Location, location, location. Those are three words every economic development and real estate guru will tell you is the most important ingredient to increase property values. At Gwinnett Place, we are sitting in the cat bird seat for location in the Metro Atlanta region based on our area’s demographics, including 228,000 millennials who live within 10 miles and our proximity to the I-85 corridor going both north and south.
As I have traveled around the globe studying how other areas transform their communities, I have seen a couple common themes that seem to always rise to the top. First, there is usually a rallying point. A person or a historic/important place that is becoming the epicenter for the initial change. Secondly, there is always some type of public/private partnership that is developed or is in place to help lead the initiative. Finally, there is always one or two community leaders (albeit business or elected officials) who are the visionaries behind the project.
If you look at The Battery in Cobb County, Avalon in North Fulton, Atlanta Station in Downtown/Midtown Atlanta they each had these components. Each of them are different in scope, size and impact, yet each of them had a core ingredient: Location, location, location.
I believe Gwinnett Place can be that fourth major impact project for the Metro Atlanta region. Did you know that Gwinnett Place has more jobs than Midtown, Perimeter or Cumberland? It also has an inclusionary and diverse community and includes community members from Mexico, Korea and China who have brought their culture here through restaurants, shops and more. Our motto is “discover the world in one location!” If you’re looking to redevelop, then Gwinnett Place has a lot to offer.
Could Gwinnett Place land the 50,000-job Amazon project? It could. Could another professional sports/entertainment stadium/venue be developed on the Gwinnett Mall location? Yes. Could an international food incubator be created in the Gwinnett Place area that would spur innovative culinary arts in the region for generations to come? Yes. These ideas are all possible.
I believe Gwinnett Place is the location. The question is, who will make the three key ingredients happen? In the words of the famous Gwinnett Water Towers “Gwinnett is Great.” We need our local government, Gwinnett Place Mall owners and other CID property owners to collaborate and dream big!
As a member of the Gwinnett Place CID, we stand ready to help lead this transformational change along with our key partners in Gwinnett and across the region. Will you join us?
GPCID Guest Blog Post by Trey Ragsdale, External Relations,
Kaiser Permanente and GPCID Board member
Trey Ragsdale manages Government and Community Relations for Kaiser Permanente in Georgia. In this role, Ragsdale is responsible for securing government and community support for Kaiser Permanente’s healthcare initiatives throughout Georgia.
Trey is extremely involved in the community serving on numerous corporate, civic and nonprofit boards, both locally and internationally, including the Atlanta Regional Commission Workforce Development Board, Gwinnett Chamber Board and Partnership Gwinnett.
He was also named one of Georgia Trend Magazine’s Top 40 rising Business Leaders under the Age of 40 in Georgia and the Atlanta Business Chronicle selected him as one of the top 50 rising Business Leaders under the Age of 40 in the metropolitan Atlanta region.