A place where winning golfers get green jackets, Augusta, Georgia has a long history from the American Revolution to racial segregation. Anyone relocating to Augusta will see a mid-sized Southern city that has undergone some changes in recent years.
Augusta is located about halfway up the Savannah River where navigable waters end. The city expanded in 1996 after joining Richmond County to form a single government known as Augusta-Richmond County. However, the consolidated community remains to be called Augusta. Bordering South Carolina, Augusta is the second largest city in the state. In the five years since the 2000 census, the estimated population declined 2.3% to 190,782 people. With over 300 miles of land, city residents now have plenty of elbow room. The population density is significantly below average for cities with just 648 residents per square mile. According to U.S. Census figures in 2005, the average age of residents was 33.8 years, with 53% of the population claiming African American heritage. Another 41.3% of the people were White non-Hispanic. The average household size was 2.5 people. Families made up 66% of the households, 40% married couples.
Slightly below average is the percentage of people over 25 who have graduated from high school. Census statistics show 78% made it through high school, while nearly 19% had a bachelor's degree or higher. But among people 16 to 19 years old, a very high drop out rate of 16% was revealed in 2005. Government statistics reveal 23% of the city's people lived in poverty, including 29.4% of African-American residents. One reason why more people aren't relocating to Augusta is a stagnant job base that hasn't grown in the five years since 2000. Almost a quarter of all city jobs for women were health care related. The top job sector for men was construction, at 11% of the workforce. In the Augusta area, the largest employers include a Department of Energy nuclear facility, a military installation including Fort Gordon, and the Medical College of Georgia. The median income of households for Augusta for 2005 was $37,231, about $9,000 below the national average. At 19.3 minutes, Augusta residents had a commute time that was six minutes shorter than the national average.
Well below the national average are Augusta's home values. In 2005, the median house/condo value was $92,200, compared with the U.S. average of $167,500. Home values had grown less than two percent since 2004. Over 21% of city housing units have been built since 1990. About 77% of the population live in single-family or mobile homes. The median monthly housing costs for mortgaged owners was $940 in 2005, while renters were paying $621 for their living expenses each month. The Cost of Living Index ranks much lower in Augusta at 73.3 when compared with the national rate of 99.52. According Sperling's Best Places, the average utility costs are over $1,000 less per year than the rest of the country, while consumer household expenditures was 40% lower. In fact, everything from education, entertainment, transportation, and retail expenses are all well below national figures.
Businesses have been leaving downtown Augusta for suburban shopping centers since the 1970s. City officials set forth plans to revitalize the city's hidden riverfront to build a river walk with parks, an amphitheater, hotels, museums and art galleries. The riverfront renaissance has yet to spill over into Augusta's business district. The upside for those relocating to Augusta is the famed Augusta National Golf Club, home of ?The Masters,? a major PGA event and host to some of the biggest names in the sport. The city has been dubbed Masters City and goes by The Garden City, but it has also gotten a reputation for being smelly earning it a dirty nickname. The Environmental Protection Agency has ranked Augusta as the biggest polluter in Georgia, causing some to call the city "Disgusta." The air quality is below average in the city with 'good air' to breath 57% of the time, according to the EPA.
Some crime statistics in Augusta are unknown or not reported to the FBI, but as a part of a Augusta-Richmond County Metro Area, crime is estimated to be more than twice the national average. CNN Money in 2006 reports the risk of personal crime was moderately higher than the national average, while property crime was somewhat higher. Augusta's climate tends to be hot and humid in summer but much cooler come winter. The highest temperatures are recorded in August with an average of 92.5 degrees for a high. Average lows for January sink to 33.2 degrees. The city receives an average of 44.6 inches of annual precipitation. Notable residents of Augusta include native son and pioneering funk music legend James Brown. Also, actor Laurence Fishburne, singer Amy Grant, and a former president, Woodrow Wilson, who spent his childhood here.
