Economic Factors affecting the St. Simons Island, Georgia Real Estate Market

Located along the I-95 transportation corridor, which links major metropolitan areas, such as Boston, New York, and Washington, D.C., approximately 65 miles North of Jacksonville, Florida, and 75 miles South of Savannah, Georgia, St. Simons Island and the Golden Isles are easily accessed by daily jet service through ASA, the "Delta Connection."  The Glynco Jetport provides an 8,000-foot runway, with precision approach for all weather conditions.  St. Simons Island and Jekyll Island each operate public airfields with accommodation and complete service for private/corporate aircraft.  Two Class A railway lines, CSX and Norfolk Southern also serve the area.  An AMTRAK terminal is located approximately forty miles west in Jesup, Georgia.

In addition to its popularity as a vacation and retirement area, St. Simons Island and the out-lying areas of the mainland also serve as up-scale "bedroom" communities for the Brunswick employment centers.  Glynn County has experienced accelerated growth in population in the past decade, due in part to the location of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center at Glynco, the selection of Kings Bay as the East Coast Trident Submarine Base, and the development of Colonel's Island as an industrial port of entry.

Table 1-1 illustrates population growth for Glynn County during the last three decades and projected future growth for 2020.

TABLE 1-1: POPULATION GROWTH, GLYNN COUNTY

               YEAR                     POPULATION                     ANNUAL CHANGE

                 1970                              50,528                                                

                 1980                              54,981                                            +09%

                 1990                              62,496                                            +14%

                 2000                              67,880                                             +9%

                 2004                              71,960                                             +6%

                 2020                              86,140                                            +20%

Source: National Decision Systems
Note: 2004/2020 figures are estimated.

Population growth on St. Simons Island and in Glynn County will be primarily attributed to an influx of retirees and second home purchasers as the “baby-boomer” generation realizes its goal to relocate to the coast.  Recent census statistics indicate that 40% of adults age 45-65 will purchase a second home in the next decade.  Of these, 45% will choose to purchase within one hour’s driving time of the coast.  In addition, millions of affluent consumers aged 45-55 are anticipating future price increases and are purchasing coastal retirement homes now.  Because retirees are significant consumers of service-oriented products, such as legal, insurance, financial/investment products, real estate, medical and dental services, these business opportunities will grow in tandem with the retirement population and bring new residents to the area.  These factors should continue to exert pressure on vacant land stocks along the I-95 coastal corridor, as new housing is constructed in response to this extraordinary anticipated demand.

As evidence of the growth in real estate development already taking place in Glynn County, the gross tax digest is currently listed at $3.7 billion, up from $2.28 billion five years ago.

New residents are introduced to the area through economic and tourism development, both of which are being actively promoted by both the government and the private sectors.  According to research conducted by the Travel industries Association of America, “more than 1.1 million people visit St. Simons Island and the Golden Isles each year, generating more than $452 million in direct and indirect spending with local businesses.”   The Brunswick Glynn County Visitors Bureau estimates that for every primary job created through tourism, three secondary jobs are also directly attributable to the influx of tourism dollars.  The Walker Cup golf tournament, held in the summer of 2001 at Ocean Forest Golf Club on Sea Island, Georgia, exposed first-hand St. Simons Island and the Golden Isles to an extraordinary selection of affluent national and international visitors.  In addition, the media coverage of this event further promoted the area to prospective visitors and future residents.  The Warburg Cup events held on St. Simons Island in November 2002 and again in November 2003, along with the G-8 Economic Summit held on Sea Island, focus the world’s eye on St. Simons Island and the Golden Isles of Georgia.

A number of construction projects to take advantage of this increasing international exposure of the area, are planned or underway.  On the mainland, improvement along U. S. Highway 17 will continue with the construction of Liberty Shipyard Park, which is expected to begin in the spring of 2006.  The park and boat launch will be located beneath the north tower of the new Sidney Lanier Bridge and will provide Brunswick’s only public boatlift and ramp.  According to Artie Jones III, City Director of Community and Economic Development, “The quarter mile site sits on the South Brunswick River, adjacent to the old shipyards where the Liberty Ships were built by workers during World War II.”  Plans for the park include an observation deck and boardwalk, picnic and playground areas, restrooms, and a floating dock.  Part of the original bridge will remain for use as a fishing pier.  Eventually, a 1.6-mile bike and jogging trail along Lanier Boulevard is planned to link the part to Howard Coffin Park.

Sea Island Company is spending an estimated $200 million in capital improvements to refurbish The Cloister with 51 new guest rooms, new fitness center, beach club, dining rooms and lounges.  Epworth By The Sea, a Methodist-based retreat, is spending $6.8 million on a new 71-room lodge along the shores of the Frederica River.  A new $108 million retirement community, Marshes Edge, is under construction on St. Simons Island, while the Southeast Georgia Health System is adding a 168,000 square foot Ambulatory Care Center to the existing Brunswick campus.  The excellent medical facilities that are now available will continue to attract retirees for whom access to medical care is a high priority.

The rapid expansion of the tourism industry and the influx of vacation/second home purchasers have created new retail opportunities in the primary goods, service and medical industries both on St. Simons Island and in the Golden Isles.  For most residents, all daily necessities, and most luxuries, can now be obtained from providers based in the area.  Retail growth has continued to expand over the past decade.  On the mainland, over 25,000 square feet of retail and office space has been added to the area immediately surrounding the Colonial Glynn Place Mall in the last three years.  In addition to this retail expansion, national retailers like Home Depot, Circuit City, Bed, Bath and Beyond and T. J. Maxx have located outlets near the Mall.  A Super-Target and Lowe’s Home Improvement Store are slated to begin construction on their new locations soon.  Also near the Spur 25 corridor, expansion continues northwest of Interstate 95.  This trend will continue with the construction of a new Holiday Inn and the planned Steamship Village amusement park.  Each of these new enterprises brings employment, real estate tax, and sales tax revenue to the area.

TABLE 1-2: MAJOR EMPLOYERS, GLYNN COUNTY

                    NAME                                                    NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

               Federal Law Enforcement Training Center                     2,300

               Sea Island Company                                                        1,800

               Glynn County Board of Education                                  1,700

               SG Regional Health Center                                             1,200

               Koch Cellulose (formerly Georgia Pacific)                       930

               Jekyll Island Authority                                                      850

               Glynn County Government                                               826        

               Rich-SeaPak Corporation                                                  725

               Wal Mart Superstores                                                        570

               King and Prince Seafood Corporation                              520

               Jekyll Island Authority                                                      380

               City of Brunswick                                                             372

               Hercules                                                                            356

               Gulfstream Aerospace                                                       250

               International Auto Processing                                           200

               Source: Chamber of Commerce Relocation Guide 2005

According to the Georgia Department of Labor, Glynn County and a surrounding five-county area, consisting of McIntosh, Camden, Brantley, Ware, and Wayne Counties, provide a diverse labor market of approximately 100,000 persons.  Table 1-2 lists the current major employers in Glynn County.  While tourism is the largest category employer in the county, accounting for over 3,500 jobs in Glynn County, the data in Table 1-2 suggests significant economic diversity among employment categories, particularly between manufacturing and service industries.

A substantial number of technology industries are based in Glynn County, including Gulfstream Aircraft, Georgia Pacific, and two major seafood-processing entities, Rich-SeaPak and King and Prince Seafood.  One unique service-oriented company, MAP International, distributes donated and purchased medicines and medical supplies to hospitals, clinics, disaster scenes, and relief camps in over 100 countries.  One of the area’s most important economic assets, the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) has expanded its role following 9/11 and the war on terrorism.  According to Connie Patrick, FLETC Director, “In fiscal year, the center will spend $32.5 million of its budget for new facilities and programs directly related to terrorism.”  FLETC is an interagency partnership of 81 federal agencies that provides law enforcement training for more than 44,000 students annually, approximately 69% of all trainees nationally.  Officers and agents travel to Glynn County from all over the world to train, while the facility rotates its staff of instructors every 3 years, approximately.  This influx of students and instructors provide housing opportunities in both rental and sales for the Glynn County area.  A recent study of the economic impact of FLETC on the Glynn County economy, sponsored by the Chamber Development Authority and others, amounts to an astounding one billion dollars each year.

TABLE 1-3: BUSINESS BY TYPE, GLYNN COUNTY, 2005

                    NAME                                                    NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

               Retail Business                                                                  821

               Finance/Insurance/Service                                         1117

               Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing/Mining                    69

               Construction                                                                      515

               Manufacturing/Transportation/Warehousing     296

               Wholesale Trade                                                               127        

               Public Administration                                                 121

               Arts/Entertainment/Recreation                                58

               Healthcare/Social Services                                       393

               Accommodations/Food Service                                 407

               Real Estate/Rental/Leasing                                        191

               Professional/Scientific/Technical                             340

               Total                                                                                4,475

Source: Georgia Department of Labor, 4th Quarter 2000

Based on a five-year trend, both St. Simons Island and Glynn County have experienced steady, sustained growth in income and a decline in unemployment.  The growth in new residential and commercial construction activity has contributed to the high employment rates experienced by the area in the last five years.  Skilled laborers from Brantley, Ware, Wayne and McIntosh Counties are drawn into the area each day to support the expansion of commercial and residential construction in Glynn County. 

As competition for available workers increases due to high employment rates, wages and salaries are increasing correspondingly.  The median family income in Glynn County rose 30.4% between 1989 and 1998.  In 1998, Glynn County had the fourth highest median family income in Georgia, at $42,500.  Glynn County is number-one in per capita income outside of Atlanta, with per capita income of $29,511, a record that it has held consistently.  Unemployment has also maintained as astounding 3.4% rate during this period.  “We are no longer the best kept secret on the world stage,” commented Woody Woodside, President of the Brunswick-Golden Isles Chamber of Commerce.  This economic diversity, coupled with an increasing influx of retirees and the significant expansion of the Port of Brunswick, is expected to fuel continued population growth on St. Simons Island and in Glynn County throughout this decade.

TABLE 1-3: HOUSEHOLD INCOME, GLYNN COUNTY

YEAR                                         HOUSEHOLD INCOME           

                        1990                                                          $36,344    

                        1999                                                          $58,544                            

                        2004                                                          $65,716

                        2008                                                          $76,616

                                   Source: Georgia Department of Community Affairs, 2004

2008 Figure is an Estimate

The completion of the new Sidney Lanier Bridge, with 185 feet of clearance over the Turtle River, and the deepening of the harbor to 36 feet are expected to bring an additional economic boost to Glynn County.  According to Georgia Ports Authority officials quoted in a recent article in the 2005 Edition of the Chamber of Commerce Relocation Guide, “Brunswick’s proximity to major U. S. markets and cost savings in transportation to dealerships in conjunction with excellent auto processing services, played a major role in the $100 million the Authority has spent on upgrading facilities at the Port of Brunswick over the past three years.”  In 2003 alone, the local port handled more than 314,000 auto units, representing most major import models.  These statistics make the Port of Brunswick the fourth largest auto port on the East Coast.

According to Doug Marchland in an October 2002 interview with The Florida Times Union, “with a new bridge and deeper shipping channel, the port of Brunswick should skip over Jacksonville and Baltimore to become the second largest auto importer on the Atlantic within ten years.”  In the summer of 2002, Porsche Cars of North America selected Brunswick as its new Southeast import distribution center and Volvo Cars of North America announced it would move an estimated 30,000 vehicles through Brunswick annually, according to Marchland.  Cars and machinery are only two of the products showing an increase in port traffic.  Since January 2002, the Port of Brunswick also moved more than 1.5 million tons of bulk cargo, a 6.3 percent annual increase from 2001. Bulk tonnage through the Colonels Island Agri-Bulk facility was up 128,934 tons to nearly 600,000, a 28 percent increase.  Diverse products such as grains, feed grain minerals, wood pulp, linerboard, plywood, paper goods, gypsum, limestone and petroleum products are processed in Brunswick at three modern deepwater terminals.    According to Bill Shipp, in a 2004 article published by Georgia’s Coastal Illustrated, “Georgia’s ports will be the most significant factor in economic development in the state during the coming decade, offering a huge boost in employment, income and related development in the southeast coastal areas.”

Eight steamship lines, including Wallenius-Wilhelmsen, one of the world’s largest car carriers, call on the Port of Brunswick and more than ten trucking lines provide transportation services.  Two class-A rail providers accommodate 200 hopper cars.

In addition to the port expansion, the Glynn County Airport Commission recently opened the new passenger terminal at the Brunswick Golden Isles Airport.  The new 33,500 square foot Mediterranean style terminal facility is part of a $10.3 million airport improvement package.  The expansion is fueled by continued growth in passenger traffic, with 80,000 passengers boarding in 2004.  At McKinnon Airport on St. Simons Island, the new Gruber Aviation hangar offers 30,000 square feet of storage and office space in a state-of-the-art facility.  The executive hangar includes 10 private suites that range from 425 t0 2500 square feet, a full-size kitchen, gathering room and patio.

In summary, all of the Golden Isles, St. Simons Island and Glynn County should continue to offer increasing levels of opportunity for retail, office, commercial and residential real estate development, reflecting the excess of demand relative to supply anticipated during the next decade.  St. Simons Island represents an area of continuing population expansion from retirees, corporate transfers, and families that present a number of different opportunities for successful real estate endeavors.  Projected income per household for the next five years show a rapid trend upward, while employment opportunities will exceed the available labor force.  These factors indicate that the area’s population will continue to mature and become more affluent in future years.  These market trends validate the viability of the St. Simons Island real estate market.