Athens Banner-Herald, Ga., Don Nelson column.(Column)

Byline: Don Nelson

Sep. 30--During a recent Athens-Clarke Economic Development Foundation meeting, Chairwoman Flora Tydings -- also president of Athens Technical College -- recounted a visit she made to North Carolina earlier this summer.

Tydings attended a presentation and tour of the Research Triangle (the name for the area between Raleigh, Chapel Hill and Durham) where many coveted biotech companies have decided to set up shop for research and manufacturing facilities. Those companies' decisions to settle in North Carolina came much to the chagrin of communities around the country, including our own Athens area.

A couple of observations that Tydings made about her trip could offer some insight into why North Carolina continues to grab the golden ring in these competitions for high-tech businesses and why Georgia continues playing the bridesmaid role.

The first comment Tydings made was how impressed she was with the presentation itself. She said the people promoting the amenities of the Research Triangle simply wowed her and others in the group. The presenters were so good and the dog and pony show so persuasive and professional, Tydings was nearly ready to sign up herself, she joked.

The other opinion Tydings expressed was that beyond the presentation, what the Research Triangle actually had to offer was good in the way of facilities, setting, educational resources and other amenities that might draw a company, but that what Athens and Georgia has is so much better.

She also mentioned the special workforce training program cited as one of the reasons Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis chose the Research Triangle over Athens for a new facility graduated only about 15 people in the past year.