Columbus City Council leaders tour several economic development projects

COLUMBUS, Ga. (WTVM) - County leaders load up for a bus tour for a firsthand look at economic development within the county. We start with a brief tour of Muscogee Technology Park where several large corporations have already purchased parcels of land to start development.

“We went through Technology Park, so that’s jobs showing what’s coming in, and different companies coming in,” says Councilmember Toyia Tucker.

And with those different jobs coming people need places to live. At Midland Commons, the property is being developed by a local company - Flournoy & Calhoun into to live, work, and play project.

“We wanted to fill this space up with local tenants first, then go for the national tenants,” says one developer. The development will have local eateries, to personal self-care shops, to places to repair your car.

One big attraction is an amphitheater in the middle of the property.

“We want the Mexican restaurant if they are going to have a margarita Wednesday we want them to come out here and have a margarita night. If we have a bar that wants to have a country music night out here we will do it,” says one developer.

Council members also got a firsthand look at new lofts built on the property while answering the question of if the city is still affordable.

“I really would say that a family of two adults, kids, could afford $1,100, $1,400 depending on a $30,000 person income,” says Tucker.

For City Manager Isiah Hugley, he says city residents need to see what councilmembers are working on for continued growth of the city.

“These are projects where it perhaps took rezoning and council members had to debate if they were going to allow certain projects to move forward in certain areas of the community,” says Hugley.

The next leg of the tour council members went to the Mill District that still needs more work. “Yes we do have a little bit more work to do,” says Tucker.

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