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Roswell courts foreign partners to expand STEM industry City incurs $14,300 expense for visit to Czech Republic By AMBER PERRY amber@appenmedia.com
CITY OF ROSWELL/PROVIDED
Seer World CEO/Founder Peter Sorckoff, PBS Director of Operations Tomas Koutsky, Roswell City Councilwoman Christine Hall, Roswell Government and Community Affairs Manager Katrina Singletary, PBS Vice President of Operations Pavel Cechal and Alex Kaufman, partner at local firm Chalmers, Adams, Baker & Kaufman and general counsel to the Georgia Republican Party, gather during a meeting in Prague.
ROSWELL, Ga. — Roswell officials are making moves to recruit businesses abroad in the aerospace, quantum computing and AI industries. The plan was shared with Appen Media after its inquiry over open records that showed a $14,300 week-long trip to the Czech Republic in early October. The cost includes travel expenses for City Councilwoman Christine Hall and Government and Community Affairs Manager Katrina Singletary as well as Peter Sorckoff, founder and CEO of Seer World, the city’s economic development consultant. “Isn’t it cheap?” Hall asked over a conference table at City Hall. “Wasn’t it a great deal?” Sorckoff’s $5,400 invoice for travel reimbursement, sent separately, was categorized under the first scope of work associated with his five-year contract with the city. In addition to
developing economic development goals, the specific task order includes identifying attractive industries absent in Roswell. In early November, the council more than doubled the budget for the first scope of work, after Seer exhausted its original $275,000 budget. The purpose of the trip, Hall said, was to solidify the opportunity to become an accelerator for businesses in the Czech Republic. The city was formally invited after about a year of discussions with Czechia Consulate Monika Vintrlikova. Hall said she has known her for a long time. “We would get the companies that basically have been incubated, and they’re ready to take off,” she said. Singletary, sitting next to Hall, said the city is planning to build an accelerator program, outlined in its economic development strategy. The strategy has been discussed and referenced a number of times throughout council meetings, but an official, comprehensive document has not been published for review.
See TRIP, Page 29
Developer pitches project to energize Brookside area By JON WILCOX jon@appenmedia.com ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Alpharetta officials are reviewing a plan by Portman Holdings to build homes and commercial space at an office park along Brookside Parkway now struggling with vacancies. The city’s Horizon 2040 Comprehensive Plan, adopted in 2021, identified Brookside as part of a priority area for redevelopment. Suggested
improvements include pedestrian and bicycle connectivity, activity centers and neighborhoods. Located about 1 mile east of Ga. 400, Brookside has one of the highest vacancy rates in Alpharetta with about a third of offices unoccupied, according to city documents. The 19.7-acre property is currently occupied by two office buildings and an expansive parking lot. The redevelopment plan is scheduled for consideration by the Planning
Commission Feb. 6 and will go before the City Council on Feb. 24. Alpharetta’s approximate 21 million square feet of office space was once 90 percent occupied. Vacancy rates now stand at about 23 percent. City officials said they hope to reinvigorate the demand for traditional office parks by incorporating amenities. The COVID-19 pandemic and changing
BUSINESS
Dog days end for new business in Alpharetta ► PAGE 10
See PROJECT, Page 11
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