Downtown Augusta businesses anxiously wait after weekend shooting

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – After a recent weekend shoot in Augustabusinesses say there's still plenty to look forward to downtown.

Now, businesses and city leaders hope foot traffic continues downtown.

“We want to be part of community conversations. We always want to look for opportunities to continue to make our city better and more attractive,” said Bennish Brown, President and CEO of Destination Augusta.

Attractive not only in the appearance of the city, but also in its safety, so that people want to visit it and come back.

“We’re excited every day we come here. This is an opportunity to fulfill one of our core responsibilities which is to recruit leisure travelers and recruit groups,” he said.

They say there is a lot to look forward to and city leaders say there will be increased patrols in the downtown area throughout the summer.

“We still have a lot to be excited about. Groups come here, about 25,000 people for lots of different things, religious conferences. We organize industry conferences and conventions, and even meetings. And on top of that, when you think about the things that happen all the time in the city, which is really the heart of our community here,” Brown said.

People can look forward to events such as Marked Saturday, Joe Fest, Camp Soul City, Juneteenth celebrations and much more.

“Augusta is just made for these kinds of fun events, things for families, things for people of all ages,” he said.

Other officers were seen patrolling the area to keep everyone safe.

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