Expansions/Moves

South Augusta is having a surge of economic development, $3.2 billion worth of economic development to be exact, that few people have seen. Some of the largest companies will be in the Augusta Corporate Park off Mike Padgett Highway. The park is a “Georgia Ready for Accelerated Development (GRAD) Certified” site. One plant, Starbucks, has been in operation since July 2012 as the first company-owned facility to produce soluble products. Those are used in Starbucks via instant and the coffee base for many of the Starbucks bottled and canned beverages.

Events touting education, partnerships between business and educational institutions, and how they prepare local residents for highly skilled in-demand careers stood center stage last week in Augusta. Three events, the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Augusta University and the Savannah River Nuclear Lab, A.R. Johnson High School students getting hands-on education in cancer research and a new format for the dual enrollment program between Augusta University and the Columbia County School District will all impact workforce development and how education is the silver bullet to make this area