New Downtown and inner-city Augusta/ North Augusta going to another level (Garden City: new construction) (apartment complex, mover)

[amlovingit]

Originally Posted by AUGnative

OK then how about move the current statue on Broad Street there. It's in a pretty unceremonious location with an ugly abandoned building behind.. doesn't really make for good photo op. It just seems like having two separate JB statues is overkill. Why not a statue of Jessye Norman?

I have to give crew when credit is due. You made a good point.

[AUGnative]

Or if the arena stays at the current location then move the JB statue to a plaza in from of the arena. That would make more sense, seeing as the arena is named for Brown and it is located on James Brown Blvd.

[amlovingit]

The Courtyard by Marriott is listed on the planning & development site.

Planning & Zoning - Project Search Details

[amlovingit]

Lately, the boarded-up property’s highly recognizable four-story facade has been adorned with the “Get Up Augusta” mural. But by early 2019, the building will be home to three Augusta companies: Loop Recruiting, Milestone Construction LLC and 3D Development.
Recruiting firm to renovate long-vacant Broad Street building | The Augusta Chronicle

[Airforceguy]

Executive Director for the Downtown Development Association Margaret Woodard said. "One is already under construction, Hyatt House I believe he's to be completed September of 2018 and I believe construction on the Marriott Flag is going to begin in December."

That second hotel will go where the old jail was, over off Reynolds Street and James Brown Boulevard

These new hotels will open the door for more events.

"They weren't able to really attract large conventions because of the number of hotel rooms that were needed, now they can because when conventions come everyone wants to stay in a certain concentrated effort," said Woodard.

They'll bring more money into the area and to local businesses.

Beamie's at the River Manager Mckie Smith said, "We're right across the street so they're going to be able to look out their window and see Beamie's, so it is pretty exciting I do expect to see a lot of business from it."


Even as buildings come back to life and new hotels are built, there's still one more piece to the puzzle.

"Living is very important, the companies that are coming down here are young companies, millenials, cyber people who are going to want to live, work, and play in downtown," said Woodard.

Woodard said those two hotels alone will be 60 million dollars in private investment for the downtown area, and that about 50 percent of downtown buildings are sold and have plans but the other 50 percent don't necessarily have plans just yet.

New hotels and businesses coming to Downtown Augusta

[amlovingit]

The Augusta skyline is changing, and fast | WJBF-TV

[amlovingit]

People wanting to live in an increasingly popular downtown might think about making moves sooner rather than later, because the JB Whites building just sold out the last of its condominiums.

The sale of the 51 upscale condos at 936 Broad St show an increasing interest in the central business district.

The first floor of the building, which houses The Book Tavern and coffee shop New Moon, has been sold to holding company Rex Augusta, LLC.

Additionally, the first floor commercial components of the JB Whites Building has been sold to Rex Augusta, LLC a holding company with management ties to Rex Property & Land, LLC.

One of the goals of Rex Property & Land, LLC has been to attract new, exciting, and compatible businesses to downtown.
J.B. White’s Building Sells Last of More Than 50 Condominiums | Buzz On Biz

[amlovingit]

A new dance club called The Scene, which prompted some pro-life advocates to oppose the nightclub opening in the Broad Street building that housed Planned Parenthood until last year, will open at the end of the month.

The club’s co-founder Robyn Jarrett, who teamed up with her husband William to open the definitive upscale nightclub of downtown Augusta, said they are aiming to open The Scene the Friday before Halloween.

“We had really hoped to be open sooner, but we were fine with it taking this long,” Jarrett said. “We wanted to do it right.”

The Jarretts seldom find themselves at nightclubs these days, but 20 years ago it was a different story. Even now, as downtown has blossomed with a variety of different bars, the couple noticed that Augusta’s most vibrant entertainment district was still shutting down early.

Upscale Dance Club to Open on Broad Street Later this Month | Buzz On Biz

[Airforceguy]

Augusta may be getting a new Vietnam War Memorial.

A few already line Broad Street, but there isn't one specifically honoring Vietnam War Veterans.

Chairman of the Vietnam War Memorial Initiative Dr. James Brady said, "I realized quickly that we had memorials for every war from the Civil War all the way down to the Spanish American War, World War I, World War II, Korea but we didn't have a Vietnam War Memorial."

That could all change in a year though, with a Vietnam War Memorial on Broad Street.

"There's four or five different agencies within the city that will ultimately be involved in approving the process," said Brady.

The Military Order of World Wars is organizing it.

They already have a cost in mind, and designs in mind.

One design has a flat wall, and the other one has a curved.

"I'm estimating at the high end right now a total cost of 125- thousand dollars because you have to put in a foundation for the monument to sit on, the inscriptions are not cheap, and there's the actual transport of the big granite blocks to the location," said Brady.

Plans for a new Veterans Memorial Downtown are on the table

[Airforceguy]

With downtown Augusta growing, concerns are growing about parking.

Every day it seems like downtown is growing more and more.

“I believe there’s a hotel coming across the street as well.”

Gene Gurley and his restaurant Sunshine Bakery have a front row seat to the action.

"When I took this over it was exciting, to stay downtown and be part of the excitement."

Hotels sprouting up across downtown, more sold signs than for sale, not to mention two $90+ million investments on both sides of Reynolds Street.

But with growth comes growing pains.

Finding a parking spot even in the middle of the day can be hard to find, and with more buildings and construction coming, you can bet it's probably going to get harder.

That's why some want the city to find a solution now.

"There are a few that have their own parking places, but that's just part of the growth.”

The Metro Chamber of Commerce says a growing downtown with even more visitors and customers, needs to have plenty of convenient, safe spaces.

Augusta's growth leads to problems with parking