I heard good things about Augusta. (Atlanta, Columbus: unemployment, construction, schools)

[thesecret1959]

My husband,my 3 daughters and myself are looking for family cities, were you could still raise kids safe and kind of quite. Could anyone over there will be able to let me know which are the towns that are still blessed by this country?.
Is that true that there is a lot of jobs still on this time too?
Please anyone, i thank you in advance for your sincerity.
karina

[nortonguy]

Augusta's economy is predicted to outperform the state in 2010.

The city and metro unemployment is lower than the state and national average.

ADP, T-Mobile, Knology, American Tire, Procter & Gamble, Wells Fargo/Wachovia are some of the companies hiring in Augusta.

[SeaSpur]

Augusta has a long way to go in comparison to cities of the same size around the Southeast.

In a word, it is just a nasty place...hence a nickname it has earned, Disgusta.

- Augusta has tons of potential to improve if they were to upgrade one area: downtown. The downtown area of Augusta is a disgrace- it is rundown and old, not well lit, near rough areas, and nothing exists there with any substance.

- Construction seems to always be going on, especially in the last 5 years, and while the work may NEED to get done- it causes the worst congestion and strangest highway patterns than can change day to day.

- Shopping...eh, it has improved over the past few years with the addition of a new area at the Augusta Mall.

- Dining...again, a sore point for Augusta. Lots of chain restaurants that people seem to flock to...not many places with real substance and quality. I will say that The Boll Weevil downtown is a nice little place, one of the few in Augusta.

- The nightlife leaves a lot to be desired compared to other cities of the same size. You have downtown, where the crowds are sketchy/trashy/thuggish with the same themes (loud pop/dance music) along with the possibility of being mugged on the way back to your car. Live music, that is worth anything, is few and far between although Sky City tries its best. The other big time gathering spot is the Country Club, way out on Washington Rd. If you enjoy paying a cover charge every visit, overpriced drinks, fighting a crowd for 10 minutes to get a drink, and watching people line dance (which, to me, is odd) while listening to a 3rd rate "country" band...it might be your place. Surrey Tavern is probably the best bar in Augusta.

- The Evans area is doing good things and is clean...nice places to shop and dine there.

[nortonguy]

Hmm? Sounds very similar to par4ham, disgustasucks, expatriado, etc. The same comments about people in Augusta flocking to chain restaurants. The same comments on downtown and etc...


I can tell this is the same person. Because you don't live in Augugsta. There is no highway construction anymore. I-20 and I-520 are over... Be careful when you read things on this forum. Then try to post about them like you know what's going on. The highway construction ended in 2009. If you lived here or actually visited you would know that... I-20 and I-520 are definitely not changing everyday. Especially since there isn't any construction going on.

[SeaSpur]

No I don't know who those guys are. Unfortunately, internet trolls do exist...but I have scanned these forums and it does seem you are quick to deny any negative comments about the Augusta area. I have lived in the area for 25 years except for the 4 I was off to college and the 3 years I stayed in that particular city for work.

I also was not just talking about the construction on Bobby Jones and I-20, although that was a nightmare. You can't deny that much. Still there are projects going on around the Augusta area that seem either pointless or being mismanaged if actually needed.

I am back here again against my will at the moment. Facts are, compared to cities of the same size- Augusta would be in the bottom 10% and lacks in many areas.

I honestly just came to these forums to give my honest opinion. Even people who live in the area seem to agree that Augusta isn't what it could be, so it surprises me to see someone so set on defending it like it is a great place to relocate to. There ARE good places AROUND Augusta to live in though...Evans, Aiken, North Augusta, Athens, etc.

The only place I can think of that would fall beneath Augusta in the Southeast, that I have visited (which are most cities), is Birmingham, Alabama.

Instead of comparing me to someone you feel has a membership here solely to disgrace Augusta, please refute my comments on the dining choices and downtown area. Especially the downtown area haha, I am ready to hear that one.

[GeorgiaTransplant]

Originally Posted by SeaSpur

There ARE good places AROUND Augusta to live in though...Evans, Aiken, North Augusta, Athens, etc.

I consider Evans part of the metro area (lived there for several years and still own property-may eventually return if work allows me). It's really, really close (commute time is about nothing, even with traffic) and allows you access to the things that are good about Augusta. And yes, there are good things about Augusta

[SeaSpur]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaTransplant

I consider Evans part of the metro area (lived there for several years and still own property-may eventually return if work allows me). It's really, really close (commute time is about nothing, even with traffic) and allows you access to the things that are good about Augusta. And yes, there are good things about Augusta

Yeah, and I would include it as well. I just suggested it is more of a place to focus on if moving to the area...it is cleaner, has nicer restaurants, better living, decent schools, and there isn't as much "trash" in the area.

I am not saying there aren't good things about Augusta, they are just far and few between. It SEEMS that live music is starting to pick up in the area and since the rebranding of the Civic Center, it is getting a few more big names.

[nortonguy]

Lol yeah you're Disgustasucks and Par4ham.... You have seven total post are most are bashing Augusta. Check the ratio of Disgustasucks and Par4ham total post and the ones bashing Augusta They're exactly like yours. Par4ham doesn't even post in the Atlanta forum. Most of his post are in our forum and bash Augusta in some kind of way.

If Augusta is so bad?

Why did a poster start a thread" I've heard good things about Augusta''...

Why is Augusta gaining more people than Savannah, Macon, Columbus, Athens, etc?

Obviously people must be telling other's how Augusta is growing and vibrant.

You said the highway patterns change daily. When there isn't any construction going on along the highways. That's seems very strange to me.. Somebody who has visited Augusta or lived here would definitely not say that. You also said people in Augusta flock to chain restuarants. Par4ham and Disgustasucks use the exact same line. Disgusta sucks and Par4ham also always praise Evans too.

The downtown area..... If you visited Augusta you would see all the construction going on downtown.

[joeyrun]

The Evans area is apart of Augusta. There is a article saying 93% of Columbia county residents shop/dine in Richmond county.

Columbia County retail survey shows tax dollars are driving away

[EastsideDave]

Hello SeaSpur, you see, that's the thing about nortonguy (and I've pointed this out in several other threads), he never wants to acknowledge the 'bad things' about Augusta (even though many exist). And as soon as someone starts talking about one of those 'bad things', he automatically either says they are flat out wrong, or they are par4him with a different screen-name.

I talk about the good things in Augusta, and the bad things in Augusta; the latter of which nortonguy always says I am completely wrong about. As I've told nortonguy before, there's nothing wrong with loving your city, but attacking people who disagree with you will get you nowhere.

On to your original post...

-I agree that downtown is a little run down and dirty, but it is slowly improving.
-I think the shopping is actually pretty good for a metro of our size, though we still lack some common stores.
-The dining is decent, as are entertainment options, but this city can get a tad boring at times.

Overall, I think Augusta has a lot of potential (something quite frequently said about this city), and the past 10-20 years we've been going in the right direction, but we still have a LONG way to go, ESPECIALLY downtown.

But, as a young person, I can't really view myself as living here for the rest of my life, and I intend on moving to better and brighter places, though I may eventually return (or even decide to never leave) if I see the city continue in the right direction, the next 3-5 years will be very critical in my deciding to stay or go.

Now let me sit back and see what nortonguy says about me since I decided to agree with you, lol.

...By the way, the woman in that 4th picture up there has horrible teeth...