by Laurie Solflow and Juanita Tipton
 

While ropes were part of the Leadership Lumpkin County Team Building class, our second class on Economic Development was initiated by a Rope–Rope Roberts, that is. Mr. Roberts, the Northeast Region Senior Economic Development Representative for Georgia Power, specializes in leadership development, strategic planning, existing industry retention and expansion, and new industry expansion and relocation. After a detailed PowerPoint presentation on the “Economic Development Process,” Mr. Roberts divided the class into groups of three or four to create a map of Dahlonega and Lumpkin County on which we were to make projections about future economic growth in our community. The consensus among the groups was that light industrial and residential growth would continue in our county, primarily along the Georgia 400 Corridor.

     Appropriately, Suzanne Brown of the Georgia Department of Economic Development was next on the program. One of her primary responsibilities is to assist counties in implementing or enhancing a culture that supports entrepreneurs and small businesses, essentially the kind of growth our class projected for our county. She enumerated all of the ways she stands ready to help Georgia companies and communities grow.

     Also standing ready to help was Gary Powers, our last speaker for the morning session and the new President of the Dahlonega-Lumpkin County Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Powers seemed to be perfectly named as he amazed the class with all that he had already accomplished during his first months on the job and with all of his plans to enhance the economic development of Dahlonega and Lumpkin County.

     The afternoon session gave our class a first-hand look at manufacturing in Lumpkin County with a tour of The Louver Shop. After being given an overview of the business, we donned protective eyewear and actually went out into the plant. Our eyes grew as big as our protective lenses as we observed the process of making louvers. We were impressed with the entire operation and the quality of the work. We were impressed, too, that our hosts sent all of us home with goody bags. Several of our class members were even lucky enough to win door prizes provided by The Louver Shop. Luckiest of all was Donna Minnich who won the grand prize of a set of louvers–made right here in Lumpkin County!

     We concluded our day with confidence that Lumpkin County’s economy will continue to grow and maybe a little concerned that our waistlines would grow, too, after the scrumptious breakfast, lunch, and snacks that had also been a part of Economic Development Day.