As the economy shows signs of improvement, AthensCEO decided to ask Rusty Haygood, Economic Development Director for Oconee County, about how the surrounding area of Athens fared during the recession, how the business community has rebounded and what plans they’ve developed to sustain that momentum.

Athens CEO: How has Oconee County fared coming through the recent recession? What challenges/opportunities remain?

Haygood: The recent recession treated Oconee County badly, just like most other communities.  The unemployment rate in the county doubled during the recession, but has thankfully returned to a lower level.  But I believe a bigger issue was the underemployment rate, which is extremely difficult to truly quantify, where people’s hours were cut or they were working in jobs that didn’t maximize their skill sets.
 
The construction industry was hammered during the recession, but there has been some improvement on that front.  The number of residential units permitted last year was the most for any single year in the county’s history.  It wasn’t the most single-family residences ever, but a multi-family development permitted last year resulted in the higher number of units.  This statistic represents really significant moving forward. 
 
Plenty of challenges still remain, however, especially for smaller businesses.  In Oconee County, like most communities, the small businesses are the heart and soul of the local economy.  Many mom and pops continue to struggle, and these are the enterprises critically important for folks to patronize.
 
Athens CEO: What plans do you have to maintain this momentum over the next few years?

Haygood: We are taking steps to ensure that our infrastructure remains at levels to support the needs of all sectors for years to come.  Oconee County has agreed to partner with Walton County to construct a reservoir that is projected to meet the water needs of the two counties for decades into the future. Also, we are planning some significant improvements to our wastewater collection system in the next few years. 

Another important venture, the Mars Hill Road widening project, begins soon and, when completed, will alleviate traffic congestion as individuals travel across the county.  A great new retail area has developed over the past decade, and research is underway to determine what we can do to ensure that this location remains vibrant for years to come.
 
The county recognizes the need to collaborate regionally on the economic front when opportunities present themselves. For instance, we participate in two joint development authorities with surrounding counties. We also take part in the Innovation Crescent Regional Partnership where economic development professionals stretching from the Athens area to metro-Atlanta have banded together to market the area with regard to increasing life science and technology opportunities within the region.  

Athens CEO: Can you please tell us about your local initiatives in cooperation with the Oconee County Chamber of Commerce?

Haygood: The Economic Development Department, Chamber of Commerce, Oconee County Industrial Development Authority and the Oconee County School system came together to develop a community marketing video that was completed earlier this year.  The four entities collaborated on the content and the funding of this effort.  Videography and voice talent were both performed by Oconee County businesses. It truly was a collaborative community project.
 
Economic development enterprises in Oconee County (Economic Development Department, Chamber of Commerce, Industrial Development Authority) partnered with our counterparts in Athens-Clarke County, as well as with UGA and private sector partners, to host the second Perspective on Progress tour earlier this spring. Through this program, over twenty site location consultants, industrial developers and real estate professionals from around the country (with focus on the Southeast) converged on the two counties to physically see the numerous assets and highlights within our region.  This was the second such Perspective on Progress tour, with the first being in 2012.
 
Additionally, the Chamber and Economic Development Department are in the process of identifying ways to work with home-based businesses.  Approximately 800 incorporated, home-based businesses exist in Oconee County today.  Often, they go under the radar and either aren’t aware of – or don’t tap into – resources that are available to them.  We have begun an effort to reach out to home-based businesses to ensure that they don’t miss out on opportunities that are available, as well as to help them identify any issues that are problematic for their particular business classification, in general.

Athens CEO: What message would you like to give to companies planning to invest in the greater Athens area?

Haygood: I have a three-fold message that I would give to companies planning to invest in the area.  First, you will be able to find talent to work in your business operation.  When you look at K-12 education, Athens Technical College, UGA and the University of North Georgia, you’ll see that numerous training opportunities abound in so many disciplines, whether in basic education, continuing education or retraining for new skills.
 
Second, certain business sectors have a heavy reliance on access to other markets. Whether you need international flights out of Atlanta, or highway access to various locations in the U.S., or shipping/receiving of products through the Georgia ports, you can easily access each of these alternatives from our region.
 
Finally, the area also has great quality of life assets for most appetites.  Whether your interests be in the arts, music, athletics, shopping, outdoors activities, furthering your education, or doing as little as you possibly can, Oconee County has something for you. As a local businessman told me when I started in this job, the message to prospective businesses is that they will be able to find quality employees from this area – and those employees will enjoy living and working here.  I firmly believe that message holds true today.

Athens CEO: Can you please tell us a little bit about your personal and professional life and how long you have been in your current position with the Oconee Economic Development Department?

I have been in my current position for just over 7 years. 
 
Prior to this position, I spent six years in Macon at the Middle Georgia Regional Development Center.  In that role I did economic development, grant writing, grant administration, personnel, comprehensive plans, studies, reports and demographic analysis for an eleven-county region in the middle part of the state.
 
I earned a B.A. in political science and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Georgia.
 
My wife, Jennifer, teaches at High Shoals Elementary School here in Oconee County where our 8-year old daughter will start third grade this year.

For more information go to www.businessinoconee.com or contact Rusty Haygood at [email protected].

About John Tabellione

John Tabellione is an award-winning, professional business writer, complemented by over twenty-five years of strategic communication responsibilities as a Marketing, New Business Development and National Account Sales Executive in consumer goods and commercial industries. 

Experience with Fortune 500 companies, as well as with smaller firms and non-profits, encompassing a variety of products, including those of Georgia-Pacific, Kimberly-Clark and Stanley Works. 

John has a B.A. in English from Fairfield University and an MBA in Marketing from the University of Hartford. In addition, he has studied Russian at the Defense Language Institute at Syracuse University, and Italian language and culture at Kennesaw State University.