Tours and Special Events

Saturday, October 18

Street scenes from Serenbe.

Chattahoochee Hill Country and the Settlement of Serenbe
Time: 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Price: $70 per person (lunch included)

Serenbe is a 900-acre community located 32 miles south of downtown Atlanta. Home to the first hamlet to be developed in the 65,000-acre Chattahoochee Hill Country area, Serenbe combines select principles of new urbanism and conservation communities to create the next generation of responsible development. The hamlet includes home sites, retail shops, office space, restaurants and unique amenities for a true live/work environment. In addition, 70 percent of the acreage is being preserved as green space, providing residents with access to a network of parks and trails for hiking, horseback riding and other outdoor recreation.

Tour attendees will have the opportunity to learn about the remarkable story of The Chattahoochee Hill Country from the visionaries behind this development; this is a story which has gained substantial media attention across the country. Our plans are to visit the settlement of Serenbe, and have lunch, in the area that is, for now, the most tangible example of what's possible in the Chattahoochee Hill Country.

Sunday, October 19

Stone Mountain Golf Club

Golf Outing at Stone Mountain Golf Club
Time: 8:00 am - 1:00 pm
Price: $110 per person
» Register for this event only

AStone Mountain Golf Club is located in one of the most popular attractions in the southeast, Stone Mountain Park. Stone Mountain offers 36 holes of championship golf that has challenged golfers for over 30 years. Stone Mountain Golf Club’s courses serpentine through a forest of Georgia pines and hardwoods and around famous Stone Mountain and Stone Mountain Lake. Courses offer breathtaking views and wonderful, natural rock formations that will make your event truly a memorable one.

Kingwasong: Chinese insourcing jobs to Coweta County
Time: 8:00 am - 12:00 pm
Price: $45 per person

Kingwasong factory in Coweta County

After decades of concentrating solely on in-bound investment and internal job and wealth creation, China’s government and businesses have begun to turn their attention outward. Coweta County is proud to be chosen for this first project. Kingwasong wants to be known for “The World’s Best” factory for the production of soy sauce, cooking sherry and wine vinegar! We will have an opportunity to visit the Kingwasong facility, view their operations, and learn first hand of the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead as China’s outward investments accelerate. Along the way we’ll take a look at the community assets that attracted this investment and share the many “lessons learned”.

Please note: We have expanded this tour to include a second China investment, in the adjacent county. Sany Heavy Industries from Changsa, China has chosen a site in Peachtree City for a North American Headquarters, sales and manufacturing facility for heavy construction equipment. We now have four Chinese owned manufacturing companies located in three counties within a 30 mile radius. Come and hear about the types of industries, lessons learned, challenges, obstacles and opportunities in attracting jobs and investments from China to your community.

Perimeter Center's Flyover Bridge

DeKalb & Fulton Counties Perimeter Community Improvement Districts (PCIDs) & Flyover Bridge
Time: 1:00 - 4:00 pm
Price: $45 per person

This exciting tour features the DeKalb and Fulton Counties PCIDs which have maintained their competitive edge in leveraging federal and local funds since their inception in 1999 and 2001 respectively. With approximately 4,000 companies and 26 million square feet of office space, the Perimeter area has firmly established itself as a premier corporate office center in the Atlanta Metropolitan Region. Leaders within the Perimeter community have recognized the need to stay ahead of this growth, and its resulting impact on traffic congestion and quality of life, by crafting a comprehensive vision of the future. Participants on this tour will experience a 24-hour activity center that incorporates improved accessibility, better mobility, and a diversity of uses, increased opportunities for residential living, and an array of quality of life amenities. The tour will also cover the newly built Flyover Bridge, a four-lane divided roadway across I-285. This modern and innovative bridge was designed to ease traffic congestion for thousands of area commuters by providing a north/south alternative to heavily traveled roads. Improvements include intersection redesigned for pedestrian crossing and signal efficiency medians, four foot bicycle lanes in each direction and six foot side walks in each direction, pedestrian and street lighting. The tour is expected to last 2 ˝ hours.

Monday, October 20

Preparing for the Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) Exam Workshop
Time: 7:30 - 8:30 am
Price: Free

This workshop provides participants with a complete overview of the Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) Exam process, from the application to the oral examinations. Attendees will learn tools and techniques for exam preparation and witness a mock oral interview.

Technology Square on the Campus of Georgia Tech
Time: 2:00 - 5:00 pm
Price: $45 per person

Simulation center at Technology Square

Technology Square is home to the energy and acumen of Georgia Tech's business school, the expertise of the Enterprise Innovation Institute, the lifelong learning resources of the Global Learning and Conference Center, and the amenities of the Georgia Tech Hotel and Conference Center.

With its new home in the Centergy, one building adjacent to Technology Square, the Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC) is an important part of this recipe for innovation. Georgia Tech's ATDC is a nationally recognized technology incubator that helps Georgia entrepreneurs launch and build successful companies by providing strategic business advice and connecting member companies to the people and resources they need to succeed. Inc Magazine recognized ATDC as one of the nation's top nonprofit incubators. More than 100 companies have been assisted with start-up support by ATDC, including publicly traded firms such as MindSpring, now EarthLink, the nation's third largest Internet service provider.

World’s Busiest Airport Behind the Scenes
Time: 2:00 - 4:30 pm
Price: $45 per person

Behind the scenes at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport

With over 85 million passengers annually, Atlanta is the world's busiest airport. It is also a major economic driver for Atlanta and Georgia. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is an economic engine, contributing a whopping $28 billion economic impact for the southeast region of the US and supports over 255,000 jobs. With projections that airport passenger volume will double by 2025, the airport is undergoing several capital improvements including: an extreme makeover in the International Terminal, a new consolidated rental car facility and cutting edge baggage screening equipment. Generating over $85 million in annual revenue, you may be surprised to know that parking revenue is the airport's #1 source of revenue. Therefore, many improvements are underway in this area such as "pay-on-foot" stations, valet parking and more parking spaces. This guided tour will begin in the main terminal area where you will board a bus., have the opportunity to go inside the old air traffic control tower, tour the perishable center where fruits, vegetables, and flowers are stored, tour the cargo areas, and end in a hanger where you will hear a presentation. Photo ID will be required to pass through security and all airport security guidelines apply. The tour is expected to last 2 ˝ hours.

Townhomes at the Village of Eastlake

The Villages of East Lake
Time: 2:00 - 5:00 pm
Price: $45 per person

The East Lake Foundation was established in 1995 to transform the crime ridden East Lake Meadows Housing Project into a mixed-use community. The Villages of East Lake is a mixed-income apartment complex with 542 residences. The housing split is 50% affordable housing units and 50% market rate units. The Educational Village includes Charles R. Drew Charter School for grades K – 8, East Lake Family YMCA, Sheltering Arms Early Education and Family Learning Center, and the public Charlie Yates Golf Course which provides free golf instruction, mentoring, equipment, and tournament play opportunities to children in the East Lake community. The East Lake concept is making a tremendous difference in the lives of the residents. The area once dubbed "Little Vietnam" has seen a reduction in violent crime by 95%.

Recognition Dinner
Time: 6:30 - 9:00 pm
Price: $100 per person

Join in honoring those who have contributed to making the profession what it is today. Honors to be conferred include:

• Lifetime Achievement Award in honor of Edward DeLuca
• Fellow Members (FM) and Honorary Lifetime Members (HLM)
• Leadership Award for Public Service
• New Economic Developer of the Year Award
• Citizen Leadership Award and
• Chairman's Award for Excellence in Economic Development

Tuesday, October 21

International Cross Border Connection Event
Time: 6:00 - 10:00 pm
Price: Free

Connect with international consulates and bi-national chambers of commerce in the Metro Atlanta area during this festive event, which includes food tastings and international entertainment. Registration is free.