Georgia Trend Daily – March 3, 2026
March 3, 2026 The Current
Georgia timber industry seeks innovative solutions amid market challenges
Jasmine Wright reports, since International Paper abruptly closed its mills in Liberty and Chatham counties last fall, business owners in Southeast Georgia who once made the state the largest timber exporter in the nation have been feeling acute pain. As of January, demand for timber had dropped more than 60%, meaning truckers and contractors who would haul the raw materials to saw mills or processing plants have lost work.
Rocky Links: The Keep, a new golf course at Cloudland at McLemore, opened in October. Photo credit: Contributed
March 3, 2026 Georgia Trend Exclusive!
Road Trip Ready in Georgia: Weekend Escapes from Mountain Chic to Coastal Mystique
Gary Daughters reports, is there any better way to reset the soul than to blow off work Friday and hit the road for the weekend? No airports to conquer, no heavy packing, no exhaustive planning required. It’s doable on the spur of the moment, and unlike a longer, more far-flung trip, you’re likely to return refreshed, not wearier than when you departed.
March 3, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Atlanta gas prices rise amid U.S.-Iran conflict. They’ll likely rise more.
Savannah Sicurella reports that gas prices in metro Atlanta are responding to the armed conflict in the Middle East, a key oil and gas-producing region, and analysts say those prices could continue to increase over the next several days. On Monday afternoon, the metro area’s gas prices averaged $2.83 per gallon, up 14 cents from the previous week, according to numbers from Gas Buddy.
March 3, 2026 WSB Radio
Pullman Yards announces three new exhibits debuting in Atlanta
Staff reports, as March begins, Atlanta’s Pullman Yards is announcing three new exhibits that are brand new to the city. Pullman Yards owner Adam Rosenfelt says the goal is to offer a mix of experiences.
March 3, 2026 Union-Recorder
Plant explodes, catches fire in Greensboro
Bill Hobbs reports, a massive explosion that could be heard for several miles around Greensboro late Sunday afternoon later led to a breakout of several fires at a local industrial plant, authorities say. No one was injured.
March 3, 2026 Marietta Daily Journal
Double-taxation concerns at center of Mableton council standoff
Megan Jackson reports, the Mableton City Council sparred Wednesday night after Councilwoman Debora Herndon’s request to add a discussion about the city’s stalled police services agreement with Cobb County was voted down, intensifying tensions as a May 31 deadline to finalize a long-term service deal looms. Last May, the county and city reached a $9.5 million one-year agreement for service costs to allow time to negotiate a long-term agreement.
March 3, 2026 Capitol Beat News
Lawmakers consider harms of artificial intelligence, social media, particularly for children
Ty Tagami reports, concern about the effects of algorithms and artificial intelligence has been driving an onslaught of legislation at the Georgia General Assembly. Lawmakers have unleashed more than half a dozen bills that would hold companies or individuals to account for the way they deploy these computational tools, especially when used to connect children with obscenity, erode privacy or exploit identities.
March 3, 2026 The Imprint, Savannah Morning News
Georgia bill seeks to limit support for LGBTQ+ foster youth
Jordan Anderson reports, following similar efforts nationwide and encouragement this week from President Donald Trump, a Georgia lawmaker wants to double down on curtailing the rights of transgender and nonbinary youth. Rep. Noelle Kahaian’s bill focuses on their parents and caregivers.
March 3, 2026 GPB
As ICE detention center plans loom, Warnock tours Social Circle’s aged water infrastructure
Grant Blankenship reports, when Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock toured the water infrastructure of the city of Social Circle on Monday, he heard about how the water works can only replace the filtration system in its half-a-century-old plant about half as often as it should and how the wastewater plant is already at its limit. It’s part of the city of 5,000’s struggle to figure out how it can accommodate up to 10,000 Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees in a warehouse in town recently bought by the federal government.
March 3, 2026 Georgia Recorder
Candidate qualifying for the 2026 election is off to a fast start in Georgia
Alander Rocha and Jill Nolan report that the Georgia state Capitol was bustling on Monday, but not because of the usual business of lawmaking. Instead, big names in politics trickled in and out of the Capitol building, some having travelled hours to face a long line to ensure their names appear on the ballot for the upcoming November elections.
March 3, 2026 Capitol Beat News
Republican state senators push changes to Georgia voting machines
Ty Tagami reports that Georgia Senate Republicans pushed last-minute amendments to the state’s election procedures through a committee hearing Monday in an effort to meet their self-imposed deadline to use hand-marked ballots this year. Critics noted that the two-year delay since the Legislature passed the law to use paper ballots without QR codes has pushed implementation into a busy election year, making implementation challenging.
March 3, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Rick Jackson looks to AI to give his campaign a country-music boost
Greg Bluestein, Tia Mitchell, Patricia Murphy and Adam Beam report that a month ago, billionaire Rick Jackson entered the race for Georgia governor. The contest hasn’t looked the same since. He’s surged in early polling, blanketed the airwaves and relentlessly targeted Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, the race’s front-runner.
