James MagazineJames_July-August_2026_web - Flipbook - Page 12
and plans for possibly $50 million
more, the announcement was the
latest coup for MBCIA. But one
of the keys to Macon’s secret is
the majority of that $3 billion has
come from existing businesses in
Macon. MBCIA stresses that not
only is attracting new industry
important, but support of existing
industry is not a secondary goal,
it is a core responsibility. MBCIA
doesn’t just sign a business to locate there and then walk away. It
stays partnered with them, communicating with them and making
sure they had the infrastructure
they need to be successful.
“That $3 billion in private
investment, several thousand jobs,
that those companies represent
over $320 million in payroll in this
community every year,” said Adams.
“Those factors that are a part of my
sales pitch to companies that we’re
talking to. The best sales pitch that
I’ve got is the existing industries
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who have chosen to locate and have
done business here, have interacted
with the community, and decided
to reinvest, even when those opportunities could have taken place
within their network of companies
anywhere else in the world.”
Macon’s Music City Legacy
Most Georgians know the
tremendous musical heritage in
Macon, from the Allman Brothers to
Otis Redding to Little Richard and
more. That musical heritage has
continued in a radio station that
astute drivers will switch over to
as they drive through the region, or
tune to on the world wide web. It’s
The Creek 100.9 FM— a station that
listeners may not realize is now
owned by Visit Macon.
“We’ve colored outside the
lines in our industry. And one of the
things that we did is we acquired or
purchased The Creek 100.9 FM. For
years, that was part of our market-
ing to buy advertising and collaborate with the radio station because
it was locally owned and played a
lot of Macon music, but also Americana. That was one of those things
where the opportunity was presented and we took the lead to invest in
this, and now we’ve created a collaborative tourism music radio,” said
Wheat. “It’s been a labor of love for
us that now we’re able to send out
and control the tourism message—
but also make sure that it retains a
Macon flavor.”
“It remains a voice and a sound
of Macon,” he continued. “But it
also lifts up all of our music partners and allows us to introduce
artists who may have just recorded
at Capricorn and play some of their
new music. It just allows for the
opportunity to become even more
of a music city.”
Baker Owens is a staff writer for James and
James Magazine Online.
