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ABD Extra

Simon Says: Staffing Strategies

The labor shortage continues to be a concern for many businesses. The Augusta metro area employment level is still 4,000 persons below pre-pandemic levels and the labor force is almost 8,000 people fewer. A new survey of businesses conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates how firms are trying to attract more applicants. The most popular strategies were increased advertising and higher starting pay. Nationwide, 5.4% of establishments have increased advertising, with 11.8% of accommodation and food services and 9.7% of health care and social assistance increasing advertising. The

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Simon Medcalfe April 17, 2023 No Comments
ABD Extra

North Augusta continues to grow

North Augusta was seen as a sleepy, small town, a bedroom community for Augusta for decades. Today, change and growth has arrived in North Augusta. According to the U.S. Census in 2010, North Augusta had a population of 21,348. That broke down to 4,764 families and 9,003 households. By 2020, that jumped to 24,379 residents, a 14% increase, 6,461 families, and 9,754 households. The first sign of what was to come happened in 2012, when a developer approached the city with a plan for 25 acres of undeveloped land near

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Dana Lynn McIntyre April 17, 2023 1 Comment
ABD Extra

More seats, more events, more tourism for CSRA

A $150,000 grant has opened the door for changes to seating capacity at the Sharon Jones Amphitheater in North Augusta. The grant is through the Undiscovered South Carolina program in the state’s Parks, Recreation, and Tourism department. Karl Waldhaur, superintendent of Facilities and Programs in the North Augusta Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Department briefed council members during the April 10 study session. “The purpose is to highlight places in South Carolina that have less than $900,000 of accommodations tax revenue,” Waldhaur explained. “So, the purpose is to kind of highlight

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Dana Lynn McIntyre April 17, 2023 No Comments
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Mondays with Rick: Nine Days of Top-Notch Workforce Development

As you are learning from this special weekly newsletter, economic development is critically important to Augusta and the CSRA, as it is to most cities and regions. As I noted in my initial column for this newsletter, the state of Georgia and this area have been particularly successful in attracting new and existing businesses in recent years. While there have been many reasons for this success, I have learned from Cal Wray, our outstanding President of the Augusta Economic Development Authority (AEDA), that as we move forward, the number one

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Dr. Rick Franza April 17, 2023 No Comments
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Economic Update: Livin’ the Life in Business

It’s all in the family! Coach Dave Holdeman from The Alternative Board of the CSRA and Augusta Business Daily publisher, Neil Gordon congratulate family-owned MAU on 50 years in business. Holdeman and Gordon also discuss a project aiming to bring more tourism to the area and ways companies can measure engagement among their employees to create an ideal workplace culture. Get the latest on this and more in the economic update for this week!

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Neil Gordon with Dave Holdeman April 17, 2023 No Comments
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Georgia Business Minute: Friends in Small Business

A recent study listed the Peach State on the top 10 list of small business-friendly states, particularly among minority small business owners. Atlanta reporter, Mike Petchenick shares which factors contribute to Georgia’s ranking, the latest on unemployment, and a digital contest hosted by an Atlanta-based company in this Georgia Business Minute.

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Mike Petchenik April 10, 2023 No Comments
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Business leaders receive the royal red carpet treatment

Green jackets and red carpets are part of the 61st tour of Georgia as business leaders from around the world descend upon the Peach State. The Augusta Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, welcomes business leaders to spend four days learning what the Peach State has to offer.  The tour began yesterday in Atlanta with a reception at the Governor’s Mansion, hosted by Gov. Brian Kemp and First Lady Marty Kemp. “I talked last night about a great team we have here,” Kemp said. “It’s

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Dana Lynn McIntyre April 10, 2023 No Comments
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AU and USC Aiken launch new online learning programs

Some new students who arrive at Augusta University for the fall semester will be attending in a non-traditional manner. Augusta University Online is up and running, less than a year after AU President, Dr. Brooks Keel announced the project in his State of the University address. Keel also introduced Dr. Marc Austin, hired as Dean of Augusta University Online, who will helm the new offering. The goal was to have Augusta University Online ready for fall 2023. They reached that goal. “We managed to get it out of the gate,

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Dana Lynn McIntyre April 10, 2023 No Comments
ABD Extra

Simon Says: Georgia’s tricks of the trade on trading

The Georgia Department of Economic Development and Governor Brian Kemp recently announced that the State of Georgia achieved a record-breaking year for international trade for the second year in a row. Georgia’s total trade with the rest of the world totaled $196 billion in 2022. The press release emphasized the record-breaking $47 billion of exports, an increase of 11% on 2021. Canada, Mexico, and China represent Georgia’s three largest export markets. What was not mentioned is that imports must have made up the other $149 billion. In fact, imports grew

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Simon Medcalfe April 10, 2023 No Comments
ABD Extra

The Buzz on The Bee’s Knees

The Finem Group at Meybohm Commercial announced in a press release on March 30, that The Bee’s Knees space is now up for lease. In November of last year, the popular hub in Downtown Augusta announced that it would permanently close its doors. According to Meybohm Commercial, the space is an ideal layout for a restaurant, coffee shop, or bar, consisting of two serving areas with both a kitchen and a wet bar. The space is considered to be in great condition, requiring minimal buildout by a future leaseholder. Meybohm

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Rakiyah Lenon and Neil Gordon April 10, 2023 No Comments
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