Proposal: Downtown Convention Center

[gman430]

State lawmakers have $550 million more in recurring and non-recurring money to appropriate in next year’s budget, providing more money to address state spending priorities in the next fiscal year’s budget left out in a recently adopted House budget plan.

The new estimates come as the state recovers from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Last month, the House passed a $9.8 billion state spending plan for the next fiscal year with the lower revenue estimates. That plan did not fund many state agency requests.

However, House budget writers have said they expect to revisit the budget plan in May and June with new revenue estimates. Senate Finance Committee members are now crafting their own the spending plan, for the next fiscal year, which starts on July 1.

[gman430]

Money is now included as an earmark. Whether it gets included in the budget that gets passed remains to be seen. 

[distortedlogic]

https://www.thestate.com/news/politics-government/article250973144.html

19 MM, same as the earmark for Cola's convention center remodel. Was this the same figure that was discussed before?

[GVLover]

 

Corrected. 

Edited April 29, 2021 by GVLover
Corrected.

[distortedlogic]

 

On 2/17/2020 at 3:31 AM, gman430 said:

Henry McMaster’s budget for 2020-2021 includes $19 million for the proposed museum/conference center: https://governor.sc.gov/sites/default/files/Documents/Executive-Budget/FY21 Executive Budget.pdf $7 million has already been approved and allocated from the state along with $26 million from both the city and county. 

Though McMaster made his executive budget, the state House of Representatives and then the state Senate also have to make a proposed budget. The House is working on its budget, while the Senate will work on its budget in March or April. Once all the proposals are completed, the House and Senate will take their budgets to the Conference Committee to create a compromised budget to be acted on by the governor in June.

1 hour ago, GVLover said:

Wasn't it supposed to be $10m initially?

 

Check out this post. Looks like 19 is the same as before, with 7 already earmarked for 26 total from state. 

[gman430]

Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey asked senators Wednesday to strike all the spending from the budget, opening his remarks by saying “Ï know what is going to happen to this.

Senators voted 41-5 to keep the spending.

Senators are expected to take a final vote on the budget on Thursday,

https://www.wfxg.com/story/43778214/special-spending-projects-kept-in-south-carolinas-dollar10b-budget

[gman430]

The SC Senate approved the budget today which includes $19 million for the downtown museum and convention center. 

[goodbye]

5 hours ago, gman430 said:

The SC Senate approved the budget today which includes $19 million for the downtown museum and convention center. 

Thank you for this update.  So have plans upgraded the event space from a "conference center" to a "convention center" now?  I assume it is not expected to replace the large convention space at the airport and will serve primarily as a destination for smaller events.  I imagine recurring arts, crafts, antiques, and literature events coming to the downtown space, in addition to the expected business conferences.

[gman430]

38 minutes ago, Skyliner said:

Thank you for this update.  So have plans upgraded the event space from a "conference center" to a "convention center" now?  I assume it is not expected to replace the large convention space at the airport and will serve primarily as a destination for smaller events.  I imagine recurring arts, crafts, antiques, and literature events coming to the downtown space, in addition to the expected business conferences.

To my knowledge, it is going to be a space where both conferences and small conventions can be held. The large expos like RV and car shows will still be at the current convention center while the smaller stuff like corporate retreats and conventions like the ones you listed will be here. The SC house still has to approve the amended budget which is expected to happen within the next month or two. The budget for the upcoming year starts July 1st. 

12 minutes ago, gman430 said:

 

12 minutes ago, gman430 said:

Edited April 30, 2021 by gman430

[gman430]

By the way, this is a lot bigger of a planned development than I think people realize. $400 million investment which is more than Camperdown. Everything below outlined in red is part of it. The museum, conference, and convention center is pretty much already designed. The rest of the project isn’t which is what LMN has been hired for. They are to create a master plan for the sites where everything is cohesive and compliments one another.

Edited April 30, 2021 by gman430

[gvegascple]

3 hours ago, gman430 said:

By the way, this is a lot bigger of a planned development than I think people realize. $400 million investment which is more than Camperdown. Everything below outlined in red is part of it. The museum, conference, and convention center is pretty much already designed. The rest of the project isn’t which is what LMN has been hired for. They are to create a master plan for the sites where everything is cohesive and compliments one another.

I hope that it is big enough for something like Comic-Con.  Downtown seems very well suited with nearby hotels and all of the attractions and restaurants to really blow this type of event up and make it a great recurring tourism/$$$ draw for Greenville.  Not to mention how interesting a sight all of the Cosplayers descending on the city would be.

Edited April 30, 2021 by gvegascple

[goodbye]

A variety of significant events/festivals have done very well in downtown Greenville (incorporating various venues) including music, visual and performing arts, dance, culinary, sports, science, corporate, political, multicultural, educational, etc.  I see this conference center, combined with several other local venues, as a powerful economic and cultural engine.

[johnpro318]

Hopefully the development triggers ARC to sell their land and Second Presbyterian to sell their parking lot.

[gman430]

House budget includes the $19 million for this project. Slated to pass by the end of the month with signature by the governor shortly after. 

[Spero]

13 hours ago, gman430 said:

House budget includes the $19 million for this project. Slated to pass by the end of the month with signature by the governor shortly after. 

Wow, Foghorn Leghorn signing off on government cheese for lazy developers that don’t want to work. Sad

[gman]

7 hours ago, Spero said:

Wow, Foghorn Leghorn signing off on government cheese for lazy developers that don’t want to work. Sad

I know a lot of successful developers. None, and mean none, are lazy. Besides, these developers are not asking for and getting the “cheese”. Greenville is getting it.

Edited June 17, 2021 by gman

[motonenterprises]

11 hours ago, Spero said:

Wow, Foghorn Leghorn signing off on government cheese for lazy developers that don’t want to work. Sad

Huh?

[Spero]

5 hours ago, gman said:

I know a lot of successful developers. None, and mean none, are lazy. Besides, these developers are not asking for and getting the “cheese”. Greenville is getting it.

Lol it’s not the developers getting the money it’s just the City that will turn around and use it to build the convention center that will both literally and figuratively prop up the rest of the development. Let’s be honest with each other here.

The point is not that government incentives for development should be verboten. Far from it. But if the state should shovel money into convention centers to indirectly expand growth, it’s inconsistent to then say the state shouldn’t support things like unemployment insurance or things that directly benefit working people (and oh by the way positively affect the economy as well). In that case, the only thing that’s consistent is that the state works to benefit the Hughes and McMasters and good ol’ boys of the world while everyone else gets the shaft. The more things change the more they stay the same.

[GvilleSC]

Well, that's one way to view the world.  

The construction of the conference center and art museums are going to generate good for the city and the state (be that in terms of tax revenues, publicity, etc). As an average citizen, it will benefit you as well (be that tangentially or directly to the industry in which you work, or in the consumption of events or arts and culture that you will be able to experience). There are positives in the world around us, but you have to be willing to see them. 

 

[Spero]

I mean I’m fine with the incentive itself, it’s just hypocritical that it comes from the same people withholding federal benefits to force people into low wage jobs

[GvilleSC]

3 minutes ago, Spero said:

I mean I’m fine with the incentive itself, it’s just hypocritical that it comes from the same people withholding federal benefits to force people into low wage jobs

This isn't the place for politics, but no one is being forced into low wage jobs. It's a job-seeker's market right now. Most anyone can return to the same type of job that they were happy doing 14 month ago. Or they can pivot and advance themselves with the opportunities that abound. 

Back on topic: Do we have an updated schedule of when they'll really begin advancing this thing forward? I imagine a fair bit hinged on these state funds in releasing the design team to take the next steps. 

[gman430]

53 minutes ago, GvilleSC said:

This isn't the place for politics, but no one is being forced into low wage jobs. It's a job-seeker's market right now. Most anyone can return to the same type of job that they were happy doing 14 month ago. Or they can pivot and advance themselves with the opportunities that abound. 

Back on topic: Do we have an updated schedule of when they'll really begin advancing this thing forward? I imagine a fair bit hinged on these state funds in releasing the design team to take the next steps. 

Looks like mid-late 2022 for construction start. You can read more on Bob Jones plans here: https://beautymatters.museumgiving.org

[motonenterprises]

10 minutes ago, gman430 said:

Looks like mid-late 2022 for construction start. You can read more on Bob Jones plans here: https://beautymatters.museumgiving.org

Any news on the height of the tower?

[gman430]

8 minutes ago, motonenterprises said:

Any news on the height of the tower?

I don’t have any at this time unfortunately. I’ll shoot LMN an email though to see if they have any updated renderings. Hope they respond. 

[cabelagent]

1 hour ago, motonenterprises said:

Any news on the height of the tower?

It’ll be really tall with a really high tower crane