By STEPHANIE MILLER
Laurens County is now available for businesses all over the world to tour without ever even taking a step into the county.
At a meeting of the Dublin-Laurens Development Authority Thursday morning at the McGrath Keen Sr. Conference Center, the new development authority logo and website were revealed to those in attendance.
Authority Chair Roger Folsom told the group "everything has changed in the way people conduct business" and Laurens County leaders realized if the county was to further its presence in the business world, its way of doing business had to change as well. So several years ago, a group was hired to help the development authority and chamber of commerce create a strategic plan to begin that change.
"We recognized that with a few clicks of a mouse we may have had a visitor and been eliminated and we never even knew we had a visitor," said Folsom, explaining that in today's business world those interested in making a change often do research through the Internet before they actually take physical steps to visit a location.
The Development Authority board realized that even though it had been a major success in the past, having achieved goals that not many other counties around the state had achieved; and that the development authority has created a great legacy in Laurens County, it was time to make it possible to be making regular contacts with new industry with the level of technology the business world expects.
"We're like proud parents of a new baby," said Folsom of the goals the board made and accomplished, and of the new Web site.
Jimmy Allgood, board member, told those in attendance that although the plan is "completed, on time and on budget" it is now time to go forward with that plan.
"We went a good while before we had any prospects," he said, adding the board realized there were several different reasons such as economic factors, state and national politics and most importantly making efforts to help itself.
"We couldn't do anything about the economy or politics but we could help ourselves," he said.
The new logo — Dublin Laurens County, The Business Heart of Georgia — featuring the shamrock leaves drawn as tiny hearts — seemed to fit the county and its goals.
Cal Wray, vice president of the development authority, took the podium to show the group how Laurens County will market itself on the new Web site.
"When you see our logo you'll think Dublin, Ga.," said Wray, indicating the shamrock and the heart all bring to mind Laurens County's strategic location in the state. It also highlights the anything Irish promotion and St. Patrick's celebration.
He said Laurens County has six major interstate highways within a two-hour drive, it's between three major airports, has a local airport with a conference center available for business, and the county is within two hours of one of the major ports in the world. Also, there is ample rail access throughout the county.
"Laurens County is the place to be," he said of anyone who is in need of travel access and product relocation in business.
Also, there are more than 500 acres of property pinpointed in strategic locations around the county in various sized lots to be accessible for industry, distribution and warehousing. Virtual tours of those properties are available on the Web site.
But, perhaps one of the most important needs for any industry is the availability of water and power for manufacturing. Laurens County has a major river passing through it as well as a plentiful water supply and when it comes to electricity it can boast even more.
"Very few communities can say they have five EMCs (Electric Membership Corporations) and Georgia Power that can supply power," said Wray.
It also has 150,000 people within a 35-mile trade area of the county and a 4.9 percent unemployment rate. The county has both a two-year and a four-year college, the technical college and a new state-of-the art medical training facility as well as a workforce training facility.
Wray said 15 and one-half percent of the county's work force drive outside the county every day to work.
"We want to bring them back home and find them a job here," he said of the need to increase jobs in the area.
The strategic plan of the development authority includes getting a total of 50 names of companies periodically that can be targeted for aerospace manufacturing, biofuels, light manufacturing, transportation and logistics, back office, life sciences and natural resource-based production — all areas selected by Whitaker and Associates, the company hired by the board to help develop the plan as the type of companies that would be a perfect fit for the area.
The development authority is going to focus on the "three great reasons" to make the move to Laurens County for business and industry: location, livability and leadership.
For more information and to view the Web site visit www. dublinlaurensgeorgia.com.