Toccoa-Stephens County featured in Georgia Trend

Toccoa-Stephens County is featured in the April 2022 edition of the magazine Georgia Trend.

The 7-page article discusses diversification, downtown turnaround, and filmmaking in Toccoa-Stephens County.

The article opens with Marilyn Hall discussing how when she moved to Toccoa, “it was just a very sleepy little town.” Hall says that description no longer applies as Toccoa has experienced a renaissance with a variety of stores, restaurants, the Historic Ritz Theatre’s restoration, and a renovated train depot platform.

According to the article, written by Lee Smith, the turnaround began three decades ago when city leaders kicked off the Main Street program. Smith writes quote, “at the time, the downtown had dwindled after becoming like a covered shopping mall with concrete canopies and the closing of its main artery, Doyle Street, to traffic…the city took down the canopies in 2007 and Doyle Street reopened.”

Because of the city’s focus on the downtown area, the article explains that this helped the whole community with economic development.

The article discusses the diversified industries in Toccoa-Stephens County. Saying before, Toccoa had just two Coats & Clark plants and two Milliken plants; but now, there are several plants including Nifco KTW, Sark Wire, Magna Flow, ASI Southeast, Patterson Pump, Sage Automotive Interiors and American Woodmark.

Toccoa City Manager Billy Morse is quoted in the article saying, “We don’t have all our eggs in one basket anymore.”

Stephens County Development Authority President and CEO Brittany Ivey says manufacturing remains the largest employment sector with about 1,800 workers, or 18 percent of the county’s labor pool.

In the article, Ivey says expanding the workforce is a priority, and the development authority has started a campaign targeting the 7,000-plus residents who work outside Stephens County to ditch their commute for local jobs.

The article also addresses how Toccoa-Stephens County has become a popular location for filmmakers.

To read the full article, visit georgiatrend.com.