August 10, 1973
Economic activity continues brisk and no letup is anticipated. Numerous new plant and plant expansion announcements have been noticed. Several major and many minor residential and commercial construction projects continue to be announced.
A steady flow of new plant announcements continues. A $400 million oil refinery is to be built near Mobile, Alabama. A railroad has broken ground on a $350 million expansion of its freight facilities in South Georgia. The same company is undertaking a $3.5 million expansion at a Florida freight yard. Permits have been granted for a $66 million natural gas pipeline to be constructed from the Louisiana coast to various locations in the Midwest and Southeast. Fiberglass insulation products will be produced at a $20 million plant to be built in northeast Georgia. A $12 million wood products facility will be built in south Alabama. A chemical company is spending $10 million to expand a south Louisiana plant that manufactures chemicals used in water treatment. A $6 million addition will be made to a central Tennessee plant manufacturing oil filters. Other announcements include: a $4.5 million electronics plant in Mississippi, a $4 million wood products plant in central Georgia, a $3.5 million lumber mill in southeast Alabama, a $2.5 million expansion of a building materials plant in Jacksonville, a $1.5 million meat-processing plant in Louisiana, a 150-man electronics plant northwest of Atlanta, and a chemical plant employing 50 people in central Georgia.
There have been several announcements of large projects in the residential and commercial construction sectors. A $250 million "mini-city" is planned northwest of Atlanta. This project will contain seven major buildings, including three high-rise condominiums, two office buildings, and two hotels. Still another $200 million office and apartment project has been proposed for an area near Atlanta. Two condominium communities, one projected at $60 million and the other at $40 million, have been announced for Florida's northwest Gulf coast. A $5 million hotel is to be built in Pensacola, Florida. Condominium and single-family residential projects totaling $40 million are planned for the Nashville area. Plans have also been announced for a 440 residential homesite development near Atlanta. A high-volume, national home builder is moving into the Atlanta market for the first time with a 48-home development. A $3 million office building and a $1.5 million merchandise mart are also planned for the Atlanta area. Apartment building is reportedly growing at a rapid clip in Nashville and parts of east Tennessee. However, officials of savings and loan trade associations representing southeastern states have warned that the housing industry "is being brought to a schreeching halt" by higher interest rates.
A meat-packing plant in Jacksonville reportedly has laid off 200 workers because of the meat shortage. A shortage of propane gas used in heating chicken houses could hinder poultry production later in the year. The Florida citrus crop is the largest ever, but a shortage of labor has hindered harvesting. High school and college students from as far away as Texas have reportedly been recruited to harvest citrus.
A textile firm in northwest Georgia has signed a union contract calling for an immediate. 9 percent increase in wages. Atlanta bus drivers have ratified a contract calling for a 16 percent increase in wages over a two-year period. The price of milk has risen sharply in Miami, and a dairy farming commission in Alabama has raised the wholesale price of milk.