Next SC city to hit 100,000

[The_sandlapper]

"CNN/Money" magazine recognizes more accurate population representations of the SC city populations. Not sure why Greenville and Charleston were listed significantly smaller considering Charleston's UA is the same size as Cola's?

Columbia 304,414

Greenville 189,390

Charleston 174,669

Spartanburg 109,964

But it does kinda level the playing field nationally for SC cities for those who haven't been to the areas.

"CNN/Money" magazine

[GvilleSC]

"CNN/Money" magazine recognizes more accurate population representations of the SC city populations. Not sure why Greenville and Charleston were listed significantly smaller considering Charleston's UA is the same size as Cola's?

Columbia 304,414

Greenville 189,390

Charleston 174,669

Spartanburg 109,964

But it does kinda level the playing field nationally for SC cities for those who haven't been to the areas.

"CNN/Money" magazine

It's nice to see recognition like this for our cities' real sizes.

I voted for Greenville because maybe i'm a little biased, but I think there's too much going on to count it out as many people are doing.

There's been lots of talk about annexation by the city of a large residential area, but i'm not sure where those rumors stand at the moment... Also, there's a lot of residential growth in the city. Downtown is busting at the seems with condo and appartment developments. There are many BIG infill developments that are taking place as we speak and several smaller projects that are happening under the radar so to speak. Anyway, I see Greenville as making a huge jump before 2010. My projection is for Greenville to leave 56,000 behind and reach 70-75,000 before the next census. and with the rate of growth, it will only propell the city even closer to 100,000. We'll see

[sonofaque86]

"CNN/Money" magazine recognizes more accurate population representations of the SC city populations. Not sure why Greenville and Charleston were listed significantly smaller considering Charleston's UA is the same size as Cola's?

Columbia 304,414

Greenville 189,390

Charleston 174,669

Spartanburg 109,964

But it does kinda level the playing field nationally for SC cities for those who haven't been to the areas.

"CNN/Money" magazine

Thats more like it...

[motonenterprises]

Is this info correct? Simpsonville 56,238! Greer 60,201! For those speaking of Mount Pleasant being larger than Greenville based on census it shows as 56,627 for the real number. About the size of Simpsonville and smaller than Greer. Interesting!

[motonenterprises]

These still don't match the urban areas, but I will take this over our current fictitious population anyday.

[Spartan]

Interesting topic. I think you also have to consider annexation policies of the various cities. I know that both Greenville and Spartanburg have started a much more aggressive annexation policy to try to increase the tax base. If they are sucessful, then they may reach 100,000 sooner than you think.

I know many residential parcels have been annexed into Spartanburg, so the residential decline of the city may have slowed if not stopped completely by 2010.

I think that with annexation and general growth in mind, Rock Hill is the best positioned to reach 100,000 first. Mount Pleasant has only aroun 50,000 right? RH is already at 75.

I also like the CNN figures better, though I do wonder how they are calculated.

This makes for some interesting GIS studies. I will have to work on that when I get back to Clemson.

[sonofaque86]

I think Rock Hill has the best luck in annexing....How do they annex so differently than other SC cities?? Is it because they get the land before it is developed or what? Rock Hill has the best shot because Greenville and Spartanburg probably won't annex land nearly as much as Rock Hill has been doing

[Spartan]

I am not certain how Rock Hill manages its annexation. It and Charleston are probably the most agressivly annexing cities. Annexation in SC is done by the request of the land owners, so cities have to find a way to 'ask' people to petition to be annexed. In many cases the cities that own their water systems mandate that the owner agree to petition to be annexed if the city limits reach their land.

[teshadoh]

That's right - Rock Hill makes speculative annexations,or they annex large parcels based on developers interest. Also - & this is a common assumption - developers likely request annexation besides utilities, but in order to get a more favorable zoning. Counties typically are pro-low density& will usually oppose higher density developments. But RH has benefitted from a number of high profile parcel annexations,such as around 1990 when they annexed massive areas to the east for a planned business park. Speaking of which, several of the business parks that have been annexed over the years were partially city funded.

[monsoon]

Maybe the laws were changed, but my Mom & Dad were forceably annexed into the city of Myrtle Beach 30 years ago.

[krazeeboi]

That's right - Rock Hill makes speculative annexations,or they annex large parcels based on developers interest. Also - & this is a common assumption - developers likely request annexation besides utilities, but in order to get a more favorable zoning. Counties typically are pro-low density& will usually oppose higher density developments. But RH has benefitted from a number of high profile parcel annexations,such as around 1990 when they annexed massive areas to the east for a planned business park. Speaking of which, several of the business parks that have been annexed over the years were partially city funded.

Good info. I may have to e-mail city manager Carey Smith or someone else to get more specifics on this.

I know it was mentioned earlier that much of the growth in York County is occurring north of Rock Hill, particularly in the Fort Mill area. However, within the past few weeks, a few people have told me that they have considered or are considering a move to Rock Hill from Charlotte simply because the cost of housing is cheaper. Since I moved into my apartment complex on Celanese Road right off I-77 in 2003, I can really see the effects of growth in that area of the city. The area around Manchester Village is picking up as well, and the city is really honing its efforts downtown. I just don't want to be here when Charlotte and Rock Hill have an Atlanta/Alpharetta relationship. Woof!

[vicupstate]

It's nice to see recognition like this for our cities' real sizes.

I voted for Greenville because maybe i'm a little biased, but I think there's too much going on to count it out as many people are doing.

There's been lots of talk about annexation by the city of a large residential area, but i'm not sure where those rumors stand at the moment... Also, there's a lot of residential growth in the city. Downtown is busting at the seems with condo and appartment developments. There are many BIG infill developments that are taking place as we speak and several smaller projects that are happening under the radar so to speak. Anyway, I see Greenville as making a huge jump before 2010. My projection is for Greenville to leave 56,000 behind and reach 70-75,000 before the next census. and with the rate of growth, it will only propell the city even closer to 100,000. We'll see

To make 70,000 by 2010 would be extremely unlikely, absence several large annexations. 2020, is more realistic. Downtown is infilling nicely, but most of the units have only 1 or 2 residents each. It will take a lot of that to add almost 50% to the population. 60,000 is a realistic goal for Gville to have by 2010. Keep in mind that redevelopment often subtracts population before it adds population. Substandard housing removed for Haynie-Sirrine, Viola Street and other projects removed lots of residents initially. The new residents replace them over time, but it is not a total NET addition of residents. How soon Gville reaches 60K and 70k will depended largely on how fast Verdae develops. In that situation, every resident will be a new addition to the population count, since it is totally vacant now. I believe they expect a 10-15 year build-out for Verdae.

Regarding Spartan's post, Mount Pleasant and Rock Hill are both in the 56-60,000 range. The contest will be between them, IMO.

Regarding Metro.m's post, the annexation laws have changed some over the past decades, but not significantly. If your parents were forcibly annexed it was most likely either because they had to agree to annexation to receive water and/or sewer or there was a petition submitted with 75% of the owners requesting annexation, and your parents were in the minority. A third, but less likely option was there was an annexation election and your parents were in the minority on that.

[monsoon]

....

Regarding Metro.m's post, the annexation laws have changed some over the past decades, but not significantly. If your parents were forcibly annexed it was most likely either because they had to agree to annexation to receive water and/or sewer or there was a petition submitted with 75% of the owners requesting annexation, and your parents were in the minority. A third, but less likely option was there was an annexation election and your parents were in the minority on that.

I was a kid at the time but I don't think anyone would have requested it of voted for it. My dad and most of the neighborhood were quite furious about the annexation because they were required to pay for a sewer and water tap when the city came through with the utilties on their street. That cost around $2500 in the 70s which was a lot more money than it is now. (you could get a new Toyota Corolla for about that amount then. haha) As far as I remember it was an involuntary annexation and my Dad even thought about selling out and moving further out. Years later he admitted that would have been a mistake given how valuable the land has become now. They only paid $1000 for the lot in the late 60s. haha

[goodbye]

If Greer continues to work annexation magic along with its explosive residential growth, this town may come into play in the "near" future. Greer is an interesting contrast to most of the other SC cities in terms of annexation.

[vicupstate]

Neither of which occured. My dad and most of the neighborhood were quite furious about the annexation because they were required to pay for a sewer and water tap when the city came through with the utilties on their street. That cost around $2500 in the 70s which was a lot more money than it is now. (you could get a new Toyota Corolla for about that amount then. haha) As far as I remember it was an involuntary annexation and my Dad even thought about selling out and moving further out. Years later he admitted that would have been a mistake given how valuable the land has become now. They only paid $1000 for the lot in the late 60s. haha

Did your parents request the water/sewer service? It is customary for cities to charge for a tap, but I don't see how they could have forced your family the tap into the service unless the neighborhood agreed to annexation. Were there widespread septic failures in the neighborhood? That usually forces the residents to tap to a sewer line, which the city requires annexation to provide. While the residents often resent having to annex and to pay high tap fees, they really don't have much of a choice unless they want to go back to outhouses.

I don't know the specifics of your family's situation, but I know the above situation has occurred in Columbia and Aiken among other cities. I know of no way to force annexation except through the aforementioned.

BTW, my parents had a similiar experience. Florence had an annexation election covering several neighborhoods, including ours. It passed narrowly, but my parents were definitely in the "NO" column. We moved a couple of years later, partially because my dad did not want to be in the city or pay additional taxes.