Top Cities in Georgia with the most potential

[masonbauknight]

Originally Posted by kyle19125

Does Savannah have the outlying real estate or infill opportunities? I was under the impression its more or less tapped out.

The posters Beach and Uptown hit the nail on the head: Savannah has vast suburbs and exurbs away from coastal wetlands -- although "a 1 million plus" metro area isn't realistic for any 2nd-tier GA city for quite a while. That said, metro Savannah is on a much higher level than either Macon and Columbus in population, prestige, and economic development. It was booming even before recent announcements of the new auto plant and allied industries. Metro Savannah might not get to one million soon, but it is on track to become Georgia's true Second City by the early 2030s.

[lookingtoreloc78]

I can’t really say. I don’t comment on places I haven’t been to in years.

[testa50]

I-14 would easily take Macon's prominence up a notch. It could easily take quite a bit of logistics and warehousing out of Atlanta: Macon would become the preferred location to stage loads headed to Dallas and Houston.

Savannah and Brunswick are the real standouts though. Continued investment in coastal recreation and the massive growth in the ports of Savannah and Brunswick. Savannah tourism. Hyundai plant driving employment and development far inland. It all depends on the hocus-pocus of MSA/CSA boundaries, but 1 million in "the area" is reasonable. It will look more like Florida urbanization, with weak downtowns and suburban sprawl separated by lots of undevelopable area.

Savannah has also made great strides in terms of being an urban city. The Plant Riverside district is one of the better urban redevelopment projects I've seen anywhere in the US, and gives that whole side of the city a much more European feel. I wish the city could be a bit bolder about some true urban density in other areas near the historic center (or Hutchinson Island, which feels totally underutilized), but it kind of is what it is.

[oobanks]

In my opinion, Macon and Savannah win this battle. Macon with it's urban bones, central location and freeway system takes it over the top. If it can get it's riverfront in order, bring in some major players downtown, get some redevelopment in old blighted neighborhoods, and a decent mass transit system that runs seemless with Warner Robins as one system, i could see some potential. Savannah being a coastal city does it on its own.

[HotWill29]

None have been to Augusta lately obviously. But you all are just like the rest of the Americans who coat tag onto the first bad thing about AUG. The population there is closer to 1 million more than any other city mentioned but we expect this behavior coming from outsiders. If a 15-story Embassy Suites Hotel, New James Brown Arena or Cypress Shoals isn’t enough to say Augusta will be a game changer as well then maybe I-14 Fort Gordon bound will be lol