Alpharetta, Georgia

4 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 3, ISSUE 6 Gilvin says. “We have tremendous fiber optic networks in Alpharetta. We have one of the most highly educated technical workforces in the nation, and we’ve got a very safe community. That balance of having both really makes Alpharetta unique.” Today, Alpharetta is known as the ‘Technology City of the South’. It’s a place where you can get the small-town rural ambiance of quaint shops and horse farms right alongside a fast-moving, high-tech industry akin to Silicon Valley. “What really attracted me to Alpharetta is going back to that small-town feel,” says Jason Perez, CEO and founder of Yardz – part of the city’s tech incubator, Tech Alpharetta. “When you think of technology, all of a sudden you think skyscrapers and big buildings and the Bostons and New Yorks, the Silicon Valleys, San Francisco, whatever it might be. Here, you can still go down and eat brunch at a family-owned restaurant, walk down the street with your kids and feel safe. I’ve been all over the world and to almost 50 states and ALPHARETTA , GEORGI A Alpharetta truly is a diamond amongst gems.” The city is home to more than 700 technology companies, large and small, including AT&T, LexisNexis, ADP, and Global Payments. “The technology in the city is one of the strongest in the country,” says Lance Morsell, the city’s Economic Development Manager. “It has about 3.3 times as many tech jobs as the average American city, which puts it right in line with Silicon Valley, which has about 3.4 times as many tech jobs as the nation as a whole. We are right there with some of the leading technology hubs in the U.S.” In 2013, the city founded a technology commission called Tech Alpharetta to attract new technology companies to the area. Today, it’s an independent non-profit organization that includes a start-up incubator, a strategic board, and tech events. The incubator is home to more than 50 start-ups, which are offered office space, mentorship, educational programs, workshops