Georgia Trend Daily – May 21, 2026
May 21, 2026 The Brunswick News
Port of Brunswick remains nation’s busiest for autos
Gordon Jackson reports, the Georgia Ports Authority is planning a $5 billion investment plan to add five new container berths in Savannah and one new roll-on/roll-off berth in the Port of Brunswick. No other port in the United States is expanding at that scale, officials with the Georgia Ports Authority said at Tuesday’s meeting.
May 21, 2026 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
How Atlanta’s own TOUR Championship creates the perfect setting for relationship-driven business
Jana Lawrence reports, in an increasingly experience-driven business environment, companies are looking for more meaningful ways to connect with clients, partners and employees. Corporate hospitality has evolved beyond traditional meetings and dinners, with live sporting events becoming one of the most effective platforms for building authentic relationships and creating memorable shared experiences.
May 21, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
South Downtown green, an atrium at CNN’s old home debut ahead of World Cup
Savannah Sicurella and Zachary Hansen report, a pair of ribbon-cutting events Wednesday aimed to show downtown Atlanta’s evolution happening in real-time just before the city reintroduces itself on the global stage. City and state leaders gathered in the morning to christen new green space in Atlanta’s largest cluster of century-old buildings, an area overlooked for decades.
May 21, 2026 Tifton Gazette
Art grant benefits Museum of Agriculture
Staff reports that Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College was awarded a Vibrant Communities Grant from Georgia Council for the Arts, the Georgia Department of Economic Development team specialized in empowering arts and culture, for fiscal year 2026. The Vibrant Communities Grant supports a variety of arts programming throughout the state, including murals, artist residencies and performances in schools, community theater productions, festivals, and concerts.
May 21, 2026 WABE
Georgia nonprofits join lawsuit against EPA for failing to enforce soot regulations
Marisa Mecke reports that Georgia nonprofits are joining national organizations in a lawsuit to force the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to continue to enforce one of its clean air laws. The Southern Environmental Law Center, Georgia Interfaith Power and Light and the Savannah Riverkeeper have joined the suit claiming the EPA has stopped enforcing air quality rules for soot.
May 21, 2026 Columbus Ledger-Enquirer
Citizens outraged at Brightmark plastic plant tell Georgia EPD to reject air permit
Kala Hunter reports, over 100 Upson County residents gathered Monday night in the Thomaston Civic Center to speak in-person to the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, which has the power to approve or deny the latest air permit application for the Brightmark plastic plant, Thomaston Circularity Center. The proposed 2.5 million-square-foot, 100-acre plastic plant would take in 400,000 tons of plastic annually, break it down to its original petroleum liquid form (a process called pyrolysis), hydrocarbon fuel and ship it off and use it for future plastic.
May 21, 2026 Augusta Chronicle
What is Georgia’s cleanest lake? This one wins 3rd best in US
Miguel Legoas reports that the cleanest and dirtiest lakes in the U.S. were ranked by Lake.com based on ammonia, lead, phosphorus, and other pollutants. The only lake in Georgia to make either list was Lake Hartwell, ranking third cleanest in the U.S.
May 21, 2026 Saporta Report
Atlanta cracks top 20 in national ParkScore – but the city may cut park funding
Delaney Tarr reports, it’s official: Atlanta has the 18th ranked park system in the nation, according to the Trust for Public Land’s annual ParkScore rating. But the announcement comes amid possible funding cuts for the city’s sprawling park system.
May 21, 2026 Savannah Morning News
Pooler found to have violated state process on large developments
Destini Ambus reports, after a review was triggered by a resident over Pooler’s approval of large development projects, the Coastal Regional Commission of Georgia has found that the city has violated this state statute in the past, according to an email sent from them to the City of Pooler. The Development of Regional Impact (DRI) process is a mandatory, state-created process that allows residents, regional and state agencies to weigh in on large projects.
May 21, 2026 Gainesville Times
Runoff expected as Democrats compete for Georgia’s 7th Congressional District seat
Travis Jaudon reports that Democrats Case Norton and Tony Kozycki will likely face each other head-to-head in a June 16 runoff after besting two other Democratic challengers in Tuesday’s primary for Georgia’s 7th Congressional District. Neither candidate tallied the required 50% to win the primary outright.
May 21, 2026 Georgia Recorder
Georgia Public Service Commission race will be settled by June runoff
Alander Rocha reports, the field of candidates to fill an open seat on the state Public Service Commission dwindled after Tuesday’s primary elections. Only the District 5 Republican primary is heading into a runoff, while voters will likely see a rematch of last year’s District 3 race between a current commissioner and a former commissioner after former Commissioner Fitz Johnson appeared to narrowly win the GOP primary.
May 21, 2026 The Current
Carter’s Senate bid ends in defeat $8.1 million later
Craig Nelson reports, ever since Buddy Carter announced his run for the U.S. Senate last year, he has insisted that he is the Republican who can beat the Democratic incumbent, Jon Ossoff, in November. In the three-way race between two self-described “MAGA warriors” (Carter and Collins) and one traditional Republican (Dooley), he was the third man out.
May 21, 2026 State Affairs
Paging the suburbs: Primaries hint at path to 2026 victory in Georgia
Beau Evans reports, the suburbs take center stage after results from Tuesday’s primaries suggest whoever wins over a suddenly on-the-fence bloc of suburban voters may carry the day in the Nov. 3 midterms, according to election experts, political insiders and state data. “You’ve got to really start courting those Chris Carr and Brad Raffensperger voters,” said Jason Shepherd, an Atlanta-area attorney and Republican strategist.
May 21, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The runup to the runoffs: In Georgia, the GOP’s Trump test is back
Greg Bluestein reports, four years ago, Donald Trump’s Georgia vendetta flopped. His hand-picked challengers were crushed by Gov. Brian Kemp and other Republican incumbents he deemed insufficiently loyal after the 2020 election. Tuesday’s vote showed how much has changed.
