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Augusta...Downtown, Medical District, Old Towne


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Augusta Historic Preservation Commission Approves Demolition Of Old Jail

30 million dollar project. Eight story building. The first level will be for retail stores. The second and third stories will have residential lofts. And the rest will be for a hotel, with 140 rooms. Underground parking garage.

He's hoping to have the project complete in time for next year's Masters. Officials with the Downtown Development Authority say this hotel will bring an extra 300-thousand dollars in hotel tax into Augusta. And at least 80 more jobs.

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I don't think the ground has been broken yet has it? It just got approved yesterday plus I think they still have to come up with the site plans and get those approved first. This shouldn't be too hard as downtown is going to need more hotels when the TEE center is built.

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I was talking about the whole downtown redevelopment movement. Has any ground been broken yet? Watermark condos etc.

2008 is close to the half way mark, all these projects and proposals are suppose to be breaking ground, right?

The Watermark may have broken ground but I'm not sure. I know they were clearing the land last year and they had to move some contaminated soil. I don't imagine the TEE center breaking ground until later this year.

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Another project I'm excited about for downtown is the new tour boat called The Patriot. I think it will start running next week and will go from downtown to Lock and Dam. We haven't had a tour boat on the river since the Princess Augusta stopped running.

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City sets aside funds for demolition

Augusta has budgeted $125,000 to use on abandoned property in any neighborhood, in addition to $100,000 in HUD money for demolition in historic communities. Last year, the only money available was HUD money for the historic neighborhoods.

In addition, Commissioner Betty Beard succeeded in getting money from the transportation tax to increase demolition of abandoned structures in the Laney-Walker and Bethlehem communities.

Augusta demolished about 50 decrepit houses in 2007. This year, 25 are in the process of being demolished, 23 more are in the bid process, 20 to 30 have court orders for demolition and more than 50 will go to court next month.

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Mayor's Masters Reception Brings Thousands Of Visitors

Mayor Deke Copenhaver welcomed visitors to the city during his annual reception at the Augusta Botanical Gardens Monday night. More than 50 restaurants served up free food at tonight's reception, which was a great way to welcome first timers and locals to Masters Week.

Thousands of visitors say an event of this magnitude makes them feel welcome.

Edited by augga706
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College president enjoys historic downtown

When friends visit Augusta, Terry Elam serves as a tour guide, showing off what sets his city apart from others -- its historic downtown.

Many cities can boast new developments in their suburbs, but few have a downtown as rich in history as Augusta, Mr. Elam, president of Augusta Technical College, said.

Augusta is as historic as Savannah, Ga., and Charleston, S.C., Mr. Elam said. Often, the city's visitors are familiar with the historic spots along Broad and Reynolds streets, but other sites get overlooked.

Growing up here, he walked the streets of downtown when retail stores dominated the area, he said. That has since given way to businesses and now new developments.

Mr. Elam said it makes him proud seeing the buildings being redeveloped and reused.

Edited by augga706
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The Augusta Canal Moonlight Music Cruise series has expanded to two seasons this year. "It has become very popular," said Rebecca Rogers, the director of marketing and external affairs for the Augusta Canal Heritage Area. "We began the moonlight music series in 2006 by offering a musical performance one Friday a month during the warm weather months.

"It caught on quickly, so the next year, last year, we expanded it to two Fridays a month. This year, we decided to do two seasons of the series."

The spring season will kick off Friday with a performance by singer-songwriter Galen Kipar, a former Augustan. The season is scheduled to run through June 27.

The fall season will run from Sept. 5 through Nov. 7.

Musicians will perform on the Petersburg boat as it moves along the Augusta Canal. Each cruise lasts about an hour and a half, Ms. Rogers said.

http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/040308/ric_193073.shtml

Edited by augga706
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More than $70 million from the Georgia Legislature puts the Medical College of Georgia well on the way to building new medical school and dental school buildings, President Daniel W. Rahn said Monday. He credited Augusta and Columbia County legislators, particularly House Appropriations Committee Chairman Ben Harbin, for $70 million to build a new home for the School of Dentistry. The legislators also added $3 million to begin planning and design for a new School of Medicine building that would allow for 240 students per class, up from 190 per class, Dr. Rahn said.

The dental school funding is the largest capital outlay on a single project in the history of the University System of Georgia, Dr. Rahn said.

The entire medical-dental school construction, which Mr. Harbin said would be more than $200 million, would also likely make it one of the biggest projects in the city's history.

The school is planning on building the new campus on the grounds of the neighboring Gilbert Manor housing complex and is talking to the city about how it might be acquired from the Augusta Housing Authority and transferred to MCG, Dr. Rahn said.

MCG president offers thanks for funding

Edited by augga706
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By 2010, 2011. Augusta will not only have one of the best downtown's in the southeast. But in the entire united states.

8-story hotel. 10,000 sq. ft of retail. 60 loft apartments. A picture is on the article.

$30 million hotel planned for downtown Augusta, and a move by Commissioners Tuesday cleared the way for its development. Commissioners released a small piece of property Tuesday, just three and a half feet wide, that developers needed for the project.

Margeret Woodard, Executive Director, Augusta Downtown Development Authority: "The developer will start his feasibility study, design works, so he can submit his plans to the HPC...move this project forward."

http://www.wjbf.com/midatlantic/jbf/news_i...04-15-0044.html

Edited by augga706
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Awesome. I'm really excited about this project, and the elevation looks nice, though I can't quite figure out what angle it's showing. I'd really love to see this create some retail/restaurant spaces fronting the Commons. The Commons is a perfect spot for cafes or coffee shops, especially with the free wi-fi...

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  • 2 weeks later...

Downtown Augusta Signs

Local and not-so-local people will soon have help finding their way around Augusta.

44 signs will be installed. they'll mark the city of Augusta gateways and downtown Augusta gateways.

Downtown Augusta Showing "Signs" Of Improvement - News - Augusta, GA

For those downtown, it's becoming a site worth seeing.

Beverly Wright, Augusta, GA: "I hadn't checked that out, earlier, but since you brought it up to my attention, it's very nice. People come into Augusta and that's the main thing they can see..."

They're big and they're green and their popping up all over...Welcome to Downtown Augusta signs. You'll find a sign coming off the Calhoun Expressway offering a stylish look, and several in the form of banners crossing the 13th Street bride from North Augusta.

The sign campaign is a joint project of the Downtown Development Authority and the Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Jenifer Bowen, Augusta, GA: "Well, it certainly improves the appearance of the city, it allows the visitor and the resident to know that they have arrived, it creates a sense of community pride, it makes you feel good about your own city."

George Eskola, reporting: "Of course, there is a lot more to Augusta than just the downtown, but people enteting the city from another county or another state will also see the signs that the city is going to change its first impression."

The current Welcome signs, with the old government house on them will be replaced with new Welcome to Augusta signs on 11 main entryways into the city. Back in February, when city leaders met to talk issues...cleaning up the look of the Garden City gateways was a top priority. Those in change of helping tourism agree.

The cost is about $270,000. The new welcome signs are also planned for heavily traveled corridors, like the Bobby Jones Expressway.

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  • 2 weeks later...

A 2 million dollar grant was on the line if the library failed to meet a 2010 deadline. "If we were delayed even by a matter of a few weeks it will be almost impossible to meet that deadline," said Swint.

"That is actually one of the reasons that we knew we had to address this, and it was very important to addresses this because we don't get projects like this everyday," said Lorah.

No matter how you read into it...it's a new chapter for the library. On one side of the street is the old 30,000 sq. ft. structure, and on the other side of the street...a new 90,000 sq. ft. structure is planned.

"This is much larger than we can ever dream of," said Mashell Fashion who is assistant director of the library.

This is a $24 million project. That $2 million we mentioned is grant money from the state.

Augusta-Library-Compromise.jpg

Library downtown set to begin

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Gilbert Manor property deal OK'd

Augusta city commissioners voted 9-1 today on a plan that will allow Medical College of Georgia to gain the property of the Gilbert Manor housing project and use it for expansion.

The entire medical-dental school construction cost would be more than $200 million. It would also likely make it one of the biggest projects in the city's history.

This will help alot with the revitalization that's going on downtown.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Booming on Broad

new construction projects such as the TEE Center, the Watermark and a baseball stadium

Downtown Augusta is in the midst of a flurry of real estate activity as investors, speculators and business owners from all over the country have been plucking up existing (and sometimes dilapidated) buildings. These individuals have big plans for their new acquisitions. 8 or 9 more projects are happening.

[

LG%20METROBEAT%20BUILDING%205081.jpg

(1.)Lofty Ideas Building, 8th and Ellis

Loudermilk's investment company, Horizon, intends to construct eight high-end apartments and two commercial spaces on the first floor.

"These units will probably be about 1,800 square feet, with three bedrooms and two bathrooms apiece," said Loudermilk. "We're also going to have upgraded floors and granite countertops. There's going to be some really nice stuff."

(2.) Woolworth's, 8th and Broad the building was purchased last fall by California developers), the new owners of the Woolworth just received a tentative nod of conceptual approval at the last Historic Preservation Commission meeting. Concept drawings show lofts upstairs and several retail spaces downstairs.

(3.) Boots Building, 9th and Ellis -Yet another building that has caught Horizon's eye.

The high-end condos he intends to build here will each have three floors and boast of tandem garages

Edited by augga706
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