Topher1

Thanks for the update SCGuy. I still check the Chronicle online every morning before work up here in NY, but just don't find a lot of time to post/comment on here. I'm looking forward to seeing all the changes (especially the completed I-520) when I'm home for the holidays!

Exactly. This survey isn't necessarily saying that the top-20 markets are "strong," just that they're the most recession-proof. In the case of Upstate NY, it's simply because there really isn't much room for housing prices to go down; they're already incredibly cheap. In a report released earlier this year, the dying Upstate NY city I live in now (Binghamton) was listed as the 2nd strongest housing market in the country (something like a 9% year-to-year increase in home prices while the rest of the country was tanking)... This of course doesn't mean that Binghamton is making some sort of rebound, just that the market was way undervalued and still is... Similar story in the other metros; you can get some amazing homes in awesome neighborhoods in Rochester for a steal; good luck finding a job there though...

Found this picture of the U/C N. Augusta municipal building on northaugustastar.com. This thing is going to have great street presence. The image is apparently a few weeks old, but this is the first time I've seen the full shape of the structure. Image from northaugustastar.com

Awesome. I'm really excited about this project, and the elevation looks nice, though I can't quite figure out what angle it's showing. I'd really love to see this create some retail/restaurant spaces fronting the Commons. The Commons is a perfect spot for cafes or coffee shops, especially with the free wi-fi...

^ I know Ft. Gordon deploys soldiers to Iraq, I just don't know if it's a significant portion of the workforce. I think the primary function of the base is the Signal Corps, which is involved in communications and communications training... So it's much less combat intensive than Ft. Benning. Also, it's a significantly smaller portion of the local economy than Benning... From wikipedia, Ft. Gordon employs up to 30,000 people, whereas Benning employs up to 100,000. So I suppose that it's not only a smaller base, but one with smaller troop fluctuations. Therefore the impact is far less... However, I know nothing about the structure of the military, so anyone please chime in if I'm completely wrong about this. For Augustans, Ft. Gordon is really something that we know is there, but that doesn't really factor in to our daily lives very much (except when there's concerns of it closing)... I imagine Ft. Benning is a much more relevant component to Columbus residents...

Those are released around July 1 every year (usually a few days early). We've still got a few months to wait...

An interesting observation (for those interested in Augusta): The census bureau made fairly significant changes to the Augusta population estimates. Previous estimate releases had the Richmond Co. population dipping down to around 194,000 in 2005 and 2006. However, with the release this year (197,342) they went back and revised the rest of the estimates to reflect a much smaller drop-off. The revised estimates have the lowest population as 196,904 in 2005. However, this didn't reflect a magical increase in metro population. The bureau simply grabbed those additional people from the estimates in Columbia and Aiken Counties... Columbia Co's 2006 estimate dropped by about 1200 and Aiken Co's dropped by about 1600... Not a huge deal, but a bit of nice news for a county that appeared to be hemorrhaging people to the burbs.

2007 County Census estimates were released today. To get the full tables, go to census.gov and follow the link for "Releases." The news release is there, and it contains links to the data. The calculations were done by me, so feel free to correct any mistakes. Also, I didn't do Atlanta because I didn't feel like compiling a list of 487 counties (or however many there are in Atlanta now) One other note, the estimates for 2006 have been slightly updated from the ones released a year ago, so the 2006 numbers may not look completely familiar. Observations: Savannah still is owning all other tier 2's in consistent growth, both in Chatham and the surrounding counties. Also, After a great year in 2006, Columbus' estimates for this year are down a lot... Is this due to troop deployments? In Macon and Augusta, the core counties are holding fairly steady, with suburban growth in Warner Robbins, Columbia County, and Aiken County propping up the growth. 2007 Census Estimates: Augusta MSA: 528,519 Columbus MSA: 287,756 Columbus/Aub-Ope/Tusk CSA 435,608 Macon MSA: 229,846 Macon/Warner Rob./Ft. Val. CSA 386,534 Savannah MSA 329,329 Savannah/Hines-Ft. Stew. CSA 401,132 2006-2007 Numeric Change: Augusta MSA: + 5,911 Columbus MSA: - 7,592 Columbus/Aub-Ope/Tusk CSA - 5,330 Macon MSA: + 820 Macon/Warner Rob./Ft. Val. CSA + 4,246 Savannah MSA + 7,839 Savannah/Hines-Ft. Stew. CSA + 7,975 2006-2007 Percent Change: Augusta MSA: + 1.13% Columbus MSA: - 2.61% Columbus/Aub-Ope/Tusk CSA - 1.21% Macon MSA: + 0.36% Macon/Warner Rob./Ft. Val. CSA + 1.11% Savannah MSA + 2.44% Savannah/Hines-Ft. Stew. CSA + 2.03% 2000-2007 Numeric Change: Augusta MSA: + 28,866 Columbus MSA: + 623 Columbus/Aub-Ope/Tusk CSA + 13,859 Macon MSA: + 7,445 Macon/Warner Rob./Ft. Val. CSA + 29,039 Savannah MSA + 35,651 Savannah/Hines-Ft. Stew. CSA + 35,656 2000-2007 Percent Change: Augusta MSA: + 5.78% Columbus MSA: + 0.02% Columbus/Aub-Ope/Tusk CSA + 3.29% Macon MSA: + 3.35% Macon/Warner Rob./Ft. Val. CSA + 8.12% Savannah MSA + 12.14% Savannah/Hines-Ft. Stew. CSA + 9.76%

I'm too lazy to extract/host the renderings from the pdf on www.trans4mation.org, but according to those renderings, the ramp for 408 W to I-4 W will remain the same in this first phase of construction. Also, the ramp from I-4 E to 408 E will also stay the way it is for now. They're calling this phase the "interim" interchange, which likely means it'll stay this way for a while before final construction is implemented. The final design is stacked, with the additional ramps soaring above the current construction. In fact, it's a lot more compact design than the current interchange, freeing up a decent amount of land... Go to trans4mation.org, hover over "I-4 Improvements," then "Plans and Designs", and click on "Ultimate Trans4mation" to see the final design (or someone less lazy can post it)...

Sunset Place in Miami has an AMC and only garage parking. They do validate parking there (reduces it to $1). The theatre gets tremendous business, although the Falls (surface parking) and the Grove (pay garage) are relatively nearby.

^ The hotel at the Florida Mall (according to original poster at SSP). EDIT: DOh, beat me to it.

It's about even between Greenwood and Augusta commuting. However, McCormick, like Lincoln Co across the lake, is seeing a trickle of lakefront development in it's extreme southern portions that is clearly geared to the Augusta area... If that accelerates (and I think it will, being so close to Columbia Co, GA), only then will it become a part of the Augusta area. In fact, Fury's Ferry Rd, which is one of the major residential corridors in Columbia Co, leads right into McCormick Co, and it's fully developed up to the border already... A lot of that county is protected forest, so I don't think we have to worry about it becoming overrun...

I think we've discussed this somewhere in the Aug. forum, and I made a list of commuting percentages, but I'm not sure where. Barnwell currently DOES meet commuting criteria, not to mention the fact that 1/3 of SRS is in Barnwell. McCormick is close to meeting commuting criteria, and with such a small county, 1 new subdivision near the GA border cut put them over. Lincoln Co, GA has a major percentage of Augusta commuters (like 30% of workforce) and is a very likely addition as people move north of Columbia Co to the lake. HOWEVER, I'm assuming neither of these counties meet the % urbanization criteria, as they are almost exclusively rural. A few GA counties have ties, but they're not significant. So my conclusion is that the only realistic new metro Augusta counties are Barnwell, Lincoln, and McCormick, for a whopping addition of ~41,000 mostly rural residents. Small unforeseen shifts could push rural GA places like Warren, Jefferson, and others, but there are no LARGE counties on the brink of becoming part of the MSA.

Not happening anytime soon. Northeast Aiken and Southwest Lexington are about as sparsely populated as it gets in SC (I know very well because I lived in NE Aiken Co for 18 years). There's a vast void between the two urban areas that isn't growing rapidly. The majority of Aiken's growth is south (towards SRS) and west (towards Augusta). Lexington Co is rapidly growing, but it's still mostly focused towards Columbia. Although there are several thousand commuters from Aiken Co into metro Columbia (and vise-versa), it's a far cry from the numbers needed for a CSA... I do think I would be cool to have a large regional identity along this part of the I-20 corridor, the same way upstate SC identifies with each other along I-85. Increased cooperation between Columbia and Augusta could only benefit both areas, specifically SRS + USC...