With a massive rendering of the project behind them, developers and guests helped break ground on LakePoint 75 last week in Emerson. Lincoln Property Company Southeast is building a 305,000-square-foot, Class-A distribution facility due in 2023. The company has several projects in the area.
Berry College’s beach volleyball site is coming together even amid the first cold snap of winter. It should be ready for spring competition.
Shelby’s Coffee is the proverbial labor of love for Shelby and John Parker, stationed at Cosmic Dog weekday mornings and Hawthorn Suites in the afternoons.
Sen. Jason Anavitarte, who represents Polk County in the state Senate, was elected Senate majority caucus chairman last week — and cofounded the first Hispanic Caucus.
With a massive rendering of the project behind them, developers and guests helped break ground on LakePoint 75 last week in Emerson. Lincoln Property Company Southeast is building a 305,000-square-foot, Class-A distribution facility due in 2023. The company has several projects in the area.
We’re always on yellow alert toward the end of the year. In most Decembers, we’ve seen some last-minute big deals drop without notice or some surprising retirements or perhaps a final passing in a year already heavy on too many hearts.
A dozen years ago, it was the announcement of LakePoint’s pending arrival in Emerson. Just a dozen months ago, those Varsity-in-Rome rumors became fact with the first official project filing. So did the surprise sale of the Rome Braves to Diamond Baseball Holdings.
So what can we expected now through Dec. 31?
Politics: We know some of the changes ahead. The General Assembly has a new House speaker with David Ralston’s passing. The Senate will have a new president and a new lieutenant governor. We await committee assignments in Atlanta — and Washington. There’s still a U.S. Senate seat to decide. Plus January brings the annual mayor’s vote among Rome city commissioners, which should add drama to fall 2023 commission elections (six seats will be up).
Healthcare: We’re expecting another change, perhaps before the end of what has otherwise been a quiet year following 2021’s spike in mergers and acquisitions.
I-75’s torrid northwest corridor: A parade of mega projects were announced in 2022, from Acworth to Calhoun, and most were followed with groundbreakings and subsequent construction. Surely there’s one more due over the next five weeks. Perhaps other than I-75 itself, the Union Grove exit between Calhoun and Adairsville has been red hot as developers cite shifting consumer trends for a need of more distribution centers and warehouses. The question for 2023: How many more can the corridor handle?
Berry College’s beach volleyball site is coming together even amid the first cold snap of winter. It should be ready for spring competition.
Education: Our colleges have been mostly quiet following the appointment of Mike Hobbs as president at Georgia Highlands. Perhaps too quiet. One project drawing some attention is the new beach volleyball center at Berry College across from the football stadium. Also: We continue to watch major personnel moves within Rome City Schools, dwarfing some changes within the county system over the summer. (We’ll have more on that in a few days).
Dining: We know 2023 is front-loaded with restaurant changes, with three Varsity restaurants on radar (Rome, Cartersville and Emerson) as well as Jim ‘N Nick’s on Shorter Avenue with Crumbl cookie shop expected in Rome. There are a few vacancies on Broad Street that should be filled soon, too. We’re likewise reading hints of a potential return of a downtown favorite — or at least some of the menu items that made it special.
Sports: The Rome Braves will open the 20th season at AdventHealth Stadium in April with a new general manager, David Lane, as well different ownership as some assets are being transferred following that last sale in December 2021. On base: We hope needed improvements in operations and appearance. Also: The Atlanta Braves are being spun off by Liberty Media so some eyes are on how that plays out (no expected impact here).
Bottom line: We predict a very interesting sendoff to 2022; details to come.
Coffee on the go: One of the secrets in small business is ensuring you do something you love. John Parker grew up around coffee in Puerto Rico; Shelby Parker always has had a passion for it.
Shelby’s Coffee is the proverbial labor of love for Shelby and John Parker, stationed at Cosmic Dog weekday mornings and Hawthorn Suites in the afternoons.
Together, they’ve launched Shelby’s Coffee, a mobile twist for Rome’s seemingly bottomless thirst for beans, and are busy nailing down the next part of business of the success equation: Location, location, location.
In their case, those “locations” are: 1) At Cosmic Dog Outpost in the Cotton Block most weekday mornings; 2) Hawthorn Suites’ parking area in the afternoon; and 3) special events on weekends, including festivals that are food truck friendly.
Says Shelby: “We wanted to create something where we can share our love for coffee and people, and be able to spend our lives together. We built everything inside the trailer ourselves. We get all of our coffee from small farms all over the world through a company called Equal Exchange. We started last month and are thrilled to be serving Rome.”
Shelby’s opened in recent weeks with some seasonal treats, including salted caramel mocha and spiced brown sugar. You can follow them on Instagram.
“Let us make one thing perfectly clear… advance voting starts Sunday.” We paraphrase the late Richard M. Nixon to underscore confusing posts and signs and such. You can vote in the U.S. Senate runoff this Sunday, Nov. 27, from 1 until 5 p.m. at the elections office and Anthony Center. Advance voting resumes at both sites from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. next Monday through Friday (Dec. 2). All the confusion over this seems intentional.
From the Tweeter machine: Also making a social media comeback in the Musk era of Twitter is Marjorie Taylor Greene’s personal Twitter account. That’s in addition to her congressional one. Among those who have exited Twitter since the Musk moves are … (your name here?)
The highs and lows of Northwest Georgia.
Peak to the 2022 Rome Christmas Parade: Biggest. One. Ever. That’s the buzz as 133 floats, bands and such will shuffle from First Avenue to City Hall on Broad Street on Tuesday, Nov. 29, beginning at 6:30 p.m. Leading those bands: Grand Marshal Mary Hardin Thornton with the finale featuring Mr. and Mrs. Claus. Expect to see 20,000 or more celebrate “The Joys of Christmas.”
Sen. Jason Anavitarte, who represents Polk County in the state Senate, was elected Senate majority caucus chairman last week — and cofounded the first Hispanic Caucus.
Valley to our lack of legislative clout: With all the changes in state House and Senate leadership, we’ve not seen any names from the Floyd County legislative delegation. An exception (call it a stretch) is second-term Sen. Jason Anavitarte of Dallas, who represents Polk County. Anavitarte was elected Senate majority caucus chairman last week and has cofounded the Georgia Hispanic Caucus. We’re hopeful the Floyd delegation at least picks up some key committee chair appointments.
Around Town publishes each Tuesday and Friday in the Rome News-Tribune. Comments and news tips can be shared by sending an email to jdruckenmiller@RN-T.com.
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Sunny. High 63F. Winds light and variable.
A clear sky. Low around 40F. Winds light and variable.
Sunshine early then becoming cloudy later in the day. High 67F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph.
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