December 2018 Features

  • 83rd Annual Atlanta Dogwood Festival Dates Announced: April 12th-14th

    December 21, 2018

    When the Atlanta Dogwood Festival opens for its 83rd year next spring, the city’s residents and visitors will once again have the opportunity to enjoy three days of fine art and live entertainment while delighting in the delicate blooms of the dogwood tree.

  • Atlanta’s Sports Scene Heats Up December

    December 21, 2018

    As many cities prepare for hibernation before the start of the new year, Atlanta warms up its red carpet for visitors with marquee sporting events.

  • Gallup: The Most Generous Countries in the World

    December 21, 2018

    The United States is often considered the most generous country in the world. Why? Because Americans donate a lot of money. Its people, its foundations and its companies donated roughly $410 billion in 2017 -- or about 2.1% of its own GDP. In fact, the amount Americans donated was more than the entire GDP of all but about 40 countries in the world.

  • Hartsfield-Jackson Prepares for Busy Holiday Travel Period

    December 20, 2018

    Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport officials are working closely with Airport stakeholders to host more than 3.7 million passengers during the holiday period that runs from Sunday, Dec.16th to Wednesday, Jan. 2nd. Airport officials project these 18 days will be among the busiest during the holiday season.

  • AT&T to Launch Mobile 5G in Atlanta on Friday

    December 20, 2018

    On Dec. 21, AT&T will be the first and only company in the U.S. to offer a mobile 5G device over a commercial, standards-based mobile 5G network.

  • Georgia Sets Jobs Record in November

    December 20, 2018

    Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said today that Georgia set a new record in November for total jobs as the state’s unemployment rate continued to fall. Georgia, Butler noted, has added nearly 100,000 jobs over the past year. Its unemployment rate has fallen to the lowest rate since January 2001. Labor force and employed residents are also up over the past 12 months.

  • Georgia Lawmakers Explore Legislative Agenda at 2018 Biennial Institute

    December 20, 2018

    More than 200 members of the Georgia General Assembly attended policy presentations at the 31st Biennial Institute for Georgia Legislators, coordinated by the Institute of Government to help lawmakers prepare for the next legislative cycle.

  • Hapag-Lloyd America to Create More Than 360 Jobs in Peachtree Corners

    December 19, 2018

    Gov. Nathan Deal announced that Hapag-Lloyd America, LLC, a multinational transportation company, will create 363 jobs and invest $5.5 million in an expansion of the Hapag-Lloyd Quality Service Center in Gwinnett County. New jobs will include positions in administration, technical support and customer service.

  • New County Commissioners Launch Careers at Institute Training Conference

    December 19, 2018

    Nearly 140 newly elected county commissioners gained critical knowledge of government operations and management during a four-day training session coordinated by the Institute of Government in partnership with ACCG, Georgia’s County Association.

  • UPS: Number of Packages Returned Expected to Peak Before Christmas, Reflecting E-Commerce Shift

    December 19, 2018

    National Returns Day is expected to occur prior to Christmas, reflecting just how deeply e-commerce is reshaping the retail universe, according to UPS. Consumers who got a jump on online shopping in the days before Black Friday are expected to begin returning more than 1 million packages each day in December, jumpstarting the holiday returns season earlier than ever.

  • Ameris Bancorp and Fidelity Southern Corporation Announce Merger Agreement

    December 18, 2018

    Ameris Bancorp, the parent company of Ameris Bank, and Fidelity Southern Corporation, the parent company of Fidelity Bank, jointly announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement pursuant to which Fidelity will merge with and into Ameris in an all-stock transaction.

  • Accenture Opens Innovation Hub in Atlanta’s Technology Square

    December 18, 2018

    Accenture opened a new innovation hub in Atlanta as a destination where clients can co-innovate with their Accenture teams to ideate, rapidly prototype and then scale innovative products and services for the digital economy.

  • Is Christmas too Commercial? Well, That’s the Reason it Became Popular.

    December 18, 2018

    It’s that time of the year again when some people will argue about the meaning of Christmas, others will be guilted into gift-giving and some will claim commercialization has ruined the holiday altogether. But then there’s Dr. Ruth McClelland-Nugent, a pop culture scholar, who says the root of these external and internal conflicts actually lies in the creation of our modern celebration of Christmas.

  • Atlanta-Region Transit Link Authority Holds First Board Meeting

    December 17, 2018

    The Atlanta-Region Transit Link Authority (ATL) Board of Directors held its inaugural meeting beginning the next phase of transit for the region. The 16-member board is comprised of six members appointed by state officials with the remaining members elected by local delegations to represent 10 transit districts across a 13-county region.

  • Cobb Chamber Names Dana Johnson as Executive Vice President of Economic Development & Executive Director of Select Cobb

    December 17, 2018

    Following an extensive search and selection process with a large pool of highly qualified applicants across the state, the Cobb Chamber announced that Dana Johnson will join its staff as Executive Vice President of Economic Development and Executive Director of Select Cobb, the organization’s economic development strategy.

  • Emory's Board of Trustees Elects New Members

    December 14, 2018

    Emory University’s Board of Trustees has elected two new members: Sarah Beth Brown, global customer director of The Coca-Cola Company; and Edward Jenner Wood III, chair of the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation.

  • Spelman Receives $30M Gift to Support New Center for Innovation & the Arts

    December 14, 2018

    Spelman College has received the largest gift from living donors in its 137-year history from long-standing Spelman trustee Ronda Stryker and spouse William Johnston. The transformative $30 million gift will help build the Center for Innovation & the Arts, the College's first new academic facility since 1996.

  • Georgia Power Continues to Make Progress on Ash Pond Closures

    December 14, 2018

    Georgia Power announced the latest progress on its plan to safely close all 29 ash ponds at 11 active and retired coal-fired power plant sites across the state. The company is in the process of completely excavating 19 ash ponds located adjacent to lakes or rivers with the remaining 10 being closed in place using advanced engineering methods and closure technologies.

  • Norfolk Southern to Locate Headquarters in Atlanta

    December 13, 2018

    Gov. Nathan Deal was joined by Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms to announce that Norfolk Southern Corporation, one of the nation’s premier transportation companies, will locate its headquarters in Fulton County, creating 850 jobs and investing $575 million.

  • Delta Extends Branded Fares to Boarding Order, Launches Color Palette to Tie it All Together

    December 13, 2018

    Zone boarding, an aviation standard for decades, will soon be a thing of the past for Delta customers as the airline makes a global shift to boarding by branded fare purchased. This is the latest evolution in Delta’s multi-year work to bring consistency, simplicity and clarity to the gate and boarding experience, efforts that have driven all-time high customer experience scores.

  • Ben Andrews Named ATDC Statewide Program Manager

    December 12, 2018

    Ben Andrews has been named statewide program manager of Georgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center, effective immediately. In this role, Andrews will oversee the ATDC @ initiative, which takes the incubator’s education, resources, and programming to various cities across the state. He will work with ATDC’s catalysts in current ATDC @cities, which include Athens, Augusta, Peachtree Corners, and Savannah.

  • Hancock Askew & CO on Year-End Tax Planning

    December 12, 2018

    As another year comes to a close, it is time to start thinking about year-end tax planning. This may be truer this year than it ever has been before due to the major tax changes brought on by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

  • Travel Tech Giant Travelport Being Acquired in $4.4B Deal

    December 12, 2018

    Travelport Worldwide Limited, a leading travel technology company, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by affiliates of Siris Capital Group, LLC and Evergreen Coast Capital Corp. in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $4.4 billion. Evergreen is the private equity affiliate of Elliott Management Corporation.

  • Juanita Powell Baranco Shares Why She is A Founding Member of goBeyondProfit

    December 11, 2018

    Juanita Powell Baranco talks about why she believes every business leader should join in this commitment to strengthen our communities. ”The minute I heard about it, the minute I understood the goals and aspirations of this organization, I signed on immediately. It did not take long because I absolutely believe that every aspect of our economy, every aspect of our society – education, health, you need that business input. You need the thought processes of business. Your voice is absolutely needed.”

  • Georgia Economic Forecast Favorable, Stronger than U.S. Average for Sixth Consecutive Year

    December 11, 2018

    Benjamin Ayers, Dean of the Terry School of Business of The University of Georgia, has forecasted a positive, annual economic outlook for the state for the sixth consecutive year to an audience including approximately 600 Atlanta business leaders, government officials, and chamber members.