Gainesville ghetto? (Atlanta, Warner Robins, Alpharetta: appointed, rental, homes)

[ATLTJL]

I've heard Buc-ees has plans to enter the Atlanta market.

[Need4Camaro]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

I've heard Buc-ees has plans to enter the Atlanta market.

I've been wondering if that would ever happen. They're an awesome fuel station but fairly limited in numbers. I know they are building one just outside of Birmingham in Alabama currently... they take up alot of real estate though, I dont know one could comfortably fit anywhere in the immediate metro...exhurbs at best.

[citidata18]

Originally Posted by Need4Camaro

I've been wondering if that would ever happen. They're an awesome fuel station but fairly limited in numbers. I know they are building one just outside of Birmingham in Alabama currently... they take up alot of real estate though, I dont know one could comfortably fit anywhere in the immediate metro...exhurbs at best.

If I'm mistaken, they're mostly in the exurbs of the big Texas metros.

[sedimenjerry]

Originally Posted by citidata18

If I'm mistaken, they're mostly in the exurbs of the big Texas metros.

Houston has some smaller. I think they started in Lake Jackson/Freeport area just to the south. I've been to one of the smaller ones. Very different feel from the mega ones located off freeways.

I think the only way they'd work in GA is using the mega sized ones near the exurbs. Racetrac and QT would be too much competition for the smaller ones located firmly in metro areas

[Citykid3785]

Originally Posted by Need4Camaro

I haven’t been to regular brand-based chain gas stations anywhere in the country in a long time. I have a shell credit card so sometimes I will loyal up to them but I go to Pilot / FlyingJ / Loves pretty frequently because I travel a lot, I used to use GasBuddy to calculate the cheapest gas stops along my route but I stopped doing that after it started dumping me in some very questionable neighborhoods and stations, sometimes just ain’t worth it to save a few pennies.

Loves and QT are my favorites. Loves will often give you free coffee if it’s like 1am - 5am and you’re not buying anything else.

In MN, everyone goes to Holiday or Kwiktrip (different than QT). When we moved here, my son couldn't believe there was another gas station chain called Quiktrip. Fun fact, both chains compete in Iowa and Missouri, so KwikTrip had to change the name of all their locations there to KwikStar. Very similar to a QuikTrip in that they treat their employees well, have nice bathrooms, etc.

Where I was born in NJ, all off the gas stations were old, they still pump it for you, and most were half mechanic shop, half branded gas station. None of them are ones you'd want to stop and pee at because most had an exterior entrance to the bathroom wherein you had to ask for the key, attached to a giant wooden spoon, etc.

[CoogHawk]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

I've heard Buc-ees has plans to enter the Atlanta market.

Is this for real? Don’t play with my emotions bud. If and when this happens, this Texas boy and his family will be first in line for the breakfast burritos.

[CoogHawk]

Originally Posted by Citykid3785

In MN, everyone goes to Holiday or Kwiktrip (different than QT). When we moved here, my son couldn't believe there was another gas station chain called Quiktrip. Fun fact, both chains compete in Iowa and Missouri, so KwikTrip had to change the name of all their locations there to KwikStar. Very similar to a QuikTrip in that they treat their employees well, have nice bathrooms, etc.

Where I was born in NJ, all off the gas stations were old, they still pump it for you, and most were half mechanic shop, half branded gas station. None of them are ones you'd want to stop and pee at because most had an exterior entrance to the bathroom wherein you had to ask for the key, attached to a giant wooden spoon, etc.

Well in NJ you have WaWa. Not quite to the level of Sheetz, but a step above QT and RaceTrac. All of these are better than Speedway, and none of them are as good as Bucee’s.

Honorable mention to Royal Farms in Maryland. Some of the Best fried chicken I have ever tasted.

[Need4Camaro]

Originally Posted by CoogHawk

Is this for real? Don’t play with my emotions bud. If and when this happens, this Texas boy and his family will be first in line for the breakfast burritos.

Brisket

I kid

I never really stopped at Buc'ees for food, they were just a station that stood out as "holy ...." the first time I saw one.

One awesome thing is you can get just about any type and blend of fuel there too, from non ethanol to ethanol to race octane.

[Born 2 Roll]

Like others have stated, unfortunately, because Gainesville is a highly industrial town, it has many utilitarian areas that make the city appear as if it is rundown.

Admittedly, there are some neighborhoods in some key areas along major thoroughfares that do appear to be rundown.

But don’t let the rundown look of a few key areas fool you.

Because of its advantageous location on Lake Lanier and because of its close proximity to Atlanta (while it is officially its own MSA/Metropolitan Statistical Area, Gainesville and surrounding Hall County are actually part of the roughly 39-county Atlanta CSA/Combined Statistical Area), Gainesville has become a very powerful and influential city that punches well above its weight in Georgia politics.

Because of the large amount of industry in Gainesville and surrounding Hall County, Gainesville politicians (like former Georgia Governor Nathan Deal, former GA Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, GA state Senate President Pro Tempore Butch Miller, Congressman and 2020 GA US Senate candidate Doug Collins, etc.) have often been able to raise and generate the funds needed to run campaigns for higher office.

Beyond being a very powerful and highly influential city in Georgia politics, Gainesville is also a very important city in the Northeast Georgia Mountains region.

Gainesville is recognized as being the political, economic, industrial, cultural and social hub of the Northeast GA Mountains region.

Gainesville also effectively serves as a very important gateway community between heavily populated metro Atlanta to the southwest and the more sparsely populated outer-exurban and rural Northeast Georgia Mountains region.

Like others have stated, Gainesville is very much its own ‘self-contained’ city but is also at least partially part of metro Atlanta, particularly in the south half of Hall County from Gainesville south towards Atlanta.

Gainesville and Hall County is officially its own individual metropolitan area and has its very own unique identity but at the same time is also very much connected to metro Atlanta with its location on metro Atlanta’s major water source (Lake Lanier), a direct Interstate superhighway spur connection to Atlanta by way of I-985 and as the site of the Atlanta Falcons training facility (in Flowery Branch).

Like sedimenjerry mentioned, people north of Gainesville (in north Hall County) don’t consider themselves to be part of metro Atlanta. But there are also some areas in the parts of Hall County that are closer to Gwinnett County and metro Atlanta (particularly in the Flowery Branch and Buford areas) that appear to identify more closely with metro Atlanta.

It is very interesting how Gainesville and Hall County is its own self-contained community with its own unique identity that is separate from metro Atlanta but yet is also so strongly connected to metro Atlanta and has often had such a very strong influence over metro Atlanta politically and socially, particularly since about after the turn of the Millennium.

[aus10]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

I've heard Buc-ees has plans to enter the Atlanta market.

Bucky Nuggets!!!!!!! It's a good thing we didn't have it here during lock-down....... I'd weigh 500 pounds.