Georgia Trend Daily – Oct. 14, 2019
Oct. 14, 2019 Georgia.org
Coca-Cola UNITED to Build New Facility in Tift County, Create 200 Jobs
Staff reports that Governor Brian P. Kemp today announced that Coca-Cola Bottling Company United (UNITED), the second largest privately held Coca-Cola bottler in North America, will build a new sales center in Tifton, creating 200 jobs and investing $60 million in the project. “As one of our most beloved and deeply-rooted brands, any time the Coca-Cola system expands, it’s good news for the State of Georgia,” said Governor Brian P. Kemp.
Oct. 14, 2019 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Help Wanted
Anna Bentley reports that at a business summit in LaGrange earlier this year, Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler posed a question to the roughly 100 leaders in attendance: How many of you are currently hiring? About 90 percent of the group raised their hands, he says. He then asked who wasn’t having trouble finding people to fill their jobs.
Oct. 14, 2019 Atlanta Business Chronicle
UPS launches ‘valet storage’ concept in metro Atlanta, with aim at $38 billion industry
Eric Mandel reports that UPS is making a move into the multi-billion dollar self-storage industry. United Parcel Service Inc. (NYSE: UPS) said Monday it’s launching a new service called Storage on Demand, where customers can request storage bins that UPS will retrieve and store in its warehouses.
Oct. 14, 2019 Savannah Morning News
Savannah economy shifts sideways in Q2
Katie Nussbaum reports that the second quarter of 2019 brought a sideways shift for the Savannah metro economy, with the economy contracting at a rate of -0.1%, according to the latest Coastal Empire Economic Monitor. Monitor is a publication of the Center for Business Analytics and Economic Research under the direction of Michael Toma at Georgia Southern University’s Armstrong Campus.
Oct. 14, 2019 Albany Herald
Southwest Georgia farmers still struggling with impact of Hurricane Michael
Alan Mauldin reports that the old adage about not counting chickens before they’re hatched also applies to pecans, cotton and cucumbers before they’re picked. One year ago, southwest Georgia farmers were looking at a bumper crop of cotton with a seller’s market. It also looked like a good year for peanuts and other farm commodities.
Oct. 14, 2019 Brunswick News
Golden Ray will have to be taken apart in St. Simons Sound
Larry Hobbs reports that the shipwreck of the 656-foot-long freighter Golden Ray will have to be taken apart where it rests in the St. Simons Sound in order to get it out of there, the Unified Command tasked with doing so announced late Saturday afternoon. With most of the 300,000 gallons of fuel removed from the overturned ship, experts determined the behemoth could not be safely righted and refloated, officials said.
Oct. 14, 2019 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Savannah mural project underway
Mary Ann DeMuth reports that major colors are beginning to grace the walls of Savannah’s Starland District. The Starland Mural Project is creating eight new murals by eight local artists on the walls of the old Starland Dairy in the next couple of months. The crew of artists features Amiri Farris, Dana Richardson, Jon Witzky, Jose Ray, Juliana Lupacchino, Kevin Bongang, Tyriq Maxwell and Xavier Hutchins.
Oct. 14, 2019 Georgia Recorder
McBath calls for Ga. Senators to support gun background check bills
Beau Evans reports that U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath Thursday urged Georgia’s two senators to push their Republican colleagues to support legislation designed to toughen background checks for gun purchases, and she asked for broader support for a so-called red flag firearm safety bill she sponsored recently. A pair of bills expanding federal background checks for gun sales is languishing in the U.S. Senate after passing the House in March.
Oct. 14, 2019 Milledgeville Union-Recorder, CNHI
State jobs, programs on chopping block
Riley Bunch reports that lawmakers warned layoffs, job freezes and furloughs will have negative impacts on state government but may be necessary to comply with the governor’s cost cutting mandate. The governor’s office staff warned during budget hearings state jobs could be on the chopping block with forced budget cuts. Documents posted on the governor’s website call for dozens of state jobs being eliminated, frozen or furloughed in fiscal year 2020 in order to comply with the mandate.
Oct. 14, 2019 Atlanta Business Chronicle
Revenue-hungry Georgia lawmakers to take up gambling, other tax options
Dave Williams reports that Georgia lawmakers are about to get serious when it comes to finding new sources of revenue to prop up sluggish state tax collections. A committee House Speaker David Ralston named in August to lead that charge will hold three days of hearings this week to hear from more than two dozen witnesses on how Georgia could bring in more tax dollars, primarily but not limited to advocates of legalizing gambling in various forms.
Oct. 14, 2019 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Deadline week: Georgia candidates to report fundraising numbers
Greg Bluestein and Tamar Hallerman report that Georgia candidates face a deadline this week to report their latest fundraising figures, and their financial disclosures will be closely watched by activists, donors and operatives as a test of each campaign’s strength. For many, the reports due on Tuesday will be the public’s first peek at their fundraising since they entered the race.
