ECG Location Georgia

10/05/2026

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩'𝙨 𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙫𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙨?

Our October Grants & Funding list features opportunities from the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA), which is now accepting applications for the Utility Support for Grid Resiliency Program serving Georgia communities.

Check it out!

Looking for your next funding opportunity? This month's grants and funding roundup features programs from GEFA and other resources available to Georgia Energy Cities.

10/03/2026

We were glad to be in the room for the Georgia Chamber of Commerce's State of Rural Prosperity event at the UGA Tifton Campus earlier this week.

Our economic development partners, Jason Dunn & Susanne Reynolds, joined Tiffany Holmes to share their perspectives as panelists in the "Responsible Economic Development" discussion, highlighting the work underway to create jobs, attract investment, and strengthen rural communities.

A special congratulations to Moultrie-Colquitt County, recognized as Georgia's 2026 Rural Community of the Year. An honor well-earned and a reflection of the leadership, vision, and commitment shaping the community's future.

Thank you to the Georgia Chamber of Commerce for bringing together conversations that highlight the people and partnerships driving progress across rural Georgia.

09/28/2026

Thirteen years.
One title.

Georgia has 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗼. 𝟭 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗔𝗿𝗲𝗮 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, reflecting the partnerships, workforce strengths, and business climate that continue to drive investment and opportunity across the state.

Georgia's 13-year streak as the nation's No. 1 State for Business reflects its skilled workforce and pro-growth environment.

09/25/2026

A good week to be out and about in our .

Two milestones, one reason to show up: 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗚𝗲𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗮 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀.

This week, we attended the ribbon-cutting for Rideout Arsenal in Thomasville and the Worth County Industrial Park groundbreaking in Sylvester.

We were pleased to join local leaders and extend our congratulations on these milestones.

09/24/2026

Thank you, Historic West Point, for inviting our Community Development Manager, Jon McBrayer, to facilitate your Downtown Development Authority retreat.

We appreciate opportunities such as these to serve as a resource and partner as your DDA explores priorities, opportunities, and strategies that will help shape the future of downtown.

We look forward to seeing these ideas take shape and what's next for the City Of West Point, Georgia.

Yesterday, the Downtown West Point Development Authority came together for a productive retreat focused on shaping the future of Downtown West Point.

Board members spent the day working through priorities and identifying the Transformation Strategies that will help guide our work over the next 2–3 years. These strategies will provide a roadmap for projects, programs, and initiatives that strengthen our downtown and support continued growth and investment.

A special thank you to Jon McBrayer, Community Development Manager with ECG Location Georgia, and Abigail Strickland with Historic Downtown Newnan for helping facilitate the retreat and guiding us through the process.

We’re excited about the ideas, conversations, and direction that came out of the day — and look forward to putting these strategies into action for Downtown West Point!

09/18/2026

"𝙋𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙙. 𝙑𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣. 𝙋𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙠𝙚𝙚𝙥𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙢𝙤𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙬𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙖 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪'𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙤 𝙖𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙖." ~ Jay Clark, Founder & Owner - Tap Town

One takeaway echoed throughout every session: successful communities don't happen by chance. It takes vision, partnerships, investment, and people willing to see potential before everyone else does.

These themes took center stage during ECG's recent Retail Roundtable earlier this month; the day was packed with valuable takeaways and real-world experience.

Learn more here: www.locationgeorgia.com/retail-roundtable-september-2026/

09/15/2026

Each month, ECG's Office of Economic & Community Development curates available grants and funding opportunities to help our identify resources that support growth, strengthen quality of life, and position them for future investment.

This month's featured funding comes from the US Environmental Protection Agency Brownfields Job Training Program. Click on the link to learn more.

Explore September 2026 grants and funding opportunities for Georgia Energy Cities, with featured funding from the EPA.

09/13/2026

𝘈𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘵𝘩.

Our Retail & Commercial Development Manager, Daniel, attended the City of Norcross Broker Coffee & Development update this past week at Cultivation Brewing.

𝙂𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙙𝙖𝙩𝙖 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩'𝙨 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝘼 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥𝙨 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙨𝙚𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩'𝙨 𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚. As communities compete for retail investment, both matter. Moments like these reinforce the value of partnerships, local collaboration, and opportunities to support our as they tell their stories and pursue new retail and commercial development opportunities.

09/12/2026

What do a mayor, an entrepreneur, and a retail leasing professional have in common? Each brought a unique perspective on what it takes to create destinations, attract investment, and support long-term growth at ECG's 3rd Annual Retail Roundtable in Acworth last week.

"𝙋𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮-𝙤𝙛-𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙞𝙘𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚," Mayor Tommy Allegood.

Building a successful retail corridor takes more than recruiting businesses. It takes vision, partnerships, investment, and people willing to see potential before everyone else does.

A special thank you to Mayor Allegood, Jay Clark, and Catie Whorton for sharing their time and expertise; to the City of Acworth, Georgia, and Tap Town Acworth for being outstanding hosts; and to everyone who joined us for another successful Retail Roundtable.

09/04/2026

As we head into weekend, it feels especially fitting to celebrate the groundbreaking ceremony for Elliott Crossing, a new housing development coming to Thomaston through a partnership between the City of Thomaston and Smith Douglas Homes.

We were proud to join Mayor J.D. Stallings, DCA Commissioner Christopher Nunn, Assistant Secretary of Community Planning & Development for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Ronald Kurtz, Smith Douglas Homes, Founder & Executive Chairman Tom Bradbury, Thomaston Economic Development Director Taylor J Smith, MPA, local leaders, partners, and community stakeholders in Thomaston for the groundbreaking. This development will bring 90 new single-family homes to the community, help address an important workforce and attainable housing need, and support the city's long-term growth strategy.

The success of projects like Elliott Crossing is a testament to what can be accomplished through collaboration among local leadership, private industry, and state and federal partners. It reflects a shared commitment to creating places where people can live, work, and thrive.

"𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙟𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙙𝙤 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙝𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙚," 𝗌𝖺𝗂𝖽 𝖤𝖢𝖦 𝖱𝖾𝗍𝖺𝗂𝗅-𝖢𝗈𝗆𝗆𝖾𝗋𝖼𝗂𝖺𝗅 𝖬𝖺𝗇𝖺𝗀𝖾𝗋 𝖣𝖺𝗇𝗂𝖾𝗅 𝖬𝖺𝗋𝗍𝗂𝗇. "𝙄𝙣𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚, 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙘𝙚 𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙘 𝙙𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙢𝙤𝙙𝙚𝙡 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙞𝙧𝙘𝙡𝙚, 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙨 𝙞𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙚𝙛𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙡 𝙤𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙢𝙚𝙢𝙗𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙨."

Congratulations to the City of Thomaston, Smith Douglas Homes, and all involved partners. We look forward to seeing the positive impact Elliott Crossing will have on Thomaston and the broader region in the years ahead.

https://www.smithdouglas.com/communities/macon-ga/thomaston/elliott-crossing?fbclid=IwY2xjawUIBlBwZG9mBWV4dG4DYWVtAjEwAGJyaWQRMUxXbFlrM3dXeVJGTmhncWVzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEel8uayGs9Q0M-pIZAJMvp4HtNnXERF9F4bpJvCKLx1gZORhg_jwMK36S30CQ_aem_fB-VogMBqqdMYyQupzJ-xA