The Future of Business in Georgia... College Park | Trade and Industry Development

The Future of Business in Georgia... College Park

Nov 16, 2010 | By: Trade & Industry Development

College Park is home to the Gateway Center, a hospitality, convention and business complex surrounding the Georgia International Convention Center (GICC), the second largest convention center in Georgia. The Gateway Center features two new Marriott branded hotels conveniently connected by rail to Hartsfield-Jackson International airport.

Gateway Center I is a newly constructed LEED certified office building with nearly 130,000 square feet of Class A office space. College Park has a host of complexes satisfying commercial, retail and business needs, including South Pointe, in the Phoenix Boulevard area.

Dramatic changes are underway in College Park; office space is becoming greener, using sustainable building materials. Doing business in College Park makes good business sense if you are considering expanding or relocating to the Atlanta metropolitan area for the following reasons: 

Excellent Market Access

The City of College Park is located in Fulton County, expands into Clayton County, and is part of the State of Georgia’s largest and fastest growing metro area - the Atlanta MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area). College Park plays a critical role in the MSA’s ranking as the most logistics friendly metro area in the Southeastern United States.

Highway Access and Traffic

College Park has direct access to Interstate 285 and Georgia’s cross country U.S. Interstates of I-85 and I-75.

Railroad Access and Traffic

College Park’s CSX mainline can handle 15 or more trains per day — connecting the city to Georgia’s 5,000 miles of rail lines that transport 80 million gross tons per year.

Public Transportation

The Metro Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority’s (MARTA) bus and rail lines seamlessly connect College Park to the rest of the Atlanta MSA, providing 500,000 passenger trips every day.

Airport Services and Traffic

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is the world's busiest airport, with more passengers and flights per day, since 1998. 80 percent of the United States’ commercial and consumer markets can be reached within a two hour flight from College Park. Hartsfield-Jackson averages almost 250,000 passengers every day. College Park’s trade area has a daytime population of 777,974.

College Park’s New Developments

Georgia International Convention Center, Georgia’s newest and second largest convention center, is only two minutes away from the world’s busiest airport and is accessible via the Atlanta SkyTrain light rail system. The convention center has 400,000 square feet of exhibit hall and meeting space. The facility is flanked by the 147-room SpringHill Suites and the 403-room Atlanta Airport Marriott Gateway adding to the more than 5000 hotel rooms available in the airport area.

College Park Advantage

The city is home to Fortune 1,000 companies such as Chick-Fil-A and AirTran Airways. College Park operates the largest public access Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) facility in the southeastern United States. College Park Fire Department provides the city with a superior ISO rating, resulting in lower insurance costs for residents.

College Park Power is the first municipal operation in the state of Georgia to sell green power. Businesses that choose College Park take advantage of the city’s metro area location, lower than the national average rental rates and sales prices. Businesses can also benefit from the strong consumer market which spent more than $364 million dollars in 2009.

College Park Business Incentives

College Park offers several business incentives to potential employers including: Revolving Loan Fund, Building Facade Grant, Property Tax Abatement, Job Tax Credits up to $3000 per job, 100% Tax exemption for qualified inventory; Sales & Use Tax Exemption.

For more information, contact the College Park Economic Development Department at EconDevelopment@collegeparkga.com or visit: www.collegeparkga.com

By Gerald H. Walker

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