About Us
We are on the way
Over the past two decades, the City of Walnut Grove has seen tremendous growth while preserving the charm that makes our community special. The Walnut Grove Parkway continues to serve as a vital corridor and will house the new downtown. Walnut Grove High School has become a central pillar of our community, fostering both academic and athletic excellence, and the public library remains an active resource for learners of all ages.
Our sewer system is expanding since the completion of its initial phase, allowing for continued residential and commercial growth. Infrastructure upgrades, including partnerships with Walton County Fire Rescue, have improved safety and emergency response for our citizens. Tap sales and careful planning have supported these essential improvements.
Economic development is also on the rise. New businesses are opening, and commercial spaces are being actively filled—especially in the newly developed buildings coming soon behind Church at the Grove. Strategic growth initiatives like Envision Walnut Grove are shaping a vibrant future for our city.
And Walnut Grove is still “on the way”—ideally located with convenient access to Athens, Atlanta, Covington, Conyers, Loganville, Snellville, the Georgia International Horse Park, and many more destinations. Here, you can enjoy the simplicity of small-town living without sacrificing access to big-city amenities.
The best is yet to come. Keep watching Walnut Grove—we’re just getting started.
Government
The City of Walnut Grove operates under the Council-Mayor form of Government. The Council consists of a Mayor and four council people. The Mayor is the chief elected official of the City. The Mayor presides at all meetings of the Council.
The Mayor cannot make or second a motion and only votes to break a tie. The Mayor Pro-Tempore is appointed by the Board and presides at meetings in the absence of the Mayor. The Board is a non-partisan board and its members serve four-year staggered terms.
The primary duties of the Board are to: determine Town policies and levels of service, adopt and amend Town ordinances and resolutions, determine how the money in the budget is to be raised and for what purposes it is to be spent, approve all contracts and agreements, appoint citizens to various boards and committees and represent the Municipality as its leadership in all areas.
Geography
Walnut Grove is located at latitude 33.742N. The longitude is -83.852W.. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.5 square miles (3.9 km²), all of it land. It is in the Eastern Standard time zone. Elevation is 922 feet. The distance from Walnut Grove to Washington DC is 534 miles. The distance to the Georgia state capital is 34 miles. (as the crow flies)
Demographics
As of the census of 2010, there were 1,330 people residing in Walnut Grove. According the the US Census Bureau in 2013, Georgia population is 9,992,167. Walton County comes in at 85,754.
Future plans
Walnut Grove is on the move. The sewage system is in place, which should bring new ventures to the city. Take a look at the plans for future growth as offered up by UGA in their Charette.
Famous residents
Barbecue Bob (Robert Hicks, blues musician, 1902-1931)
Born in Walnut Grove , Georgia, Hicks parents, Charlie and Mary Hicks, were farmers. He and his brother, Charlie Hicks , together with Curley Weaver and were taught how to play the guitar by Curley’s mother, Savannah “Dip” Weaver. Bob began playing the 6-string guitar but picked up the 12-string guitar after moving to Atlanta, Georgia , in 1923 or 1924. He became one of the prominent performers of the newly developing Atlanta blues style.
Bazoline Estelle Usher (teacher, principal and more)
Walnut Grove is the birthplace of Ms. Bazoline Estelle Usher. She was a teacher, principal (which was a pretty big deal for a woman at the time, especially an African-American woman!) and she became the Supervisor of Education for Minority Pupils in Atlanta, Georgia. She also led the group of about 25 women who created the first African-American Girl Scout troops in Atlanta.
Walnut Grove Comprehensive Plan 2022
A charrette, often Anglicized to charette or charet and sometimes called a design charrette, is an intense period of design or planning activity. The word charrette may refer to any collaborative session in which a group of designers drafts a solution to a design problem.
Click on the links for a view of the Charette for Walnut Grove for 2006 or the 2022 Walnut Grove Comprehensive Plan 2022
