{"73491":{"#nid":"73491","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Troup County Prepares for the Future","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ETo explore how best to leverage the growth coming to West Georgia, leaders from Troup County and the cities of LaGrange, West Point and Hogansville recently kicked off a two-year planning initiative designed to set the course for a sustainable future. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe goal of the effort is to identify innovative strategies for maintaining balanced and quality growth, fostering healthy economic development, enhancing the quality of life and protecting Troup County\u0027s community environment.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022The region is entering an unprecedented period of growth and transformation. I am optimistic that this work will provide a planning framework for the region, based on sensitivity and connectiveness,\u0022 said Richard C. Wolfe, chairman of the Troup County Board of Commissioners. \u0022Done well, this could be the most important process in which we have ever participated.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ETroup County leaders will develop strategies to help shape the future and further enhance the community\u0027s great places for area residents and businesses. These strategies will be designed in accordance with Troup\u0027s community vision and will be implemented over the next five years.  The Georgia Institute of Technology will assist the county and cities in this effort. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAs an initial step in the strategic planning process, one-on-one interviews will be conducted with a wide range of community stakeholders to gather input on creating a cohesive community vision and insights on relevant issues related to the community\u0027s current and future growth and development. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022With the growth and changes we are anticipating in our community, it is critical we have a plan that will guide our future decisions in a thoughtful and strategic way,\u0022 noted Jeff Lukken, mayor of LaGrange. \u0022I am also gratified that Troup County, as well as the Cities of West Point and Hogansville are also engaged in this process. With all of our local governments participating we will improve communication and end up with a more comprehensive and usable plan for all of us.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThis effort will also include a number of assessments to develop strategies that can best enable Troup County to leverage the opportunities associated with its ideal location in West Georgia - while not compromising its community vision. Strategies that offer the greatest opportunity for improving the prosperity of community residents will be identified.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWhat is unique about this endeavor is that it reflects countywide collaboration, with leaders in Troup County and all three of its cities agreeing that only together can the best possible plan for moving forward be both created and implemented. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022We are anticipating a considerable amount of growth which will provide our citizens with the quality of life that they deserve. We know that growth just for the sake of growing is not the right thing to do,\u0022 said Billy H. Head, mayor of West Point. \u0022Our goal is to provide good quality growth and we will settle for nothing less. We feel that participating in this strategic plan will help us reach our goal as a city. It will also provide an opportunity for all government entities within Troup County to establish good working relationships.\u0022  \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EJimmy Jackson, mayor of Hogansville, agrees that the goal is to promote quality growth: \u0022If we ever hope to balance good growth in the municipalities while keeping the other areas of Troup County more rural, we must act soon. And we need this road map, this plan, before we can act,\u0022 he said. \u0022If we don\u0027t have it, we could become just another mess like so many high growth areas. But if we do, all parts of the county can prosper.\u0022 \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOther Georgia communities have seen the benefits of such a forward-thinking approach. In 2005, Georgia Tech and its partners worked to help Barrow County\u0027s leaders develop a strategic plan focused on economic development and quality growth principles. \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022The report provided a comprehensive assessment of our county, which gave us the avenue to proceed,\u0022 said Carolyn Delamont, who was president of the Barrow County Chamber of Commerce during the planning effort. \u0022The community is focused, working together and thinking positively.\u0022\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBy kicking off this two-year effort in Troup County, leaders have decided to be proactive about directing the community\u0027s future growth and development. The first year of the community\u0027s efforts will be focused on strategy development. The second year of this effort - focused on project development and implementation - is designed to help community leaders make plan implementation an essential component of their everyday work.\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ETechnical Contacts: Mike Dobbs, Troup County Board of Commissioners (706-883-1610) or (\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:troupboc@mindspring.com\u0022\u003Etroupboc@mindspring.com\u003C\/a\u003E); Tom Hall, City of LaGrange (706-883-2010) or (\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:thall@lagrange-ga.org\u0022\u003Ethall@lagrange-ga.org\u003C\/a\u003E); Sammy Osborne, City of West Point (706-645-3534) or (\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:SOsborne@CityOfWestPointGA.com\u0022\u003ESOsborne@CityOfWestPointGA.com\u003C\/a\u003E); Bill Stankiewicz, City of Hogansville (706-637-8629) or (\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:bstankiewicz@bellsouth.net\u0022\u003Ebstankiewicz@bellsouth.net\u003C\/a\u003E); Joy Wilkins, Georgia Tech (404-895-6115) or (\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:joy.wilkins@innovate.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ejoy.wilkins@innovate.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E); and Karen Leone de Nie, Georgia Tech (404-385-5125) or (\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:karen.leone@coa.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ekaren.leone@coa.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E). \n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWriter:  Nancy Fulbright, Georgia Tech Enterprise Innovation Institute\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"Troup County and the Cities of LaGrange, West Point, and Hogansville are conducting a two-year strategic planning study to prepare for projected growth and stimulate economic development with assistance from Georgia Tech\u0027s CQGRD and Economic Innovation Institute.","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Focuses on growth management \u0026 economic development"}],"uid":"15436","created_gmt":"2007-06-04 00:00:00","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:10:46","author":"Automator","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2007-06-04T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2007-06-04T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.troupcountyga.org\/","title":"Troup County"},{"url":"http:\/\/www.cqgrd.gatech.edu\/","title":"Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development"},{"url":"http:\/\/innovate.gatech.edu\/","title":"Enterprise Innovation Institute"}],"groups":[{"id":"1260","name":"CQGRD - Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cstrong\u003EKaren Leone de Nie\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003ECenter for Quality Growth and Regional Development\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.gatech.edu\/contact\/index.html?id=kl123\u0022\u003EContact Karen Leone de Nie\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E404-385-5125\u003C\/strong\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["k.leonedenie@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}