Spartanburg Area Economic Developments

[Sparkleman]

Yep, me too. I have been waiting for a big white collar project almost since these boards were founded. ESH was it for a while, then nothing.....

[Spartan]

Are extremely high "wages" different than extremely high "salaries" ?

Also, I thought this quote from David Britt about whether or not the county can handle the growth was hilarious, "Years ago, we made the investments and partnerships with our infrastructure providers and today it is paying dividends," he said. "We can handle it without problems."

What "investments" have been made?? Outside of widening a few roads and rail connections, the march towards Atlanta style sprawl continues unabated. I feel somewhat sorry for the people who buy into subdivisions on these 2-lane country roads that were never designed for any significant traffic that are going to have 600ft long warehouses literally next-door or in their back yards. IMO, parts of this county are a giant CF due to total lack of regulation and investment in meaningful infrastructure.

[gman430]

New corporate headquarters for Spartanburg: 

https://www.foxcarolina.com/news/medical-technology-company-headquarters-coming-to-spartanburg/article_6c264d38-b743-11eb-a73b-0358fc03e778.html

Edited May 17, 2021 by gman430

[westsider28]

8 minutes ago, gman430 said:

New corporate headquarters for Spartanburg: 

https://www.foxcarolina.com/news/medical-technology-company-headquarters-coming-to-spartanburg/article_6c264d38-b743-11eb-a73b-0358fc03e778.html

Yeah, here's an article from several days ago with more info. 

"Epica International, a leader in cutting-edge mobile medical imaging systems and precision manufacturing robotics, unveiled their new headquarters and operations facility in Duncan on Thursday, May 13.  The 27,000-square-foot headquarters, warehousing and assembly facility is located in The Spark Center on Spartanburg Community College’s Tyger River campus."

Definitely nice, but seems like a relatively small operation.  Hopefully they'll grow.

[gman430]

It’s OshKosh: https://www.wyff4.com/article/1000-new-jobs-coming-to-spartanburg-county/36799918

Oshkosh Defense, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE: OSK), announced today it will open a dedicated facility in Spartanburg, South Carolina where it will build the United States Postal Service (USPS) Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV). The Company expects to hire over 1,000 local team members at the Spartanburg facility, and on-site supply chain partners are expected to have additional hiring needs.

The USPS selected Oshkosh Defense for the multi-billion-dollar NGDV contract in February 2021 at the end of a competitive process that began in 2015. The indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract provides for the delivery of between 50,000 and 165,000 vehicles over a period of 10 years. These vehicles will replace the existing fleet of delivery vehicles, many of which have been in service for more than 30 years. Oshkosh’s winning solution will provide a modern fleet of both zero-emission battery electric vehicles (BEV) and fuel-efficient low-emission internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, with the option of producing any combination of models.

Oshkosh Defense plans to repurpose an expansive warehouse facility in Spartanburg with the innovative features needed to accommodate a large-scale manufacturing operation that meets the technical requirements of producing cutting-edge vehicles for the USPS. Production of the NGDVs is expected to begin summer 2023.

Edited June 22, 2021 by gman430

[rancenc]

Jobs and investment coming to Spartanburg!

https://www.goupstate.com/story/news/local/2021/08/18/two-new-economic-projects-plan-millions-investment-spartanburg-county-sc-economy-development/8144134002/

[rancenc]

Large industrial park planned for Spartanburg County.

https://www.commercialsearch.com/news/crg-starts-work-on-2-3-msf-industrial-park/

[roads-scholar]

Now Wal Mart:

https://www.goupstate.com/story/news/2021/10/19/walmart-announces-plans-build-spartanburg-county-distribution-center-create-400-jobs-2024/8519730002/

 

[westsider28]

MP Cloud Technologies/EMTech, a cloud-based, emergency medical services software and billing company, today announced plans to establish operations in Spartanburg. The company’s $500,000 investment will create 24 new jobs. They will move into a "soft-landing" space at Spartanburg Community College’s downtown campus. Operations are expected to be online later this month.

These are the jobs we need more of.  Great to see this.  It will be interesting to see how they grow and where their permanent home may be.

Edit: This H-J article says they plan to expand to 250 employees over the next two years and 500 employees over the next five years!  

Edited November 17, 2021 by westsider28

[westsider28]

And another one! Agape Care Group will lease 13,027 square feet on the second floor of the Montgomery Building. The space will host 33 knowledge-based jobs and 43 skilled clerical positions, bringing a total of 76 jobs over a five-year period as the company grows.

[westsider28]

BMW announced a new $100 million logistics center to be built across I-85 on 120 acres on Freeman Farm Road.  It will be 1 million sq ft with the potential for future expansion. Two private bridges over I-85 and Freeman Farm Rd will connect it to their existing facility (that explains the "mystery" construction at I-85 near Brockman/McClimon).  It's expected to be operational in mid-2022.

Edit: UBJ article, with a photo that shows that construction has already been underway for a while, apparently:

Edited November 18, 2021 by westsider28

[westsider28]

Another BMW expansion: this time it's a 219,000-square-foot body panel production facility expected to be online by summer 2024.  It will produce doors, fenders, exterior body panels and liftgates, and employ an additional 200 workers.

Spartanburg County press release

[rancenc]

Follow up to @westsider28's article above on the recent BMW announcement of new jobs coming to the operations.

https://governor.sc.gov/news/2022-03/bmw-expanding-operations-spartanburg-county-new-press-shop

[rancenc]

Jobs and investment coming to Spartanburg County.

https://www.goupstate.com/story/news/local/2022/03/08/spartanburg-county-sc-ingram-micro-jobs-irvine-california-logistics/9424398002/

[westsider28]

OneSpartanburg launched their Vision Plan 2.0 this evening.  You can see it here: https://www.onespartanburginc.com/visionplan/

Mostly iterative, IMO. Nothing groundbreaking.  Main focus is education: trying to make local college cheap/free to upskill people who live here, both HS grads and adults who never finished a degree. Education level of our populace is our biggest weakness.

They largely punted on transportation, which is disappointing.  They dismissed fixed-route mass transit as "too expensive" so they're focusing on van-share for those who lack vehicles.

There's also the usual mention of attracting talent and encouraging entrepreneurship (particularly supporting minority businesses).

They also mentioned improving the appearance of gateways, including West Main.  They appear to be committed to a pedestrianized Morgan Square, which I support, but we'll have to see how that plays out.  Interestingly, they single-out Church Street as a street that needs attention to slow traffic / make it more walkable.  They also mention WestGate Mall as a priority to redevelop as mixed-use, which is good to see.  We need as much institutional weight as possible in that direction.  And the predictable goals of attracting white-collar business and more housing downtown.

As with all plans, the key will be making a real commitment to implementing the vision.  Hopefully the proper resources will be marshalled toward these ideas to make them a reality.

Edit: There was also a passing mention of turning Bus-85 into a boulevard, which I think is kind of pointless.  It's not really an urban freeway where removal would re-stitch communities or enhance walkability.  It's mostly lined with industrial buildings.  I don't think that's a priority or anything, though.

Edited April 1, 2022 by westsider28

[roads-scholar]

14 hours ago, westsider28 said:

OneSpartanburg launched their Vision Plan 2.0 this evening.  You can see it here: https://www.onespartanburginc.com/visionplan/

Mostly iterative, IMO. Nothing groundbreaking.  Main focus is education: trying to make local college cheap/free to upskill people who live here, both HS grads and adults who never finished a degree. Education level of our populace is our biggest weakness.

They largely punted on transportation, which is disappointing.  They dismissed fixed-route mass transit as "too expensive" so they're focusing on van-share for those who lack vehicles.

There's also the usual mention of attracting talent and encouraging entrepreneurship (particularly supporting minority businesses).

They also mentioned improving the appearance of gateways, including West Main.  They appear to be committed to a pedestrianized Morgan Square, which I support, but we'll have to see how that plays out.  Interestingly, they single-out Church Street as a street that needs attention to slow traffic / make it more walkable.  They also mention WestGate Mall as a priority to redevelop as mixed-use, which is good to see.  We need as much institutional weight as possible in that direction.  And the predictable goals of attracting white-collar business and more housing downtown.

As with all plans, the key will be making a real commitment to implementing the vision.  Hopefully the proper resources will be marshalled toward these ideas to make them a reality.

Edit: There was also a passing mention of turning Bus-85 into a boulevard, which I think is kind of pointless.  It's not really an urban freeway where removal would re-stitch communities or enhance walkability.  It's mostly lined with industrial buildings.  I don't think that's a priority or anything, though.

Thanks for posting.  My intentions were to attend the live event but ultimately I was unable to make it.  

Most of the plan seems a bit prosaic and uninspired.  Much of what was mentioned about downtown Spartanburg and Morgan Square isn't groundbreaking  but I'm happy there is a strong mention of the importance of image and gateways.   West Main Street, Asheville Highway, and to some extent South Church Street are embarrassing.  The redevelopment of Westgate Mall makes sense but there is nothing specific mentioned on how to do that.  

Me, I'd love to see Business 85 transformed into a more pleasing experience by removing the interchanges and turning it into a tree-lined parkway at least between I-26 and SC-9.  I think Milliken, USC Upstate, and SCC could help lead the way in this regard.  First impressions of Business 85 are not good.  My former home Detroit is in the intial steps of removing Interstate 375, a short, underutilized,  and unappealing urban freeway and turning it into a pedestrian and bike-friendly boulevard.  Business 85 and Detroit's Interstate 375 are apples and oranges but the point is to transform something unappealing into an attractive and aesthetically pleasing  parkway to hopefully impress visitors and maybe knit together the community.  

I listened to a podcast the other day about what some communities are now doing to revive and reinvent themselves. By in large they're not trying [as hard] to attract  big corporate headquarters or 1000+ job manufacturers but enhancing the quality of life with parks, open spaces, cultural amenities, greenways AND public transportation (ex. Akron, Ohio).  Spartanburg, to its credit, is doing some of this.  But maybe this should be more of our focus?

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by roads-scholar

[Spartan]

IMO, the best strategy is to invest in yourself as a city. Make it a great place to live for residents and the businesses we should want to attract will want to come here because of it. The Dan Trail is a great example of that. Turning old 85 into a tree-lined boulevard would be a good investment too. Honestly, lining more streets with trees like on Milliken's campus would be a good idea across the board.

[westsider28]

Not an individual development, but a recognition of our overall economy: Spartanburg metro area ranked #1 among small metros in economic growth (and 4th among ALL metros).

Of course, this is one of those random lists from a website I've never heard of (Stessa), but it's positive press nonetheless.

[westsider28]

Business Facilities has ranked Spartanburg #3 in the nation for Manufacturing among mid-sized metros (behind Elkhart, IN and Reno, NV).

[westsider28]

At Monday's meeting, County Council approved first-reading of FILOTs for $775 million in investments, with up to 900 jobs.

► Project Tyger River Ridge, $137.7 million investment, no jobs.

► Project Moore, $251 million investment, 240 jobs.

► Spartanburg SF RRL, $61.8 million investment, 105 jobs.

► Project Flow, $200 million investment, 470 jobs.

► Project Whirlwind, $19.5 million investment, no jobs.

► Project Clay, $34.9 million investment, no jobs.

► The Cubes at Fort Prince, $65.5 million, no jobs.

And Project Blackberry is an expansion of an existing business: $4.5 million investment, 88 jobs.

[westsider28]

Loop, a professional recruitment firm, has opened a 5000 SF office in One Morgan Square with ~15 employees (looking to grow to 30 within 3 years).

[westsider28]

BMW plans to invest $1.7 billion in electric vehicle production in Spartanburg County.  The investment, which is expected to create more than 300 jobs, includes:

- $1 billion to prepare for the production of electric vehicles at BMW Plant Spartanburg.

- $700 million to build Envision AESC’s 1 million-square-foot facility in Woodruff, which will produce high-voltage batteries designed for BMW’s eDrive technology.

By 2030 BMW Group will build at least six fully electric models in the U.S.

UBJ article     P&C article     CNN article     

Absolutely massive news.  I wonder where exactly in Woodruff the battery plant will be?

Edited October 19, 2022 by westsider28
Added article

[gman430]

The $1.7 billion capital investment, when added to $1.58 billion in other investment announced in Spartanburg County this year, brings the total to more than $3.3 billion this year – a record surpassing last year's $2 billion in investment.

And the 300 new jobs brings the yearly total to more than 2,000 jobs so far this year. 
 

 

[westsider28]

On 10/19/2022 at 11:50 AM, westsider28 said:

BMW plans to invest $1.7 billion in electric vehicle production in Spartanburg County.  The investment, which is expected to create more than 300 jobs, includes:

- $1 billion to prepare for the production of electric vehicles at BMW Plant Spartanburg.

- $700 million to build Envision AESC’s 1 million-square-foot facility in Woodruff, which will produce high-voltage batteries designed for BMW’s eDrive technology.

By 2030 BMW Group will build at least six fully electric models in the U.S.

UBJ article     P&C article     CNN article     

Absolutely massive news.  I wonder where exactly in Woodruff the battery plant will be?

I think I figured out the site of the Woodruff battery facility.  There's a special County Council meeting tomorrow afternoon (11/1) to approve several FILOTs, including one with the SC Ports Authority (who owns the land under much of BMW's facilities).  The site is ~314 acres on Highway 101 surprisingly close to downtown Woodruff, and right across the street from a large new residential (and commercial?) development.

[westsider28]

Post & Courier article recapping economic announcements from 2022: $4.2B investment pledged and 2,145 jobs (compared to $1.9B and 4,045 jobs in 2021).  IMO, job numbers are more important than investment dollars (a company buying expensive machinery doesn't do anything for local residents/workers).  The raw numbers seem impressive, but I wish these articles would look go deeper.  They read like a press release from the County (which they basically are). 

What's the average pay of these jobs?  Is it better than the existing median pay in the County?  Do these jobs tend to go to existing residents or transplants?  Our county grew by 6500 residents 2020-2021, are these enough jobs for all the new residents?  How do we reconcile rosy-looking jobs announcements with a well-documented struggle for many residents to afford housing?  Where are the white-collar jobs (which are still lacking)? Etc, etc.