Spartanburg Off-Topic

[Spartan]

^I like them. This is a great example of the little details that go into making downtown a special place.

[westsider28]

I was on a Wikipedia binge yesterday and found something pretty cool.  I was looking at Richardson Romanesque buildings, and remembered I took some photos of a piece of the 1892 Spartanburg County Courthouse and its informational sign at the Chapman Cultural Center. 

 

Then I looked up the building's architects (McDonald Brothers of Louisville) to see what other buildings they designed.  Eventually, I found the circa-1888 Washington County Courthouse in Salem, Indiana.  The resemblance to ours is uncanny!  They look like they were both based on the same general design.

 

 

Who knew?  Fascinating stuff.   Wish we still had our old courthouse.

[westsider28]

Wasn't sure where to put this.

 

There was a small item at the City Council meeting that is intriguing.  The City certified Beaumont Mill as a qualifying textile mill site under the SC Textile Communities Revitalization Act, which allows the owners to pursue state tax credits.  Nothing is solidified yet, but I believe they are exploring developing the site in some way. (Beyond just the mill building? I don't know.)  Hope something materializes there.

[Sparkleman]

I heard they may extend the mill down to the corner.

Edited June 10, 2014 by Sparkleman

[drexel]

This past weekend I was traveling from Georgia up I-85, and soon after crossing into Spartanburg County the amount of litter in the median increased significantly. Does anybody know who is responsible for cleaning up all this trash? I would guess it is SCDOT. Also, when we exited on 5-85 (Pine Street) off of bus-85 the concrete divider for about a mile is full of weeds. It is a shame that thousands of dollars were recently spent to beautify this interchange, but the road before you get to city limits looks like crap. Does anybody know who I call about this? I think it would be the county. Thanks!

[westsider28]

I think SCDOT would be in charge of any interstate-related maintenance.  But going through the county might work.  From what I've seen over the years, it seems SCDOT only has enough money to cut grass / spray weeds like twice a year.  The grassy areas at Reidville Road and I-26 are full of 5-foot tall weeds.  I agree that it looks like crap.

 

Actually, I've used the SCDOT Maintenance Work Request website before, to varying degrees of success.  Sometimes they'll get right on it; other times nothing happens.  You could try that.

[drexel]

I think SCDOT would be in charge of any interstate-related maintenance.  But going through the county might work.  From what I've seen over the years, it seems SCDOT only has enough money to cut grass / spray weeds like twice a year.  The grassy areas at Reidville Road and I-26 are full of 5-foot tall weeds.  I agree that it looks like crap.

 

Actually, I've used the SCDOT Maintenance Work Request website before, to varying degrees of success.  Sometimes they'll get right on it; other times nothing happens.  You could try that.

THANKS!

[Sparkleman]

I wanted to give a shout out to a good friend of mine who was in town for the past 6 days shooting a movie in his hometown. Josh Foster is a former VP with BB&T who quit the financial business to go to NYU to study film. This short film he shot in Spartanburg was filmed at SDS, several downtown businesses, & the YMCA. More below.

 

http://www.goupstate.com/article/20150116/ARTICLES/150119695?p=2&tc=pg&tc=ar

[westsider28]

The City is in the process of adding parking signage to increase awareness of the abundance of public parking (usually free) in downtown.  So far they've put signs at the City Hall lot and, as I noticed today, at the Magnolia St Deck (Church St entrance).

 

[westsider28]

So apparently club Paparazzi (in the old Leader / Kimbrell's building) has closed.  They were pressured by the City to close due to several incidents with patrons (fights, injured police officers, etc).  If they hadn't voluntarily closed, the City may have shut them down anyway.  I'm never out when the club crowd is there, but if the patrons are that rowdy and disruptive, then it's good that the place closed.  The challenge will be finding a new tenant for that large of a building.

 

H-J article

[Spartan]

The new signs are great. I'm glad to see that level of detail. Who knows if it will affect people's perception of parking downtown... but I hope it does.

[roads-scholar]

Love this information!  Thanks for passing it along.

 

So apparently club Paparazzi (in the old Leader / Kimbrell's building) has closed.  They were pressured by the City to close due to several incidents with patrons (fights, injured police officers, etc).  If they hadn't voluntarily closed, the City may have shut them down anyway.  I'm never out when the club crowd is there, but if the patrons are that rowdy and disruptive, then it's good that the place closed.  The challenge will be finding a new tenant for that large of a building.

 

H-J article

This building in this location is much too valuable for a nightclub.  I'm glad to see it go. 

[westsider28]

Google Maps just added 3D buildings to Spartanburg! (Earth view)  I love messing around on Google Maps, so this is really exciting for me.  Haha.  Anyway, check it out and click the "Tilt the View" button once or twice to see the full 3D effect.  Very cool.

[drexel]

Glad to see repaving on 5-85 from business 85 to the city limits. Will look and ride much better. Now if SC DOT will keep it mowed this summer.

[drexel]

The Live on the Green group is bringing Lee Brice to Barnet Park October 17.  Depending on the Weather this concert should bring a much bigger crowd than the solo Bruce Hornsby performance last year. Glad to see this.    

[westsider28]

I found that a huge chunk of land at the SE corner of Pine and East Main is for-sale / available for redevelopment (1.7 acres for $1.2 million, see this PDF).  I'd love to see a sizable mixed-use building here, but I'm not sure that we have a willing/capable developer (or the right market conditions) at the moment to deliver what that corner deserves.

[Spartan]

I hope that whatever happens they will keep the row of old buildings there.

[westsider28]

There are a couple of new houses being built in Converse Heights right now.  One is a teardown and rebuild, which is unusual here (much more common in ultra-hot RE markets).  It's at 556 Palmetto Street.  The foundation has just been completed.  I'm shocked that they're asking $585,000 for it.  It is 4BR/4BA and 3130 sq ft, but it's on a tiny lot, and it just seems high for our market.  Anyway, the other new house is being built on what has been an empty lot for a while at the corner of Connecticut and Springdale.  I recall that they got a setback variance for the Springdale side in order to match the existing setbacks on Conn.  I believe it's going to be 4100 sq ft, and it must be being built for the future owners, b/c I haven't seen it for sale (unlike the other house I mentioned^).  Anyway, interesting stuff.

[westsider28]

I was walking around downtown this afternoon and was really impressed by all the activity!  Lots of people strolling up and down Main Street, going in the shops, loading their cars with stuff they bought, people at the bars watching the Clemson-USC game, families ice skating and playing mini putt.  The combo of Small Business Saturday and the absolutely beautiful weather really brought everyone out.  Felt like a real city!  Great to see!

[westsider28]

After more than 13 years, the County has finally updated its ancient website and brought it into the modern era!

http://sc-spartanburgcounty.civicplus.com/

[westsider28]

Wasn't sure where to put this.  City Council had a retreat this past weekend to discuss priorities for the coming year.  They mentioned demolishing abandoned houses, improving gateways, affordable housing, attracting white-collar jobs, and addressing poverty.  You should check the City's Twitter feed to see more of the things discussed.  Here are some "Potential Projects" that I found interesting:

"Street realignment for potential ED (economic development) project" - Could this be the rumored convention center?  I generally think we shouldn't be altering street alignments in an urban area.  Development should fit the built landscape for the most part.

"Closing Dunbar Street, Church to Magnolia (at Morgan Square)" - Interesting idea.  This segment is frequently closed for events & it's one-way, so it wouldn't be a big loss (other than ~5 parking spaces). On the other hand, there's no restaurant/retail there, so it wouldn't have the pedestrian activity that Wall Street does, for instance.

A large park at the DT Airport was mentioned again.  This has come up frequently, so I suspect it's quite likely to happen soon.

Anyway, definitely some interesting stuff.  I'll be interested to see what progress is made this year toward these goals.  What would you guys like to see prioritized by the City?

[Spartan]

I'm ok with the idea of changing street alignments for urban development if the situation is right.

I'm generally against street closures, but I have to agree that closing Dunbar adjacent to Morgan Square is a great idea. This is a situation where we have an under-used street that would work better as pedestrian space similar to Wall Street. I think it would be great to close it off and convert it to a 'festival street' so that vendors could set up over there. It would be cool to see it lined with food trucks on a regular basis (Food Truck Friday, anyone?).

[gman430]

So I was watching NBC Nightly News and guess which city they had a featured story on? Yep. 

[Spartan]

Interesting. What did they talk about?

[westsider28]

The Chamber of Commerce has rebranded and has launched a campaign to raise Spartanburg's profile locally, regionally, statewide and nationally.  The slogan is “There’s Only One. Spartanburg.” and there's a corresponding social media hashtag #onespartanburg.  They also made this awesome video highlighting Spartanburg.

I'm really excited about this effort.  It's about time we stop being overshadowed and make more people aware of what a great city we are.  I've always liked that we are the only Spartanburg, so it's great to see that emphasized.  I also love that it's a not-so-subtle shot at our neighbor's "Yeah, THAT Greenville" slogan/campaign.