By Sarah Avans
Correspondent
TRENTON, Ga. – Dade County leaders say they’re going to turn a negative into a plus with their new state designation showing the county in the lowest tier for economic development.
It’s bad that Shaw Industries’ Trenton Spinning Mill closed in 2008, costing more than 400 jobs, county leaders said.
The county’s biggest employer now is the Board of Education, County Executive Ted Rumley said.
But now the state Department of Community Affairs has sweetened the pot for potential new employers with extra tax credits for job creation under the Georgia Job Tax Credit.
At their May meeting, county commissioners discussed the county’s “tier one” status.
The Department of Community Affairs ranks each of Georgia’s 159 counties for its ability to develop, based on criteria including unemployment and poverty rates and per capita income over the past three years.
The lower the ranking, the bigger the benefits for new development.
The top rank is Tier 4. Trenton was in Tier 3, meaning the county had to create and maintain 15 jobs for a credit of $1,250 per job.
At Tier 1, the county is only required to create and maintain five new jobs for a credit of $3,500 each. At both levels, there’s an additional $500 per job credit because the county is a member of the Northwest Georgia Joint Development Authority.
Commissioners met this week with Mr. Rumley and Georgia Sen. Jeff Mullis, R-Chickamauga, to talk about the new status.
Sen. Mullis said Dade’s in a great place to build for the future. “With Volkswagen being in Chattanooga, it kind of awakens the world to where we are,” he said.
The list for 2011 also shows Catoosa County ranked in Tier 3, Walker County in Tier 2 and Chattooga County in Tier 1.
Staff writer Judy Walton contributed to this story.
Sarah Avans is based in Dade County. Contact her at smccurter.ctfp@gmail.com.
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