April 2021 Features

• New Filing Illustrates Atlanta Gas Light’s Plans to Enhance Its System, Support Growth in Georgia

  April 30, 2021

  Atlanta Gas Light submitted its first-ever Integrated Capacity Development Plan, a filing newly required by the Georgia Public Service Commission. The document, referred to as the i-CDP, provides insight into the company’s long-range plans for initiatives that will enable it to meet increased demand and deliver superior customer service while continuing to serve the state safely and reliably.

• goBeyondProfit Research Clarifies Georgians’ Heightened Expectations and Offers Road Map for Business Response

  April 29, 2021

  Georgia-specific research confirms employee and consumer rising expectations – and propensity to act – based on how businesses speak out about issues and care for employees, community and environment. Business executive input reveals increasing business value and commitment to corporate character efforts, according to goBeyondProfit, a statewide alliance of CEOs which conducted the survey in March 2021.

• Bimbo QSR to Establish Valdosta Food Processing Facility

  April 28, 2021

  Governor Brian P. Kemp announced that Bimbo QSR, a subsidiary of Mexican multinational company Grupo Bimbo, will invest more than $25 million in opening a food processing facility in Valdosta, delivering 74 jobs to Lowndes County.

• Wild Adventures to Host Job Fair, Hiring All Positions

  April 28, 2021

  Wild Adventures Theme Park in Valdosta, Georgia is hosting a job fair this weekend to hire more than 300 new employees to fill open positions for the 2021 Season.

• US Consumer Confidence Up Sharply Again in April

  April 28, 2021

  The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index rose sharply again in April, following a substantial gain in March.

• South GeorgiaLEADS Announces 2020-2021 Graduates & New Board Leadership

  April 27, 2021

  South Georgia recognized 32 committed leaders who are dedicated to the economic success and welfare of the region last week with the graduation of the most recent class of South GeorgiaLEADS. The 2020-2021 class represents 14 counties of the 21-county region and are united in a shared desire to the future growth of Southwest Georgia.

• Georgia Ports Authority Details Capacity, Operations Expansion

  April 27, 2021

  At the Georgia Foreign Trade Conference, the Georgia Ports Authority released fiscal year to date numbers (July -March) showing record volumes of 3.9 million twenty-foot equivalent container units, an increase of 15 percent, and detailed a plan that expedites completion of more than 1.4 million additional TEUs of annual capacity.

• What to Expect in the Housing Market After the Pandemic

  April 26, 2021

  The coronavirus pandemic has upended the housing market, opening up new opportunities for many, pushing some to move back home and causing others to reevaluate how they want their home to look. With vaccines being widely distributed, new Zillow surveys reveal what's likely to change and what's expected to remain when the pandemic ends.

• Colony Bankcorp & SouthCrest Financial Group to Combine in Transformational Merger

  April 23, 2021

  Colony Bankcorp, Inc., the holding company for Colony Bank, and SouthCrest Financial Group, Inc., the holding company for SouthCrest Bank, N.A., jointly announced the signing of an Agreement and Plan of Merger under which Colony has agreed to acquire 100% of the common stock of SouthCrest in a combined stock-and-cash transaction valued at approximately $84.0 million.

• Jobs Increase Over the Month in Every Georgia MSA

  April 23, 2021

  The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) announced today that the number of jobs and employment numbers were up in every metropolitan statistical area (MSA) from February to March of 2021. The unemployment rate was down over the month in every MSA. For March, the unemployment rate was down and the labor force and employment numbers were up in every reported regional commission.

• New Report Reveals Cox Enterprises Has Invested Nearly $1 Billion in Sustainability and Cleantech

  April 23, 2021

  Cox Enterprises released Making Our Mark, its collective impact report, which details the company's investment of nearly $1 billion in sustainable businesses and technologies, and more than $191 million donated to or invested in communities.

• AG Chris Carr & Partners Kick Off Annual Fundraiser to Benefit Georgia’s Regional Food Banks

  April 20, 2021

  Today marks the first day of the 10th Annual Georgia Legal Food Frenzy, a two-week virtual fundraising drive fortified by Georgia’s legal community, benefitting the state’s regional food banks.

• Georgia’s Unemployment Rate Drops in March While Jobs Increase

  April 16, 2021

  The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) announced that Georgia’s unemployment rate dropped 0.3 percentage points to reach 4.5 percent in March while the state saw a significant increase in the number of jobs.

• New Online College for Career Advancement at VSU Approved by Board of Regents

  April 15, 2021

  Why do more than 67,000 of Georgia’s online adult learners choose to pay more to attend an out-of-state college? Beginning this summer, the answer is that they will no longer need to.

• Wiregrass Georgia Technical College Names DeAnnia Clements as Interim President

  April 14, 2021

  Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) Commissioner Greg Dozier has appointed Wiregrass Georgia Technical College Vice President of Academic Affairs, DeAnnia Clements as Interim President of the college upon the retirement of Dr. Tina Anderson.

• $8.43 Billion, 24,000+ Jobs from Economic Development Projects During First Three Quarters of Fiscal Year

  April 14, 2021

  Governor Brian P. Kemp, in conjunction with the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD), today announced that more than 24,000 jobs were created across all regions of the state by economic development projects in Georgia during the first three quarters of fiscal year 2021.

• City Officials Break Ground on Downtown Amphitheater Park

  April 12, 2021

  On April 8th, the City of Valdosta held the ceremonial ground-breaking of Valdosta's much-anticipated addition, the Amphitheater Park. The amphitheater will be located at the corner of Lee Street and Central Avenue in Downtown Valdosta.

• Technology Association of Georgia Unveils TAG Tech Award Finalists

  April 12, 2021

  The Technology Association of Georgia has announced the TAG Technology Awards Finalists. In its first year, TAG’s Technology Awards recognize companies and individuals throughout Georgia who made an impact in 2020. The finalists will be recognized, and winners will be announced at the Georgia Technology Summit on April 28, 2021.

• Explore Georgia: State Ready to Safely Host Meetings and Conventions

  April 09, 2021

  On Global Meetings Industry Day, Explore Georgia, the tourism division within the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD), is proud to showcase the state’s leading-edge conference centers and destinations.

• Pelotons & Penny-Pinching: How COVID-19 Pulled US Consumers Toward New Extremes of Splurging & Saving

  April 07, 2021

  With the end of the pandemic finally in sight, one of its lasting legacies may be pulling American consumers toward new and seemingly contradictory directions of behavior.

• Georgia Made Companies Play Key Role in Fight Against Pandemic

  April 06, 2021

  A little more than a year since the first cases of COVID-19 were reported in Georgia, the Georgia Department of Economic Development celebrates a group of Georgia Made - certified manufacturers that have all started, pivoted, or stepped up production of personal protective equipment or health care supplies to combat the pandemic while maintaining or even increasing operations and employment.

• Revolutionary Map Expanding Statewide Internet Access for Georgians

  April 05, 2021

  Wide swaths of South Georgia lack access to high-speed internet service. But where are the most households lacking broadband access in the state? Fulton County.

• Have You Applied for Go Global Georgia?

  April 02, 2021

  Go Global Georgia is a competitive program that provides reimbursement grants to small business exporters participating in approved export-related activities. Companies can apply for two activities during the grant year, receiving maximum reimbursement of $6,000.

• 2021 Georgia Logistics Summit Tackles Lessons from 2020; Highlights Georgia’s Leadership on Road Ahead

  April 01, 2021

  The Georgia Center of Innovation for Logistics, a division of the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD), presented the first-ever virtual Georgia Logistics Summit, with hundreds of participants from across the state gathering online for the event.