 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 As part of the much-publicized 316 Corridor, The Exchange is strategically located. Experts envision Georgia’s economy driven by a linear research and technology park stretching along Georgia 316 between Lawrenceville and Athens. This corridor has an opportunity to bring together the intellectual capital and knowledge of workers in both Athens and Atlanta. Its R&D and technology clusters will develop from and further stimulate collaboration among the state’s research universities: The University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, Emory, Georgia State, the Medical College of Georgia and the Atlanta University Center. Perhaps the best comparison to the 316 Corridor is to the Research Triangle Park in North Carolina, a 7,000-acre (eight miles by two miles) economic engine. It was conceived in 1958 as a means of linking and multiplying the research strengths of the region’s three major universities: North Carolina, North Carolina State and Duke. In 1960 the park had three R&D companies and one service company; it employed 500 people. By 2003, it had grown to 106 R&D companies and 35 service companies; it employed 44,000 people with a total payroll of $2.7 billion. Companies span the fields of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, information technology, telecommunications, environmental sciences, microelectronics, public health and statistics. |
|
