Garden City, Georgia

Garden City is a city in Chatham County, Georgia, United States, located just northwest of Savannah. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 10,289. Part industrial and part residential, the city is home to much of the heavy industry in Chatham County. It is part of the Savannah metropolitan area. It hosts the largest and busiest ocean terminal of the Port of Savannah, the flagship operation of the Georgia Ports Authority.

Garden City was created in 1939 as Industrial City Gardens, a community intended to house the large workforce required by the new factories and chemical plants just west of downtown Savannah. Garden City is part of the Savannah metropolitan statistical area.

Geography

Garden City is located northwest of the center of Chatham County at (32.100372, −81.164965). It is bordered to the southeast by the city of Savannah, to the west by the city of Pooler, and to the north by the city of Port Wentworth. To the northeast in unincorporated land is the Port of Savannah and the Savannah River.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Garden City has a total area of , of which is land and , or 4.35%, is water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Garden City had a population of 10,289. The median age was 35.7 years. 24.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 12.7% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 98.7 males age 18 and over.

97.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 2.3% lived in rural areas.

There were 4,064 households in Garden City, of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 32.1% were married-couple households, 26.5% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 32.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. There were 1,734 families residing in the city.

Business

Commercial activities are traditionally concentrated near the junction of U.S. Highway 80, U.S. Highway 17 and State Highway 21 (an area once known as Traffic Circle), as well as along Augusta Road (Highway 21), where several long-term-stay hotels, franchise and independently owned fast food restaurants, financial institutions, pawn shops, strip shopping malls, gas stations, car repair shops and automotive retail stores are located.

Industry

Garden City's industry is located primarily on its waterfront, as is the case for surrounding communities. The Georgia Ports Authority operates a terminal, located at 2 Main Street. Garden City is also home to numerous trucking and railway companies. Other industries are:

Politics

Municipal

thumb|right|220px|The building that is currently used as the [[City and town halls|Town Center of Garden City was opened to the public in 2009, under the administration of Mayor Andy Quinney.]]

Garden City operated under a mayor–council form of government until 2009. It has adopted a council-administrator style, and by 2011 it planned to replace its seven at-large council members by one at-large and five district-elected ones.

For a list of past and present mayors and council members of Garden City, see List of mayors of Garden City, Georgia.

As of 2010, Garden City has never collected property taxes.

Other levels of government

Garden City is represented by:

the 7th and the 8th districts on the boards of the Chatham County Commission and the Savannah Chatham County Public School System
the 162nd district in the State House
the 2nd district in the State Senate
the 1st congressional district in Congress

In the last three decades, the area's county commissioners have been:

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

!Inauguration!!Term expiration!!colspan="2"|7th district<br/>commissioner!!Party!!colspan="2"|8th district<br/>commissioner!!Party

|1981

|1985

|bgcolor=| 

|James M. “Jimmie” DeLoach

|Democrat

|bgcolor=| 

|L. Scott Stell Jr.

|Democrat

|1985

|1989

|bgcolor=| 

|James M. “Jimmie” DeLoach

|Democrat

|bgcolor=| 

|Dorothy Barnes Pelote

|Democrat

|1989

|1993

|bgcolor=| 

|James M. “Jimmie” DeLoach

|Democrat

|bgcolor=| 

|Dorothy Barnes Pelote

|Democrat

|1993

|1997

|bgcolor=| 

|Eddie DeLoach

|Democrat

|bgcolor=| 

|Dr. Priscilla D. Thomas

|Democrat

|1997

|2001

|bgcolor=| 

|Eddie DeLoach

|Democrat

|bgcolor=| 

|Dr. Priscilla D. Thomas

|Democrat

|2001

|2005

|bgcolor=| 

|Dean Kicklighter

|Republican

|bgcolor=| 

|Dr. Priscilla D. Thomas

|Democrat

|2005

|2009

|bgcolor=| 

|Dean Kicklighter

|Republican

|bgcolor=| 

|Dr. Priscilla D. Thomas

|Democrat

|2009

|2013

|bgcolor=| 

|Dean Kicklighter

|Republican

|bgcolor=| 

|Dr. Priscilla D. Thomas

|Democrat

|2013

|2017

|bgcolor=| 

|Dean Kicklighter

|Republican

|bgcolor=| 

|Dr. Priscilla D. Thomas

|Democrat

|2017

|present

|bgcolor=| 

|Dean Kicklighter

|Republican

|bgcolor=| 

|Chester A. Ellis

|Democrat

Color code:

State representation

The Georgia Department of Corrections operates the Coastal State Prison near Garden City.

Public education

{| style="float:right;"

|thumb|right|220px|Robert W. Groves High School

|thumb|right|220px|The Garden City [[United Methodist Church building is located at 62 Varnedoe Avenue, next to the Senior Citizen Center.]]

|thumb|right|220px|Central Baptist Church

|thumb|right|220px|Woodlawn Baptist Church

Three public schools can be found within Garden City limits. They are managed by the Savannah Chatham County Public School System.

{| class= "wikitable sortable"

! School

! Location

! Year established

! Number of students

| Garden City Elementary School

| 4037 Kessler Avenue

| 1996

| 575

| George A. Mercer Middle School

| 201 Rommel Avenue

| 1962

| 880

| Robert W. Groves High School

| 100 Priscilla D. Thomas Way

| 1958

| 1,454

Long known as "the pride of the Westside", Groves High School has a rich community tradition that dates back to its founding in 1958. Established to serve the young people and families of West Chatham County, the school is named for Robert W. Groves, a prominent business and civic leader in the county. Besides his role in business and his many commercial and community activities, Groves took particular concern for the youth of the area and their educational needs.

Groves High School is the home of the Fighting Scottish Rebels football and basketball teams. Campus points of interest include the Woodville-Tompkins Annex, where the automotive and construction programs are offered; and Cumming Field, named to honor Second Lieutenant Britt C. Cumming, a World War II veteran who was killed in action.

Mercer Middle School serves grades six through eight and is a part of the Savannah Chatham County School System (SCCPSS). Originally called Mercer Junior High School, Mercer Middle School first opened on September 4, 1962, and was the first climate-controlled school in Georgia. Mercer was named for George Anderson Mercer, an attorney who served as the president of the Board of Education from 1883 until his death in 1907.

Garden City Elementary School was built to serve the consolidated student population of the former Benjamin Sprague and Martin G. Haynes elementary schools.

Parks and recreation

{| style="float:right;"

|thumb|The Senior Citizens Center was dedicated in January 1996, under the administration of Mayor Roy L. Crager.

|thumb|Volunteer Park was dedicated in December 1999, under the administration of Mayor Dean Kicklighter.

|thumb|The Park at Sharon Park was dedicated in December 1999, under the administration of Mayor Dean Kicklighter, and rededicated in 2004, under the administration of Mayor Andy Quinney.

|thumb|By 1950, the [[Order of the Eastern Star|Eastern Star Masonic Hall, located at 131 Rommel Avenue, was listed in R.L. Polk's Savannah City Directory.]]

|

|thumb|upright|The [[Geodetic system|geographical reference of this water tower, located at the intersection of Nelson and Rommel avenues, is .]]

Services to the citizens of Garden City include:

{| class="wikitable sortable"

! Facility

! Location

| Garden City Branch of the Live Oak Public Libraries

| 104 Sunshine Avenue

| Port City Branch of the Live Oak Public Libraries

| 3501 Houlihan Avenue

| Garden City Community & Senior Citizens

| 78 Varnedoe Avenue

|}The Garden City Parks and Recreation Department has year-round programs available for citizens. Youth sports include baseball, girls' fast pitch softball, T-ball, football, cheerleading, soccer, gymnastics and basketball. The city also provides non-team activities such as a summer day camp (Camp Eagle), roller skating, after-school programs, and a center for senior citizens. Garden City is home to five public parks. All are managed by the municipal City Parks & Recreation Department, headquartered at 160B Priscilla D. Thomas Way.

{| class="wikitable sortable"

! Park

! Location

! Primary use

! Monuments/facilities

| Bazemore Park

| 1 Bud Brown Drive

| Recreational

| Baseball complex

| Griffin Park

| 500 Griffin Road

| Recreational

| Playground

| The Park at Sharon Park

| 507 Sharon Park Drive

| Recreational

| Two playgrounds, gazebo, pond and hiking trail

| Town Green

| 100 Central Avenue

| Esthetic

| Fountain and benches

| Volunteer Park

| 5100 Augusta Road (State Highway 21)

| Commemorative

| Fountain and benches

Other landmarks

Other landmarks located in Garden City include:

The Air National Guard facility at 1401 Robert B. Miller Jr. Road
Coastal State Prison, located at 200 Gulfstream Road and dedicated on May 12, 1981; it replaced the Chatham Correctional Institution as the local-based state-run correctional facility
The Dotson House (the oldest residence in Garden City), built in 1850 and moved from the surroundings of George A. Mercer School to the site of the current town center
Fire Department Station No. 1, 160 Main Street
Fire Department Station No. 2, 2406 U.S. Highway 80 West
The Order of the Eastern Star's local branch, located at 131 Rommel Avenue
Hillcrest Abby West Cemetery, located on Dean Forest Road

References

External links

Garden City official website