Downtown growth most in decades, say city officials (Gordon: fit in, sales)

[Airforceguy]

Hopefully this growth continues and the central city truly sees a renaissance.

“Downtown Augusta is on the upswing, with $239 million in new projects breaking ground in 2017 and 2018,” DDA Director Margaret Woodard said, using the DDA’s golf-themed slogan. “This new investment will create over 1,000 jobs and increase the city’s tax base.”
The growth is by far the most downtown has seen - since its heyday ended with the arrival of two large Augusta malls in the 1970s. Revitalization efforts starting in the late 1980s encouraged some growth but did not spark the total revival seen in other cities, and numerous vacant storefronts remained.
The bulk of the projects Woodard now references were in the works even before downtown landed its shining star - the $50 million Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center announced by Gov. Nathan Deal in January.
The 150,000 square-foot riverfront facility, set to break ground in June, will house Augusta University’s cyber curriculum and serve as a hub for training, research and startups tied to the ongoing relocation of U.S. Army Cyber Command to Fort Gordon.
New development already underway includes two new hotels, both with restaurants and upper-floor bars, breaking ground this summer and adding 240 rooms, and the nearly-completed $17 million restoration of the 1938 Miller Theater on Broad Street.
Broad Street as well as James Brown Boulevard, Telfair, Greene and three other downtown arteries are expected to benefit in sidewalks, bike lanes, median work and more when some $83 million from the new voter-approved sales tax, the Transportation Investment Act, is collected.
City leaders have disagreed about the location, but upgrades to Augusta’s tribute to longtime resident James Brown are part of the sales tax package. Other city master plans include the CVB’s “destination blueprint” and a public arts master plan.
More details include a new 24-hour diner on Greene Street, two new microbreweries a few blocks away on Fifth Street, three new businesses on Broad and the ongoing relocation of the Augusta Convention and Visitors Bureau from nearby Enterprise Mill, also to Broad.
Just across the 13th Street bridge, North Augusta is building a $143 million stadium complex to serve as the new home of the minor league Augusta GreenJackets.

Downtown growth most in decades, say city officials | The Augusta Chronicle