Michele Whaley

confronted with huge quantities of real estate on the market, and more to come as we approach the true spring selling season. The county needs to hear about all the great reasons why Gwinnett is such a great place to live. With so many home owners needing to re evaluate their needs versus their wants, we need to implore home owners to make renewed comittments to their homes, their neighborhoods and their towns! Let's start NOW!

Digital media firm expands, Selects gwinnett county for eastern u.s. operations

Category: Homepage news, Chamber News, Press releases, Gwinnett News, Economic Development News

By: Lisa Sherman

YesVideo expands into Gwinnett creating 300 new jobs for Metro Atlanta

Gwinnett County, Metro Atlanta, GA - YesVideo, the leader in digital video publishing technology, announced today that it would be opening up its new East Coast operations location in Gwinnett County, Metro Atlanta, Georgia. The company's new location will create 300 new jobs for Gwinnett and Metro Atlanta over the next three years. This announcement also represents another project win for Partnership Gwinnett, a community and economic development initiative targeting job growth and wealth creation for Gwinnett and the surrounding region.

"For high-tech companies like YesVideo that are reaching a wide customer base, the state of Georgia is perfectly situated," said Governor Sonny Perdue. "We have a skilled workforce, the technical infrastructure, a terrific transportation network and a business-friendly environment that fosters success."

YesVideo transforms consumer and professional video content from the format in which it was originally captured into new, evolving digital formats, allowing the content to be viewed and enjoyed for generations to come. The company uses highly automated production technology that not only digitizes the video media to contemporary formats, but simultaneously indexes the content so it can be easily viewed, organized, edited, shared and archived.

Gwinnett County Commission Chairman Charles Bannister said, "YesVideo represents the type of high-quality, global, technology-based regional office we are working to attract to Gwinnett County. With high-wage jobs and a significant capital investment, we are proud they have chosen to call Gwinnett County, and the State of Georgia, their East Coast home."

Gwinnett Chamber Business Development Manager for Corporate HQs and Regional Offices, Lauren Salas, said of the expansion, "Securing YesVideo for Gwinnett County was a great project win. We worked with Chris Pumphrey and our partners at the State to create a package for YesVideo that would meet their needs and provide them fast and effective start-up for this new location."

"The greater Atlanta area is a perfect location for the expansion of our production operations," says Gregory Ayres, COO of YesVideo. "Metro Atlanta is well-centered, geographically, to service the entire eastern seaboard, Midwest, and south central areas with cost-effective ground logistics. In addition, the Gwinnett community has a ready labor force and extremely well-developed IT infrastructure to suit our growth plans. Finally, support from Gwinnett, the Georgia Department of Economic Development and the Quick Start training program made Atlanta stand out above other areas."

The build out of YesVideo's newly acquired 30,000 sq. ft. facility will produce millions in capital investment for Gwinnett and the 300 jobs will pay well above the industry's national averages. YesVideo will open its doors for business on March 16, 2009 and is located at 5300 Oakbrook Parkway, Suite 140, Norcross, GA 30093.

Things taking shape in and around stadium

February 22nd, 2009 FinanceBuzz Posted in Entertainment and Sports, Gwinnett Business, Gwinnett County Commission |

There is a lot of activity going on in and around the Gwinnett Braves' new stadium. The stadium itself is about 80% complete looking forward to the April 17 opener against the Norfolk Tides. Fans will be able to walk all the way around the stadium, let kids play at playgrounds, eat in picnic areas, enjoy the game from suites, grandstands or grassy berms, catch replays on a 30′ by 40′ video matrix board and eat a variety of food options. Grass is scheduled to be installed March 2 on a field that will mimic the dimensions of Turner Field.

Outside the stadium, several development projects are in the works. Earlier this month, the Gwinnett County Commission approved a "10-acre development on Buford Drive near Lawrenceville that is expected to include shops and restaurants." This week, the commission will consider a project that literally surrounds the stadium and "is expected to consist of 351,000 square feet of commercial space, 617,000 square feet of office space, 610 residential units and 300 hotel rooms."

My opposition to how this stadium came about and even the need for minor league baseball in a major league metro area is well documented here on the Buzz. That being said, I do think that the new stadium is shaping up to be an enjoyable place to spend a spring or summer evening, even if you are not a huge baseball fan. The stadium is also kick-starting some very attractive development to the area as well. While the economy is soft now, in the long run, I think these development projects will be great assets to the greater Mall of Georgia area.

I found this fascinating quote today:

The market is rough right now. There is NO way to sidestep it, nor to put lipstick on that pig. Going against the numbers from a year ago, just about everything is down… and we thought it was a bloodbath then. The only bright spot is that New Listings are also down… and inventory is substantially lower than the previous year. Also, Pendings are only off by pennies… which forebodes well for sales. But, sales ARE still down. Prices are taking a beating. Days on Market isn’t showing any kind of clear direction.Lilburn, Feb 2009

You should read the whole article.