Project Overview

Fort Gordon Regional Growth Management Plan Overview

The Fort Gordon Regional Growth Management Plan (GMP) is a cooperative planning effort conducted by communities adjacent to Fort Gordon to jointly plan for growth at the installation. According to estimates from the Department of Defense, Fort Gordon is anticipating 894 additional military personnel by 2024, in addition to the 8,449 arriving since 2012. Further population growth will be generated from service member families, contractors and other support staff, as well as indirect jobs, translating into thousands of new residents to the region.

Fort Gordon is a 56,000-acre, multi-service and multi-mission U.S Army installation located just outside Augusta, Georgia, and is home to the U.S. Army Cyber Center of Excellence, U.S. Army Cyber Corps, and U.S. Army Signal Corps, as well as various Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and multinational forces engaged in joint forces activities, training and operations. In addition, the installation includes several Tenant units under the command of U.S. Forces Command (FORSCOM), Medical units under the U.S. Army Medical Command (MEDCOM), Reserve units under U.S. Army Reserve Command (USAR), and National Guard units under U.S. Army National Guard (ARNG).

The installation has a long-standing presence in the Augusta area and the cities and counties around Fort Gordon have grown over the years, reinforcing the close relationship between military and civilian communities. The Fort is critical to the regional economy, generating 31,000 military, civilian, and contractor jobs, 24,000 other indirect jobs, and $2.4 billion in annual economic activity and tax revenue. Similarly, Fort Gordon service members and civilian employees enjoy the region’s great quality of life, benefiting from access to amenities found in large metropolitan areas but without the congestion and high cost of living.

The GMP planning process is part of a wider effort of continuous, coordinated, and comprehensive planning between Fort Gordon and surrounding communities which began in the early 2000s with the Fort Gordon Joint Land Use Study, and continues with local and regional planning efforts by local communities.

Fort Gordon Growth Management Plan Study Area

Project Goals

The purpose of the GMP is to address both the challenges and opportunities resulting from increased activity and personnel at Fort Gordon. The challenges consist of ensuring the region develops sufficient infrastructure and service capacities to accommodate growth while maintaining a high quality of life for military personnel and area residents. The opportunities relate to increased economic activity and capitalizing on economic development opportunities (particularly Cyber-related industry development), to sustain the region’s vibrant economy. Three major goals will be part of the planning process:

Provide a comprehensive assessment of potential infrastructure, service impacts and needs associated with growth at Fort Gordon in order to enable area communities to prepare and plan for growth. This assessment will lead to the development and implementation of a regional action plan for growth management.
Develop a collaborative public involvement process which enables and facilitates the coordination of the region’s various stakeholders and focused on sustaining quality of life benefits and opportunities for both military and civilian communities.
Sustain the region’s focus as a military supportive community and integrate economic development opportunities as part of this focus, particularly the Cyber economy.

In order to accomplish these project goals, the following topics and themes, central to growth management planning, will be addressed as part of the GMP planning process:

Demographic & Growth Profile
Transportation
Public Infrastructure
Public Services
Employment, Workforce Development & Economic Development
Education
Housing
Health Care Services
Child Care Services

This effort will culminate into a plan to assist surrounding communities in making informed decisions regarding growth management and include an implementation strategy for communities to use as a guide.