Expansions/Moves

Goodwill Industries of Middle Georgia and the CSRA are planning to breathe new life into the former Georgia Bank & Trust building in front of its complex on Furys Ferry Road, according to Karen Lee Davis. Davis, the non-profit organization’s Director of Marketing and Public Relations said the building, which has been vacant for many years, will be transformed into a welcome center that will house the Helms College admissions office, the CEO, and the marketing team. “It will really pull together everything we have happening on this campus,” she

Matthews Motors of Augusta has expanded its service reach with the recent acquisition of Padgett Truck Bodies of Graniteville, S.C. This acquisition also helps in the launching of Matthews Truck Bodies. “Matthews Truck Bodies fills a void in the Augusta area by allowing us to help both new and existing customers with their fleet needs,” said Aaron Matthews, CEO of Matthews Truck Bodies. “In addition to what we currently offer to our customers from the service and parts side of the truck bodies, we will add multiple well-known brands to

When developer Tracey Turner returned to his birthplace of North Augusta, it was like coming home in more ways than one. After serving in the Navy, Turner worked as a programmer for IBM, as a Project Manager for the Transportation Security Administration, and as a Project Manager for FEMA. Along the way, he rehabbed houses in Washington, D.C., and started a development company. The nation’s Capital became home to his company’s headquarters, but Turner had an eye on the potential for development back home in North Augusta. “I never thought

A global mining company has invested $44 million in expanding a Grovetown company, which will have a major economic impact on not only the CSRA, bus also the region and state, according to Robbie Bennett. Bennett, Executive Director of the Development Authority of Columbia County, helped to celebrate the grand opening of the newly expanded GIW Slurry Pump manufacturing plant at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday. “GIW has shown its commitment to this community,” he said. “They’re a huge economic driver with hundreds of employees.” Slurry refers to a liquid

In the age of digital books and Amazon, a bookstore may seem quaint and old-fashioned. But bookstores remain popular, enough so that The Book Tavern recently relocated to a more spacious location at 978 Broad Street, about half a block from its previous location in the J.B. White’s Building. The Book Tavern opened in its new location on April 1 but a Grand Opening with special events is planned for April 30 in conjunction with Independent Bookstore Day. The move is the culmination of several years of seeking a new

Columbia County residents will soon have a new place to pick up a cup of Joe before heading to work. The owners of Rooted Coffeehouse, Alison Kocher and Heather Needles plan to open a second location at 380 West Milledgeville Road, near IGA, in Harlem this summer. The original coffee shop is located at 3116 William Few Parkway, Suite 1 in the Market at Riverwood shopping center in Evans. “We’re excited about having a new community to reach,” said Needles, Kocher’s mother. “It’s a small town, so we’re excited about

Business is booming at a local family-owned pediatric therapy business, which has prompted its owner to expand the company. Founded in 2018, Therapy Trails which has offices in Grovetown and Evans, offers a variety of services including speech, physical and occupational therapies. Business owner, Elizabeth Peavy plans to open a third location in a new development called Brighton Landing at the corner of Whiskey Road and John Huffman Way in Grovetown. “Building a new facility for Therapy Trails is definitely our goal,” Peavy said. “We’re still in the financing/planning/predicting phase.”

Golden Harvest Food Bank took the first step toward expanding its building to better serve the community by awarding phase one of the building project to RD Brown. The first of a two-phase project will be a renovation that will add nearly 5,000 square feet of volunteer space, as well as a welcome area and much-needed conference, meeting, and office space. The expansion will allow Golden Harvest to increase its impact in its 25-county service area. Golden Harvest received a $3.7 million grant in December, which will cover 75 percent