A collabora ve economic development familiariza on tour of Athens‐Clarke & Oconee coun es
Northeast Georgia is on the rise, and the coun es of Athens‐Clarke
and Oconee are the crown jewels of this growing region. On May 1st
and 2nd, Athens‐Clarke County and Oconee County teamed up to
offer The Perspec ve on Progress Tour for site‐selec on execu ves
from across the country. This tour showcased what the region has
to offer, not only in terms of available land inventory and expert
consulta on, but also in terms of quality of life highlights.
Regarded as one of the state’s top areas to live by countless surveys
and publica ons, Athens‐Clarke County and Oconee County are open
for business. With two of the best public school systems in the state,
as well as a premier research ins tu on in the University of Georgia,
the region is primed for growth. When most people think of Athens
they only think of the Bulldogs. Yes, we love our Bulldogs but we are
so much more.
Program. Execu ve Vice President, Dr. Daniel Smith, illustrated how
Athens Technical College is an asset to our community by suppor ng
growth and the recent influx of jobs to Athens‐Clarke and Oconee
coun es.
A er lunch at the Thompson House and Gardens in Bogart, the tour
made its next stop at the spectacular Caterpillar Plant for a up close
look. The group geared up in their hard hats and safety goggles and
experienced the product of Athens‐Clarke and Oconee Coun es’
shared vision and collabora on which earned the region Business
Facili es’ Deal of the Year Award in 2012. They saw the plant in
ac on from welding to assembly and learned how our two coun es
worked together to bring it to frui on for our region.
Our guests were first welcomed to our region by Athens Mayor
Nancy Denson and Oconee County Commission Chairman, Melvin
Davis who shared their experiences of being a local. They also heard
from Jon Williams, President of Williams & Associates and
Representa ve of Oconee County Economic Chamber and Economic
Development Commi ee and who played a huge role in our region’s
recent successes who shared his insights on the area.
The tour then hopped on the bus to travel through the Athena
Industrial Park which features a mul tude of enterprises that are
na onally and even interna onally known. Some may be surprised
to learn they operate here in Athens‐Clarke County. Businesses such
as CertainTeed, Noramco, Ethicon, Carrier Transicold, Merial, and
Nakanishi, just to name a few. Athena Industrial Park has easy
access to the Athens Perimeter and Hwy 29 N which goes directly to A er Caterpillar, Rusty Haygood, Director for the Oconee County
I‐85.
Economic Development Department, toured the group through
some of the best industrial, commercial and medical sites in the
The first stop was at Athens Technical College. Our guests eye state.
witnessed how Athens Technical College is mee ng the needs of
area businesses in preparing our educated workforce with programs A er a full day of exploring the region’s assets, the tour visited our
like QuickStart which developed the successful Caterpillar Training newest paragon of well‐cra ed beer, Creature Comforts. They took
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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT www.AthensBusiness.org 706-613-3233