Fort Gordon

CarrotsMakeMeFat · April 2012

what's the good ,the bad ,and the ugly ? If we go there, it will be as civilian workers as my job is going there...both DoD . We are interested in Evans and want to know what it would be like to raise kids there, or Grovetown. We've only done a quick trip there and made our own judgement already...it would be good to hear from those who have been there longer than 1/2 a day.

TIA

margotmacomber · April 2012

I live here. I hate it. (leaving in Oct!!) I'm in Grovetown, it's close to base and sells beer on Sundays.

Evans is really nice neighborhood wise but a little further from base, which is why we didn't pick it. There's not much to do here. Typical stores, a small mall. Very backwards way of running things.

There is some awesome Mexican restaurants if you're in to that. I seriously have never had mexican food as good as it is here. Most weekends there is something going on downtown and on the riverwalk (riverwatch? I don't know). What sucks is that they really haven't ventured into 2012 yet. (Can't pay water bill over the phone or online, must drive 25 minutes to pay in person if you don't mail a CHECK). That's just one example.

Raising my kid here has just been...normal? She will be 2 next month, so there isn't much to do with her. We have a Y membership that is pretty awesome. But they don't use meetup.com here (see above) and there really isn't much to do besides shop. I don't know about older kids.

I'm a negative nancy when it comes to this place, sorry. I think there's another girl on here who lives here, but I don't know if she still posts. I can answer specific questions if you have any.

c2freely · April 2012

YGPM

ESquared423 · April 2012

My husband did his AIT at Fort Gordon. We were not married then and I would go down and spend every weekend there with him...Fort Gordon/Augusta leaves a lot to be desired. It's ok, but I know I would get bored QUICK if I lived there.

I will second the mexican food comment that margot made. They really do have some great mexican food! Nacho Mama's was one of our favorite places to go, the bartender there made the best little margaritas too. Mmmmmm

If I lived there I would eat burritos, shop at the little mall, and...yea that's it. It's a quiet little city. Sometimes driving downtown sketched me out because it was so quiet and dated.

kpol8 · April 2012

I don't get the Mexican food love, but I'm use to some pretty good stuff back home.

We've been here since last October and are leaving in June. We don't have kids, but I've heard Columbia County schools are good (Grovetown, Evans). You kind of have to drive to do some really fun things, but there is a lot of stuff to do 2-3 hours away; Savannah, Myrtle Beach, ATL, Hilton Head. We will probably be back here in a few years and will probably live in Evans. It's just a nicer area with a little more to do than Grovetown. We've found some good, local restaurants that we will miss and Master's Week was pretty fun.

I'm kind of a bleeding heart liberal and there aren't too many of my kind down here. I've seen a lot of ignorance and racism and it makes me openly cringe.

margotmacomber · April 2012

ESquared423:
My husband did his AIT at Fort Gordon. We were not married then and I would go down and spend every weekend there with him...Fort Gordon/Augusta leaves a lot to be desired. It's ok, but I know I would get bored QUICK if I lived there.
I will second the mexican food comment that margot made. They really do have some great mexican food! Nacho Mama's was one of our favorite places to go, the bartender there made the best little margaritas too. Mmmmmm
If I lived there I would eat burritos, shop at the little mall, and...yea that's it. It's a quiet little city. Sometimes driving downtown sketched me out because it was so quiet and dated.

You get me.

lpickels · April 2012

So, I'm pretty much going to disagree with everyone that has posted so far...we have been here for 3 years now and I really love it here! We came from Ft. Drum, and while there isn't much of a "military town" feel here, I have made some amazing friends. And there is ALWAYS something to do...Margot have you ventured into Evans much? I mean if you are looking for big city life, this isnt it, but we go to the Evans Town Center park and amphitheater nearly every weekend. We live in Grovetown, and while I do like it here, I would definitely live in Evans if I could have a do over. I have an almost two year old and we have been involved in the on post playgroup and MOMs Club of Evans since he was born. I have been going to the Wilson YMCA since he was two months old and we practically lived at the water park there last summer and plan to do so again this summer. I don't think the mall is overly terrible, but again, we came from Ft Drum where there was no mall to speak of. Google Augusta Mall for a list of shops, but it has Ann Taylor, William Sonoma, Apple...and several other more high end retailers that MANY malls definitely don't have. You can also google Columbia County events and I think you pull p a list of everything going on around here through the county website. Also Lady Antebellum Ampitheater is the new outdoor concert venue in Evans and they have been getting some pretty decent acts there. Not sure if you're a country fan but we just saw Josh Kelley and Little Big Town there a couple weeks ago and had a fabulous time. You definitely want to stay in Columbia County for schools. Also, if you like outdoor stuff, we go kayaking on the Savannah river all.the.time. There are also a TON of really nice biking/jogging trails like the Canal Trail that starts at Savannah Rapids Pavillion and The Greenway in North Augusta. There is also an awesome Army MWR area out at Lake Thurmond with a swimming beach and campsites and cabins that you can rent. It is called Pointes West. As far as resturaunts, the Bees Knees downtown is a really fun little Tapas place and New Moon Cafe is a cute little coffee shop that serves some really tasty lunches. Both are on Broad Street. If you want super fancy there is a French place alled Le Maison that is neat for really special dinners. Hope some of this helps...like I said, it's for sure not a big city life, but I really do like it here and will be sad to leave next June. Feel free to PM with more questions.

CarrotsMakeMeFat · April 2012

Is it appropriate to ask about the race relations? I noticed a world of difference between N Augusta and Evans/Grovetown. Is it similar to what I'm used to in a bigger city (we are in DC now).

I think I could find enough to do closer to Evans, which is why we would focus there....nice Jewish community center, mall, access to hwys, etc.

If it makes a difference, I was not bothered by Ft Rucker...but I didn't live there long. I just went to Dothan and Panama City a lot

ETA...wedon't have kids yet, but part of the reason I ask about race relations is bc I worry about what it would be'like to raise a kid there...we look at GA as our opportunity to escape from HCOL prices and have a family friendly area to live.

margotmacomber · April 2012

lpickels:
So, I'm pretty much going to disagree with everyone that has posted so far...we have been here for 3 years now and I really love it here! We came from Ft. Drum, and while there isn't much of a "military town" feel here, I have made some amazing friends. And there is ALWAYS something to do...Margot have you ventured into Evans much? I mean if you are looking for big city life, this isnt it, but we go to the Evans Town Center park and amphitheater nearly every weekend. We live in Grovetown, and while I do like it here, I would definitely live in Evans if I could have a do over. I have an almost two year old and we have been involved in the on post playgroup and MOMs Club of Evans since he was born. I have been going to the Wilson YMCA since he was two months old and we practically lived at the water park there last summer and plan to do so again this summer. I don't think the mall is overly terrible, but again, we came from Ft Drum where there was no mall to speak of. Google Augusta Mall for a list of shops, but it has Ann Taylor, William Sonoma, Apple...and several other more high end retailers that MANY malls definitely don't have. You can also google Columbia County events and I think you pull p a list of everything going on around here through the county website. Also Lady Antebellum Ampitheater is the new outdoor concert venue in Evans and they have been getting some pretty decent acts there. Not sure if you're a country fan but we just saw Josh Kelley and Little Big Town there a couple weeks ago and had a fabulous time. You definitely want to stay in Columbia County for schools. Also, if you like outdoor stuff, we go kayaking on the Savannah river all.the.time. There are also a TON of really nice biking/jogging trails like the Canal Trail that starts at Savannah Rapids Pavillion and The Greenway in North Augusta. There is also an awesome Army MWR area out at Lake Thurmond with a swimming beach and campsites and cabins that you can rent. It is called Pointes West. As far as resturaunts, the Bees Knees downtown is a really fun little Tapas place and New Moon Cafe is a cute little coffee shop that serves some really tasty lunches. Both are on Broad Street. If you want super fancy there is a French place alled Le Maison that is neat for really special dinners. Hope some of this helps...like I said, it's for sure not a big city life, but I really do like it here and will be sad to leave next June. Feel free to PM with more questions.

You just freaked me out. The Wilson Y is my Y. OMG. ::looks around suspiciously while sweating on the weight machines::

recipechic · April 2012

There are no schools within Richmond County that I would recommend. Columbia County schools are vastly different.

There are nice neighborhoods outside of Columbia County however they really aren't convenient wrt to Ft Gordon. Pretty much anywhere within Evans is easily accessible since they built Jimmy Dyess Pkwy it is a pretty straight shot. But I am not sure how traffic is in the mornings. There are 5 gates (may have changed) but you really don't want to move anywhere outside Gate 5.

I live off of Washington Rd and I feel safe in this area. But I tend to avoid anything past the mall area. I grew up in Columbia County and even it has changed so much.

We have 3 Walmarts, with 2 more planned. Not counting North Augusta

The Mall is very nice, but too crowded. We really need another one.

We have the Riverwalk and during the spring/summer there is a Saturday Produce market there that is nice.

We also have the lake with the Ft Gordon Rec area. It is nice and I wish I was still a dependent and able to use the facilities there. I loved camping there.

There are 2 zoos not to far away. One in Columbia and one in Atlanta,

There really isn't that much to do here but the cost of living is great.

Truthfully the hardest part is the humidity in the summer!!!!

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