Robins AFB info

[Guest Magicrat]

Anyone ever been stationed at Robins? Any advice on where to live/avoid, schools, or any other general info?

Thanks

[Guest Jim]

1. Don't live off of Watson Blvd. It will take you two hours to get to work

2. Don't live anywhere off of Green St north of Watson

3. If you buy, buy in Bonaire or Kathleen

4. Don't live off of Watson

There are a lot of good apartments in town, most are off of Russell Pkwy. There are some decent apartments off of Watson (see #1 above).

If you have kids that are in school or plan on staying there long enough to have kids go to school, try to live in the GA 96/Mount Zion area. They just built a new middle school off of South Moody and most of Bonaire is zoned for it. They also built a new High School that should be zoned for the same area.

[Wolf424]

Byron is also a pretty nice area, but it will take you 30 min to get to work. (as long as you take Dumbar and not Watson, otherwise, 2 hours) Russell Pkwy isn't much better as far as traffic. Anywhere off of 96 and south of the base on 247 are nice areas. I lived there for 8 years so PM me if you have some specific questions.

[Guest Fogo]

Russell Parkway traffic is terrible especially around "heading to work and leaving work" times. Just not enough road for all the people that live here... Grown a lot since the town was built.

Good thing is; lots of nice housing available in my opinion. A good amount of neighborhoods within good distance to the base.

I'll be glad to answer any PMs if you have specific questions.

[Guest Bogey]

1. Don't live off of Watson Blvd. It will take you two hours to get to work

2. Don't live anywhere off of Green St north of Watson

3. If you buy, buy in Bonaire or Kathleen

4. Don't live off of Watson

There are a lot of good apartments in town, most are off of Russell Pkwy. There are some decent apartments off of Watson (see #1 above).

If you have kids that are in school or plan on staying there long enough to have kids go to school, try to live in the GA 96/Mount Zion area. They just built a new middle school off of South Moody and most of Bonaire is zoned for it. They also built a new High School that should be zoned for the same area.

What are your reasons for recomending to buy in Bonaire or Kathleen?

[war007afa]

Unless you're some sort of medical student, avoid the strip club with the flourescent lighting. Scariest thing I've ever seen. One chick even had some sort of scar where they had used a rib separator on her.

[Wolf424]

What are your reasons for recomending to buy in Bonaire or Kathleen?

Newer homes, better part of town, better schools. Anywhere on the southside or or the northwest side near the centerville/byron areas are nice.

[Right Seat Driver]

Even over the past couple years there has been a large amount of growth to Warner-Robins. As stated, Watson and Russell are going to be a nightmare trying to get on base.

I didn't see anyone reply but the off-base base housing is okay, nothing too spectacular but it isn't bad either. There are a few different floor plans and most are of the duplex variety with a one car garage. For example the difference between the two bedroom floor plan can be pretty varied. It is privatized, and as of a month or two ago they were taking slightly less of your full BAH per month. WAFB Housing

The surrounding areas are pretty nice places to live, but I don't recommend commuting from Macon if you meet anyone who has. I-75 from Macon to Warner Robins goes from 55mph-65-55-70. The by-pass is much better but you are still looking around 25-40 minutes to work each way.

It's crazy but I met a few Robins guys who were commuting from ATL, everyday.

Oh yeah, if you live in Warner Robins you have to go to Centerville to drink booze on Sundays in the restaurants. It is basically in the southern portion of Warner Robins where the Outback is and the new Best Buy. If you are a northerner they have a sweet Kroger. It sure brought me back to growing up in Michigan when I was done in the south.

EDITED for alcohol

Edited May 17, 2009 by Right Seat Driver

[slacker]

25 minutes from door to door from Macon. I'm about the only one in my office that lives in Macon.

[zach braff]

25 minutes from door to door from Macon. I'm about the only one in my office that lives in Macon.

2

24 minutes door to door from my spot in downtown Macon to my job on the south side of Robins. Actually lived in Warner Robins my first 2 yrs and had a 22 minute commute since the ENTIRE CITY commutes to Robins. Had a straight shot down 247 from Macon and rarely hit more than one stoplight. I put more miles on the car but the commute time was pretty much the same.

I loved living in Macon... lots of culture, history, awesome neighborhood and good dive bar scene... Mind you I speak only from my downtown perspective. Not too many military lived downtown but there were a few of us. A few military live in North Macon as well. If kids are a factor stay away from the Mac unless you're going with private schools - the public ones are terrible.

On Robins - The base itself kinda sucked but my unit made it worth it. They do have two great gyms, and though I'm not a golfer those who are seem to enjoy the course there.

Also keep in tune with whatever big chain restaurant/store is getting ready to open on Watson or Russel, it tends to always be a big topic of conversation around there.

zb

[Guest Form 8]

Even over the past couple years there has been a large amount of growth to Warner-Robins. As stated, Watson and Russell are going to be a nightmare trying to get on base.

I didn't see anyone reply but the off-base base housing is okay, nothing too spectacular but it isn't bad either. There are a few different floor plans and most are of the duplex variety with a one car garage. For example the difference between the two bedroom floor plan can be pretty varied. It is privatized, and as of a month or two ago they were taking slightly less of your full BAH per month. WAFB Housing

The surrounding areas are pretty nice places to live, but I don't recommend commuting from Macon if you meet anyone who has. I-75 from Macon to Warner Robins goes from 55mph-65-55-70. The by-pass is much better but you are still looking around 25-40 minutes to work each way.

It's crazy but I met a few Robins guys who were commuting from ATL, everyday.

Oh yeah, if you live in Warner Robins you have to go to Centerville to drink booze on Sundays in the restaurants. It is basically in the southern portion of Warner Robins where the Outback is and the new Best Buy. If you are a northerner they have a sweet Kroger. It sure brought me back to growing up in Michigan when I was done in the south.

EDITED for alcohol

When I was stationed there I knew a MSgt who commuted from Atlanta and a Captain who commuted from Albany. There was a female Boom there who was married to a TAC-P stationed at Ft. Benning and they lived half way between Columbus and Warner Robins.

[Guest dropkick_9]

Just wanted to use this thread to get a POC. I've got the opportunity to do JSTARS assignment as an Army guy, and was wondering if anyone from 116 ACW could put me contact with one of those individuals.

Thanks.

[sky_king]

So, I just dropped a JSTARS. Any new info would be greatly appreciated. Mission, Deployment rates, Lifestyle, Places to live, schools, etc...

Feel free to PM me as well.

[Cooter]

I don't know much about the base but the new WG/CC down there was the boss at my last base (Offutt AFB) and he's awesome. Straight up dude who takes care of his people. He's very mission oriented and puts as much queep off as he can. FWIW.

Cooter.

[drumkitwes]

I'm getting towards the end of UPT and am interested in JSTARS. How is life as a new copilot? How is Macon and the surrounding area? Any info is appreciated. Feel free to PM as well.

[Ziplip]

Just found out my next assignment is to Robins, does anyone have any current gouge on the area or good places to live (I'm looking to buy) for a single guy?

[Shoe clerk 4 life]

Bonaire, Bonaire, Bonaire! Some great neighborhoods right around the intersection of Sandy Run and HWY 247. Very minimal traffic coming from that direction and you can come through the Russell gate and head to the flight line via the back-way by the gym. Also check out on HWY 96, still Bonaire and tons of great neighborhoods. Heed the advice of those above that said to stay away from Watson! Watson and Russell parkway are nightmares during work hours.

Friendly reminder, Robins AFB is the largest employer in the state of GA and has some 30k people working on base, which means traffic on those 2 main roads is horrible. There is no "back gate" as east of base is all hunting land. Everyone is forced to come in from the west (Watson and Russell)

[sky_king]

I second that. Live in Bonaire, unless you don't like to maintain your house or yard. Otherwise, you're just bringing down my property value.

[Napoleon_Tanerite]

DO NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, LIVE IN HUNTINGTON VILLAGE!! This is commonly (erroneously) referred to as "off base housing". It is managed by the same company that runs on base housing, but outside the gate is a completely different story. I have lived there for 4.5 years and watched it go from being fairly decent to an absolute SHITHOLE. Back in 08 when I moved in, it was mil-only and they ran it similarly to on-base housing. Each house cost the majority of your BAH, with a bit left over for utilities. Well, their occupancy was only around 70% or so, so they opened it up to civilian base personnel, law enforcement, and other public employees. This still didn't get the rate where they wanted, so they opened it up to everyone, and dropped the rent. A buddy of mine (military) was living in one half of the duplex, and was paying ~$1200/mo for rent, and the civilian living on the other side of the same structure was paying $950.

Crime has also become a MAJOR problem in the neighborhood. In another move to up their occupancy rate, they opened up one portion of the development to section 8. This attracted the usual section 8 crowd, and as a result property crime is through the roof. Just about everyone I know in there (including me) has had their vehicle broken into at least once. I also had my 4 wheeler stolen from their RV lot. The company does everything they can do to sweep the problem under the rug, and their reply to me when I expressed concerns about security was "sorry about your luck".

I now see it as my sworn duty to warn people to stay away from there. It used to be a good deal, but the last two years have been absolutely THE WORST living experience I have ever had.

[Blue]

The surrounding areas are pretty nice places to live, but I don't recommend commuting from Macon if you meet anyone who has. I-75 from Macon to Warner Robins goes from 55mph-65-55-70. The by-pass is much better but you are still looking around 25-40 minutes to work each way.

It's crazy but I met a few Robins guys who were commuting from ATL, everyday.

Damn.

I go TDY to WR AFB every now and again. Been staying in WR. Someone suggested it would be more fun to stay in Macon (college town, and what not).

Commuting from Atlanta? Damn, That's a haul everyday.

[zach braff]

If you're looking for the grown-up life then the Bonaire recommendation is spot on. But I'll say again if it's to make the best of Robins and be near what little nightlife/dive bar scene there is then go Macon (downtown Macon or North Macon). During my Robins tour there weren't many of us in Macon but those of that were loved it. College town, walk home from bars, cut 30 mins off the Atlanta drive, had a HUGE place, etc... 22 minutes door to door commute (in honesty, add 5-10 if you're going to the JSTARS side though). The added plus was except for the only slightly longer commute (see my earlier post in this thread), I rarely had to drive around home. Downtown had most of what I needed - mind you at the time I was there all I really needed was alcohol!

But if you want to buy a house and secure your future and talk investments and dividends and stuff then Bonaire is the spot. There are also lots of good house parties that go on there since a lot of people live around there too. But you will need lots of cab cash or a friend with a pad in Macon for First Fridays.

Just saying don't count Macon out unless you're dead set on buying or have kids in school. And Huntington Village is sh-t.

zb

[Shoe clerk 4 life]

Let me just give a little "buyer beware" advice before choosing Macon ... there's a reason that not a whole lot of folks choose to live up there, even though it's relatively close. Macon is one of the most crime ridden cities in the entire nation and is certainly the worst in Georgia. The crime statistics regarding Macon are sobering: https://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ga/macon/crime/ . The most telling is that Macon has a crime index of 1, on a scale of 1-100 (100 being the safest). During my 4 year tenure, there were multiple macon nightclubs deemed off-limits by the local CC due to shootings/deaths/assaults/robberies etc...

Also, calling it a college town is a stretch. There are 2 very small colleges there, Macon State and Mercer, both of which have little to zero "campus life". Half the people attending these colleges already work on base or are in an internship program to get on base.

Visiting Macon on occasion can be great though, you have Lake Tobosofkee, the Cherry Blossom festival, Riverside Mall, and a few other hidden gems, however, living there was a risk I personally wouldnt take.

[brickhistory]

Been way too long since an assignment there, but grew up near there and have immediate family in Macon.

Bonaire and Kathleen/Perry are good family places.

Macon has some nice pockets, but the crime is bad/growing and lots of "just keep driving." But some nice stuff too with Georgia peaches galore.

As a singleton, Milledgeville is 30-40 minutes away with Georgia College and University (it's a long story). Decent liberal arts school with college nightlife and trim. Lake Sinclair is there for the boater/fisherman in ya. Sure won't be much military around though.

[Ziplip]

Thanks for all the insight, I'll have to have my realtor add Bonaire to list of prospective places to look. I did see one house I liked that was halfway between Warner-Robins and Macon, a couple miles NW of Middle Georgia Regional Airport; I was wondering if that area was any better for crime and traffic problems or would I still face those problems there?

Thanks again for the help.

[Napoleon_Tanerite]

Thanks for all the insight, I'll have to have my realtor add Bonaire to list of prospective places to look. I did see one house I liked that was halfway between Warner-Robins and Macon, a couple miles NW of Middle Georgia Regional Airport; I was wondering if that area was any better for crime and traffic problems or would I still face those problems there?

Thanks again for the help.

Sounds like you're looking in the viscinity of Allen Rd/Hartley Bridge Rd. This isn't terrible, but there are some rough areas out there closer to 247. The further from 247 you are, the better, but the drive gets longer.