Georgia Trend Daily – Feb. 16, 2024
Feb. 16, 2024 Georgia.gov
Gov. Kemp: SOLARCYCLE to Create 600 Jobs in Polk County at First-of-its-Kind Solar Panel Glass Plant
Staff reports that Gov. Kemp on Thursday announced that SOLARCYCLE, an advanced technology-based solar recycling company, will create more than 600 new full-time jobs in Polk County, investing an estimated $344 million in a solar glass manufacturing facility in Cedartown. The facility will be the first-of-its-kind in the country to use recycled materials from retired solar panels to make new solar glass.
Feb. 16, 2024 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Eyedrum Art & Music Gallery
Candice Dyer reports, the 1996 Olympics put the city on the world stage, and arts leaders wanted to prove it could compete with other metropolitan scenes. William Lawless says he and his friends, including the late painter Woody Cornwell, journalist Marshall Avett and Georgia Trend Publisher Ben Young, wanted to create an outlet for experimental, challenging art – the edgy, unconventional stuff – so they founded the nonprofit eyedrum.
Feb. 16, 2024 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Economic outlook among Georgia businesses and consumers more upbeat
Michael E. Kanell reports that the economy depends on trucks, trucks depend on mechanics and Anna Leontyeva’s company depends on the economy needing those trucks to keep running. Status Truck & Trailer Repair, which recently moved its headquarters from Florida to Forest Park, provides a range of services, from transmission work to drive train fixits, on the 53-foot-long big rigs as well as smaller delivery vehicles.
Feb. 16, 2024 Ga. Dept. of Agriculture
Georgia Department of Agriculture Launches $7.1 Million Grant Program to Fortify Georgia’s Food Supply Chain
Staff reports, Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper announced on Thursday that the Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) has a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) under the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure (RFSI) Grant Program. This initiative aims to strengthen Georgia’s food supply chain by providing funding for projects that enhance infrastructure and resilience.
Feb. 16, 2024 11 Alive
Atlanta airport aiming to no longer allow non-flying general public from entering terminals
Jada Brooks reports, officials at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport want to prevent the non-flying general public from accessing the terminal at all times. On Wednesday, the Atlanta City Council transportation committee voted to change the loitering ordinance for the Atlanta airport.
Feb. 16, 2024 Fresh Take Georgia
Community is the strongest ally for Black farmers’ mental health struggles
Abisola Dahunsi reports, while there is a significant increase in society’s mental health awareness, farmers are often omitted from the conversation. At least these are the sentiments of farmer Bobby Wilson, the president and CEO of Metro Atlanta Urban Farm in College Park.
Feb. 16, 2024 Valdosta Daily Times
Valdosta manufacturer adding 150 jobs
Terry Richards reports that a planned expansion to a Lowndes County manufacturing plant should add 150 jobs, the company said Wednesday. Arglass, a glass manufacturer with roots in Japan, plans to build a second furnace at its Valdosta facility, the company said in a statement.
Feb. 16, 2024 Gwinnett Daily Post
Gwinnett Projected To Have 1.2 Million Residents in 2050
Curt Yeomans reports that Gwinnett County is expected to keep growing over the next 26 years, but not by as much as county leaders have often touted, according to new projections from the Atlanta Regional Commission. The ARC announced its 2050 population projects for the metro area this week. The organization expects the 21-county region will be home to 7.9 million people.
Feb. 16, 2024 The Current
Dead whale towed to Tybee for exam, burial
Mary Landers reports that researchers on Thursday examined the carcass of a 1-year-old female north Atlantic right whale found dead offshore, looking for clues to her death. The whale is the December 2022 calf of north Atlantic right whale #4340, also known as Pilgrim.
Feb. 16, 2024 Georgia Recorder
House panel approves bill intended to clarify when landowners can restrict access to streams
Jill Nolin reports that lawmakers rushed to respond late in last year’s legislative session when a landowner along the Flint River successfully argued in court that he has control over who can cast a line in the popular fishing spot. That late-session measure prompted an outcry from some landowners and representatives of the state’s prized agriculture industry, who worried the new law designed to enshrine the public’s right to fishing would make operations that withdraw water from rivers vulnerable to lawsuits.
Feb. 16, 2024 Savannah Morning News
Ga. bills offering second chances
Maya Homan reports, two bills that would offer greater clemency to those in Georgia’s criminal justice system this week passed in the Georgia House with bipartisan support. The first measure, HB 873, creates more guidance for juvenile drug and mental health courts, and passed in a unanimous vote.
Feb. 16, 2024 Georgia Recorder
Georgia House gives overwhelming support for more parental leave for state workers
Ross Williams reports that Georgia state workers who grow their families could have more time off to spend with their bundles of joy thanks to a bill sponsored by the powerful House speaker pro tem that passed the House Thursday 153 to 11. Milton Republican Rep. Jan Jones’ House Bill 1010 would double the amount of parental leave new parents could take each year to 240 hours, or six weeks.
Feb. 16, 2024 Capitol Beat News
State Senate passes property tax relief bill
Dave Williams reports that legislation aimed at limiting local property tax increases overwhelmingly cleared the Georgia Senate Thursday. Under Senate Bill 349, which passed 42-7, local governments would be prohibited from raising residential property assessments more than 3% annually.
Feb. 16, 2024 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia Rep. Butch Parrish to lead powerful House Rules Committee
Mark Niesse reports that the new leader of the influential Georgia committee that decides whether bills get votes in the House is state Rep. Butch Parrish, a Republican from Swainsboro who has been a state representative for nearly 40 years. House Speaker Jon Burns appointed Parrish to the role Thursday. He’ll take over for Rules Chairman Richard Smith, who died last month.
