Savannah Chamber

52 The Department of Defense, with Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield, is the largest employer in Coastal Georgia. In 2018, there were about 24,400 military personnel and civilian defense workers at both facilities. The regional economic footprint is substantial: total payroll for both bases is approximately $1.5 billion and the facilities combine for an annual economic impact of $5 billion. The Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport hosts the Savannah Air National Guard Base. The 165 th Airlift Wing, 117 th Air Control Squadron, and 156 th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, based out of Charlotte, NC, operate from the airbase. The units supported relief operations in Georgia and other southeastern coastal regions including those affected Hurricane Dorian in 2019. Plans are for a new Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron at the 165 th Airlift Wing. This would add more than 100 new personnel that could be recruited from the region's health professions education institutions. The 165 th Airlift Wing hosts the Air Dominance Center (ADC) which is one of only four Air National Guard Combat Readiness Training Centers in the country. The ADC hosts Sentry Savannah, which is a quarterly large-scale "fight club" for combat air forces. The 2020 Department of Defense budget includes $24 million for a new hangar facility at the ADC. This is notable in that Georgia was one of only three states awarded Air National Guard construction funding, and the Savannah base was awarded 20% of the service's total construction funding available during the fiscal year. Real Estate: Residential and Commercial The real estate market for residential property remained healthy in 2019. A total of 7,644 residential units (all types) sold in the three-county region, a gain of 1% over 2018. In Chatham County, the median residential home price was approximately $222,900, a gain of 3.7% from 2018. The median residential sale price in Bryan County was $260,150 (+3.8%) and in Effingham County was $202,150 (+4.5%). Slightly slower employment and population growth point toward similar increases in 2020. Multifamily residential construction continued to boom in the Savannah metro region in 2019. Following the stunning amount of multifamily residential construction permitted in 2018 ($160 million), investment remains high with $57 million in value permitted through October 2019. A total of 535 multifamily units were permitted for construction in 2019, with more than half of those in the second half of the year. This is well above what has been the norm in recent years. It is expected that apartment style developments will be stronger in West Chatham in 2020 given the greater availability of land in that area. The commercial market remains strong and vibrant in important districts and retailing corridors in Chatham County. Perhaps the most vibrant of which is in Pooler with the substantial development near I-16 and the Pooler Parkway. Much of that activity is driven by population growth and infrastructure development in the immediate area. The central business district in the landmark historic district and Broughton Street remain strong with high occupancy rates and strengthening rental rates for space. The midtown area and the Starland District continue to attract interest and investment as land costs increase amid increasing scarcity of land available for development of additional commercial projects in the central business district. Vacancy rates in metro Savannah's office market decreased to 13% at the end of 2019 from 14% at the end of 2018. In the region, office rental rates increased 4.1% from 2018, with all submarkets reporting gains. Rental rates increased faster in the Westside market and in Bryan County. Office space rental rates were $23.28 per square foot in the downtown central business district at year-end, up from $22.80 in 2018. Similar gains are anticipated for 2020. Regent Partners' and Mariner Group's development of the $600 million, 54-acre Eastern Wharf project continues. The first residents began moving in during mid-2019, and $200 million in construction activity was under way by late 2019. Residents of a nearly completed apartment complex are expected to move in as early as June, 2020. Retailers started to commit to portions of the available 30,000 square feet of retail space, and the $88 million, 450 room hotel is scheduled for completion in 2021. An additional 80,000 square feet of high-end office space will be available upon completion of the project. Near the Eastern Wharf development, The Ellis apartment complex of 235 units, constructed in 2019, sold for $48 million. At the western end of the riverfront district, the Kessler Collection's $500 million Plant Riverside District project will be coming online in 2020. This project includes the JW Marriot luxury hotel, a riverside park, multiple dining options, and specialty retail space. The project expects to create more than 700 new jobs. Additionally, in Savannah's 55-acre Arena and Canal District, construction will include a $165 million, 10,000 seat arena, an apartment building, retail space, and recreational green space with multi-use pedestrian trails.

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