xivinrah

Being a native of Columbus and currently living in Savannah, I can attest that Savannah has surprised me so much in terms of what it already has. About 90 percent of what you just listed is already here. But I believe the number one reason why Savannah has much more in terms of shopping and restaurant options is because unlike Columbus, Savannah is completely isolated on the coast. Charleston, Jacksonville, Macon, Augusta... are all over 2 and a half hours away. Even Hilton Head is an hour drive. Columbus, however, is within short distance of Atlanta and Montgomery. Which explains the size of its mall, airport, and the lack of entertainment, restaurant, and shopping options. If ever one were to desire entertainment, it could be readily accessible in Montgomery and Atlanta. Both are roughly an hour and a half away. Savannahians, however, must be responsible for providing everything that they lack access to, which explains the presence of two malls, strip malls that span almost the entire length of Abercorn Extension (south of DeRenne), and hundreds of stores and restaurants in the Landmark Historic District. I can only speculate as to why Columbus has not landed these establishments yet... Augusta even has an Apple Store! So a lot of this progress is not entirely progress, its catch up.

I APPROVE! 100% Even if it's way up North... it is a start! This can be a new trend that could spread across the city. This is the development of the future. Excellent vision! Now if we could just change that horrible name... "Koonce Place" sounds like an abandoned country saloon in the swamps of Southeast GA.

Oh... then I guess my source was right.

I thought that these unemployment rate (not seasonally adjusted) statistics might be of some interest to everyone: Atlanta (city): 11.8% Augusta-Richmond County (consolidated city): 11.3% Columbus (consolidated city): 9.9% Macon (city): 13% Savannah (city): 11.4% Georgia (state): 9.9% Source: Google Data Explorer Labs http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=z1ebjpgk2654c1_&met_y=unemployment_rate&idim=state:ST130000&fdim_y=seasonality:S&dl=en&hl=en&q=georgia+unemployment#ctype=l&strail=false&nselm=h&met_y=unemployment_rate&fdim_y=seasonality:U&scale_y=lin&ind_y=false&rdim=city&idim=city:PS130050:CT130360:PA130250:PA130150:CT130060&ifdim=city:state:ST130000&hl=en&dl=en

I was told that that is where Burlington Coat Factory is going... but I'm not entirely sure. I haven't seen any signage yet.

I wonder why they won't consider a heavy rail segment into Cobb Co. via I-75 corridor... at least up through Cumberland/Vinings with a terminus at Smyrna. Same goes for Gwinnett Co. an extension of existing heavy rail through Norcross. Light rail may be cheaper, but it is much less effective and efficient. I honestly don't see myself riding a light rail line over driving, because in some cases it would take me longer to drive up to a light rail station, the light rail has to travel in and along already congested vehicular traffic corridors, (so you still face the same delays), and top speed is probably no more than 45-50 mph. So what is the advantage of light rail over a heavy rail aside from cost?

LOL! XD Not that I know of... I was just being facetious. But at least you got my point, right? lol after doing a little research... Nope. Even milk doesn't. At least not on its own. There is a process that requires milk to be warmed with a bacteria culture and then whey and curds are separated from it... it's a lot more to it- this is just the beginning. But cheese-making is so ancient and dates back farther than written history- which goes to show that you don't need technology to make it.

But see that's just the thing. Walmart and Target sell a wide variety of things. 1 floor would be dedicated to non-grocery items, and the other would accommodate all grocery items. Which still make them single floor grocery stores. It's just not reasonable (or marketable) to facilitate a two or three story grocery store or a section that spans between two floors. It would be hell having to go up and down floors making sure I covered everything on my grocery list. All the while my milk is "sweating", frozen dinners are thawing, yogurt turning to cheese.

Yeah... I'm going to just go on ahead and say that that is highly unlikely. Imagine having to go upstairs to look for milk and eggs and downstairs if you want bread, rice, and cereal? That isn't a very reasonable layout for a grocery store - no matter how large it is. If indeed it is two stories... then that second floor would probably house operations offices for all five Publix in Columbus. That's the only reason I can see them having two floors. Other than that, at it's height in the diagrams, we can assume it has fairly high ceilings for lighting and signage just like every other modern grocery store.

That's been in the news and newspaper for quite some time... If you go to Cross Country Plaza you will see the on-going construction taking place and a sign with an illustration of the new Publix. It is beautiful.

Sweet!

Rightfully so... because hardly anyone uses it. I'm probably one of the few, if not the only one, who still believes that it should have been the first light rail segment of a bi-city wide system. BUT that's too progressive... and perhaps it is better for CSG (Columbus) to explore other things, before making that kind of an investment. Who knows. But IMO it is never too early for a city this size to invest in its economic future.

Yeah... I kind of overlooked that part... Forgive me for my indiscretion.

I didn't know Chick-Fil-A, Panera Bread, and Three Brothers Cheesecake were "projects" or "developments" for you all... hmm...

I personally feel like downtown is so dated, rough-looking, and stigmatized with crime and loitering... it needs an overhaul that would require an economic boom. Some of those horribly dilapidated structures south of Alabama St SW, either need to be revitalized or razed, more green space would make the place more attractive. Five Points... where do I even begin... knowing the cost would be substantial- a newer structure needs to facilitate a waiting area for buses that terminate/begin at that station... that way it would help law enforcement to differentiate the transit riders from the undesirables whose loitering constitutes as one of many reasons why very few people see downtown as a good place to live. Just throwing my own opinions out there... lol I'll admit the Five Points thing... highly unrealistic considering the state that MARTA is in.