Economics

B2B Stories

Lakefront living on nearby Clarks Hill is on the rise once again

Life is but a dream, if you are living on the lake and Georgia’s lakefront properties are a hot commodity including Clarks Hill Lake, otherwise known as Georgia’s Freshwater Coast. When our summers can be hotter than Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen, a cool lakefront breeze is sought after by many potential investors from across the country. You might be surprised to learn that more than 60% of the buyers for Georgia’s lakefront properties aren’t from here. They hail from Washington, D.C., New York, Greenville, S.C., Tampa, and Chicago. According to

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B2B Stories

Upgrades and fresh new look taking flight in Augusta

Equipment upgrades and an updated look are coming soon to Augusta Aviation, Inc. at Daniel Field Airport.   Utilizing grants currently available, work will begin in the next few months to do a complete electrical upgrade and replacement on the airfield.   Becky Shealy, VP of Business Development, said Augusta Aviation decided to use the opportunity to upgrade the logo and color scheme for the first time since the 1940s. The most noticeable change will be dropping “Inc.” from the logo.    “It’s subtle, the lettering changes are subtle. It’s not something that’s

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ABD Extra

Economic Update: Grovetown Growth

Just as Dana Lynn McIntyre reported last Friday, Coach Dave Holdeman from The Alternative Board of the CSRA and Augusta Business Daily publisher, Neil Gordon talk about Palmetto Industries’ groundbreaking at Horizon South Industrial Park and what that means for local employment. Gordon and Coach Dave also congratulate a local business owner on her retirement and reflect on the importance of exceeding customer expectations. Be sure to learn the latest on all this and more in the economic update of the week!

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ABD Extra

Simon Says: Here’s where employment was during Masters month

Despite the upturn in the Augusta Leading Economic Index reported last week, employment in the metro area continues to decline. Employment fell slightly by 200 jobs in April from March and is down almost 4,000 jobs since November 2022. Obviously, April was Masters month, and leisure and hospitality employment jumped 3,400 (not seasonally adjusted). This was less than in 2022, when the Masters bump was 4,200. With little month-to-month change in the seasonally adjusted total employment level, most industries did not see big changes in seasonally adjusted employment levels. Most

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B2B Stories

New but familiar face tapped for leadership role at SRNL

USC Aiken provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs at USC Aiken, Daren Timmons, will lead the Savannah River National Laboratory’s (SRNL) office dedicated to industrial and strategic partnerships. His last day at the university is June 30. “SRNL leadership has had a very positive work experience with Daren on the Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative being constructed on USC Aiken’s campus and many other projects,” said Dr. Vahid Majidi, Director of SRNL. “His knowledge of the AMC, as well as his connections with regional industrial and academic partners, make him

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B2B Stories

New life for historic James Brown buildings in downtown

New life and purpose are being breathed into three vacant buildings just off Telfair Street in Augusta. The three buildings, at 501, 509, and 513 James Brown Boulevard were built near the turn of the 20th century. Research by Historic Augusta found they have been empty since the early 1990’s. Developer, Brendon Steffes says the old warehouse-type structures will be transformed into 22 apartment units, but will retain the feel of the history of the structures. “If you’re looking at the first floor, you have beautiful storefront windows. And then

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ABD Extra

Simon Says: Giving you good news

Do you want the good news or the bad news? My wife always says give me the bad news then cheer me up! So, last month I reported that the Augusta Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) area was the worst-performing labor market in Georgia over the last year (bad news), but the Leading Economic Index (LEI) has continued good news. After rising 0.6 percent in February, it increased by 1.2 percent in March using a three-month moving average. The LEI is made up of local (MSA), regional (State), and national indicators

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ABD Extra

Economic Update: Change is coming!

Just as Mitzi Oxford reported in a top story last week, Coach Dave Holdeman from The Alternative Board of the CSRA and Augusta Business Daily publisher, Neil Gordon talk about Fort Gordon’s name change to Fort Eisenhower and what that means for the area. On the subject of name changes, see which automotive shop in town will also operate under a new name. Get to know the details on all that and more in this week’s economic update.

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B2B Stories

New Career and Technology Center closer to reality

Documents are signed, the ink is dry, and the site has been finalized for the Aiken County Public School District’s new Career and Technology Center to be built on the campus of Aiken Technical College. Dr. Forest Mahan, President of Aiken Tech, Joe Lewis, Chairman of the Aiken County Commission for Technical and Comprehensive Education, Cam Nuessle, Chairman of the Aiken County Board of Education, and District Superintendent, King Laurence signed the memorandum of understanding on Friday. The MOU formalized the long-discussed plan to build the CTC on the campus.

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B2B Stories

Date set for Fort Gordon name-changing ceremony

When Fort Gordon becomes Fort Eisenhower, members of the General’s family will not only be heading to the post just outside of Augusta, but they also helped plan the date for the renaming ceremony. ABD has learned through General Perry Smith that the ceremony will take place on October 27. The Eisenhower family requested the event be held in October because it coincides with former President Dwight Eisenhower’s birth date. Fort Gordon is one of nine army bases involved in the renaming process which includes removing all names, symbols, displays,

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