Rumors are swirling around town that a buyer is being sought for Ingersoll Rand’s Augusta based “Club Car.” Online reports indicated that Goldman Sachs has been tapped to find a buyer for the based golf car manufacturer for an estimated $1.5 billion. Ingersoll Rand and Goldman Sachs have not put out any public statements about the sale. This is an important issue that could affect a large number of local employees. The Augusta Press is monitoring it very closely.
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Belk department stores filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy early last week but what the impact on the three local stores will be is uncertain at this point. The Evans location recently opened in fourth quarter 2017 at Mullions Colony on Washington Road.
Then there was GameStop. The incredible stock issues that happened with GameStop this past week leave many questions as to what the future of the gaming store will look like. GameStop reported an increase in average store sales and a drastic 309 percent increase in E-Commerce sales over the nine-week holiday period ending Jan. 2, 2021. According to the company’s financial reports, its overall total sales for 2020 were down by 3.1 percent. It is unclear how the wide swings in the stock price this last week will affect the company in 2021. There are several GameStop stores in the CSRA, and it is unclear if there will be any changes to those locations in 2021.
On Jan. 15 Audubon an Atlanta-based multifamily firm purchased the Saddle Creek and Creekside apartment complexes in Augusta. Saddle Creek is located on Washington Road and Creekside on Augusta West Parkway. The two complexes comprise of 384 units and sold for over $51 million.
In other local news, Nacho Mama’s, a staple in downtown Augusta, celebrated it’s twenty fifth anniversary this past week. Make sure and swing by and get some tacos this week to help them celebrate.
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In real estate news, one of Augusta’s largest shopping centers located on Bobby Jones expressway has gone up for sale. While large investment property sales like this are not uncommon regionally, it is not every day a property in Augusta of this size goes up for sale.
The apartment market in Augusta has been very strong despite the federal extension on the eviction moratorium. Fine print on the moratorium indicates that it doesn’t apply to all tenants but rather only to those located in housing that’s backed by federally backed mortgages. The moratorium doesn’t mean that tenants do not have to pay rent, and they can still be evicted for reasons other than non-payment of rent.
The apartment market in Augusta has not experienced the level of trouble that other parts of the country have with evictions. The continuous announcements of new construction projects in the multifamily sector in the CSRA is evidence of the strength and demand in the local housing market.
Topgolf’s property off Riverwatch Parkway got a lot of attention this week with the announcement that the out of state investor was putting the property up for sale for $18 million. Only the underlying real estate is for sale. It is quite commonplace for large corporations like Topgolf to sign long term ground leases like the one in Augusta rather than owning the real estate. Companies such as Wal-Mart, Walgreens, McDonalds, Home Depot and Target to name a few, employee the same practice. Topgolf is not for sale and seems to be thriving in their current location. The impending sale of Topgolf to Callaway Golf for $2 Billion is evidence of the strength of the company.
Joe Edge is the Publisher for The Augusta Press. Reach him at joe.edge@theaugustapress.com
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