Georgia's Next Atlanta- Macon....

[Spartan]

I think you have to take it all in context, and not get defensive about it. Columbus has done its part to attract growth, and arguably moreso than the other Second Tier cities in Georgia. Columbus itself is not, however, entirely responsible for generating its own growth. Fort Benning is a federal operation, and its expansion will generate lots of growth that was not predicted to happen just a few short years ago. Columbus just happens to benefit from the last round of BRAC. That doesn't change the fact that Columbus will see a good bit of growth over the next few years.

[gah]

I think you have to take it all in context, and not get defensive about it. Columbus has done its part to attract growth, and arguably moreso than the other Second Tier cities in Georgia. Columbus itself is not, however, entirely responsible for generating its own growth. Fort Benning is a federal operation, and its expansion will generate lots of growth that was not predicted to happen just a few short years ago. Columbus just happens to benefit from the last round of BRAC. That doesn't change the fact that Columbus will see a good bit of growth over the next few years.

[jungletobacco]

Are there sny new developments that are going on for the second teir cities? Columbus ga will add 30000 some people to ther population but what are some developments that the city itself is working at doing to cater to those newcomers? Augusta will be getting new condos on the riverfront, it working on at new baseball stadium proposed by Cal Ripken jr and 520 , the expressway that circles around Augusta and North AUG will be completed by 2009. That type of development is what I want Columbus to have. Im not tryin to belittle Columbus but people from Macon are saying that Columbus feels small to them. How is that if Columbus has a greater population than Augusta?

What going with Savannah?

[gah]

Are there sny new developments that are going on for the second teir cities? Columbus ga will add 30000 some people to ther population but what are some developments that the city itself is working at doing to cater to those newcomers? Augusta will be getting new condos on the riverfront, it working on at new baseball stadium proposed by Cal Ripken jr and 520 , the expressway that circles around Augusta and North AUG will be completed by 2009. That type of development is what I want Columbus to have. Im not tryin to belittle Columbus but people from Macon are saying that Columbus feels small to them. How is that if Columbus has a greater population than Augusta?

What going with Savannah?

[yerocal]

Also with Macon and Augusta having a bit of skyline make there appear even larger......

[PJA]

I have to disagree about I-20 making Augusta appear smaller. It goes through a corner of Augusta so you barely get to see any of the city at all. In fact if you just drove up I-20 through Augusta you might actually think it's smaller until you drive around for about an hour. Macon on the other hand has its interstates going more though the city. It still doesn't feel all that big though.

[Savboy08]

Are there sny new developments that are going on for the second teir cities? Columbus ga will add 30000 some people to ther population but what are some developments that the city itself is working at doing to cater to those newcomers? Augusta will be getting new condos on the riverfront, it working on at new baseball stadium proposed by Cal Ripken jr and 520 , the expressway that circles around Augusta and North AUG will be completed by 2009. That type of development is what I want Columbus to have. Im not tryin to belittle Columbus but people from Macon are saying that Columbus feels small to them. How is that if Columbus has a greater population than Augusta?

What going with Savannah?

[Savboy08]

Also with Macon and Augusta having a bit of skyline make there appear even larger......

[PJA]

If you really want to know what second tier metros have the largest urbanized areas here they are. This is the land total for the urbanized portion (the heavily populated portion) of the metros only.

1. Augusta 231.79 square miles

2. Columbus 136.16 square miles

3. Savannah 102.39 square miles

4. Warner Robins 80.91 square miles

5. Macon 80.53 square miles

6. Athens 79.56 square miles

7. Albany 65.89

It should be noted that the Macon and Warner Robins UA's are seperated because there probably isn't enough growth between the two to connect the two. Also Warner Robins has a great land mass than Macon, but Macon has more people inside of their urbanized area.

[gah]

I have to disagree about I-20 making Augusta appear smaller. It goes through a corner of Augusta so you barely get to see any of the city at all. In fact if you just drove up I-20 through Augusta you might actually think it's smaller until you drive around for about an hour. Macon on the other hand has its interstates going more though the city. It still doesn't feel all that big though.

[PJA]

To the contrary, the point was that I-20 is a factor making Augusta seem LARGER than its actual population because of the interstate traffic passing thru. Like Macon (but certainly less so) that additional traffic count is not attributable solely to local population but to a number of passers thru. As you point out, Macon has the added benefit of having interstates thru the city center and the huge number of Fla vacation traffic.

I-20 does pass thru the outskirts of Augusta , as does I-185 in Columbus. But, unlike Columbus, I-20 actually goes somewhere other than Atlanta. Thus, I am almost positive that the traffic count on I 20 is significantly greater than on I-185. So the intended point was that I-20 tends to magnify Augusta's traffic count and, because of the additional traffic, gives the appearance of a relatively large busy city. Almost all traffic in Columbus is there because it wants to be. You dont have to go thru there to get anywhere else (except maybe PC). At least some traffic in Augusta is there because it is going someplace else, whether Columbia, Myrtle Beach going one way or Atlanta going the other. If I185 went to FLA, then, like Augusta and Macon, the additional traffic count would be a factor in making it appear to be a large busy urban area. As it is, I-165 is a cul-de-sac and a factor in making it appear smaller than Macon and even smaller than Augusta than it actually is.

[gah]

According to the gadot, I-520 (Bobby Jones Expressway) has a higher traffic count than the Augusta portion of I-20. And I-520 begins and ends in the Augusta metro.

Again I think if you just ride on I-20 through Augusta it will actually appear smaller than it really is but you get a better idea traveling on Bobby Jones.

[jungletobacco]

In what way would the fall line freeway help Columbus? It will give the rest of Georgia to see the BIG Columbus not the small one. I rarely drive on I-20 because Bobby Jones circles the city like 2-85 does for Atlanta. The only time I get on I-20 is when Im leaving the city. You would not even notice Augusta riding I-20, not until the new lifestyle center is built. Then you can say I 20 make Augusta look bigger than it is.

[gah]

In what way would the fall line freeway help Columbus? It will give the rest of Georgia to see the BIG Columbus not the small one. I rarely drive on I-20 because Bobby Jones circles the city like 2-85 does for Atlanta. The only time I get on I-20 is when Im leaving the city. You would not even notice Augusta riding I-20, not until the new lifestyle center is built. Then you can say I 20 make Augusta look bigger than it is.

[yerocal]

Yerocal, since you are from Macon, can you confirm this? The new population statistics on wikipedia are wrong(as expected from wikipedia). All of the sudden, the WR-Macon CSA is 476,000(I swore it was closer to a flat 400,000 unless the definition of CSA just changed) people. That doesn't make since. It also says that Macon metro includes thirteen counties. None of those stats seem to make sense, or do they

[yerocal]

If you really want to know what second tier metros have the largest urbanized areas here they are. This is the land total for the urbanized portion (the heavily populated portion) of the metros only.

1. Augusta 231.79 square miles

2. Columbus 136.16 square miles

3. Savannah 102.39 square miles

4. Warner Robins 80.91 square miles

5. Macon 80.53 square miles

6. Athens 79.56 square miles

7. Albany 65.89

It should be noted that the Macon and Warner Robins UA's are seperated because there probably isn't enough growth between the two to connect the two. Also Warner Robins has a great land mass than Macon, but Macon has more people inside of their urbanized area.

[yerocal]

To the contrary, the point was that I-20 is a factor making Augusta seem LARGER than its actual population because of the interstate traffic passing thru. Like Macon (but certainly less so) that additional traffic count is not attributable solely to local population but to a number of passers thru. As you point out, Macon has the added benefit of having interstates thru the city center and the huge number of Fla vacation traffic.

I-20 does pass thru the outskirts of Augusta , as does I-185 in Columbus. But, unlike Columbus, I-20 actually goes somewhere other than Atlanta. Thus, I am almost positive that the traffic count on I 20 is significantly greater than on I-185. So the intended point was that I-20 tends to magnify Augusta's traffic count and, because of the additional traffic, gives the appearance of a relatively large busy city. Almost all traffic in Columbus is there because it wants to be. You dont have to go thru there to get anywhere else (except maybe PC). At least some traffic in Augusta is there because it is going someplace else, whether Columbia, Myrtle Beach going one way or Atlanta going the other. If I185 went to FLA, then, like Augusta and Macon, the additional traffic count would be a factor in making it appear to be a large busy urban area. As it is, I-165 is a cul-de-sac and a factor in making it appear smaller than Macon and even smaller than Augusta than it actually is.

[PJA]

that can't be the reason why macon/WR are seperate becasue there so much developement between macon and WR in the next couple of years you want able to tell which is macon and what is WR the area between is where alot of the growth is...

[ATLman1]

Apparently there isn't enough development. If there were, it would be considered one urbanized area.

[Topher1]

The "Urban Area" that PJA posted consists of contiguous census blocks with a minimum density of 500 people per square mile. If there is a single sparse census block separating the areas, they are separated.

For reference, the last time the UA's were tabulated (Census 2000), Aiken and Augusta were BARELY connected in the Graniteville area. There has to be true contiguous growth between 2 cities to be in the same UA. It works in the Augusta area because of all of the old mill towns along the railroad between Aiken and Augusta.

[PJA]

Heres some information from the 2006 census estimates taken from the official us census site about the current population of the georgia second tier metros.

http://www.census.gov/population/www/estim...006-annual.html

1. Augusta 523,249

2. Savannah 320,013

3. Columbus 288,847

4. Macon 229,326

5. Athens 185,479

6. Albany 163,961

7. Warner Robins 127,530

* Auburn-Opelika (Alabama) 125,781 (I included this because in 2010 this metro will most likely merge with Columbus)

As of right now Macon and Warner Robins are seperate but will most likely merge when the MSA's are redefined in 2010.

Here's the ranking in growth between 2005 and 2006. This will indicate which metros added the most population in 2006.

1. Savannah 6,557

2. Columbus 6,352

3. Augusta 5,394

4. Athens 3,015

5. Auburn-Opelika 2,659

6. Warner Robins 1,954

7. Macon 1,357

8. Albany 1,156

Note: Even with Macon and Warner Robins combined, they still had less growth than Savannah, Columbus and Augusta. If combined, then Columbus/Auburn/Opelike would have had the most growth.

[Kenneth Disraili-Jean]

When I-16/75 reconstruction is complete dowtown which is being widen 12-14 lanes and the reconstruction of split 475/75 north and south end of the city.... Macon will appear even larger.....

[socaguy]

Wait, what connector is being planned for DT Augusta? I havent heard of this one yet and I usually keep up with all of the development in metro Augusta. The only connecting highway from I-20 to Downtown Augusta is Riverwatch parkway which is only partially limited access.

[yerocal]

Apparently there isn't enough development. If there were, it would be considered one urbanized area.

[yerocal]

That's true Yerocal, Macon has the advantage of having one of the busiest interstates in the country, considered to be the pipleline from the Midweat all the way into Florida which is I-75. Then add on interstate I-16 and your going to have alot of traffic.

I can understand why the GDOT is going to rebuild the I-75/I-16 interchange because of the traffic pumping through it.

I have seen the rendering of the massive rebuilding of the interchange and it is quite impressive with the "fly over" bridges (like the ones at Spaghetti Junction) and the Collector/Distributor lanes, beside the main freeway lanes, and yes being 14 lanes wide is big, no agument there.

I just don't understand why Atlanta and Macon got interstate access through thier downtowns, and none of the other 2nd tier cities did, if you count I-16 terminating in Downtown Savannah.

But there are plans to build a connector from I-20 that will connect into Downtown Augusta, by far Georgia's second largest metro. And I think with a population of over half a million, it is going to be a while before the other 2nd tier cities catch up to that.

Like I posted earlier, there isn't going to be the "Next Atlanta" in the state of Georgia, unless my some miricle one of the 2nd tier citeis gains over 5,000,000 people in the near future.