The Columbia County Chamber of Commerce’s recent Future Forward: A CSRA Development Summit was an opportunity to learn about economic development, both short-term and long-term.
Among the panelists was Cheney Eldridge, director of the Economic Development Authority of Columbia County. She was chosen for the position in February 2024. She recalled speaking at her first Future Forward summit and saying the county had the potential for billions of dollars in new investments.
“At the time, we thought it was going to be somewhere around $2 billion, and now we’re looking at somewhere around $17 billion, and so it’s been a tremendous path from that moment until now,” she said.
A chunk of that, more than $11.5 billion, is connected to the construction of the Google data center between the White Oak Technology Park and Pumpkin Center. It will cover up to 2,000 acres, with 23 buildings providing eight million square feet of space.
The summit also embraced the regional nature of development in metro Augusta, reaching across into South Carolina.
Kell Anderson, existing industry director with WesternSC Economic Development Partnership, said his agency represents Aiken, Edgefield and McCormick counties. His role is to support existing industries.
“Much like Cheney’s group, we are the industrial recruitment arm for the counties that we represent,” he explained. “Our reason for being is ultimately to create new jobs and to bring a new capital investment for the counties that we represent.”
One industry in particular is becoming more impactful in both states. The automotive industry has created, or announced, major developments in Georgia and South Carolina.
Anderson said they are hoping to see continued expansion by the automotive sector. It’s been growing in the Spartanburg County region.
“It’s starting to spill down into Columbia, and we’d like to see a little piece of that,” he said, adding that an Aiken County plant is part of the growth.
“One of our anchor industries, mtu Rolls-Royce, a British car manufacturer, makes industrial engines. They’re going through an expansion right now. So, that’s something that we’re all so excited about.”
Located in the Sage Mill Industrial Park, last year the company announced a $75 million expansion that will add at least 60 jobs.
Eldridge said the Hyundai plant, just west of Savannah, is an example of how one project can have ripple effects across the state as suppliers move in to support the facility. The goal is to attract some of those suppliers to this area.
That said, Eldridge points to another challenge: Having a workforce ready for new industries and the suppliers.
“I think workforce development is going to be something people need to have their eye on as all of these industries, not just data centers, but all of these industries start to grow,” she said. “We are going to need to have more focus on workforce development. How can we train the folks to get them into these jobs? In the region, we have around 200,000 people that are eligible to work that are not in the labor force.”
Chamber President and CEO, Heath Taylor asked what things attract new industries to metro Augusta.
“It’s just that these are great communities to live in, and people recognize that,” began Anderson. “Another thing that has been helpful is that the industry has success here, and it goes back to workforce and quality of life.”
Eldridge believes the cost of living in this area is lower than in other similarly sized regions. Add that into the collaborative relationship her office has with Anderson’s, as well as the Augusta Economic Development Authority.
“We work really well together; we work well across the river. Our technical colleges work well together across the river. Our development authorities work well together,” she said. “We market the region together. We want to see something located here versus across the state. We don’t often have to convince people why they should be here because we have a very, very diverse community.”
In addition to large employers, Eldridge said she would like to see more commercial and retail development. She said that it will enhance the quality of life component by providing shopping, restaurants, and entertainment venues.
