Downtown and inner-city Augusta going to another level (White: bars, office)

[amlovingit]

Originally Posted by dpatt.marine1

In a perfect world Paine would build a 20000 seat stadium on the site where solo cup now sits and GRU a 40000 seat stadium on Wrightsboro Rd across from the Forest Lake Golf Course.

I hope they can build a stadium together downtown

[whitmans77]

I dont know if Paines decision to bring back football will spur ASU to start a team. We can see how Azziz doesnt really care about public opinion or bow down to outside pressure. Why not keep Augusta State and then use the money saved from signage changes to start the football team?

[All4Augusta]

Well one thing is for sure, there would be a new Augusta city class...Paine vs GRU!!

[nortonguy]

The construction at 1204 Broad seems to be picking up... Farmhaus Burgers, 9 apts, & another restaurant..

[whitmans77]

Originally Posted by chacha1223

It is good that someone doesn't just bow to pressure or opinion.

I completely agree, but as a person who works for a public university you should take into consideration the wishes of the public and not blow them off.

on another note I wonder if the GRU Augusta thing will turn into other campuses also, allowing the university to gobble up some other smaller schools

[Mutiny77]

Originally Posted by nortongirl

It may be the case that they did listen and didn't like what they heard, I wouldn't be so quick to call them out. I have to make decisions all the time and I don't always listen to what others say, I go with why I feel is right.

The difference is that in this case, the opinions and wishes of the public were SOLICITED.

[amlovingit]

Country singer Carrie Underwood is coming to James Brown Arena on April 19. On Monday, Underwood’s Blown Away tour announced an additional 40 dates across the country in 2013, including Augusta. A dollar from each ticket sold on the North American leg of the tour benefits Red Cross disaster relief. Underwood’s Blown Away album debuted last spring at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums Chart

Carrie Underwood coming to Augusta | Mobile Augusta

[All4Augusta]

The Conference has been moved to Athens, SMH!

[amlovingit]

Momentum building for Sand Hills revitalization

The community bordered by Augusta State University and Summerville was recently featured in Historic Augusta’s “This Place Matters” forum, along with the Laney-Walker neighborhood.

Sand Hills’ location should make it an attractive place to live. It’s within walking or cycling distance of ASU and only a few miles from the Washington Road corridor and downtown Augusta, King said. Because Sand Hills is on the National Register of Historic Places, homeowners qualify for federal subsidies to cover a percentage of the renovation of historic homes, he said.
Momentum building for Sand Hills revitalization | Mobile Augusta

[amlovingit]

Replacement of old Regency Inn moves forward

d Street and Gordon Highway, could be replaced by a Holiday Inn Express by hotelier T.R. Reddy. Construct

A long-coming plan to replace a vacant hotel on Broad Street could finally be coming after a tax incentive helped move the project forward.

Hotelier T.R. Reddy said construction could begin early next year to transform the old Regency Inn into a Holiday Inn Express and Suites. On Thursday, the Augusta Commission created a tax allocation district for the property and surrounding area that helped Reddy advance the plan after years of financing delays.

A new hotel will help stimulate downtown business development, Reddy said. Hotel rooms are in short supply for a growing list of downtown events and are needed for visitors to the Augusta Convention Center, also known as the TEE Center, he said.

“We are hoping this should do well, but also it should help the city grow a good landscape at an entrance to the city,” Reddy said.

Reddy bought the property at 444 Broad St. in 2009 for $588,500, according to The Augusta Chronicle archives. Initially, construction was to be completed by July 2011. The structure will be gutted to the steel frame and rebuilt.

He plans to spend nearly $6 million to renovate the building, which hasn’t been used as a hotel for more than a decade. The property has convenient access to Gordon Highway and should help him attract business from Fort Gordon, he said.

Reddy, who has developed several local hotels, was motivated to find financing for the hotel after another developer, Courtland Dusseau, of Alabama-based Legacy Hospitality, also ran into financing troubles. Dusseau planned to build a Hyatt Place hotel on Reynolds Street across from the convention center.

The 70,000-square-foot Holiday Inn Express and Suites will have 110 rooms, eight suites and three meeting rooms when completed, Reddy said. It will feature an outdoor swimming pool, gym and common space.

Reddy plans for the Holiday Inn to be a “green” building and meet requirements for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification. He built the area’s first green hotel, a Comfort Inn and Suites on Norland Connector Drive, in 2009 and sold it two years later.

“This will be the first LEED hotel in town,” he said