Greater Spartanburg Projects & Developments

[Spartan]

This is the list of current projects going on in and around Spartanburg. I have included some projects that have been recently completed, but not all of them. I tried to remember all of them, but if I've missed any please add to the list. Also, the list of completed projects downtown is from the City of Spartanburg website.

-Projects Under Construction-

Downtown

[*]300 block of E Main office building (recenty annouced)

[*]Renaissance Park (between Daniel Morgan & St. John)

-Arts/Cultural Center

-Two office buildings proposed

[*]Morgan Square refurbishment (Broad St ext removal)

[*]Removing the serpentine part of Main St.

[*]Office building proposed (Morgan Square/ Spring St.)

[*]Wild Wing Caf

[goodbye]

I was recently thinking how great it will be for Spartanburg to have a Wild Wing Cafe. The one in Greenville has been a hot spot for young college kids and professionals alike. I have been there many times and seen several local celebs among the buzz of patrons. Sure hope the location in Sparta serves the establishment as well as in Greenville.

[Spartan]

It better Its suppsed to be the largest one in the Carolinas. Or maybe its tied with the one in Charlotte. I don't recall exactly. Its going to be two floors, and the interior has this fantastic wooden interior with a grand stairase and an original skylight. They keep delaying the opening though. It was slated to open last November I think. Not sure why there is a delay- but there is still a contruction crew there.

I enjoy the one in Greenville too though. Nice place.

[goodbye]

I will definitely check it out when it's open! Sounds absolutely awesome. Chalk up another one for the city of Spartanburg. As I've said before, many folks overlook the city, because of the recent popularity of Greenville, but I think Spartanburg shows better judgement in developing architecture that is not only pleasing now, but will become more beautiful with the passing of the coming decades.

[jfl25]

Spartan the I-26 @ riedville rd (SUPI upgrade) and Riedville rd. widening project is all the same project. I work for a consultant engineering firm,and this is my project so if you ever need a heads up on construction just let me know. Right now I estimate were about 50 to 60 % complete. You also forgot the Hwy 290 widening project from Riedville rd. to 221 . Idon't know if youve had a chance to see this yet because they kinda started from the middle of the project and are working toward Riedville rd. now. This is also one of my company's projects so i'll try and keep you posted.

[jfl25]

I also have the Artist rendering for the I-26/riedville rd bridge and rd if i can figure out how to post it i will.

[Spartan]

I did know that the Reidville Rd and 26 SPUI thing were the same.... it just seemed necessary to list them separately.

I did forget about the 290 upgrade.

Part of the problem is that I live on the east side of town, so I am less familiar with the projects going on the westside. I do what I can though

Definatley keep us posted!

[Spartan]

I also have the Artist rendering for the I-26/riedville rd bridge and rd if i can figure out how to post it i will.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Here is my thread on image hosting and posting- you might find it useful for that

http://www.urbanplanet.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=7779

[jfl25]

Thanks for the helpful info Spartan.Now lets see if I can put your info to use.Below is the link to the (SUPI) bridge on Riedvlle rd. photobucket.com

[Spartan]

Awsome. Its kind of rotated weird

With photo bucket you can use the link below the picture with the

Are they not going to widen 26 to 6 lanes? I thought that I had read they were.

[jfl25]

Thanks again for the help Spartan.About the widening of I-26 question the only areas to be widened is a decelleration & an accelleration lanes. Whats your take on the exposed girders, this is supposed to allow for future expansion.

I didn't care for it at first ,but i guess it's growing on me. The decell/accell lanes are apx. from hwy 29 exit to about 2 to 3000 ft on the beyond the bridge on the east bound side(towards Col.)

[Spartan]

No problem.

I think they look kinda weird. They aren't even on both sides, which I find confusing if it is indeed to have room for expansion. However, I can't image Reidville Rd needing to be more than 7 lanes. The road may as well be a limited access road or interstate extention at that point. I-326 anyone? Anyway, they are unique I guess. It will be nice to to have another generic bridge.

In that regard, I wouldn't be oppsed to making the section of Redville Rd from say Anderson Mill Rd to 295 / Southport Rd a freeway of some sort. I think that will be the only truely effective way of relieveng traffic problems in that area.

[Spartan]

Condominiums targeted for East Main

By Jim Fair | Business Editor | The Herald-Journal

Pulliam Investment Co. has begun marketing a $5.5 million, 13-unit condominium project, to be located next to the Converse House.

601 East Main, the location and name of the project, will feature nine two-bedroom units with about 1,800 square feet and three three-bedroom units with at least 2,100 square feet. A 3,000-to-4,000-square-foot penthouse will also be available to complete the package.

"We believe there is a need for this type of housing. There are a lot of empty-nesters looking to downsize and live in an area where they can walk to downtown or places like Converse College for entertainment," said John Easterling II, president of the investment company.

Easterling said walks through downtown Greenville and studying other projects in Charlotte, N.C., led him to believe Spartanburg was ready for alternative housing.

"After seeing this type of housing in other markets, I thought, 'Why not Spartanburg?' " Easterling said. "This is taking Spartanburg to another level. All the other places I've visited or observed have been very successful. My thinking was we needed something like this and Converse was the perfect spot."

The condominiums will be built on a half-acre lot. They'll feature underground parking and state-of-the-art security amenities like a video feed into residents' televisions so they can view visitors before responding. A high, extended, spiked fence will surround the facility.

The design of the complex will blend into neighborhood structures. "It will be appealing to the residents of Converse and the community," Easterling said.

Easterling said most of the units will be pre-sold before construction begins.

This is the second condominium project attempted within the city. Developers of The Park View at Renaissance Park proposed a $17 million, 62-unit mid-rise condominium that fell through last May when it did not meet the required sale of 24 units by deadline.

"We have a targeted market and we have already had tremendous interest. This is an exciting time for Spartanburg and this is another good thing happening in our community," Easterling said.

I edited this article from the Herald-Journal: http://www.goupstate.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art...1/1026/BUSINESS

[jfl25]

I agree with you Spartan on the widening issue . Idon't believe Riedville rd, can be widened anymore than were doing now many buisnesses would be forced to relocate or go out of buisness if it was to be widened anymore than7 lanes.i hope this will help the congestion in the area , because it is some of the worse i've seen.The only road worse has to be Woodruff rd. ,and i dont believe theres any help for it.

[Spartan]

Great news! The Kmart on Garner Rd is going to be torn down, and a mixed use development will replace it. That lot has been abandoned for about 11 years. Here is the article:

-------------------------

A development group plans to demolish one of Spartanburg's most prominent eyesores and build a mixed-use development in its place.

The 104,000-square-foot Kmart opened in 1968 and closed in 1994, when a Super Kmart opened on Spartanburg's west side

[There are] plans to demolish the abandoned shopping center and redevelop the 18-acre property with retail shops, restaurants and medical offices.

"We know the traffic on Pine Street is advantageous for retail. It's close to the interstate, near the west and east side of Spartanburg and near downtown. It's like the bulls-eye of Spartanburg," Hughes [the developer] said.

Hughes said the first order of business is for the demolition of all the structures on the property. "We want to go back to dirt," Hughes said.

Other steps of the process, including artist renderings of the site, are still to come.

http://www.goupstate.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art...322/1051/news01

[Spartan]

Here is another one for the Westside that I didn't think about- it was in the paper today:

Project: The Arboretum

Location: At the intersection of W.O. Ezell Boulevard and Powell Mill Road, on the site of the former El Dorado motel.

Details: The 12-acre site will be known as a

[Spartan]

This one was also in the article above-forgot to post it:

Project: North Grove Medical Park

Location: 1330 Boiling Springs Highway (Highway 9), just south of the intersection with Business I-85.

Details: The 17-acre site will house a 156,000-square-foot medical building. Each of the 15 medical practices will own its own office space, with a shared area for laboratory and diagnostic services. Later on, plans call for adding some other development to the property as well.

Timeline: The medical building is under construction and should be finished by the end of the year.

Who's involved: Dr. Harold Fleming, an internal medicine specialist, came up with the idea for the project. The property is owned by Spartanburg Office Associates, an entity made up of physicians who will own space in the medical building.

[goodbye]

This is nothing related to new development, just more or less a kind of blogspot.

I was in Spartanburg last evening/night to attend the Greater Spartanburg Philharmonic Orchestra's performance with legendary jazz trumpet performer, Byron Stripling. I've been to Twichell Auditorium and Converse College before, but after last night's concert I was able to attend a reception for the perfomers, which was being held in the old Wilson Hall next door (it is the building which has become the school's icon over the years). That moment was an incredible experience. This buiding seems to have remained exactly as it was when originally built.

The second half of the concert was entirely devoted to Mr. Stripling, a master showman, and I must say that hearing several of the great pieces from the 30s and 40s in such an old setting was like stepping back 60 years into a long-gone era of American history. B)

I have such a love for the fantastic architecture seen all over downtown Spartanburg!

[Spartan]

Hillcrest Shopping Center has been sold, and "Office Depot and Petco will join previously announced Ross Dress for Less as the final touches on filling in the blanks at Kmart." That Kmart has been abandoned for about 3 years. The Petco will be the first in South Carolina.

Link to Atricle

The old Kmart, and the old Walmart were large eye sores in that area. I am glad to see them filled. (The walmart is now a Lowes)

[emo]

i chose spartanburg. i have a lot of family here. it is my hometown and i think that it has a lot to offer. i also think that it gets overlooked too often. There is great weather here, not too hot like florence and columbia(they have to be the hottest places in the state), but warm enough and we also get a nice dose of winter. i love to snowboard and the slopes are within 2 and 2.5 hours drive straight up 221. i also really enjoy the coast and being so close. charleston is only 2.5 to 3 hours from spartanburg. spartanburg also has lake bowen in the boiling springs area and lake lure is right up the road at chimney rock. spartanburg is also conveniently located at the intersection of two major interstates; I-85 and I-26. you can be in asheville in a little over an hour and charlotte is about the same up I-85. it only takes about an hour and fifteen or an hour and a half to get to columbia. Atlanta takes around 2.5 to 3 hours to get to. like i said spartanburg has a lot to offer with 5 colleges and universities, a rapidly growing downtown, plenty of shopping at westgate mall and hillcrest specialty row(not to mention all of the new business on spartanburg's east side). the gaffney prime outlets are close too. foreign business certainly likes the area considering we have the highest foreign investment per capita in the nation. We also have BMW and the international airport. Sorry if this offends anyone, but i think that spartanburg has the best school system anywhere in the state. i'm a graduate of spartanburg high school. There is also a lot of history here and sorry greenville, but the traffic isn't nearly as bad here. i'm sure that there's more to say, but that's already a lot. i wanted to go ahead and give my opinion of my hometown. i have a lot of pride in it(perhaps too much).

[Spartan]

Don't forget Michelin Spartanburg County has the higest internation investment per capita in the nation.

This is the place to voice your opinion, so don't hold back. Just respect others while you are doing it (which you are doing)

Spartanburg's School system is one of the best in the state. It varies from school to school, but I think that districts 3, 5, and 6 are particularly good. 7 has alot of good schools (Pine Street, McCracken, Spartan HS), but some are held back becuase there are alot of inner city kids there. 1,2 and 4 are not bad at all, but they aren't quite as good as the others.

I think traffic, while not bad, is quickly getting worse. Reidville Rd, N Pine St, and Hwy 9 towards Boiling Springs are prime examples of this. Traffic volume has increased significantly in the past 5 years IMO. We have a decent traffic flow in the city, but once you get out of downtown it gets nasty, particularly during rush hour.

There needs to be more than one thoroughfare for places like Hillcrest. That section that is being developed for Easton and from the old walmart down is going to create massive traffic problems for that area whose only access is East Main St. Sure you can take Webber Rd or Zion Hill/Plainview to access other roads, but they are very much out of the way. East Main will have to be widened to 6 or 7 lanes from Hillcrest within 10 years I think.

I don't have a particularly good alternative except to make Sklyn Drive-Cannons Campground/Heywood Ave a more accessible road. They are planning to widen Sklyn soon.

I don't think you can have too much hometown pride. I too love my hometown of Spartanburg. Its a great place, with alot to look forward too!

[emo]

There needs to be more than one thoroughfare for places like Hillcrest. That section that is being developed for Easton and from the old walmart down is going to create massive traffic problems for that area whose only access is East Main St. Sure you can take Webber Rd or Zion Hill/Plainview to access other roads, but they are very much out of the way. East Main will have to be widened to 6 or 7 lanes from Hillcrest within 10 years I think.

i'd have to agree with you here that this is a problem that the only direct way to get to hillcrest is east main and that problem will only get worse with all of the new development. the west side of town can also be nasty at the intersections of reidville and blackstock and 29 and blackstock. another area that has really grown up quickly is 295 bypass. i can't believe all of the stuff on that road now. i think that will quickly become a main road in spartanburg with even more business on it. i would really like to see more development at cedar springs and out towards croft. that area has become run down. i would also like to see more development on south pine near Grace management(the old draper place) and on Union. stefano's resturant is on union, but it's kind of random there by itself. OH! and how can i forget, we have the Beacon. i also think that you meant to put Miliken instead of michelin.

[Spartan]

i'd have to agree with you here that this is a problem that the only direct way to get to hillcrest is east main and that problem will only get worse with all of the new development. the west side of town can also be nasty at the intersections of reidville and blackstock and 29 and blackstock. another area that has really grown up quickly is 295 bypass. i can't believe all of the stuff on that road now. i think that will quickly become a main road in spartanburg with even more business on it. i would really like to see more development at cedar springs and out towards croft. that area has become run down. i would also like to see more development on south pine near Grace management(the old draper place) and on Union. stefano's resturant is on union, but it's kind of random there by itself. OH! and how can i forget, we have the Beacon. i also think that you meant to put Miliken instead of michelin.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I meant Michelin! The actual HQ is located in Greenville County, but the Manufacturing plant is in Spartanburg County. Miliken is a very important employer, but not an international one.

295 has grown alot. There is a significant clustering of medical offices at the 295 and Reidville Rd interstection. I think that area could become an even more significant medical office area. I will be happy when they complete the widening of the other half of it. I drive that road fairly often.

Cedar Springs has seen alot of improvement in the last few years. The new Bi-Lo at Cedar Springs Crossing (I think that is its name) has spurred some improvement in the area. I think the Win-Dixie/Big Lots shopping center is going to see a rennovation. They replaced their sign not long ago. When they finish installing the water line on Soutport Rd east of 56 (at the tank farms) they will have to repave it, and it will likely be in conjunction with the widening of 295 in that area.

I would love to see S Pine grow up some. It seems to be transforming the former retail stores into offices, or building new ones. They recently finished the exterior of that building where Mark's Garden World (now Carolina Garden World) used to be, and two or three other small office buildings have been built along that strip.

Union St has some potential too, but that neighborhood has to be improved somewhat. Two people were gunned down last year in broad daylight.

One area I want to see improve some more is Hampton Heights. The houses there are fantastic. Alot of them have been fixed up now, and I get the impression that gentrification is taking place slowly.

Another thing I would like to see is more density downtown. There is obvoiusly demand to live downtown, but not enouch places for it. I'd lke to see an Schuyler style apartment tower go up that caters to a slightly higher income level- mid range mind you, not luxury. The area on Kennedy St between Church and Daniel Morgan (kind of accross from the library) is pretty rundown. That area would make a good location, and it would help fix up that area.

[goodbye]

I meant Michelin! The actual HQ is located in Greenville County, but the Manufacturing plant is in Spartanburg County. Miliken is a very important employer, but not an international one.

[...]

Another thing I would like to see is more density downtown. There is obvoiusly demand to live downtown, but not enouch places for it. I'd lke to see an Schuyler style apartment tower go up that caters to a slightly higher income level- mid range mind you, not luxury. The area on Kennedy St between Church and Daniel Morgan (kind of accross from the library) is pretty rundown. That area would make a good location, and it would help fix up that area.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Michelin is everywhere in the Upstate! Anderson has got more than one large plant there, and Greenville county as well. Not sure about Pickens or Oconee. They have done a fabulous job of taking advantage of the high-quality workforce here.

The density spoken of about downtown Spartanburg is on the way, I assure you. Just think how far it has come in just five years! The future is indeed bright for urbanites there.

This thread is a wonderful idea! I think we'll be able to carry on some great conversation here. Keep the posts coming!!!

[emo]

there is a lot that could be done across from the library. there's actually a lot of area downtown that needs work. first of all, i wish that they would do something with all of the space behind the new mariott. i think all of that is supposed to be renaissance park. it saw a rendering at some point with a business park with 2-3 nice office buildings and the parkview luxury apartments. there was also a walkway that connected to barnett park. that would be great if all of that could happen. there is also supposed to be a new cultural center coming soon, but the museum of art is still short on funds. oh yeah, have you heard about the 1300 seat auditorium downtown. i think in the bottom of the montgomery building. i think that it used to be called the palmetto theatre and i heard that private investors are renovating it. i have a friend that works for QS-1 who received a tour of it. he said there was a balcony and these huge crystal chandeliers still hanging from the ceiling.

just another note- i really love the spots of pride and the bronze sculptures that are going up all around the city.