News Release
FOR RELEASE: 3/21/2012
CONTACT: Saralyn Stafford 404-679-3166
Georgia DCA Commissioner Mike Beatty names BoomTown pilot cities
Woodstock -
Georgia Department of Community Affairs Commissioner Mike Beatty today announced a new pilot program aimed at creating jobs in Georgia’s historic downtowns. BoomTown 2.0 will create eighteen-month partnerships between the DCA and six Georgia Main Street® cities: Columbus, Cordele, Ellijay, Jefferson, Madison, and Woodstock. Beginning in April 2012, DCA and these cities will apply a variety of tools and resources in the historic downtown core of each city, focusing on redeveloping areas to stimulate job growth. The Georgia Municipal Association is a key partner in this effort.
“Renovating a community is a lot like renovating a house,” said Beatty. “You need time, a sense of humor, a lot of different tools, and experts that know how to use those tools. We’ve got most of the tools that we need; now we’re going to use them all together to enhance our communities and grow jobs.”
BoomTown will combine the many tools that cities have available – such as Opportunity Zones, Urban Redevelopment Plans, Job Tax Credits, and Historic Preservation Tax Credits – with the assistance of DCA team members to increase the number of jobs in the historic downtowns of the six participating cities.
“We’re focused on rebuilding our communities and making them places where families can live, work and play. What better place to start than in our downtowns? These places are full of Georgia’s history and culture, and they already have water, sewer, electricity, streets and sidewalks in place.” said Beatty. “These six cities have demonstrated their desire and ability to make change so we’re going to partner with them to help them change the job scene in their downtowns.”
Georgia’s 100 Main Street® Cities generated 592 new businesses in 2011 in their downtowns, according to DCA research. When the BoomTown pilot is complete, the DCA’s Main Street ® program will apply what was learned to other cities across the state.