Letter from SEDA Chairman of the Board

In 2011, The Stanford Research Institute Study identified the five most important sectors of our local economy. These “five pillars” are tourism, healthcare, logistics/distribution, military and advanced manufacturing. They are the economic drivers of investment and job creation for Chatham County. Having such a diverse economy is unique and that diversity has allowed us to weather most economic downturns with minimal pain.

SEDA is constantly evaluating, planning and implementing new ways to support and grow these existing “five pillars” while at the same time searching to attract new business sectors. Industries that will further diversify and strengthen our economy with higher paying jobs grounded in the high tech companies of the future.

The entertainment production sector is an example of such an opportunity. Savannah has long been an attraction to the movie industry but when the State of Georgia implemented the Georgia Film Tax Credit legislation, the opportunity for entertainment production skyrocketed. SEDA capitalized on that legislation by creating additional local financial incentives for entertainment production and partnered with the City of Savannah and Chatham County to develop a comprehensive, coordinated effort to optimize greater entertainment production.

Wayne Gretzky, the great hockey player, was quoted saying “I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.” In that spirit, SEDA continues to promote the entertainment production industry but is also focused on developing computer gaming/coding and creative technology industries. That is where the economic future of high tech is destined to be.

Savannah has one of the most unique and valuable assets in the Savannah College of Art and Design. They have, in many ways, been the catalyst for the renaissance of the downtown historic district. More importantly, they are critical to our efforts to create and sustain viable tech industries that will bring higher wage jobs and investment to our county.

Likewise, we are fortunate to have another partner in our efforts to attract the high tech jobs of the future. Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), housed out of Georgia Tech, is partnering with SEDA and countywide stakeholders to build an eco-system to nurture and grow this vital business sector.

In addition to SCAD and ATDC, Savannah is fortunate to enjoy a huge presence of additional higher education assets. The planned merger of Armstrong State University into Georgia Southern University will create a combined university enrollment of 21,000 students, making it the fourth largest institution in the state’s university system. The local Armstrong campus will initially house approximately 6,000 students. We also enjoy Savannah State University, the state’s oldest historically black university, Savannah Technical College, Georgia Tech-Savannah, two medical schools associated with Mercer University and Medical College of Georgia, South University’s pharmaceutical school and Savannah Law School.

I would like to thank the SEDA Board of Directors for their hard work and on behalf of our community. Without their support our successes would not have been possible. Additionally, I want to recognize and thank Trip Tollison and the entire SEDA and World Trade Center Savannah staff for their commitment, support and hard work. They are the engine that powers SEDA’s success and vision.

It has been an honor and privilege to serve as Chairman of such an accomplished and distinguished organization. I know that ever-greater accomplishments will occur on their collective watch.

 

Stephen S. Green
Chairman and CEO
Stephen Green Properties, Inc

Letter from SEDA President and CEO

Welcome to the 2016 Savannah Economic Development Authority’s Annual Report.

The SEDA Annual Report is a reflection of the hard work of the SEDA Board of Directors, World Trade Center Savannah Board of Directors, our partners and the dedicated staff that work each day to help create job opportunities and investment for our community. I would like to thank each one of them for their commitment.

We are proud of our accomplishments in 2016. SEDA helped facilitate 16 companies choosing Savannah to locate or expand. Those 16 companies have or will be creating 1,026 job opportunities and bring $279 million in investment.

One of our most notable achievements was laying the groundwork for the future. In late 2016, the SEDA Board of Directors approved the purchase of a 685-acre property located off of Old River Road near Interstate 16. The property, which is zoned industrial, is master planned for 3.25-3.5 million square feet of industrial building space. By purchasing and developing our own industrial park, we will have much needed property and greater flexibility to entice advanced manufacturing to Savannah.

These achievements and others in the 2016 Annual Report were not achieved alone and I would like to invite you to become involved, if you are not already. A great opportunity to do this is the SEDA Board of Directors monthly board meetings. Dates can be found on our website at seda.org.

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about our successful year. We look forward to your feedback and will continue to work as hard as we can to market the Savannah region to the world.

 

Hugh "Trip" Tollison
SEDA President & CEO

Letter from World Trade Center Savannah Chairman

World Trade Center Savannah is an organization with a vision and mission I believe in for Savannah, for our region, and the world. Its network of more than 300 other World Trade Centers is unparalleled. Its potential for global business connections immeasurable.

And business growth is our focus at WTCSav. Our mission is the same as SEDA’s and most other economic development organizations, to help attract investment and jobs. We do it two ways, first by working to help established businesses in the region grow internationally and thereby growing revenue and jobs, and second by identifying more foreign direct investment projects for the region.

Investment follows trade. So at WTCSav, we are working way out in front to generate awareness, build relationships and develop business and trade opportunities to cultivate contacts into prospects for investment and to help our partners do the same.

I was honored recently to have been elected to serve on the World Trade Centers Association Board of Directors. I have been committed to regular participation and networking at the Association’s meetings, but it is only because of the success of our WTC here that I earned the credibility to be elected to the board. It further elevates the visibility of our region to have representation on the global board with other great cities like Geneva, Sao Paulo, Mumbai, Beijing, Paris, Winnipeg, Dublin, Boston and Miami, to name a few of the 30 current seats. I look forward to the role we at WTCSav can play through this position to help shape the global organization for the greatest possible business advantage long into the future and I am grateful for the opportunity to serve.

 

Scott Center
Chairman, World Trade Center Savannah
National Office Systems