Chapter 13- General info/data/statistics about Augusta

Augusta Awards and Rankings

• 2012 Digital Cities- Augusta, GA ranked 6th in the Nation among cities of its size. Each year the Center for Digital Government and Government Technology measure and assess the use of information technology by local governments. The cities that manage the challenge most effectively rise to the top of the Digital Cities rankings.
• 2011 Digital Cities- Augusta, GA ranked 5th in the Nation among cities of its size. Each year the Center for Digital Government and Government Technology measure and assess the use of information technology by local governments. The cities that manage the challenge most effectively rise to the top of the Digital Cities rankings.
• 2010 Digital Cities- Augusta, GA ranked 7th in the Nation among cities of its size.  Each year the Center for Digital Government and Government Technology measure and assess the use of information technology by local governments.  The cities that manage the challenge most effectively rise to the top of the Digital Cities rankings.
• 2010 Best Performing Cities- Augusta-Richmond County ranked 71st  in Miliken Institute's 2010 best Performing Cities Index.  The 2010 Milken Institute Best-Performing Cities Index ranks U.S. metropolitan areas by how well they are creating and sustaining jobs and economic growth. The components include job, wage and salary, and technology growth.
• 2010 Best Mid-Sized Cities for Job Growth- Augusta, GA was ranked 20th for 2010's Best Mid-Sized Cities for Job Growth by Newgeography.com, a website devoted to analyzing and discussing the places where we live and work.
• 2nd Most Recession-Proof City- Augusta, GA was ranked #2 on America's Most Recession-Proof Cities list by Money Magazine.
• 7th Most Resilient Metro Economy in the Nation- Augusta Metro Area was ranked as having the 7th most resilient metro economy in the nation for the first quarter of 2010 by the Brookings Institute’s MetroMonitor Report.
• 9th Best U.S. Cities for Moms- Augusta was compared to other cities based on Mothers-Per-Capita, Educational Quality, Child Care, Maternity Health Specialists, and Mother’s Day Pampering.  Ratings were compiled by The Daily Beast.  www.thedailybeast.com
• Sunny Award- The Sunshine Review awarded the Sunny Award to Richmond County in April of 2010.
• Excellence in Human Resources- An award In the Large Agency Category the City of Augusta was given the award for the most innovative and improved HR program in the State of Georgia.
• 18th in the Nation for Economic Performance- Ranked 18th among the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas in economic performance in the Brookings quarterly analysis report.
• 20th Best Cities for Families- Parenting.com ranked 101 cities in the United States and Augusta ranked in the Top 20.   A wide variety of criteria was used for the rankings, including educational statistics, child medical care, air quality, crime statistics, economic indicators, and recreational opportunities. 

Augusta Parks

• Augusta Aquatics Center Augusta Common
• Augusta Judicial Center Augusta Riverwalk
• Augusta Soccer Park Baurle Boat Ramp
• Bernie Ward Community Center Blythe Area Recreation Center & Park
• Carrie J. Mays Family Life Center  Charles H. Evans Center & Wood Park
• Diamond Lakes Community Center Diamond Lakes Regional Park
• Diamond Lakes Tennis Center  Doughty Park
• Dyess Park Eastview Community Center & Park
• Eisenhower Athletic Complex & Park  Fleming Athletic Complex & Office
• Garrett Gymnasium Gracewood Park
• Henry H. Brigham Community Center Henry H. Brigham Senior Center
• Henry H. Brigham Swim Center  Hepzibah/Carroll Center & Complex
• Hickman Park  Jamestown Community Center & Park
• Julian Smith Casino @ Lake Olmstead  Julian Smith BBQ Pit @ Lake Olmstead
• Lake Olmstead Park Law Enforcement Center
• Lock & Dam Park/New Savannah Bluff May Park Athletic Complex & Office
• May Park Community Center  McBean Community Center
• McDuffie Woods Community Center  Minnick Park
• Newman Tennis Center  Old Government House
• Pendleton King Park  Riverfront Marina & 5th St. Marina
• Sand Hills Community Center & Park  Richmond County Sheriff's Office
• The Boathouse Warren Road Community Center
• Webster Detention Center  W.T. Johnson Community Center

General info/data 

• Established - 1736
• Named For - Princess Augusta of Saxe Gotha
• Population - 200,000 City, 500,000 Trade Region
• Location - 136 ft. above sea level.  200 Savannah River miles or approximately 150 land miles from Atlantic Ocean
• Nicknames - The Central Savannah River Area (CSRA), includes surrounding counties in Georgia and South Carolina, The Garden City of the South, chosen in the early 20th century because of the City's many large private gardens
• Major Highways - Interstates 20 and 520, U.S. Routes 1, 25, 78, 278
• Colleges / Universities - Medical College of Georgia, Augusta State University, Paine College, Augusta Technical College
• Military Installations - Fort Gordon (U.S. Army Signal Center)
• Airports - Augusta Regional Airport, Daniel Field
• Sports Teams - Augusta Green Jackets (baseball), Augusta Stallions (arena football), Augusta Lynx(hockey)
• Famous Augustans - James Brown, Amy Grant, Jessye Norman, Terri Gibbs, Laurence Fishburne, Joe Penny, Ray Mercer, Frank Yerby, Hulk Hogan, and Larry Mize

Profiles of Augusta Residents 

     Scrappy Homeowners- Home owning urban singles with low income.
Pre-middle-age to middle-age singles on a lower to middle income who own their own home. Some have a college education and work in services and the professional sector.

     Urban Bootstrappers- Lower-scale single parents living in the city.
Single parents who support themselves and their children on a low income. A high proportion are female. Most have a high school education or lower, and most rent their homes.

     Golden Years- Seniors over 65 who live in the city.

Home type

Year Built

Square Feet

     The Metro average price of a home is about $80,000, almost exactly half of the national average of $160,000

Augusta compared to Georgia state average-

• Median house value below state average
• Hispanic race population percentage significantly below state average
• Median age below state average
• Foreign-born population percentage significantly below state average
• Renting percentage above state average
• Length of stay since moving in significantly below state average

Augusta Neighborhood home values (From Zillow)

Neighborhoods average home value

• Augusta (average)- $ 73,600 
• West Augusta- $ 152,200
• Summerville- $ 146,500
• Lake Aumond- $ 141,400
• Goshen- $ 108,100
• Montclair- $ 107,600
• National Hills- $ 103,400
• Belair- $ 102,800
• McBean- $ 96,500
• Lakemont- $ 95,600
• McDade- $ 95,200
• Jamestown- $ 93,800
• West Side- $ 91,700
• Pepperidge- $ 85,000
• Cross Creek- $ 76,600
• North Leg- $ 73,900
• Pendelton King- $ 73,300
• Richmond Factory- $ 69,600
• Highland Park- $ 69,100
• Windsor Spring- $ 68,900
• Academy Baker Ave- $ 67,600
• Southside- $ 62,300
• Meadowbrook- $ 50,700
• Sand Hills- $ 48,700
• Richmond Hill- $ 45,700
• Barton Chapel- $ 45,200
• Harrisburg- $ 44,900
• Old Savannah- $ 44,000
• Wheeless Road- $ 42,800
• Kissingbower- $ 38,300

Residents with income below the poverty level in 2009

• Augusta: 31.6%
• Whole state: 21.6%

Residents with income below 50% of the poverty level in 2009

• Augusta: 11.8%
• Whole state: 7.3%

Poor families by family type

• Female, no husband present (78%)Male, no wife present (9%)Married-couple family (14%)
• Married-couple family (13.5%)
• Male, no wife present (8.6%)
• Female, no husband present (77.8%)

Poverty status for native-born residents

• Above poverty level (76%)Below poverty level (25%)
• Below poverty level (24.5%)
• Above poverty level (75.5%)

Poverty status for foreign-born residents

• Above poverty level (78%)Below poverty level (22%)
• Below poverty level (21.6%)
• Above poverty level (78.4%)

Children below poverty level

• Augusta, Georgia: 39.4%
• State: 22.1%

Poverty rate among high school graduates not in families

• Augusta: 19.8%
• Georgia: 17.6%

Poverty rate among people who did not graduate high school not in families

• Augusta: 49.6%
• Georgia: 44.8%

Renting rate in this place among poor and non-poor residents

• Residents below poverty level- 74.2%
• Residents above poverty level- 40.3%

2012 Election results

• 66% Obama
• 33% Romney

Food Environment Statistics

• Number of grocery stores: 37
• Richmond County: 1.87 / 10,000 pop
• Georgia: 1.91 / 10,000 pop
• Number of supercenters and club stores: 2
• This county: 0.10 / 10,000 pop
• State: 0.15 / 10,000 pop
• Number of convenience stores (no gas): 14
• Richmond County: 0.71 / 10,000 pop
• Georgia: 0.86 / 10,000 pop
• Number of convenience stores (with gas): 118
• Richmond County: 5.97 / 10,000 pop
• State: 5.12 / 10,000 pop
• Number of full-service restaurants: 132
• Here: 6.68 / 10,000 pop
• State: 7.41 / 10,000 pop

Top Patent Applicants

• James W. Ryan (10) (Medical)
• Xin Xiao (9) (Chemistry)
• Andrew Mellor (7) (Medical, Immune System research)
• David Munn (7) (Medical, ‎Pediatric Oncology & Pediatric Hematology research)
• Avi M. Robbins (5) (Medical)
• David H. Munn (5) (Medical, T- Cells)
• David M. Stern (4) (Medical)
• Brian D. Riha (4) (Medical)
• Richard Krall (4) (Manufacturing)

(Total of 174 patent applications in 2008-2013)