98, Taliaferro Treutlen 0.2 1,118 1, Warren ,484 1, Washington ,249 6, Wilkes ,839 2, Region Total , ,239 NA -0.2 State Total~ 0.0 3,807,915 3,822,635 NA 0.0 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *January-June average covered employment (subject to the unemployment insurance law of Georgia), not comparable to other nonagricultural employment statistics. ~State totals include undistributed employment. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. SPECIAL Warren County: O.B. McCorkle south bound. So this will be a good step in that process of developing a good north-south corridor for transportation purposes. It s going to be a major improvement, says Walter Sprouse, executive director of the Development Authority of Richmond County. It s going to be a big plus, because we re already telling companies we passed the T-SPLOST, so I APRIL 2013 I 45

26 EAST CENTRAL PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PERCENT CHANGE (%) * STATE PERCENT CHANGE (%) COUNTIES ($) ($) RANK Bulloch ,227 24, Burke ,985 29, Candler ,074 25, Columbia ,942 43, Emanuel ,121 26, Glascock ,145 22, Hancock ,024 21, Jefferson ,925 27, Jenkins ,875 25, Johnson ,156 21, Lincoln ,313 29, McDuffie ,538 31, Richmond ,542 30, Taliaferro ,825 29, Treutlen ,935 25, Warren ,544 28, Washington ,889 29, Wilkes ,380 29, Region Average ,823 31,768 NA 3.3 State Average ,526 36,283 NA 2.3 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. that means there s going to be additional funds for area [road] projects. The region is also seeing big changes in the education sector. Augusta State College and Georgia Health Sciences University merged to form Georgia Regents University Augusta. East Georgia State College in Swainsboro made the switch from a two-year college to become a four-year institution. This fall, it will launch its first degree program in biology. A new career center was just completed in Warren County as well, through a partnership between the Warren County Board of Education and the Oconee Fall Line Technical College. A $3-million grant will help restore the county s former high school as the career academy s new home. A Career Center opened in Wilkes County in conjunction with Athens Technical College. That s an exciting step for us, because we can start educating our workforce so that we can keep the industry we have and get new industry in, says David Jenkins, executive director of the Washington/Wilkes County Payroll Authority. Georgia Southern has become more PHIL JONES involved with economic development, not just in Statesboro, but across the state. The state of Georgia transferred ownership to the university of the Herty Advanced Materials Development Center, which will remain in Savannah. It can help everybody in the region, says Benjy Thompson, CEO of the Bulloch County Development Authority. It gives Georgia Southern another opportunity to research in applicable areas to try to help business and industry be more successful, based on the works being done on campus, and hopefully create more jobs across the state. Richmond County: Walter Sprouse In Lincolnton, a new art incubator project opened to encourage local artists and bring more tourism into the downtown. We feel like we do have a strong art community and a lot of local artists, says Ashley Swain, executive director of the Lincoln County Development Authority. We have a pretty prominent folk artist here, and there s also a lot of musicians from Lincolnton. We think it would be a good way to bring tourism downtown. In Warrenton, the Fox Institute awarded a $20,000 grant to rehabilitate the 1930 Knox Theatre. The nonprofit will also help with marketing and PR to promote the theater once it reopens. Metter just recently completed phase two of its streetscape project, with new pavers, benches and light posts. Phase three will begin in The downtown area has seen several new businesses open. We ve been really receptive in our downtown area for the past year to younger and newer entrepreneurs. They re coming in, and they re taking advantage of all the things you can get with small business development now, says Jaime Riggs, executive director of the Candler County Chamber of Commerce and Better Hometown. Several counties saw new industry come to the region, while others had existing industries expand. In Bulloch County, Virocon temporarily closed its facility and underwent a $6.2-million refurbishment this past summer. They made a significant investment in the original facility, then asked all the employees who were furloughed to come back, Thompson says. About 85 percent of the employees came back to work at the plant. In Burke County, construction on Plant Vogtle continues. Nordson Corp. in Emanuel County celebrated its ribbon cutting on a larger facility at the beginning of 2012 and has since added 200 employees. R&F Marketing added 50 jobs over the course of In Augusta, Starbucks broke ground on its first plant in the state, representing an investment of $172 million. The 46 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

27 EAST CENTRAL coffee retailer expects to create more than 140 jobs. The LEED-certified facility will produce soluble products for Starbucks ready-to-drink products. Medac expanded in Augusta as well, adding 60 to 70 jobs. Cannon Supply Co. moved into a 25,000-square-foot space in Columbia County with four employees. This past year, McDuffie Regional Medical Center transferred ownership to the University Health Care System, which is building a new $25-million University Hospital McDuffie to replace existing facilities. PyraMax Ceramics opened a 200,000- square-foot, $120-million facility near Wrens in Jefferson County, creating 70 jobs. It s a pretty big deal, says Lil Easterlin, executive director of the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce. It s a pretty large investment for Jefferson County, an anchor tenant in a new industrial park that we re just developing, so it s exciting to get somebody in the park. Jenkins County welcomed a new prison, owned by private firm Corrections Corporation of America, and hired 200 people. In Lincoln County, Adrenaline Powerboats is expanding, moving into a 14,000-square-foot facility in the Lincoln County Industrial Park and adding five to 10 jobs. Many credit a determination to work together for the region s newfound prosperity. Counties along the I-16 corridor from Macon to Savannah including Bulloch, Candler, Emanuel and Treutlen have joined together to promote themselves to potential industrial prospects as the I-16 Corridor Alliance. We re trying to develop a more regional approach to economic development. Everyone who s along I-16 Dublin, Macon, Savannah, the port has really backed us on all this, says Candler County s Riggs. We understand that we re a lot of little fish in a big pond and would like to take a more regional approach, because whatever we get here in the region is going to affect and help all of us. I APRIL 2013 I 47

28 SOUTHWEST A Growing Economy: Winston Oxford of the Lee County Chamber and Development Authority A Widespread Optimism B Y B O B B Y N E S B I T T WE RE SURE NOT BOOMING, BUT WE RE GETTING THERE. Lee County s Winston Oxford is talking about his county, but he could be speaking for the entire Southwest Georgia region. After several years of struggling with an ailing economy, the region s economic developers are ready for some good economic times and most agree they may be starting, admittedly at a modest pace. The optimism is widespread, although some areas are seeing more actual signs of growth than others. Leading the upward trend: retail, existing industry expansion and agriculture, long the region s economic mainstay and about the only consistent bright spot in recent years. Oxford, executive director of the Lee County Chamber and Development Au- thority, is among those seeing both potential and real signs of a growing economy. We started the year with a new Chickfil-A and a new GM dealership under construction and a John Deere dealership due to break ground later this year, he says. Our retail business has helped us weather the economic downturn a little better than many others. Our tax base has remained consistent and even grown a little, but it s been a struggle. Oxford sees better days ahead. Last year was better than 2011, and we expect 2013 will be even better, he says. I m elated about how many potential prospects we have. I ve got a 48 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

29 SOUTHWEST double handful of prospects really interested, so it looks very promising. A number of communities have used the downtimes to prepare for future growth. In 2010, we came up with a three-year strategic plan, says Bruce Drennan, executive director of the Cordele-Crisp County Industrial Development Council. In 2011, we began preparing for the upturn. In 2012 we started instituting the ideas, and now we think this will be our year. It looks like he s right. A manufacturer of railroad crossties opened in February, a wood pellet manufacturer has plans for a facility nearby, and Owens Corning announced that, after a four-year delay, it would get under way this year on a fiberglass insulation plant. Drennan credits the community s inland port, the Cordele Intermodal Center, for helping attract the crosstie and wood pellet manufacturers, which will be shipping internationally. Cordele s center, a staging area for container cargo to and from the Port of Savannah, began operation in fall We re now shipping about two trains a week, and interest is picking up as people find out how much time and money it saves, Drennan says. Like Drennan, Ted Clem, president of the Albany-Dougherty County Eco- New Strategic Plan: Albany-Dougherty County s Ted Clem POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) * STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Baker ,923 2, Berrien ,671 19, Brooks ,229 15, Calhoun 0.6 6,359 6, Clay ,314 3, Colquitt ,570 45, Cook ,985 17, Crisp ,284 23, Decatur ,892 27, Dougherty ,429 94, Early ,047 10, Echols 0.7 3,751 4, Grady ,635 25, Lanier 3.9 7,422 10, Lee ,115 28, Lowndes , , Miller ,336 6, Mitchell ,698 23, Randolph ,747 7, Seminole ,210 8, Terrell ,607 9, Thomas ,555 44, Tift ,217 41, Turner ,514 8, Worth ,873 21, Region Total , ,674 NA 0.6 State Total 1.8 8,508,256 9,919,945 NA 1.7 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates. EMPLOYMENT AVERAGE ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT* AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Baker Berrien ,494 3, Brooks ,056 3, Calhoun ,643 1, Clay Colquitt ,272 14, Cook ,435 3, Crisp ,403 7, Decatur ,817 8, Dougherty ,721 47, Early ,694 4, Echols ,030 1, Grady ,886 5, Lanier ,225 1, Lee 3.3 3,984 5, Lowndes ,971 46, Miller 0.8 1,558 1, Mitchell ,604 8, Randolph ,434 1, Seminole ,341 2, Terrell ,488 2, Thomas ,880 20, Tift ,522 18, Turner ,482 2, Worth ,333 3, Region Total , ,837 NA -0.6 State Total~ 0.0 3,807,915 3,822,635 NA 0.0 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *January-June average covered employment (subject to the unemployment insurance law of Georgia), not comparable to other nonagricultural employment statistics. ~State totals include undistributed employment. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. I APRIL 2013 I 49

30 SOUTHWEST nomic Development Commission, is looking at better years ahead with the help of a new strategic plan and a new incentive package. I m excited about 2013 because we ll begin implementing our new strategic plan, he says. We call it the three R s plan for recruitment, retention and renewal. It s a back-to-basics approach to growing our local economy. Clem says there is also a new tool in our toolbox to attract business to Albany, a $20-million incentive package approved by the city to help us close deals. In 2012, we added some new retail, some new restaurants and saw some of our local manufacturers expand, Clem says. There are still a lot of unknowns causing uncertainty about the economy, but we re anticipating 2013 will be a good year. One of the region s most enthusiastic reports comes from Brian Marlowe, PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME president and CEO of the Tifton-Tift County Chamber of Commerce and the Development Authority. We had a great 2012 and expect even better this year, he says. In 2012, we announced about 1,000 new jobs and $28 million in investment. We re filling up our empty space and now need to get some more facilities. For 2013, Marlowe says, We ve got several new manufacturing projects we re working on and a lot of interest in retail, especially restaurants. Almost all of our local industries expanded last year or are looking to expand this year. I m really positive about what the future holds. Increased economic activity has Andrea Schruijer, executive director of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority, excited about We saw a lot of activity in the fall, and that s continued this year, she says. Last year was great for our retail sector and expansion of existing industries, and AVERAGE ANNUAL PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PERCENT CHANGE (%) * STATE PERCENT CHANGE (%) COUNTIES ($) ($) RANK Baker ,401 42, Berrien ,185 28, Brooks ,506 32, Calhoun ,870 22, Clay ,595 30, Colquitt ,582 27, Cook ,350 25, Crisp ,981 27, Decatur ,885 29, Dougherty ,503 29, Early ,550 37, Echols ,694 23, Grady ,247 28, Lanier ,429 25, Lee ,433 42, Lowndes ,854 31, Miller ,304 34, Mitchell ,318 27, Randolph ,358 29, Seminole ,090 37, Terrell ,145 32, Thomas ,264 36, Tift ,554 29, Turner ,669 30, Worth ,695 32, Region Average ,964 30,755 NA 3.4 State Average ,526 36,283 NA 2.3 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. we re seeing more activity in both areas this year. We re also starting to see more inquiries from new prospects. Valdosta-Lowndes has been busy preparing for future growth. Our community has invested $13 million in two new industrial parks, Schruijer says. We now have three industrial parks certified as Georgia Ready for Accelerated Development (GRAD) sites. Even during the recent years, agriculture has been a steady economic force for much of Southwest Georgia, and it looks like that will continue. We re primarily an agriculture area, says Robert McDaniel, executive director of the Camilla-based Southwest Georgia Regional Commission, which covers 14 mostly rural counties. Our farmers have been very successful, and when they re doing well that means they have dollars to spend, and that helps everyone else. Agriculture has been the saving grace for Moultrie-Colquitt County s economy, says Darrell Moore, president of the Moultrie-Colquitt County Chamber of Commerce and the Development Authority. Agriculture had a great year in 2012, and it looks like another strong year this year, he says. Our retail and commercial business is stable and our Moving Ahead: Moultrie-Colquitt County s Darrell Moore 50 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

31 SOUTHWEST existing industry is steady, so hopefully business will now start moving ahead. Paige Gilchrist, executive director of the Mitchell County Development Authority, says she feels very positive about We had several good expansions last year, and this year is looking even better, she says. We celebrated the grand opening of a new Super Walmart in January, and one of our larger companies, Okinus Credit Solutions, is scheduled to add 50 to 60 more jobs this year. Don Sims, president of the Thomasville-Thomas County Chamber of Commerce, says his community has been able to hold its own fairly well in recent years, primarily because of a growing hospital system and strong local companies, like baked goods giant Flowers Foods, which has its corporate headquarters in Thomasville. We have 122 industries that seem to have weathered the economic storm, and many are now looking at expansions, Sims says was a quiet year, but we did see some retail growth near the end of the year. We re now seeing more prospects. Shelley Zorn, president of the Ashburn-Turner County Chamber of Commerce, says that after several tough years, her community saw improvement in 2012 and I m optimistic for this year. We have a new restaurant and some new shops downtown, and our main exit off I-75 is starting to draw more attention for businesses after Carroll s Sausage & Country Store opened last fall, she says. Carroll s has become a real tourist destination, and now others are looking at locating nearby. Tina Herring, director of the Brooks County Development Authority, is cautiously optimistic about economic growth in It s still slow, but if things work out it could be a good year for us, she says. Last year was not great, but it could have been worse. Fortunately, agriculture has been good and has really helped us. Karen Rackley, president/executive director of the Sylvester-Worth County Chamber of Commerce, says farming Strong Local Companies: Thomasville- Thomas County Chamber s Don Sims and healthy existing businesses have kept her community moving ahead in recent tough years. We actually are doing really well and are starting to see more activity, she says. We re blessed that we have a lot of farmers, and they ve been having some great years. We want to take care of our existing businesses, but we would love to see new companies moving here. We re developing a new industrial park, so we will be ready. Lisa Collins, director of economic development for Early County 2055, has been planning for 2013 and beyond. We began the second phase of our 50- year revitalization plan in January, and this time we ve set the bar a little higher an eight-year plan called Vision 2020, Collins says. We accomplished every goal in our first phase. People in the community have proven it can be done. We re already working with three business prospects that are looking really good for this year. I APRIL 2013 I 51

32 SOUTHEAST Natural Resources: Wayne County s John Riddle The Benefits Of Diversity B Y D O N S A D L E R IF THERE S A WORD THAT BEST DESCRIBES economic development in Southeast Georgia, it would have to be diversity. The region is perhaps best known for the major ports in Savannah and Brunswick, but the economy incorporates a wide range of industries, including manufacturing, hospitality, timber, aerospace, transportation logistics and the military. We are fortunate to have lots of industry and economic diversification in our region, says John Riddle, president and CEO of the Wayne County Chamber of Commerce & Economic Development. There are a lot of natural resources here, and our proximity to the Savannah and Brunswick ports is a big advantage. Due to Wayne County s location in what Riddle calls the fiber belt, pulp and pellet manufacturing are the biggest industries in the county. He says pulp manufacturer Rayonier, the county s largest employer, is investing $300 million to retrofit its plant and convert it to 100 percent specialty pulp manufacturing. These upgrades will prepare the plant for another generation of workers. Riddle is also excited about the recent move of Clyde Bergemann Power Group, a German-based manufacturer of highly technical components for electrical power plants and the pulp and paper industry, into a 125,000-square-foot building in Jesup that was formerly occupied by a propane tank manufacturer. This plant will eventually create up to 150 advanced manufacturing jobs. 52 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

33 SOUTHEAST Waycross is home to the largest wood pellet plant in North America, which is owned and operated by Georgia Biomass. Waycross-Ware County Development Authority and Okefenokee Area Development Authority Executive Director Bob Hereford says the plant represents a $160- million investment by the company and employs nearly 100 workers. It s a good fit for Ware County and has been a major success for our region. Meanwhile, Hereford says the county is putting together economic incentives to attract companies that ship by rail to take advantage of the CSX switching hub located in Waycross the largest shipping yard on the east coast. Any rail that runs north or south goes through Waycross, so this is a great resource for us. In Hinesville, Liberty County Development Authority CEO Ron Tolley says most of the area s employment growth has come from manufacturing. This obviously hasn t been the case in many other parts of the country. He notes that the Hinesville-Fort Stewart MSA ranks number four out of 372 MSAs in the U.S. in employment growth rate (6 percent) between 2007, right before the recession started, and 2011, adding 1,100 new jobs during this time. Only 54 MSAs nationwide have seen positive job growth during this timespan, Tolley notes was a good year for us, says Tolley, noting that Liberty County was listed among the top 100 locations in the U.S. by Area Development magazine and one of the top 10 manufacturing locations in the south by Southern Business & Development magazine. Fort Stewart continues to have the largest economic impact on our area, but employment continues to increase in the manufacturing and industrial sectors and we re pleased with this trend. The county s tagline, Come Grow Globally, was also evident last year as global companies helped fuel local growth and progress. According to Liberty County Development Authority Director of Marketing & Research Anna Chafin, businesses in Liberty County POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL POPULATION AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) * STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Appling ,502 18, Atkinson 1.0 7,748 8, Bacon ,101 11, Brantley ,556 18, Bryan ,377 32, Camden ,299 50, Charlton ,910 13, Chatham , , Clinch 0.0 6,870 6, Coffee ,791 43, Effingham ,757 53, Evans ,885 11, Glynn ,408 81, Jeff Davis ,088 15, Liberty ,505 65, Long ,894 15, McIntosh ,648 14, Pierce ,995 18, Screven ,226 14, Tattnall ,276 26, Toombs ,031 27, Ware ,203 36, Wayne ,308 30, Region Total , ,412 NA 1.5 State Total 1.8 8,508,256 9,919,945 NA 1.7 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates. EMPLOYMENT AVERAGE ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT* AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH (%) STATE GROWTH (%) COUNTIES NUMBER NUMBER RANK Appling 0.6 5,776 6, Atkinson ,761 1, Bacon ,135 3, Brantley 0.1 2,241 2, Bryan 3.4 4,360 6, Camden ,690 14, Charlton 0.1 2,401 2, Chatham , , Clinch ,275 2, Coffee ,310 14, Effingham 3.6 7,252 9, Evans ,817 4, Glynn ,928 34, Jeff Davis ,033 3, Liberty ,624 18, Long McIntosh ,154 1, Pierce 0.0 3,855 3, Screven ,616 3, Tattnall ,880 5, Toombs ,259 11, Ware ,224 14, Wayne ,807 8, Region Total , ,995 NA 0.3 State Total~ 0.0 3,807,915 3,822,635 NA 0.0 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *January-June average covered employment (subject to the unemployment insurance law of Georgia), not comparable to other nonagricultural employment statistics. ~State totals include undistributed employment. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. I APRIL 2013 I 53

34 SOUTHEAST export to more than 70 countries, and 75 percent of the county s employment is tied to companies located abroad. British-owned Firth Rixon, which provides components for the aerospace industry, broke ground last year on an expansion of its forged metal operation that will result in a 50 percent increase in employment to more than 300; French-owned chemical manufacturer SNF FloQuip is expanding and adding 50 new jobs over the next five years; and German-owned Hugo Boss is doubling the size of its distribution center to 330,000 square feet and adding 75 employees. Of course, the ports in Savannah and Brunswick are keys to the ability of these businesses to operate internationally. The top priority in Savannah is the proposed project to deepen the harbor to accommodate larger ships and continue to allow an increased volume of trade in and out of the port, says Economic Development Director for the Coastal Regional Commission (CRC) Don Masisak. All 10 counties that are represented within the CRC are preparing for the positive impact of this project, including two that are preparing for inland port projects. The harbor deepening project will be a game-changer, says Savannah Economic Development Authority (SEDA) interim President and CEO Trip Tollison. Everything is trending toward larger ships now without a deeper channel, ships will call on other ports that have the capacity. Tollison says that the final permits and sign-offs needed to proceed were acquired in October, and the $650-million project is now awaiting delivery of the federal share of funding about $450 million. Gov. Nathan Deal included the state s final installment of $50 million in his budget. Assuming that the federal funding comes through, the project should begin in early 2014 and be completed in Masisak says the project is projected to add 20,000 jobs to the Coastal Regional Commission area over the next 10 years. Another big success story in Savannah is business jet manufacturer Gulfstream Aerospace, which is one of the largest manufacturers in Georgia. Port Preparation: Don Masisak, economic development director for the Coastal Regional Commission In January, Gulfstream announced that it will house more than 400 professionals (100 of them new employees) in a new Information Technology Center of Excellence in Savannah. In 2010, the company announced a seven-year, $500-million Savannah expansion that will include hiring 1,000 new employees although it has actually hired nearly 1,700, bringing its total Georgia employment to almost 8,600. Tollison says that SEDA is continuing to work with the state in marketing the 1,500-acre megasite at the corner of I-16 and I-95 in Pooler. Mitsubishi Power Systems currently employs 350 workers in its advanced manufacturing facility at the site. We spent the second half of 2012 identifying which countries the World Trade Center (WTC) Savannah would target this year, settling on the UK, Brazil, Germany, Japan and Canada. WTC Savannah is focused on helping regional businesses grow internationally, identifying more foreign direct investment opportunities for the region and generating revenue to support these activities. According to Woody Woodside, president of the Brunswick-Golden Isles Chamber of Commerce, volume continues to grow at the Port of Brunswick as well. This makes it imperative that we maintain the channel s 36-foot depth. We re also enhancing our railroad infrastructure so goods shipped into and out of the port can be moved more efficiently. Business Generator: Gov. Nathan Deal, left, with Curtis Foltz, executive director of the Georgia Ports Authority STEPHEN MORTON/GEORGIA PORTS AUTHORITY 54 I APRIL 2013 I GeorgiaTrend

35 SOUTHEAST Looking Up: Woody Woodside, president of the Brunswick-Golden Isles Chamber Things are also looking up out on the Golden Isles barrier islands St. Simons, Little St. Simons, Jekyll and Sea Islands which Woodside calls the state s playground. Renovations to the Jekyll Island convention facilities have been completed, and ground has broken on two new adjacent hotels. And Sea Island continues to rebound under new ownership and is drawing visitors back. It will host the first PGA tour event of the 2014 season in November, which will be a FedEx Cup event. South of Brunswick lies Georgia s third seaport at St. Mary s, home to the Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay. We re currently working with Kings Bay on a joint land use study funded by a grant from the Department of Defense that will create a blueprint for success on both sides of the fence, says David Keating, executive director of the Camden County Joint Development Authority. Farther inland, he points to a planned large tourism and retail entertainment project on I-95 in Kingsland just before the Georgia- Florida state line, which would employ 800 when it opens in In addition, a new technical college facility will soon break ground just off I-95. We re also exploring developing a unique new site in Camden County where NASA rockets were tested to potentially become Georgia s first space port. PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PER CAPITA PERSONAL INCOME AVERAGE ANNUAL PERCENT CHANGE (%) * STATE PERCENT CHANGE (%) COUNTIES ($) ($) RANK Appling ,776 27, Atkinson ,973 22, Bacon ,913 25, Brantley ,156 23, Bryan ,660 40, Camden ,138 32, Charlton ,131 18, Chatham ,880 41, Clinch ,278 26, Coffee ,480 25, Effingham ,210 35, Evans ,091 27, Glynn ,498 36, Jeff Davis ,425 25, Liberty ,409 28, Long ,690 21, McIntosh ,736 23, Pierce ,592 28, Screven ,218 30, Tattnall ,892 24, Toombs ,225 31, Ware ,666 27, Wayne ,249 29, Region Average ,519 33,618 NA 3.7 State Average ,526 36,283 NA 2.3 % of State NA NA NA NA Not applicable. *Extension of trends. Source: Selig Center for Economic Growth, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia, based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. Interested in advertising with us? Interested in subscribing? Go to our website for: Editorial Calendar & Deadlines Advertising Rates Advertising Requirements Subscriber Demographics The Magazine of Georgia Business, Politics and Economic Development Since I APRIL 2013 I 55