EAST AUGUSTA RIVERSIDE DISTRICT

The East Augusta Riverside District, also known as the Sand Bar Ferry District, is an attractive area of one-story, suburban-styled homes and will become Augusta’s second waterfront.

The large area north of Sand Bar Ferry Road to the Savannah River offers the opportunity for neighborhood-defining redevelopments and recreation-oriented areas with both waterfront and rural character all located on the edge of Augusta’s urban core. As part of the recreation area, the Savannah Riverkeeper received approval  from the Augusta Commission in late 2013 to lease and rehabilitate 14 acres of land bounded by the Augusta Levee and the Savannah River for educational and recreational activities.

Since the unveiling of the Urban Area Master Plan, a huge redevelopment effort has been fully completed on Sand Bar Ferry Road. This cornerstone redevelopment, called The Legacy at Walton Oaks, replaced the 30 acre former Underwood Homes public housing apartment complex. This project was developed in 4 phases by Walton Communities from Atlanta, Georgia in conjunction with the Augusta Housing Authority. This new housing was built in the spirit of the Master Plan and is a cohesive community. It has tree lined streets, an urban garden and many other amenities that promote healthy lifestyles.

Flooding has long been a deterrent to development in the East Augusta Riverside District. This part of the city is geographically the lowest area in Augusta, and water drains toward Sand Bar Ferry Road. The City of Augusta took action and hired an engineering firm to study and resolve the flooding problems. Phases I and II of this massive project were completed in 2015. Those phases included drainage behind the Hornsby Elementary School and the East Augusta Middle School with the backbone of the project, a new detention pond and water channel, also completed. Phases III through VIII are currently being completed.

In 2016, the area also saw major improvements to the I-520 gateway and Sand Bar Ferry Road corridor beautification which continues.