Madison | Morgan County: Charming and Industrious
Historic Scenery, Manufacturing, Growth
Madison is known for its stately homes with beautiful gardens lining historic streets. It might seem like a remnant of simpler times, when it was common for people to sit on their front porch and greet neighbors walking by. And to some degree, that’s still accurate. Madison Mayor Fred Perriman says the thing Madisonians value most is its small-town feel.
Connecting with People: Madison Mayor Fred Perriman. Photo credit: Ryan Johnson
“Some folks will describe that in terms of people connections; some in terms of natural beauty and historic architecture; some in terms of community gathering and common spaces; some in terms of less traffic and a slower pace of living; and some in terms of population and households,” he explains. “Although it means different things to different people, our folks still appreciate ‘small-town character.’”
But Madison has moved forward even while retaining its historic charm. Madison boasts an admirable number of manufacturing facilities and other large businesses for its small size.
“Our diversity of industry lies not in the actual individual manufacturers but in the range of industry,” says Monica Callahan, Madison’s planning and development director. Morgan County has about 1,600 jobs in traditional manufacturing, which amounts to 19% of the jobs, and most are located within the city. There are an additional 1,200 jobs in hospitality/tourism, which comprise 15% of the workforce.
Companies making up the community’s manufacturing core include Mannington, which produces a wide range of luxury vinyl tiles; Anthony International (Sovis), which makes tempered bent glass for customers around the world; Bard Manufacturing, which began operations in Madison in 1992 and produces wall-mounted heating and air conditioning units for commercial and residential use; and Bard (formerly BD Bard), which in 2006 opened a facility in Madison to sterilize medical instruments using ethylene oxide.
Diversity of Industry: Monica Callahan, director of Madison planning and development. Photo credit: Ryan Johnson
Other companies with a footprint in Madison-Morgan are Georgia Pacific, which produces plywood at its Madison plant; JDR Enterprises, which manufactures plastic drainage equipment; REMA TIP TOP, a German-based automobile parts manufacturer which makes rubber matting, tire repair products, tools and equipment; and Seachem, which manufactures a wide range of products for freshwater, marine, reef, planted or specialty aquariums to maintain and support aquarium fish.
Expanding Businesses
Fairfield Inn, the Madison Business Center, Bard Manufacturing and Meta are among the businesses bringing in new or expanding commerce and industry.
Classic Beauty: Morgan County Courthouse was built in 1905. Photo credit: Shutterstock.
In 2023, the Madison mayor and city council approved a change in zoning laws allowing Fairfield Inn to build an 84-room hotel off the U.S. Highway 441 bypass. “Hotels can bring significant economic benefits to a community, including increased tourism, job creation and tax revenue,” says the hotel’s investor, Ben Patel, of the $5.2 million project. In 2023, lodging generated a total of $16 million for Morgan County.
The Madison Business Center is a $4.1 million investment, consisting of nearly 13 acres at the diamond interchange of Interstate 20 and U.S. Highway 441. It is currently being developed into 114,500 square feet of shallow bay industrial buildings for start-up companies.
Bard Manufacturing has received a $9.2 million award from the U.S. Department of Energy as part of President Biden’s Defense Production Act aimed at increasing clean energy. The money will be used to increase Bard’s manufacturing capacity of heat pumps, in response to an anticipated growth in demand of such pumps nationwide.
Home and Garden: Madison is known for its well-preserved antebellum houses. Photo credit: Shutterstock
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, which established a data center in the mixed-use industrial area known as Stanton Springs in 2018, is engaged in a massive expansion project that will proceed in four phases.
Phase 1, estimated to cost $750 million, will add about 50 new jobs when complete by the end of 2026. Phases 2, 3 and 4 are estimated to cost $550 million each and will have completion dates in 2028, 2030 and 2032, respectively, according to the Walton Tribune. With the expansion, the data center will encompass about 2 million square feet, according to bond documents.
Stanton Springs is a partnership with the Joint Development Authority of Morgan, Newton, Walton and Jasper counties, and all four counties will receive PILOT payments since the JDA granted Meta tax-exempt status. Newton and Walton counties will get 37.5% of the revenue, Morgan County 15% and Jasper County 10% of the total payments in lieu of taxes.
That same JDA has an agreement with Rivian Automotive regarding a planned facility in Stanton Springs. However, the company suspended construction in March 2024 after announcing it would move production of its R2 mid-sized SUVs to its Illinois plant. Rivian estimated the move would save more than $2.25 billion. But the company is still meeting its contractual obligations with the JDA, doing agreed-upon site maintenance and making payments.
Meeting Obligations: Bob Hughes, director of economic development for Morgan County, is working with the Joint Development Authority of Morgan, Newton, Walton and Jasper counties to assist Rivian, which has plans to build a plant in Stanton Springs. Photo credit: Ryan Johnson
“[Rivian] made their second of the PILOT payments,” says Bob Hughes, director of economic development for Morgan County. “And the way that we worked out the compensation for the counties involved and for the JDA was a PILOT project that started out low during their construction phase and then ramped up as they reached production. This approach gives Rivian time to figure out what works for them as far as the construction of the plant.”
Legacy Project: Renderings of the Morgan County Community Center, which will feature a recreation area with a lake, pavilions and multipurpose fields, above and top, and its indoor facility will have a walking track, pickleball, volleyball and basketball courts, concessions and more, below. Photo credit: contributed
In June 2024, Rivian and Volkswagen announced they’d be entering into a joint venture, and in November, Volkswagen increased its planned investment to $5.8 billion. Weeks later, the U.S. Department of Energy conditionally approved a $6.6 billion loan to Rivian so it can complete construction on the facility.
“I think it’s a blessing in disguise that they had a little bit of delay,” says Hughes.
With the loan, which comes from the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing Program, the company plans to finish the project in two phases, the first of which could start producing vehicles in 2028.
Focus on Recreation
Centers of industry aren’t the only planned expansions in the region. There’s also a new recreational complex in the works called the Morgan County Community Center.
At an estimated cost to the county of $25 million, this legacy project will feature approximately 40,000 square feet of indoor walking track, six pickleball courts, two volleyball courts, two regulation basketball courts and four youth courts, concessions, restrooms, two activity rooms with a support kitchen, registration and administration offices, and a seating capacity of 600. The outdoor recreational areas will include an adaptive field, lake, bark park, event lawn, pavilions, amphitheater, a walking/jogging trail and multipurpose fields.
Mayor Perriman says the new developments in both business and recreation are a positive step for Morgan County, which embraces growth even as it preserves its historical appeal.
“We don’t let our small stature keep us from tackling big dreams or big solutions. We are always aspiring for more,” he says. “I believe we do more when we dream without limits and take little bites to make it practical. We have a very engaged citizen corps, volunteering on outcome-oriented public service boards; they provide attention to detail, and extra talent and labor to tackle big plans, helping us extend our abilities.”
Local Flavor
Where the Wild Things Are
Experiencing Widlife: Georgia Safari Conservation Park’s director of marketing and sales, feeds a giraffe named Phoenix. Photo credit: Ryan Johnson
The Georgia Safari Conservation Park in Madison was born from a labor of love over several years by a group of church friends. Mike Conrads, Bill Kilmer, Brandie Anderson and others wanted to create a space where guests could experience the beauty of wildlife in the natural world, see species up close and learn about the importance of preserving these amazing animals and their habitats.
“We opened June 1, 2024,” says Jessica Malloy, Georgia Safari’s director of marketing and sales. “This is the very first one of its kind in the Southeast region, and we are currently at 530 acres.”
Their land is teeming with African animals. Tourists may see two sibling southern white rhinos, Mo-Joe and Akagera. Phoenix, the two-year-old reticulated giraffe, is also a main attraction. There are two coati sisters who serve as the park’s wildlife ambassadors for education, as well as reptiles like king snakes, bearded dragons, chinchillas and a two-toed sloth named Mochi. “We have 42 different species on the property, and I think a hundred different animals,” Malloy says.
The park’s mission is to inspire a greater understanding, appreciation and connection to the natural world. “We want everybody that visits our beautiful park to take home something informative with them,” Malloy says. “Not just fun memories, but an educational moment so they can learn more about the wonders of the world or the different species that they were introduced to while on the property.”
The park’s staff, which has plans to partner with Emory University, has hit the ground running – providing educational opportunities to the local Boys and Girls Clubs, planning a summer curriculum with Camp Twin Lakes and working with the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine, according to Malloy.
The park also envisions creating a conservation legacy that will positively impact the lives of both people and the various animals under its care. “We are working closely with endangered species to help conservation networks for what’s called SSP, Species Survival Program. SSP is a program where we help breed various species to make sure that they’re in the correct home and help their population grow and thrive,” says Malloy.
For visitors who want to go all in on the experience, the park has luxury accommodations, including lavish safari tents, a honeymoon hideaway and a giraffe suite that overlooks the giraffe and rhino barn. The accommodations have amenities like private decks, outdoor showers, multiple bedrooms, kitchenettes and luxurious décor. These are not Boy Scout tents!
Tours start at $39 per person with a more extensive package at $125 and a VIP private package for up to eight people at $2,500.
For more information, visit Georgia Safari Conservation Park online at georgiasafari.com or on Instagram at @gasafariconservationpark.
