2006 Man of the Year



VALDOSTA — The South Georgia Business Magazine named Albert Slone of ASA Engineering the 2006 Man of the Year. Nominated by The Valdosta Daily Times because of his dedication to downtown development, Slone received a trophy to commemorate his award.

Slone moved his firm to 105 W. Central Ave. in Valdosta’s historic downtown almost 10 years ago and changed the named to ASA Engineering and Surveying, Inc. While it started as a one-man company in 1988, it has grown to employ a full staff of professional engineers, surveyors, drafts people, soil scientists, environmental technologists and clerical employees.

Though he did not anticipate it, his passion for downtown development began to grow after the relocation. He became very involved in the revitalization efforts and has participated in numerous projects.

“I lived in Lakeland, 20 miles away, and remember coming to Valdosta on Saturdays. It was so exciting when Valdosta was the retail hub of the area,” Slone explained. He continued describing the aspects of downtown that he loves the most, “I’ve always loved it, but when I moved the office down here I saw how diverse it is, how connected the people are and how exciting life can be — that’s what is wonderful.”

He said upon relocating his company, business began to flourish and he realized that downtown was in need of economic restructuring. He, along with a collective of downtown enthusiasts, began pushing the revitalization efforts. Slone even chose to move his residence to the historic area.

Slone has been involved with numerous projects to stimulate economic growth. The Firm, a small membership gym downtown, is one of these. He’s also assisted in the development of The Aquinas Center, a community center that offers free fitness classes, and The Bleu Café, a new restaurant with an eclectic combination of tasty dishes.

Slone was a major player in the reopening of The Sportsman. Stan White and David Cook joined Slone in renovating and reopening what used to be the hottest downtown hangout in the 1950s and 1960s. They peeled back paint, stripped the ceiling, replaced the floors and salvaged a collection of old photos depicting local sports heroes. The club now has a brand new look, created from many years of renovations, giving it a unique feel.

Another ongoing project is the renovation of the old Goodwill building into a French market. The new facility will have spaces for many different types of vendors including artists, books, accessories, live music, refreshments and a full-service frame shop. Slone expects the market to open in early October.

He is also involved in the renovation of the old Southern Salvage building that will be converted into 13 residential condominiums and a cooperatively owned whole-foods grocery store. Construction should be complete in approximately one year and there is already a waiting list for residents.

Slone told a writer for South Georgia Business that the idea to revitalize the downtown area caught on slow, but has really picked up in the last year. He credits establishments like The Bistro, 306 North and especially Hildegard’s for bringing an eclectic combination of people who are excited about revitalization.

In the many years his company has been located downtown, he has watched as people have come together with everyone’s best interests in mind to build an area that supports diversity and encourages interaction between neighbors.

“It’s like a village,” Slone always says. “One that is full of like-minded, passionate, caring people. The creativity and energy among these people is amazing and everyone is working together as a whole to improve the area.”

A humble man, Slone isn’t sure why he was chosen to stand out among these people, but he is honored to be awarded the 2006 Man of the Year.



2006 Agribusiness of the Year



LAKELAND — Patten Seed Company, a well-known company in the sod industry, was named the 2006 Agribusiness of the Year by South Georgia Business magazine. The Valdosta Daily Times nominated this company that represents longevity and success in agribusiness.

In 1893, R.L. Patten and his brother, W.F. Patten, opened a general merchandise store in Lakeland. In 1947, R.L.’s son, Lawson Patten, opened a seed-cleaning business in his father’s cotton warehouse.

That same year, Lawson’s daughter, Nell, married Bill Roquemore, a B-26 pilot in World War II. He helped the company grow into a thriving operation with 350 employees at 25 facilities in four states.

Incorporated in 1954, Patten Seed is now a leader in the turfgrass, sod and seed industry. It handles planting and contract maintenance of golf courses and, at one time, the agricultural firm owned 12 18-hole courses. It boasts more than 15,000 acres of grass seed and sod farm land throughout Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina and also operates a pecan business and raises container-grown nursery trees.

An article in South Georgia Business explained that the company spent more than 50 years researching and perfecting its products and has grown to become one of the oldest and largest growers of warm-season grass seed and sod. As one of its first initiatives, Patten Seed Company pioneered the production, harvesting and processing of Centipede grass seed. Since, it has managed thousands of acres of this grass for seed production.

Patten Seed Company sod can be found at Disney World in Orlando, Fla., and at the Atlantis Resort located on Paradise Island in the Bahamas. It can also be found in places like Sparks in Cook County. Its variety of locations shows the company’s versatility and its long-time success proves that providing good products and quality customer service will take you to the top.

“It’s simple,” Ben Copeland Sr., president of Patten Seed, said. “We treat our customers and employees in the same way we like to be treated.”

Copeland has worked with the company for 36 continuous years and before that during summer jobs in high school and college. He has experienced Patten Seed’s success at all levels.

“I think the quality of products and service is always excellent. There are a lot of companies in our business, but we try to do a better job with quality products and service than our competition does,” Copeland explained. “We are a 52-year-old company in our present form, but actually the legacy dates back over a hundred years. This is what all our leaders over all the years have focused on: Giving the customer a good value while treating customers and employees as they would want to be treated.”

This legacy recently caught the eye of another awarding organization. Patten Seed was honored as the Cox Century Award winner at the 2006 Georgia Family Business of the Year Awards ceremony in May. The Cox Century Award honors successful Georgia-based businesses that have been in business for at least 100 years. Patten Seed and other winners were chosen by representatives of the Cox Family Enterprise Center, based at the Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University.

“Patten Seed has truly evolved and that is why they chose us for the Cox Century Award,” Nell Roquemore explained in a recent article in The Valdosta Daily Times. “We are just really excited and we feel so honored.”

While operations are important to a company’s success, Patten Seed must also give credit to the area. The sandy-loam soils in Lakeland are beneficial and the company has found that sod grown here will consistently root and thrive when laid on other soil types.

Focus on the customer, quality products and good production conditions have driven Patten Seed Company to many years of success, which in turn stimulates South Georgia’s economic environment. It’s this long-term success that led South Georgia Business magazine to name Patten Seed the 2006 Agri-business of the Year.