Criminal Defense Attorney in Port Wentworth, GA.

NFI Industries' Savannah transload facility, in partnership with Georgia Ports Authority, seeks to save time and money with this first of its kind facility in Port Wentworth. The partnership, and facility, which helps to reduce costs, increase inventory flow and supply chain flexibility is also a mark of the Ports growth in the last decade.

The Ports have grown about 7% consistently over the last 10-15 years, according to Vice President of Sales and Marketing for GPA Flavio Batista. It is the third busiest gateway in the country, the second busiest in the east coast and has and will continue to expand in the future, Batista said.

"As the port continues to grow its capacity - in berth and in yard capacity - NFI is a great partner for us," Batista said. "As we grow, we bring more containers to the port and customers are looking at getting their containers in and out and getting their products closer to the final customer, and this NFI building will make it happen."

International shipping containers are taken from their ships at the Garden City Terminal to the transloading facility at NFI's request, before being taken less than a mile down the road to the facility. Once unloaded, NFI employees inspect, sorts, and loads freight to their designated domestic locations.

They're then loaded on trailers to be distributed across the U.S.

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"It's very fast, very efficient to get to the inbound containers, because we're really close to the port," said President of Port Services for NFI Aaron Brown. "On the outbound side, we're translating 20 foot or 40 foot containers into 53-foot trailers, so we can get three inbound containers into two outbound containers. This building is built for capacity and for speed."

The facility has been running for about two months now, and Brown said they're still getting fully ramped up with about 100-250 employees.

"It's not unrealistic to think that we could have, five, six, seven, 800-plus employees working in the building once we get fully utilized," Brown said. "It's built to be seven days a week, 52 weeks a year, so we're really excited about the capacity to not just support our customers but to support job growth opportunities for Savannah."

GPA CEO and President Griff Lynch spoke at the ribbon-cutting Tuesday morning, thanking everyone who had made an investment to the conception and completion of the facility.

"We're happy to be partners with you, and we're looking forward to many, many years to grow together," Lynch said.

Sidney Brown, CEO of NFI also spoke at the end of the ceremony.

"We're ready, we're excited for the future," Brown said. "We want you all to be a part of this incredible journey as we look forward to the chapters ahead with NFI, GPA and the greater Savannah community."

Destini Ambus is the general assignment reporter for Chatham County municipalities for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach her at dambus@gannett.com

Effingham County native and country music singer Hannah Dasher said she's been feeling a little homesick − so she's making her way back to Port Wentworth this weekend for the 12th annual Oyster Roast, BBQ and music festival.

"When I do get to come, it's never for very long," Dasher said. "The band is going to come and I'll at least get to see my mom and squeeze her and my grandmother, whom I love so much."

Dasher, who's headlining the festival will preform at 7 p.m. on Saturday, at 7224 GA-21. The festival is from 1 to 9 p.m., with the oysters being served at 3 p.m. If you get there early, and are a little hungry, there will be food, beverages and souvenirs available to purchase at individual vendors.

The entire event, however, is free and will honor veterans with the singing of the national anthem, a special salute and a military appreciation tent. Effingham County native Luke Lander will also be preforming and there will be fireworks display at the end of the night.

When the event first started in 2011, it was originally just a small after-hours market for businesses and the community, and ended up becoming so popular that it continued to grow to the large event it is today.

April Cameron, the newly-appointed CEO of the chamber, is excited for the event on Saturday, because it will be one of her first opportunities to interact with community members and businesses.

"I want to say that there were a couple of thousand people that came last year," Cameron said. "I think I'm going to have a great opportunity to talk with people in the city and hopefully surrounding areas too."

Dasher is excited to be welcomed back to her home, the place that influenced so much of what she does now. Her grandmother is a lot of the inspiration behind her viral cooking TikToks that lead to her exposure and amassing a following of over 1 million people on the platform. Her father influenced her love of artists like Jerry Reed, Burt Reynolds, while her father influenced an appreciation for 1970s rock 'n' roll.

"Growing up in Savannah and the low country, that is the mecca of old Southern culture," Dasher said. "I went to the Savannah Civic Center to see my first concert and it was Alan Jackson, and I think Savannah is perfect because you have the best of all worlds right there, with the farmland, the beach and the city, so I think all of that really impacted and shaped me."

Dasher is an independent artist based in Nashville, headlining her first tour this year. She released an album on Oct. 20, and said that there's something for everyone and hopes that people come out and see the show on Saturday.

It is recommended that children wear socks and closed toed shoes to participate in the kids' zone activities and bring earplugs for the fireworks show. Leashed pets are welcome to attend the event.

“We are grateful to the City of Port Wentworth for their continued support, which allows us to host this popular event each year,” said Board Chairwoman, Trisha Boyett in a press release. “We welcome everyone to join us and enjoy a good time and an exciting concert and fireworks with the members of the Port Wentworth community!”

Cameron also wanted to give special thanks to Boy Scout Troop 665, who helps with the oyster roasting.

Destini Ambus is the general assignment reporter for Chatham County municipalities for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach her at dambus@gannett.com

Public transportation could be accessible for Port Wentworth residents early next year.

Port Wentworth City Council unanimously approved an intergovernmental agreement between the city and the Chatham Area Transit Authority to extend existing route 3B to Port Wentworth in March 2024.

"This is a very big moment for the city," said City Manager Steve Davis on Thursday. "In the traffic congestion that the city has been facing for years, there's very limited that the staff can do at a local level, when you have state highways running through the city, but one of the things we can do is offer good alternatives for our commuters and residents that can pass through here."

The route will service stops up and down Highway 21, from Old Port Wentworth on S. Coastal Highway, the International Trade Parkway, Wood Meadow low-income housing, Rice Hope and I-95/August Road hotels, with 13 stops total.

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The stops are: two on Grange Road at Schneider Logistics; three on Crossgate at Port Wentworth Truck Turnaround, Amazon and Crossgate Logistics; the International Trade Parkway; one on Lakeside Boulevard at Magnola Boulevard and one on Market Boulevard at Publix.

Stops at Coastal Highway at Barnsley Road, the eastbound and westbound stops on Augusta Road at O'Leary; the westbound stop on Augusta Road at Coldbrook Station Circle, and an eastbound stop on Augusta Road at Cook Street are all subject to GDOT review and approval.

The route will be connected to a sister route, route 3, which serves the airport area.

"That will be connected at the Amazon stop, so Port Wentworth residents that go and stop at Amazon, can switch buses and go to the airport without driving their car and having to park at the airport," Davis said. "The proposal is a general fund funded project that is $400,000 funded annually starting next year."

CAT is also developing a micro transit pilot program with Georgia Tech, which would provide a reliable, call-a-ride service for residents. In the future, the micro transit service may be extended to Lake Shore and to the new Port Wentworth Park. The city and CAT will also work together in the future to explore autonomous buses for the new park.

The city will include funding in its annual general fund budget for expansion of services and will for pay for services provided up to the amount budgeted.

There will be two buses that run Monday-Sunday, every hour, from 6 a.m. until 10 p.m.

"I think this is going to help with congestion, get some cars off the road, as well as be something we can cross utilize with special events and things of that downtown," Davis said. "There's a lot of different things that we can do in the future as we develop."

Earlier, during the public comment portion, resident Georgia Benton said she liked the idea of there being a transit system, but there was no stop in between the hotels and Publix.

"There needs to be something in the Barren, Saussey, Coldbrook area because of the distance from the hotels to Publix," Benton said. "We need another stop in there."

Destini Ambus is the general assignment reporter for Chatham County municipalities for Savannah Morning News. You can reach her at dambus@gannett.com

A city marred by decades of unbalanced growth hires its first economic development director. James Touchton said he's committed to residents' quality of life.

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.

The Port Wentworth Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center has announced April Cameron as the organizations new chief executive officer.

Cameron is originally from Metter, Georgia and attended Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, where she completed an undergraduate degree in communication arts. She's been living in South Carolina for the past 17 years, and said she has been anticipating the day where she can move back to the south Georgia area.

"I'm really excited about the opportunity to work at the chamber," Cameron said. "I really enjoy economic development, recruiting businesses, promoting businesses, really enjoy that part of what this job is going to entail, and the tourism arm of the job as well."

Cameron joined the nonprofit sector in 2011, working for Meals on Wheels in community relations. She became the director of Strategic Markets at United Way in Anderson County, South Carolina due to her experience in fundraising, promotional initiatives and special events.

In 2018, she became the executive director of the Anderson Arts Center where she led operations and provided the vision for a 33,000-square-foot member-driven arts center with three galleries, two classrooms and a pottery studio.

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"This is really exciting not only just for our organization but, for Port Wentworth as a whole," said Board of Directors Chair Trisha Boyett. "To have someone in the president and CEO role that has a lot of experience and will be able to come in and really hit the ground running as she comes in. The board really feels like that Cameron is the perfect person for the position to move it forward."

The chamber serves small businesses and large corporations, and is the primary tourism and economic development organization for Port Wentworth.

Cameron's appointment comes after a few difficult years for the chamber of commerce. About three years ago, Port Wentworth City Council decided they were going to quit funding tourism activities for the city, so the chamber stopped receiving funding. The city held on to the reserve funds for a couple of years, according to Boyett.

“This was the time we were coming out of COVID so businesses and the tourism community were struggling to keep their doors open. The fact that the city administration of that time did not support these businesses or the Chamber of Commerce, was crushing”.

Boyett said the chamber never shut down, but the board of directors wanted to make sure that everything was back up and running properly before bringing on the right person to lead the chamber into the next decade.

"Since we have a new council and a new city manager it has been nothing but positive moving forward," Boyett said.

Destini Ambus is the general assignment reporter for Chatham County municipalities for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach her at dambus@gannett.com.