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A man who grew up in the Lebanon community has returned to
his roots to open his business that spruces up outdoor living
areas.
Vance Dover renovated the family home, located on Old Ga.
5 just north of Toonigh Road, and turned it into an eye-catching
retail store geared toward the outdoors.
Georgia Outdoor Living opened in March and held its grand
opening in April. The business specializes in creating outdoor
water features, imported pottery and even swimming pools.
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(Left: Vance Dover renovated
an old family home on Old Ga. 5 and opened his retail
store, Georgia Outdoor Living. The store sells outdoor
décor, including fountains, garden art and pottery.
They’ll also do customized water features, landscapes,
hardscapes, paths and driveways. Erika Neldner | Ledger-News) |
“If you can imagine it in your backyard, we can pretty
much do it,” Dover said. “Georgia Outdoor is a retail
outlet for what we do.”
Dover has been building swimming pools for almost 15 years.
The pool business is Georgia Classic Pool & Landscape.
He also does ponds, waterfalls, fireplaces, paver walkways
and paver driveways.
For those looking for a simple added touch to their outdoor
areas, Georgia Outdoor Living has birdbaths, chimneas, pottery
décor and pottery planters.
Dover personally travels to Guadalajara, Mexico, to pick
out the pottery sold in his retail store, he said.
The fountains are ordered from several fine lines of outdoor
fountains, including Al’s Garden Art and Henry Studios,
Dover said.
He said about 50 percent of his business comes from the store’s
Web site, and anything on the site can be ordered and picked
up at the store.
“What we have here is just a small sampling of what
we can get,” Dover said of the retail store.
Homeowners who want a total outdoor oasis can find all they
need at Georgia Outdoor, from ornate products to design know-how.
There is no fee for consultations, and Dover said price quotes
are done at the consultation meeting.
There are no upfront fees. They also handle the permitting
process for all work.
Georgia Outdoor Living can customize hardscapes and water
features to suit the homeowner’s needs. They install
hardscapes, landscapes and outdoor lighting.
They’ll even tear up a concrete driveway and install
a picturesque paver driveway.
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Left: This fountain by Al’s Garden
Art is one offered at Georgia Outdoor Living. Erika Neldner
| Ledger-News) |
Dover said he’s always known that outdoor work was for
him. When Interstate 575 was being built, Dover and his brother
would collect boulders after workers finished blasting rock.
They hauled them back to their home and built their first pond
and waterfall.
Dover said he learned his skills by trade, and he continues
to broaden the spectrum with each job.
“We consider ourselves (a) custom (company),” he
said.
The building that is now home to Georgia Outdoor Living was
built in 1925.
The Dover family gutted the building but was able to save
the centerpiece of the home—an old fireplace.
“Underneath the stone is all the original brick,”
he said.
After watching the home deteriorate for several years, he
bought the structure from a family member and started the
renovation process.
“It’s been in our family for a long time,”
Dover said. “My great aunt built it in the 1920s and
different people in my family have owned it since then. I
bought it about a year-and-a-half ago, and I’ve spent
the last year renovating it.”
He lends his local upbringing and knowledge to serving his
customers best.
“This place has a lot of sentimental value,” he
said. “People will come in and say ‘where are you
from,’ and I’ll say, ‘I’m from here, literally,
right here.’”
Georgia Outdoor Living is located at 5075 Old Ga. 5, Woodstock.
It is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays
and 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.
For more information, call (770) 591-8968 or go to www.georgiaoutdoorliving.com.
For more information about custom pools, go to www.georgia-classicpool.com.
Links are available on both Web sites.
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