Economics

Last week, the President of the Augusta Economic Development Authority (AEDA) walked business leaders through the impact of regional development. Cal Wray brought the report to the Chamber’s first Member Economic Luncheon of 2025. He pulled together numbers from Richmond, Columbia, and Burke counties in Georgia and Aiken County in South Carolina. “Aiken, $1.36 billion in new investment, 1,452 new jobs,” he began. “Burke was $50 million investment, 244 new jobs. Columbia County, $158 million with 1,600 new jobs. Richmond County, $1.335 billion and 778 jobs. That is what manufacturing,

Members of the Augusta Aviation Commission heard a positive report on how Augusta Regional Airport managed this year’s tournament traffic. In a nutshell, operations went smoothly, with no runway incursions or accidents involving aircraft. The best news: The numbers were up across the board. “We had about 400 extra operations from the previous year, with 617,544 gallons of fuel delivered,” said Kenneth Hinkle, the airport’s Director of Aviation Services. “That is a 4,000-gallon increase from the previous year.” He said not all numbers are available, while staff members conduct the

7 years ago, Cal Wray, EDFP, President of the Augusta Economic Development Authority, came to town after more than ten years of growing other communities. Thursday, he’ll provide a report card with some numbers shared in this article. He will headline an Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce event with a presentation titled “Next Up Augusta – Projects, Wins, & What’s Next.” The luncheon will be held this Thursday, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Augusta Marriott at the Convention Center, located at 2 10th Street in downtown Augusta. The Augusta EDA