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The Rome-Floyd Development Authority approved a resolution to begin the process of issuing $120 million in revenue bonds on behalf of Synthica Energy, which is constructing a new renewable natural gas facility. The Cincinnati, Ohio-based renewable natural gas development company broke ground in October 2024 on the facility, located in the Northwest Regional Industrial Park at West Hermitage Road and Old Shannon Road. According to RFDA Attorney Lee Carter, the authority is simply serving as a conduit, and there will be no burden to the taxpayers of Rome and Floyd County. “This is part of a program under Georgia and federal law,” RFDA President and CEO Spencer Hogg said. “And there is zero liability for Floyd County residents. None. All

The Rome-Floyd Development Authority signed a term sheet Wednesday to sell the Battey Business Complex in a deal worth $5.7 million for the remaining 100 acres of the North Division Street site. The potential buyer is Atlas Development, which developed the Coosa and Dixon data center projects, also called Project Jazzy, outside Shannon. The Battey complex is located at the site of the former Northwest Georgia Regional Hospital property. “It is a continuing commitment to bring high-tech jobs to Rome with the least impact,” Development Authority Chair Jimmy Byars said. “The data centers are a good, clean and quiet industry that brings in great tax revenue. This continues our striving, with Microsoft, to bring high-tech jobs to our community.” The

The success of the Rome-Floyd Development Authority will be easy to measure, according to its incoming president and CEO, Robert Spencer Hogg. “Our job is to raise the standard of living for everyone in this community by bringing in good jobs and businesses,” Hogg said, “and by helping our existing businesses thrive and expand.” Hogg is stepping into a role most recently occupied by Missy Kendrick, who saw investment in Rome and Floyd County increase sharply during her tenure. He’ll also be working with an experienced development authority team, specifically Project Manager Heather Seckman, Project Director JR Davis, and Project Coordinator Mary Grace Selman. “According to the Southern Economic Development Council, Rome saw a 3.9% real employment growth in June

Rome and Floyd County remain a significant player in Economic Development in the State of Georgia and the nation, currently recognized as having the sixth highest number of economic development announcements per capita for metros with populations of 50,000 to 200,000. This achievement reflects the efforts of the Rome-Floyd County Development Authority, Development Authority of Floyd County, and the Gordon Floyd Joint Development Authority. Growing projects In 2024, the Rome-Floyd County Development Authority worked on 130 projects including a combination of grants and potential industrial investments in Rome and Floyd County. These efforts resulted in $21,248,898 in announced capital investment with 85 jobs to be created. The expansions of Clean Air Industries, Summit Hill Foods, and VT Industries and the new

While healthcare continues to dominate the job market in Floyd County, housing also continues to be a stumbling block in attracting and retaining workers. “Healthcare employees are highly in demand in Rome and Floyd County,” Georgia Power data scientist Mike Mainzer said. “They are easily the most posted jobs on the employment websites.” Rome’s two major hospitals act as hubs for numerous other businesses, such as senior care facilities, that dominate job demand in Rome and Floyd County. According to the Georgia Department of Labor, healthcare jobs in Floyd County officially increased by 4.9%, however according to Mainzer, the actual number is much higher because many nursing jobs are filled using temporary worker employment agencies, which skew the numbers. Mainzer

Fifteen acres of land along Highway 53, across from Lowe’s Distribution Center, could be added to nearby acreage for a new data center, dubbed Project Sassy. The project’s developers entered an option with the Rome-Floyd County Development Authority for the property in December. This is the third data center planned for Floyd County. “The project owns land adjacent to this property and was interested in entering an option to add this 15 acres to it,” RFCDA President Missy Kendrick said. The option states that Project Sassy has the first choice to purchase the 15 acres within an 18-month window. The acres are for sale at $60,000 an acre. The property, along Ga. 53, is a part of Lowe’s property and

Looking at what is now a white hot area of development, plans to create a joint development authority comprising Floyd County, Bartow County and Polk County. Northwest Georgia has been a hotbed of economic activity over the past year with the build of the SK On/Hyundai battery plant and announcements by Qcells, Microsoft and SOLARCYCLE. There’s no indication that it’s slowing down, Rome-Floyd County Development Authority President Missy Kendrick said. A development authority is essentially an independent government agency developed for a specific purpose: in this case to promote economic and industrial development in a specific area. The purpose of a multi-county authority is to allow the entity to work across county lines — like the Gordon-Floyd Joint Development Authority.

A second data center project is planned for Floyd County, this time on property behind Coosa High School, and it’s likely not the last. The Rome Floyd Development Authority, acting as a go between for the Floyd County Board of Education and a developer, approved an option on 114 acres of property at $40,000 an acre Tuesday. “It can only be for a data center,” RFCDA President Missy Kendrick said after the vote on Tuesday. “This will be data center number two.” In October 2023, Microsoft announced the purchase of 347 acres on Huffaker Road and pledged a $1 billion investment in the project. A data center is the physical location where servers as well as networking and computing infrastructure