Wedding venue in Blue Ridge, GA for couples in Albany, GA

ALBANY, Ga., Dec. 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- LBA Hospitality, an Alabama–based hotel management company, today announced that the Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott in Albany, Georgia has completed an extensive renovation in its guest rooms and public spaces. The hotel is owned by Flynn Holdings and managed by LBA Hospitality of Dothan, Alabama.

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The new look includes a new breakfast area as well as new furniture, lighting, wall vinyl and carpet in the lobby. Every guest room has been updated with new bedding, mattresses, carpet, and window treatments. All of the furniture in the guest rooms has been replaced to include beds, nightstands and dressers. The bathrooms have been upgraded with new wallcovering, lighting, mirrors and showers.

Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Albany is located at 3011 Kensington Court and offers guests convenient access to the culture, entertainment and recreation of Southwest Georgia. The 87-room and suite hotel is close to Flint RiverQuarium, Chehaw Park and Zoo, Pretoria Fields Collective, Albany State University, the Albany Museum of Art and Radium Springs Garden.

"As we continually work to provide a positive and productive travel experience, as well as reliable service at an exceptional value, these upgrades bring this splendid hotel into the upper tier for the Albany area," said Beau Benton, President, LBA Hospitality. "The new design and décor elevates the look and feel of the property, setting a new standard for the Fairfield Inn brand."

Each guest room at the Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Albany includes soft bedding, fluffy pillows, complimentary WiFi and Smart-TVs with Netflix and Hulu streaming capabilities. Additional hotel amenities include a 24/7 fitness center, an outdoor swimming pool and a complimentary hot breakfast.

For more information or to contact the Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Albany please call directly at 229-883-8288, or visit www.marriott.com/abyab.

About LBA Hospitality

Established in 1973, LBA Hospitality is one of the leading hotel management, development, and consulting companies in the US. With an extensive portfolio of award-winning hotels in the East, Southeast, and Southwest, LBA Hospitality is a recognized leader in developing and operating the most respected brands under Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt, Best Western, and InterContinental Hotel Group franchise licenses. For more than five decades, LBA Hospitality has continued to set a higher standard in hotel development, management, and guest satisfaction, resulting in sustained, profitable growth for owners. For more information, visit www.lbahospitality.com.

About Fairfield by Marriott

Fairfield by Marriott^® was founded on the principles of trusted service and warm, friendly hospitality inspired by its unique heritage as the namesake of the Marriott family retreat, the Fairfield Farm. Its contemporary, uplifting design provides an effortless experience for guests to maintain their routines while on the road. Evoking the feelings of calming simplicity, Fairfield offers thoughtfully designed guestrooms and suites that provide separate quality living, working, and sleeping areas. With over 1,240 properties in 16 countries and territories, Fairfield is proud to participate in Marriott Bonvoy^®, the global travel program from Marriott International.

Contact: Judy Cluck Vice President of Sales and Marketing Larry Blumberg & Associates, Inc. 678-977-8316 judyc@lbaproperties.com

SOURCE LBA Hospitality

ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - The economic outlook for the year ahead is more positive for Georgia than it is for the rest of the country.

According to an annual research project conducted by the University of Georgia, studies focused on a range of things - including housing, employment and population.

Georgia is less likely to be impacted by a recession and should have double the population growth than the national average in the year ahead. The housing outlook is better in South Georgia cities than the rest of the state.

If you’re looking to buy a home in South Georgia, you’ve likely been discouraged by low inventory and high prices. Research, more homes should become available in the coming months.

“The lack of homes for sale will help prevent home prices from declining too much despite moderate over evaluation. We do expect the number of single-family housing permits to rise this year, you can see the little uptick of 5% but it’s from depressed levels.” says Ben Ayers, Dean of UGA Terry College of Business.

This graphic shows home prices across have gone up dramatically since before the pandemic across the state. But prices haven’t gone up near as much in South Georgia cities like Albany and Valdosta.

“We heard about Albany’s strong housing market. It doesn’t live in a bubble and that’s going to protect Albany from some declines that we see across the state with housing costs.” says Barbara Rivera Holmes, President of the Albany Area Chamber of Commerce

“We’re not going to get back to where we were a couple of years ago, but long term it will stay strong in Albany become of demand.” Ayers says.

The study shows that migration of residents who have higher education tend to move out of Albany. That contributes to more high paying technical jobs in the city.

According to that research, migration of residents who have higher education tend to move out of Albany. That contributes to more high paying technical jobs in the city. This means there is enormous opportunity here for those with a good education.

“This is an area where healthcare is an important component, we’re a regional provider for healthcare. Here also military spending will be up across the country so that’s going to be good for our state and likewise here in the Albany area as well.” Ayers says.

The Albany job market isn’t that dependent on government jobs. So there are many opportunities in fields like health care.

“Strong strong private sectors in health care, in manufacturing, in distribution, in defense, in logistics. All of those pieces come together to keep Albany floating well despite pressures that you might feel in other areas.” Rivera Holmes says.

Some of the main takeaways from this study is that although there may be an Economic Slowdown, a recession isn’t likely for Georgia. And the Peach State is set to outperform the country as a whole.

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Albany plans to revitalize a once-thriving historically Black commercial district near its downtown.

The city’s Harlem neighborhood used to be the social and economic hub for Blacks in Southwest Georgia.

But it suffered from massive disinvestment over many decades.

Now the city is backing a private developer’s plans to build a retail and residential hub.

The $20 million project draws on current themes in economic development — and area history.

“It’s understanding that you’re going and rebuilding and starting from what did exist,” said Latoya Cutts of the Harlem Renaissance Corporation. “And for people who don’t know that that exists, it’s kind of putting that vibrancy back into the community."

The project sits right next to the city’s new $15 million main transit station, a few blocks from Albany’s waterfront and near an expansion at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital that will need student housing.

It also promises to bring a trendy food hall to the site of a beloved former restaurant, Carter’s.

“It was a staple in the community and everyone remembers it,” Cutts said of Carter’s. “So you’re taking some elements of what was and adding some of those new elements that people are longing to see and that don’t current exist in Albany.”

The food hall has space for seven restaurants, while the residential buildings are designed for 52 apartments and 10 townhomes.

Architectural plans also show 14,000 square feet of retail and office space, plus an event pavilion, courtyard and stage.

The Albany City Commission pledged $2 million in loans to the project last month.

Commissioners also pledged to work out a memorandum of understanding with the corporation over the project’s scope and details.

Demetrius Young, who sits on the commission, remembers when the area was vibrant with Black-owned businesses, including some that were owned by his family members.

“I used to walk up and down those streets and go get my hair cut at my aunt’s barbershop,” Young said. “And I’d walk to my dad’s motel. So it’s an area that’s near and dear to my heart, as it is with many people. It’s part of the fabric of Albany’s African-American community.”

City officials see the development as way to draw new residents, visitors and business owners into a community hard hit in recent year by Hurricane Michael and the coronavirus pandemic.

“It provides a way for us to get people back to the downtown area,” Young said. “I’d like to see new families and people come bring this area to life once again.”

City officials hope to break ground on the project early next year.

ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - Starting a business in a small town has challenges, but what about the success rate?

According to reports, Albany is ranked number one for starting a business in Georgia.

“Albany is just such a beautiful place with a rich, beautiful culture. They have a beautiful downtown, it’s like a blank canvas. So, it gives you the opportunity to create, so that’s why we chose this place,” Stanley Franklin, owner of Cornerstone Coffee, said.

Statistics state Georgia ranks in the top 20 percent to start a small business. Many business owners say that having more foot traffic will increase sales.

Corner Stone Coffee Co-Owner Anastasia Franklin says coming back to Albany has been a good move for her business. The coffee shop is located downtown.

“When you get out of the place that you are from and you see more, you are able to bring back things to your community and really offer something great,” Franklin said.

With a population of 70,000, an outside source ranked Albany number one for starting a small business. That report encompasses all factors including business costs, business climate, financial accessibility, economy and workforce.

The Perfect Collar has been open for only a few months now off of Ledo Road. The owner says building relationships with the people in Albany has been the best part of the opening process.

“We opened in May, we’re still brand new. The wonderful thing about this area is the community support. So, we have had a lot of support from our church family, from our friends, from other business owners it’s really been incredible,” Shellie Collier, owner of The Perfect Collar, said.

“You have to be willing to talk with people, you have to be willing to collaborate. You just don’t up and do by yourself. There is a lot of working with city leaders and community officials,” Franklin said.

Even though statistics say that Georgia ranks in the top 20% to start a small business, the 2022 economic outlook from the University of Georgia indicates the opposite. It states that Albany is behind the pace of the entire state.

Some of the resources that the city offers to new businesses include assistance from the downtown manager’s office and grant funding, but staying relevant in the community is mostly up to the business owner.

“In a town like Albany, it’s important to focus on building strong relationships with the local community and all of your customers. Recommend engage in community events, support various local causes, and that helps foster a loyal customer base,” Don Gray, immediate past chairman for Albany Chamber of Commerce, said.

A part of the process that surprised one business owner during their opening was the amount of time and effort it took to get up and going.

“We didn’t know how long and tedious the process would actually be. We wish we would have been able to plan better our opening date planning ahead because we didn’t know until we were in the middle of it,” Collier said.

Another aspect that can help businesses thrive in Albany is being open to change and help from others.

“I think the main thing is to continuously adapt to changing needs and preferences. Explore any other opportunities you might have to collaborate with other local businesses. Don’t try to do it with yourself, when one business succeeds it should help other businesses succeed,” Gray said.

Copyright 2023 WALB. All rights reserved.

University System of Georgia (USG) Chancellor Sonny Perdue is offering his congratulations to Albany State University President Marion Ross Fedrick, who announced today she will take a new role within the university system to build upon her leadership expertise.

In a letter to the Albany State community, Fedrick said she has accepted a new role at Georgia State University as executive vice president and chief of staff to President Brian Blake, effective July 1, 2024.

With this announcement, Perdue has asked Fedrick to additionally serve as his senior advisor for initiatives related to the system’s three public historically Black colleges and universities.

“Marion has built a formidable reputation within USG for her resourcefulness and creative ability to support the success of faculty, staff and students,” Perdue said. “I’m grateful she’s staying within the system to continue her stewardship in public higher education. She will be an invaluable resource working on behalf of our HBCUs and at a USG institution that ranks as one of the nation’s best for undergraduate teaching and innovation.”

Details about the next steps for Albany State’s leadership transition will be forthcoming.

Fedrick is an accomplished senior leader with over 30 years of experience in education administration, strategic planning, crisis management and strategic partnership management in both the private and public sectors.

She initially joined Albany State in October 2017, serving as both the interim executive vice president and interim president before the board appointed Fedrick as Albany State’s 10th president on Aug. 14, 2018.

“The importance of Albany State to USG and to the Southwest Georgia community cannot be overstated, and it’s been an absolute honor to have been part of building up this next generation of leaders,” Fedrick said. “While I’m excited about the opportunities ahead, a part of my heart will always remain in Albany, and I’m grateful for the students, friends and colleagues who will carry on the legacy of this extraordinary and unsinkable institution.”

Prior to her service at Albany State, Fedrick served as USG’s vice chancellor for human resources, overseeing administration of all systemwide human resources initiatives, employee benefits programs and organizational and leadership development initiatives.

She previously led strategic initiatives relating to effective university administration, leadership development and human resource planning efforts at Clark Atlanta University, Emory University Hospitals, State of Georgia’s Office of State Personnel Administration, AT&T and the former BellSouth Corporation.

A first-generation college student, Fedrick is a certified Senior Human Resources Professional. She is also a three-time graduate of the University of Georgia with a bachelor’s degree in adult education (including a concentration in organizational development), a master’s degree in public administration and a doctorate in education.

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