Business
Getting Back To Normal Local officials and businesspeople provide insight into our economic recovery
Edited By Cory Sekine-Pettite
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any of us pay little attention to the ebbs and flows of the U.S. economy. Frankly, it can be difficult to understand, and even more difficult to predict. These days, however, you may be paying closer attention since the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated an economic decline at a pace that never has been recorded. Thus, you may have read that many economists are hopeful as they see a recovery happening sooner than projected. Consumer spending is up. The housing industry remains strong. And manufacturing activity is on the upswing. So that’s nationally, but what about locally? As the State of Georgia emerges from the pandemic lockdown and businesses here try to return to some semblance of normal, residents and business owners will be looking for guidance on how the local economy is improving and what our economic future looks like. Therefore, Cobb In Focus reached out to leaders in our community whom we thought could provide informed perspectives as our economy reopens.
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Smyrna Mayor Derek Norton, said he is seeing his city’s resilience and generosity shine through during these tough economic times, and he noted that since the city’s finances are well-managed, Smyrna will endure the crisis well. “I’m always optimistic, but I also realize there’s no script for this; there’s no crystal ball. We just went through our budget process for the next fiscal year, and it’s truthfully a little bit of a guessing game. Nobody knows what’s ahead of us. …So we budgeted very conservatively, with 20- to 25-percent cuts. …Thankfully, we had a lot of years of fiscal responsibility and good stewardship of taxpayer money, so we’re in a good position to deal with a time like this. …I’m hopeful. Good things come out of bad situations, and I think one of the good things that has come to the forefront here in this city is the generous spirit this community has.” Mayor Norton is referring to Support Smyrna, a program launched with the assistance of the Smyrna Public Safety Foundation and other civic organizations to provide food assistance to those in need
during the pandemic. Residents have been contributing to a fund that provides grocery store gift cards to those in need. As of press time, the mayor said the community has donated nearly $200,000. Learn how you can assist at smyrnaga.gov. Daniel M. Cummings, economic development manager, Department of Development Services, City of Marietta, said his city is fortunate to have a diverse economy, which somewhat diminished the overall economic impact the virus has forced upon other local economies. However, he is cautious about overstating any potential recovery predictions. “What we saw during COVID-19 was a number of new projects hitting pause with many adopting a “wait and see” mindset. Despite this, Marietta has continued to have strong activity. Our permitting has not seen a decline, with residential being particularly strong. We have had a number of recent rezonings, and our staff also has been working with a number of project inquiries looking for space across different
