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This topic is locked
gah, on Nov 29 2007, 10:35 PM, said:
all of your questions about Columbus developments (like new and proposed river condos, such as Eagle And Phenix Mill and 10-story Phenixian and Bibb MilL compex) should be answered in the Columbus Subforum
Population of Augusta - 520,000 in Augusta-Aiken MSA -- is larger than Columbus-A-O CSA, and still will be even afer addition of BRAC numbers.
I have tried to answer the "Columbus seems small" question in several threads. In an effort to put it to rest once and for all:
Columbus is different in that a large part of the population is "invisible" -- Ie, they live, work, play, shop and receive medical attention, go to school etc on Ft Benning. The infrastructure that supoports that portion of the population -- huge new PX, 8-story hospital, golf courses, huge airport, etc -- is not often seen by the civilian visitor (or even by long term non-military Columbusites). Sort of like the Vatican -- an enclave "in" Columbus but not really "of" Columbus. The "small Columbus" that most civilians see is actually supporting 30-45,000 fewer folks than the population figures suggest. If those folks were civillian residents, there would be more, taller buildings DT to cater to them and more traditional suburban sprawl. In short, the Columbus population figures include a very large percentage of folks who do not depend on the "small Columbus" that most people see when they drive around. The city may have 200,000 people but it seems to have 30-45,000 less because -- unless you have reason to go on post -- you dont see them or any tangible evidence of their existence. Imagine if Buckhead were a gated community. Atlanta would seem smaller than 500,000 if you never had an opportunity to see where as much as 20-25% of them lived, worked and played.
Macon and Augusta also have military posts, so Benning is not the total explanation (tho the number of military may not be as great as at Benning). An additional reason is that those cities are the opposite of Columbus in that they seem larger than they really are (especially Macon) because of the interstate traffic passing thru them. For example, the traffic in Macon is much heavier than in Columbus because there are a hell of a lot of folks going to and from Fla. That is not local traffic driven by local residents. Columbus does not have its traffic enhanced by passers-thru. All traffic is local, so without the "benefit" of that Fla traffic, Columbus seems slower and more small town. Likewise I-20 passing thru Augusta is heavily travelled to and from Atlanta to Myrtle Beach. If both Macon and Augusta lacked interstate connections, then they too would seem more smalll town rather than bustling urban centers. The number of cars on the road is not reflective of the local population, but in Columbus what you see is cars driven by locals.
Another reason is geography. Macon-WR are fairly close. As are Augusta-Aiken. That gives both cities an enhanced sense of density. Columbus is more diffuse. The city itself is pretty compact (tho is starting to sprawl north and east). It does not have a WR or an Aiken close by. Auburn-Opelika -- which is included as part of the CSA -- is 20-25 miles from DT. That stretch is developing rapidly (especially in the Smith Station area) but is not urbanized over its full length. So fully 100,000 of the total CSA population is located some distance from the remaning 330,000. Macon-WR and Augusta-Aiken are like Minneapolis-St Paul. Columbus-A-O are more like Dallas-Ft Worth. Two centers of population located in one CSA but separated by a fairly large distance.
I hope that this helps to answer the "Columbus seems small" conundrum.
Population of Augusta - 520,000 in Augusta-Aiken MSA -- is larger than Columbus-A-O CSA, and still will be even afer addition of BRAC numbers.
I have tried to answer the "Columbus seems small" question in several threads. In an effort to put it to rest once and for all:
Columbus is different in that a large part of the population is "invisible" -- Ie, they live, work, play, shop and receive medical attention, go to school etc on Ft Benning. The infrastructure that supoports that portion of the population -- huge new PX, 8-story hospital, golf courses, huge airport, etc -- is not often seen by the civilian visitor (or even by long term non-military Columbusites). Sort of like the Vatican -- an enclave "in" Columbus but not really "of" Columbus. The "small Columbus" that most civilians see is actually supporting 30-45,000 fewer folks than the population figures suggest. If those folks were civillian residents, there would be more, taller buildings DT to cater to them and more traditional suburban sprawl. In short, the Columbus population figures include a very large percentage of folks who do not depend on the "small Columbus" that most people see when they drive around. The city may have 200,000 people but it seems to have 30-45,000 less because -- unless you have reason to go on post -- you dont see them or any tangible evidence of their existence. Imagine if Buckhead were a gated community. Atlanta would seem smaller than 500,000 if you never had an opportunity to see where as much as 20-25% of them lived, worked and played.
Macon and Augusta also have military posts, so Benning is not the total explanation (tho the number of military may not be as great as at Benning). An additional reason is that those cities are the opposite of Columbus in that they seem larger than they really are (especially Macon) because of the interstate traffic passing thru them. For example, the traffic in Macon is much heavier than in Columbus because there are a hell of a lot of folks going to and from Fla. That is not local traffic driven by local residents. Columbus does not have its traffic enhanced by passers-thru. All traffic is local, so without the "benefit" of that Fla traffic, Columbus seems slower and more small town. Likewise I-20 passing thru Augusta is heavily travelled to and from Atlanta to Myrtle Beach. If both Macon and Augusta lacked interstate connections, then they too would seem more smalll town rather than bustling urban centers. The number of cars on the road is not reflective of the local population, but in Columbus what you see is cars driven by locals.
Another reason is geography. Macon-WR are fairly close. As are Augusta-Aiken. That gives both cities an enhanced sense of density. Columbus is more diffuse. The city itself is pretty compact (tho is starting to sprawl north and east). It does not have a WR or an Aiken close by. Auburn-Opelika -- which is included as part of the CSA -- is 20-25 miles from DT. That stretch is developing rapidly (especially in the Smith Station area) but is not urbanized over its full length. So fully 100,000 of the total CSA population is located some distance from the remaning 330,000. Macon-WR and Augusta-Aiken are like Minneapolis-St Paul. Columbus-A-O are more like Dallas-Ft Worth. Two centers of population located in one CSA but separated by a fairly large distance.
I hope that this helps to answer the "Columbus seems small" conundrum.
gah that was a great explanation, but considering that you know all of the above, then I don't understand why a couple of you guys from Columbus acted as if I had said something outrageous when I mentioned that I thought Macon felt faster that Columbus.
