Cordele, GA (Albany, Blackshear: housing, rent, vacation)

[movingmaybe]

Hi, can anyone give me an honest breakdown of the good, bad and ugly? Online I'm not finding much that is encouraging as far as poverty, crime, economy but my husband who visited Cordele recently insists that the town is in much better shape than the info I've found online.

We have small children so I am concerned about crime and the school system. Any other perks or downsides to living there that I need to know about?

Thanks!

[Hyun-Soo]

Seems like a fairly progressive town to me...
Compared to the towns around the area.

There seemed to be a lot of restaurants and stores for its size too.
It only has about 11,000 people and seemed to have enough stores for 30,000 people.

Lake Blackshear nearby is gorgeous and they have a fish restaurant nearby.

[movingmaybe]

Is the area in general run down and decaying, or on the upswing? Are there any towns within a 10-20 mile radius that are better?

[Blue Eagle]

I drive through Cordele occasionally, but have never spent much time there. The area near Lake Blackshear and the Georgia Veterans State Park and golf course is the nicer area. It is about ten miles west of Cordele. I am sure there are a lot of good houses in this area and crime would not be a problem.

Otherwise, Cordele is a small farm town that benefits from having the Interstate highway run right beside it. It does have a good farmers market with lots of good stuff in the summertime.

Cordele Farmers' Market

[miltysmum]

I think your impressions are based on where you are coming from. I'm from up north and continually addressed as a Yankee. Racism is severe and very disturbing how deep rooted is still is. Building friendships is very difficult unless you are from the South. Cordele is very clickish. Albany is somewhat better. Cordele is a dying town. Applebees has backed out twice even though the town is right on I-75. No good restaurants nor grocery stores. I have to drive 35 miles one way to get decent shopping and I live in Lake Blackshear Plantation out in the county near the lake. Yes, Lake Blackshear and surrounding area is wonderful. Housing is very reasonable when compared to other warm climate states and much much cheaper than up north, but a house is not everything.

Yes, farmers market is great but only when items are in season. Schools are NOT good although some seem not to complain. Private school is available K-12. Parts of the area are very dangerous. The poverty is heartbreaking with no help in sight. Littering is horrible and the local chamber, the Crisp County Board of Commissioners don't seem to care. No enforcement of codes, hundreds of abandon buildings that are a dangerous (not just an eye sore). If you go outside the City, no leash laws. Dogs wander aimlessly.

I wish I could move tomorrow. Oh, golf is cheap too.

[movingmaybe]

Miltysmum, you currently live in Cordele? What do you mean by decent shopping, do you mean there is nothing but WalMart? Also, online Albany sounds terrible (based on some of the other threads in this forum), is it not as bad as it's made out to be? Do you send your children to a private school? Also, Lake Blackshear...is it overrun with tourists and vacationers, or is it sort of a hideway private area?

Any info greatly appreciated!

[Blue Eagle]

Originally Posted by miltysmum

No good restaurants nor grocery stores.

Not true. There are lots of good places to eat around Cordele. The Daphne Lodge is a very good restaurant. Another place that comes to mind is El Girasol.

And for grocery shopping in addition to the Wal-Mart Supercenter, there is Stripling's for all types of specialty items.

Striping's General Store

It is true that a small town in a rural area like Cordele does not the amenities that a large urban area would have, but I would imagine most people with any common sense would not expect that it would.

[miltysmum]

Blue Eagle, how can you judge Cordele, when you don't even live here. Daphne's is good but expensive and not a "family retaurant." Striplings General Store is in a brand new building but is slightly larger than a convenience store. Prices are very high and meat is not always fresh. For 11,000 people, I would hope my town would have a decent grocery store and decent schools and decent places to shop for common items like clothes, get good service (lacking), and enforce rules. Littering is terrible here, condemned buildings abound, poverty is high.

Anyone with common sense knows that to know a community, you have to live there.

[Blue Eagle]

I have made no claims as to knowing the community. But I have eaten in Cordele many times and have found lots of good places to eat there. As for inexpensive family restaurants in Cordele, there is Golden Corral Family Steak House, Cutter's Buffet and a Cracker Barrel.

I am fond of Smoakies BBQ. They serve some great ribs.

For a small town, Cordele has lots of good restaurants.

[Boydawg]

Originally Posted by miltysmum

Blue Eagle, how can you judge Cordele, when you don't even live here. Daphne's is good but expensive and not a "family retaurant." Striplings General Store is in a brand new building but is slightly larger than a convenience store. Prices are very high and meat is not always fresh. For 11,000 people, I would hope my town would have a decent grocery store and decent schools and decent places to shop for common items like clothes, get good service (lacking), and enforce rules. Littering is terrible here, condemned buildings abound, poverty is high.

Anyone with common sense knows that to know a community, you have to live there.

You are 100% correct