'It's already cooking.' Port Wentworth's new economic development head wants balanced growth

When James Touchton applied to become Port Wentworth’s first director of economic development, one word came to his mind about the city: potential.

Port Wentworth is one of the fastest-growing cities in coastal Georgia and neighbors the fastest-growing port in the nation, the Georgia Ports Authority (GPA). The region is poised for massive population growth and investments in the coming years – key ingredients that, if handled properly, can make a city thrive.

“It’s already cooking,” said Touchton. “I want to build an area where others want to come here and they want to experience what we have to offer, too.”

What does Touchton bring to the job?

Touchton has 15 years of experience working with issues related to economic development, policy, government affairs, transportation, planning and zoning and community relations. His previous roles include serving as the longtime director of policy and government affairs for the Council for Quality Growth in the metro Atlanta region and working as a senior policy analyst with the Georgia Senate.

Touchton received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Kennesaw State University where he served as the student government president. He’s also been in other leadership roles with Advance Atlanta, the Policy Leadership Institute, Leadership Cobb Economic Development Day Committee and worked to establish the Council for Quality Growth’s Emerging Leaders Initiative.

“I’ve been in the metro Atlanta area for 22 years. I’ve seen the growth, I’ve learned from people smarter than I am, learned the good things and the bad things,” he said.

The experiences have taught Touchton to look at development holistically, an approach that Port Wentworth City Manager Steve Davis said is sorely needed to balance out the growth that has occurred in the last few decades.

“The decision to move forward with this position was due to the increased growth and demand for more commercial development.  We have made tremendous progress in redoing our ordinances and internal processes in development services and we needed someone to bring those efforts together with more quality-of-life growth needs in our city,” said Davis in an email statement to the Savannah Morning News.

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What challenges will Touchton face?

Port Wentworth has struggled with industrial encroachment and suburban sprawl for the last several decades. A housing development boom in the early 2000s more than doubled the population, alleviating earlier concerns of people leaving the city due to port expansions. However, commercial amenities and infrastructure improvements have lagged behind.

In the last year, the city government has made moves to try and remedy the issue and drive the city towards the “live, work, play” lifestyle, said Davis.

“Restaurants, medical, banking, events, are all at the top of that list,” said the city manager. “James is going to be the catalyst to bring all of this together and make sure our plans with transit and parks merge well with the future developments that are quickly coming our way.”

The economic development director's role, like most city staff, reports to the city manager. Touchton describes the scope of his responsibilities as learning the city, networking with people and working with developers, elected officials and residents. And, ultimately, “translating all of this information into success.”

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In his position, Touchton will be responsible for guiding the city’s economic development activities, including business outreach, retention, expansion and recruitment among other duties.

With more than 5,000 new housing units slated to come online in the city in the next few years, growth is not slowing down in Port Wentworth. Larger economic development projects spurring growth in the region will also continue to add pressure on the city’s resources and infrastructure.

Touchton said he looks at the incoming development through a critical lens. It’s more than about "just bringing in money." Growth involves building code enforcement, police and fire, and making sure residents can build their family and have a quality of life while doing so.

With the Council for Quality Growth, Touchton helped push for the Transportation Funding Act of 2015, which infused millions of dollars into the state’s transit systems. As the organization’s previous director of policy and government affairs, he worked with various associations and state agencies to advocate for the bill.

“Partnerships is what I’m a big believer in,” said Touchton, echoing the relationships he’s had to build between government entities and private companies in the past.

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Port Wentworth has had a tumultuous history, marked by years of political turmoil. But working with different personalities while trying to achieve similar goals is a familiar playing ground for Touchton.

“Everyone’s got a past, but it’s learning from that and respecting it. My philosophy is very simple – servant leadership,” he said.

Touchton will be present at city council meetings and encourages residents to reach out. Residents “make this city and make this job,” he emphasized. The economic development director can be contacted at jtouchton@cityofportwentworth.com and 912-724-9202.

Nancy Guan is the general assignment reporter covering Chatham County municipalities. Reach her at nguan@gannett.com or on Twitter @nancyguann.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Port Wentworth new economic development director wants balanced growth