Spartanburg City News

It's a new year in Spartanburg, and in order to know where we're going, take a look at where we've been. To get the real picture of where we are at the beginning of 2013, take at the tremendous progress made not just in 2012, but also in the years before.   On this podcast, we do just that, picking up where we left off last week, discussing how far we've come since the Great Recession four years ago. One glaring difference between now and then: the new sense of forward-looking optimism emerging in our community, and how that gradually has begun to translate into increasingly bigger and better developments for Spartanburg. What does that mean for 2013? Well, we'd never be foolish enough to claim to know for sure (), but what we do know is that our city has the flexibility and creativity to meet the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities that lay ahead.

The gifts have all been given, the food eaten, and the belt subsequently loosened; the mad holiday marathon has finally come to an end. So as we all nurse our tinsel-filled Christmas hangovers and get back to the grind of these last few days of 2012, it's worth looking back on the last 12 months to see where they've taken us.  From putting challenges like the City's legacy pension system and the old Arkwright Dump behind us, to the grand opening of Stewart Park and the huge success of Skating on the Square, it's been quite a year in our City, and taken by themselves, those issues are easy enough to explain. The real question, the one that we'd be remiss not to ask is: How do the accomplishments and progress made in 2012 fit into the larger vision for Spartanburg as we move into a new year? What direction did 2012 see our City taking? For a podcast this ambitious, clearly we were going to need the big guns, so we got the two most knowledgable people around to put it all in perspective for us, City Manager Ed

Since his election to Council in 2011, District 1 Council member Sterling Anderson has made increasing parks and recreation options on the west side one of his defining issues. On this week's podcast, we sit down with the and talk with Anderson about some of the projects he'd like to see the City take on, including as well as possible park options at the Downtown Airport.   Along the way, we also talk about ways to make our area more pedestrian friendly, pointing to the recently completed as an example of how making room for bicycle and pedestrian traffic is an important way to help our city thrive. 

In a 4-3 vote on Monday, sometime in the Fall of 2013. Council member Sterling Anderson, who voted with the majority to close the facility, joins us on the podcast to talk about his decision, some of the misconceptions he's heard about the Swim Center, and about posibilities for the future of parks and recreation facilities in the City, including the possibility of incorporating a new indoor swimming facility into the construction of the new T.K. Gregg Center. 

The is set to get underway early next year. On this week's podcast, we give you the lowdown on the City's latest economic development program.   The challenge is designed to help three entrepreneurs open new businesses next year by providing a cash incentive of $12,000 to be used as rent assistance in a downtown location pre-identified by the City and the property owner. The selection process will include several phases, with six finalists ultimately presenting detailed business plans to the selection committee. In addition to the $12,000 incentive provided by the City, additional in-kind incentives -- such as marketing assistance, printing, etc. -- will be provided to each winner by local businesses who have agreed to participate.   What kind of businesses will win the challenge? A new restaurant? An ice cream shop? A vintage arcade and game room? We have no idea, and even taking a guess would undoubtedly show how unequal we are to the task of matching our citizens' imagination. In short, prepare to be wowe

Wouldn't it be great if the Mary Black Foundation Rail Trail connected to Downtown? It's , and now there may be an answer to that and many other questions Spartanburg residents have about creating new opportunities for outdoor recreation, while expanding on our existing options. Last week, a broad group of community stakeholders  the first draft of an exciting plan to more than double the number of miles in the Spartanburg metro area dedicated to trails and greenways. After studying an area that runs north to south from Boiling Springs to Old Canaan Road, and west to east from Interstate 26 to the Pacolet River, the group settled on nine priority projects that would create a web of trails and greenways for pedestrians and cyclists, linking the entire metro area of Spartanburg by using existing trails and by building new ones. Joining us to talk about the new Trails and Greenways Master Plan, and what it means for Spartanburg, are Council member Cate Ryba and Partners for Active Living Executive Director Laura

What do the former , , and  all have in common? All three are major redevelopment projects going on in Downtown Spartanburg right now. Assistant City Manager Chris Story joins us again for the final segment in this podcast series, breaking down what these important projects mean for our city. Along the way, he uses awesomely wonky phrases like "adaptive reuse of existing structures," which, in case you're not a total nerd like we are, just means old buildings being upfitted for new stuff. As it happens, that new stuff is good stuff. It's the kind of stuff that brings more people, more energy, and more enthusiasm to our downtown.   So kick back, listen, and take this opportunity to feel really good about yourself for having the good judgment to call our impressively redevelopment-minded city home.

Following on the heels of yesterday's conversation about the Arkwright Dump, part two of our series of podcast conversations with Assistant City Manager Chris Story takes on another weighty issue, one that currently is awaiting the direction of City Council. In this podcast, Story gives us the facts about the center's usage and the resources it requres, the same facts that Coucil will ultimately use in making the difficult decision about the fate of the Swim Center.

It's probably shocking to absolutely no one, but most of what city governments do isn't sexy. It's not all ribbon cutting ceremonies and shiny new amenities. Often there are weighty, complicated issues involving a city's history, socioeconomics, and modern environmental concerns that have to be dealt with. Sometimes a city has to spend tremendous resources literally cleaning up the mess left by previous generations. Such was the case in Spartanburg with the old Arkwright Dump, which after 15 years in the works, is now finally closed. In part one of a three part series of conversations with Assistant City Manager Chris Story, we talk about the dump, and what it means for the City to finally be able to turn the page on this project, and how important closing the dump has been for the Arkwright community. Be sure to check back tomorrow and Thursday for parts two and three of the series.

On this week's podcast we go in-depth on Spartanburg's latest civic engagement tool, . What is Neighborland, you ask? Well, you could just follow  to find out, but we don't mind spoon-feeding you a little verbiage. In their own words, Neighborland is an online social network that provides "residents, neighborhood organizations, economic development groups, and municipalities with a powerfully simple platform to connect and make good things happen." Using Neighborland, Spartanburg residents can share the ideas they have for improving our city, while also supporting and expanding on the ideas others have suggested. The catch? Tools like Neighborland only work if civic-minded folks like you get involved, so click on one of those links above, sign up, make some suggestions for how you'd like to improve our city, and join in on the conversation. In addition to giving you the lowdown on Neighborland, we wonk out (as is our style) on one of the more popular suggestions so far on on the site, a . Is it feasible for 

On this special episode of our City podcast, Special Events Manager Mandy Merck sits down with us for a conversation about Spartanburg's newest event, Skating on the Square. Get the lowdown on how this great addition to Spartanburg's holiday experience came together, and learn about the special promotions and programs being held throughout the next eight weeks, including movie nights, turkey bowling, and special performances on the ice.    Once you've got your information fix — so much so that any thinking person would have to consider you an expert on all things related to frozen water on Morgan Square — come on out to our grand opening celebration tomorrow, and try the ice out for free between 3 and 5 p.m. Just remember to cue the  to set the mood.

Wouldn't it be great if the City had its own weekly radio show to give residents the lowdown on what's going on with local government and city event news? Chances are, there are about five of you who just said yes to that question. For the record, we love each and every one of you. For those of you who might not be quite as enthusiastic about a radio show, what if we promised that it won't be boring (we'll try...seriously) and that you can listen to it whenever you like on your computer, smartphone, or mp3 player ... through the voodoo magic of the Internet? (Warning-gratuitous Sen. Ted Stevens link .) If you know about these kinds of things, you might say that 2005 called, and it wants its Internet breakthrough back. Then again, you might still be intrigued. You might even think that a local government willing to produce a podcast to keep you in the loop on what your City's leaders are up to while also offering information on the latest new initiatives and events around town is pretty responsive, maybe even