Ron Foster

In 1996, The Peyton Anderson Foundation enabled a group of visionary corporate and civic leaders to establish a non-profit, public-private partnership called NewTown Macon. The goal was to restore and re-establish downtown Macon as a thriving center of economic, cultural, and social activity. For 25 years, NewTown has been providing Macon with leadership, planning, and support toward this goal. The community has responded by investing over $842 million to improve downtown. Today, NewTown Macon continues to make strategic investments that improve downtown. Since 2016, NewTown Macon has purchased and rehabilitated 7 buildings, adding 69 lofts and 12 storefronts to the downtown market. Additionally, NewTown Macon launched the Business Improvement District, NewTown Loans, Middle Georgia’s first CDFI designated by the IRS Treasury, and absorbed the city of Macon’s Main Street program. NewTown’s comprehensive approach to downtown development has resulted in 80% storefront occupancy, 94% loft occupancy, and 900,000+ annual event attendance.