Where is most of the growth happening in GA outside of ATL (Sandy Springs: costs, military)

[yerocal]

Originally Posted by chinaberry25

Hey Valdosta, while you are bragging about retail for your city, you forgot the biggest thing you have and most people in the state of Georgia do not know this. Valdosta has the largest sawmill in the state of Georgia. Georgia's biggest crop is forest products and most of it is produced in South Georgia, not Atlanta. $20 billion into the state alone. Without the forest industry in the state it would not be much. But you will lose Moody after the war dies down. Georgia did not go Obama and Moody and probably Warner Robins are both gone. Albany Marines will probably stay because Dougherty County voted for Obama. Be prepared. It is all politics. But maybe all the towns will return like it was during the 1950's and I loved it. Very little crime and slow moving.

LMAO........................................you're funny

[southgeorgia]

Originally Posted by chinaberry25

Hey Valdosta, while you are bragging about retail for your city, you forgot the biggest thing you have and most people in the state of Georgia do not know this. Valdosta has the largest sawmill in the state of Georgia. Georgia's biggest crop is forest products and most of it is produced in South Georgia, not Atlanta. $20 billion into the state alone. Without the forest industry in the state it would not be much. But you will lose Moody after the war dies down. Georgia did not go Obama and Moody and probably Warner Robins are both gone. Albany Marines will probably stay because Dougherty County voted for Obama. Be prepared. It is all politics. But maybe all the towns will return like it was during the 1950's and I loved it. Very little crime and slow moving.

i certainly didn't think i was bragging or gloating; i'm just providing information about the city.

if our sawmill is the largest in the state, that is news to me. it is not the largest employer here; i'm not sure its even in the top ten.

moody AFB, south ga medical center, and valdosta state univ. are the top 3 employers. beyond that, its the school system and other government agencies and factories.

i have stated somewhere in one of these threads that i think moody AFB will close in a few years, but how the state voted will have nothing to do with it. it is one of the smaller af bases and its personnel and equipment could easily be moved somewhere else. it is currently the home to the a-10 flying tigers, and also the air force's only search & rescue wing. it has served various missions; its been the home to fighter wings (f-4's, f-16's, etc. . ), and before the last BRAC, it was the air force's pilot training base. every pilot in the air force came through valdosta.


as for lee county being the fastest growing area, its not the fastest growing in percentage. also, the lee-dougherty county area is not really growing; the white people from dougherty are simply moving over into lee county. that's not growth, just relocation within the same area.

[pickleswanson]

According to documents at NFESC they actually have plans to not only keep Moody but expand its operations. It is basically just a re-org so new construction probably will not occur but the work force on base is supposed to grow if studies underway continue as projected.

It has also been mentioned without serious consideration to improve vehicular access from Moody to Valdosta, Kingsbay, and both interstates 75 & 95. Of course this involves so many gov agencies so progress is sure to be slow.

[southgeorgia]

Originally Posted by pickleswanson

According to documents at NFESC they actually have plans to not only keep Moody but expand its operations. It is basically just a re-org so new construction probably will not occur but the work force on base is supposed to grow if studies underway continue as projected.

It has also been mentioned without serious consideration to improve vehicular access from Moody to Valdosta, Kingsbay, and both interstates 75 & 95. Of course this involves so many gov agencies so progress is sure to be slow.

it would be great if they kept it;

however, i don't trust the gov't enough to believe anything they say.

the only construction that's been happening out there is some new hangers for the a-10's, and they just rebuilt the entrances to make them easier to barricade.

they rebuilt the highway going out there a couple of years ago. it was an extremely dangerous road and many airmen were getting killed; the AF threatened to shut the base if they didn't install a median in the 4-lane highway; before it was just a double-striped line separated the north/south traffic.

it would be nice if they kept it open for many years to come though.

[MantaRay]

I think the Augusta area is the quickest growing outside of metro Atlanta. There are several reasons this is happening. One is that Columbia County has gotten a lot of pub with its school system and as a result has seen a huge growth spurt. Another is the influx of retirees, especially with the humungous medical presence in the city and recreational opportunities (a big lake, the Augusta Canal which has a bike path running alongside it, and numerous parks). People big into horses/equestrian events flock to Aiken, SC which is 30 minutes outside of Augusta. Also, lots of Army folks retire here because of the amenties they get with Fort Gordon being here and the VA presence. Then there's proximity to both Atlanta and Charlotte, each being about a 2 hour drive. Retirees can day trip that and get the benefits of those cities' amenities, without the housing prices of those cities. Actually, the Augusta area has been one of few to see home price APPRECIATION during this nationwide housing crisis. And of course the Masters Golf Tournament each year brings visitors back again and again, ie. the city is talked about every year in the national media in a positive context for at least one week out of the year. South Carolina has OODLES of golf opportunities, and Augusta is on the SC border. There's all that and one of the nicest riverwalks in the nation (if you had a list of 5-10 best).

[lilmusket]

From my travels, the northeast part of Georgia seems to be growing the fastest. I guess it all depends if you consider that part of metro Atlanta, but I think once you get 60 miles out from Atlanta, you are outside metro Atlanta and simply in metro Georgia. The Gainesville area has grown immensely as well as Jackson County. I think all of the second tier metro areas are growing at about the same rate. Augusta is the second largest metro area outside of Atlanta though.
But if you count growth as a percentage rather than in absolute numbers, then I think north georgia in general is the fastest growing.. probably even faster than Atlanta. Those mountain towns are attracting people by the droves.

[lilmusket]

I think there is always a perception versus reality. You pose a question like this on these forums and everyone is going to say that their neck of the woods is growing fastest. But there is data, I am sure, than can say which areas of the state are growing fastest in terms of population, new construction, and in jobs. I guess it all depends on what "growth" you are talking about. I guess the easiest way to find out is to look at the census estimates county by county. My impression is that the fastest growing part of the state is northeast Georgia and The Mountains, but that could be just perception. The state overall is probably not going to be growing all that much in the next year because of the economy.

[mtigue]

Have you heard of or looked into peachtree city?

[southgeorgia]

Originally Posted by lilmusket

The Gainesville area has grown immensely as well as Jackson County.

gainesville is the fastest growing city in georgia by population percentage; i wasn't sure if that was in metro atlanta so i didn't mention it earlier. 24% i believe.

[ngdrga123456789]

Yes. I too have looked at the I-985 DOT projects projected for NE of Gainesville, GA. and that area will boom in the next 5 - 10 yrs., also. Right, and Left side of the main Interstate, Hwys., and roads. There are jobs, and construction jobs there now; especially in retail strip build-outs; but many more will be needed to sustain all of the growth planned. NE ATL., and Gwinnett/Mall of GA. areas real estate agents could do well up there for a decade or so. Right now most people have very little liquidity, or money at all. If they have money, it is used for most all types of bill payments, and neccessities... People are all thinking in the present, and 2-3 weeks out, also. EX: Oct. bills due in 3 wks. Do people even have a job? FT? PT? The unemployment line stretches from Dalton to Valdsota, GA. here now! Upwards of close to 710,000 workers, at times, Unemployed... 16,000,000+ workers of 100,000,000+ in the USA workforce underemployed or unemployed now in Aug./Sept. 2009...