Fairplay, Georgia
Seal of Georgia
Fairplay · Douglas County, Georgia
Population 1,628 (est. 2026: ~2,600)
Source: Census ACS 2023 · ACS 2023 + 15.54% annual growth projection

Fairplay, Georgia

Douglas County, Georgia · Population 1,267

Fairplay is a census-designated place tucked into the western edge of Douglas County, sitting roughly 20 miles west of downtown Atlanta. It occupies a quiet corner of metro Atlanta's suburban fringe — residential, car-dependent, and decidedly settled. With a median age of 46.5 and a homeownership rate pushing 88%, Fairplay reads less like a growth-edge boomtown and more like a place where people have already arrived and stayed. It shares county services, schools, and infrastructure with Douglasville, the Douglas County seat, and sits within easy reach of the broader Atlanta metro labor market.

People & Demographics

Fairplay's 1,234 residents form 512 households with an average household size of 2.41. Family households make up 409 of those 512 — about 80% — though only 100 residents are children under 18, which aligns with the older median age of 46.5.

Racially, the community is majority white (811 residents), with 139 Black residents and 184 Hispanic or Latino residents. No Asian population was recorded in the 2022 ACS estimates. Douglas County as a whole is considerably more diverse and nearly 117 times larger by population (144,237), so Fairplay represents a demographically distinct slice of county life.

Economy & Employment

The median household income in Fairplay is $94,571, which runs well above Georgia's statewide median (around $61,000–$65,000 depending on the year) and suggests a working professional or dual-income household base. Per capita income lands at $38,051.

Of the 884 residents counted in the labor force, zero were recorded as unemployed — a figure that likely reflects both the small sample size and the 2022 snapshot. Only 8 residents fall below the poverty line, consistent with the high income profile. Most working residents commute out to jobs in Douglas County or the Atlanta metro rather than finding employment within Fairplay itself.

Housing

All 512 housing units are occupied — vacancy sits at zero. That's an unusually tight number, and it reflects both the small size of the CDP and likely a survey-period snapshot. Of occupied units, 451 are owner-occupied and 61 are renter-occupied, putting the homeownership rate at approximately 88% — high by any measure.

The median home value is $227,100. Median rent data was not available from the 2022 ACS for this place.

Schools

Fairplay students are served by Douglas County School System. The district operates multiple high schools within the county, all with substantial enrollments:

Middle schools in the system include Chapel Hill Middle (1,098 students), Factory Shoals Middle (840), Irma C. Austin Middle (792), Turner Middle (740), and Chestnut Log Middle (726).

Elementary options include New Manchester Elementary (848 students), Connie Dugan Elementary (662), and Chapel Hill Elementary (649). Brighten Academy serves grades K–8 with 800 students.

Getting Around

Fairplay is car country. Of 884 workers, 834 drove alone to work. Nineteen carpooled, 16 walked, and 15 worked from home. Zero residents used public transit.

Aggregate travel time for the community totals 30,835 minutes, which works out to roughly 35 minutes per commuter on average — consistent with a suburb that feeds into the Atlanta metro job market via I-20 or US-78. There is no local transit service; a personal vehicle is not optional here.

Healthcare

WellStar Douglas Medical Center serves as the primary hospital for Douglas County residents. It is located in Douglasville. Provider-level searches for Fairplay-area clinicians are available through the CMS NPI Registry.

Library

The Betty C. Hagler/Lithia Springs Public Library, part of the Douglas County Public Library system, is located 1.2 miles from Fairplay. Phone: (770) 944-5931. It is the closest public library branch and the practical resource for residents.

Parks & Recreation

Three National Park Service units are within reasonable distance:

The Chattahoochee River corridor provides the most accessible outdoor recreation for Fairplay residents looking for trails and water access without a long drive.

Natural Hazards

Douglas County has a notable federal disaster history. Since 1995, FEMA has issued 15 disaster or emergency declarations covering the county:

The pattern shows consistent vulnerability to both winter weather events and tropical storm remnants tracking inland from the Gulf — ice storms and flooding are the recurring threats in this part of west Georgia.

Government & Municipal Code

Fairplay is a CDP (census-designated place), not an incorporated municipality, but its municipal code is published through Municode: library.municode.com/ga/fairplay-cdp-georgia. No local building code is on file for Fairplay; building and development matters fall under Douglas County jurisdiction.

Weather

Current forecasts and alerts for Fairplay's coordinates (33.7808°N, 84.6381°W):

The nearest weather observation station is Lithia Springs 1.8 S, located 1.9 miles away.

References

The law belongs to the people. Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 590 U.S. (2020)