Spartanburg City News

More than 30 years ago, Spartanburg became the first city in South Carolina to hold an official event celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day with a simple ceremony around the flagpole outside Spartanburg City Hall, where attendees reflected on the words and purpose of Dr. King’s life. From the seeds sown there, Spartanburg's annual celebration has grown to include an annual gathering attended by thousands each year, and new events have been added to both honor and continue Dr. King's mission of equity, inclusion, and service. Today on the podcast, we're talking with City Community Relations Coordinator, Kathy Hill and Spartanburg County Librarian (and MLK Unity Week steering committee member) Todd Stephens about this year's events and the importance of Unity Week for our community.

Can you remember a more transformative decade in Spartanburg than the one we're bidding farewell to in 2019? We certainly can't. In fact, even trying to list the changes seen since 2010 quickly devolves into a spiral of "what did I leave out?" doubt. From the hundreds of millions invested in Downtown Spartanburg, to the combined public, private, and nonprofit efforts on our city's Northside, the city we had a decade ago was in an enormously different place from the one we call home today. It's with that tremendous change in mind that we're launching a new project in January that will encourage locals to answer one question: What, to you, was the most transformative in Spartanburg over the last decade? Over the coming weeks, we're going to be presenting and curating those answers on our website and social media accounts from local leaders and residents, highlighting your experiences of Spartanburg in these past 10 years through video, podcasts, written pieces, and posts using the #Spartanburg2020 hashtag.

It's become an annual holiday tradition on the City Podcast to take a look back at the previous year in Spartanburg, but with the 2010s winding down, this year we decided to dial that up a bit. Today on the podcast, we're talking with City Manager, Chris Story about what we believe has been the most transformative decade in living memory. From the hundreds of millions invested in Downtown Spartanburg, to the combined public, private, and nonprofit efforts on our city's Northside, the city we had in 2010 was in an enormously different place from the one we call home today. How did that transformation happen? What work remains to be done? What will the next 10 years bring? We do our best to answer those questions on today's podcast, which also serves as a conversation starter for our new #Spartanburg2020 initiative, a community listening project that will ask Spartanburg residents to answer question: What is the most transformative change Spartanburg has seen in the last decade? Listen to learn more, and to get

It started as an Instagram account that burst onto the local scene late last year with some stunning aerial photos of Spartanburg. Right from the start though, it was clear that Above Spartanburg wasn't your typical drone photography page. The shots are taken with an artist's eye, with the lighting and the symmetry of each one clearly reflecting the amount of planning and forethought going into each one.    That attention to detail wasn't lost on the folks at Hub City Press, and after admiring the new mystery Instagram account feed for a while, they decided to reach out to its creator, Kavin Bradner. Now that Instagram account has spawned a beautiful book by the same name. Above Spartanburg, features photos previously seen in the account as well as dozens of new shots of both local icons and lesser-known corners of our community.   With a release event planned for this Saturday, November 23 at 4 p.m. at Fr8yard (RJ Rockers in the event of rain) this week on the podcast we're talking with Bradner and Betsy Tet

It's the first step in a process that will take at least three years to complete, but , Spartanburg City Council took the first steps towards tearing down and replacing Norris Ridge Apartments, a privately owned substandard section 8 apartment complex in the Highland neighborhood that has long been a site targeted for redevelopment by the City and Highland residents. Under the approved agreement, the City will transfer 10 properties—totaling around 25 acres—along Wofford St. in the Mid-towne Heights area to Mississippi-based firm EquityPlus, LLC for construction of a mixed-income development that will serve as a replacement for the 190 units that will be lost with the eventual demolition of Norris Ridge Apartments. EquityPlus, LLC has an agreement in place with the current owner of Norris Ridge to purchase the property and has agreed to redevelop the site in accordance with the Highland Transformation Plan, currently underway in the neighborhood. The developer plans to construct the Mid-towne Heighs project

Walkability. It's one of the keys to future prosperity in every city and has been a crucial lens to help focus downtown development in Spartanburg in recent years, and at a free event next month, area residents will have the opportunity to learn about the importance of walkability from the person who literally wrote the book on the topic. Walkability expert Jeff Speck will share his thoughts on creating a more walkable Spartanburg at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church on November 7 at 5:30 p.m.    who advocates internationally for more walkable cities. As Director of Design at the National Endowment for the Arts from 2003 through 2007, he presided over the Mayors' Institute on City Design and created the Governors' Institute on Community Design. Prior to his federal appointment, Mr. Speck spent ten years as Director of Town Planning at DPZ & Co., the principal firm behind the New Urbanism movement. Since 2007, he has led Speck & Associates, an award winning private design consultancy serving public

It's the most important purchase most of us will ever make, and navigating the home buying process can feel overwhelming for folks taking those first steps towards homeownership. Fortunately, help is out there, and on Tuesday, October 15, 6 p.m.-8:30 p.m., at the C.C. Woodson Community Center, future homeowners looking for some guidance will have an opportunity to learn how they can take that next step toward the American dream from professionals in all aspects of the real estate world.   Today on the podcast, we've got details on what you can expect at the Homebuyers Seminar and about the overall housing market in our city. 

It all started with John Green, a man with a vision and passion for educating children about the wonders of science, and today the Spartanburg Science Center continues that mission and is expanding its presense in the community. Today on the podcast, we're talking with Mary Levens and Kathryn Harvey about that expansion, including a new aviation program the organization has spearheaded in partnership with our Downtown Memorial Airport.

It's been years in the making and still years to go until the 32-mile network linking disconnected trails throughout Spartanburg is completed, but now the vision has a brand, . The eventual network will link popular trails such as the Mary Black Foundation Rail Trail, Cottonwood Trail, Glendale Shoals, and Wadsworth Trail together into a system that will allow users to travel across our city and beyond.  Today on the podcast, we're talking with Laura Ringo and Ned Barrett with Partners for Active Living about the newly branded trail network and about their plans to see it completed.

For those experiencing homelessness, even a minor criminal charge can have a major impact, leaving individuals trapped deeper in a cycle of poverty and addiction that becomes even more difficult to break. Spartanburg City Municipal Judge Erika McJimpsey has a plan to offer some of our community's most vulnerable members a different path by starting a homeless court in our city. Homeless courts were founded as an alternative legal process for homeless people, who come into contact with law enforcement more often, that centers on rehabilitation rather than incarceration. The idea is to connect a qualified person with service providers who would establish a treatment plan with goals the homeless court participant would need to meet. Once the process is completed, convictions for minor offenses on the participant's record could be expunged, replacing a punitive approach to a vulnerable population with one focused on restorative justice.  Today on the podcast, Judge McJimpsey joins us give details about the new ho

Today on the podcast, we've got an overview of the City's upcoming Comprehensive Planning process. Replacing the City's current Comprehensive Plan, which was crafted in 1999, the new plan is expected to govern the CIty's path for the next 20 years, guiding our strategies on areas as wide-ranging as racial equity, housing, economics, health and wellness, parks and recreation, public facilities, infrastructure, traffic, and the overall livability of Spartanburg for decades to come. With City Staff expecting to finalize recommendations to Council for a contract with a planning firm to create the Comprehensive Plan in the coming weeks, and the process is expected to take nearly two years to complete, today we're laying the groundwork by trying to answer a few very simple questions: What is a Comprehensive Plan? Why does our City need one? How does it shape future City policy? Check out our conversation with City Manager Chris Story and City Planner Natalia Rosario for answers to those questions as well as why it

The City of Spartanburg and its partners are inviting the public to  join us at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church (502 S Daniel Morgan Ave.) on August 13, from 6-8 p.m. for the first public meeting to help create a new transformation plan for the Highland Neighborhood. The Highland Neighborhood Transformation Plan will create a vision for the growth of the community, and this is the first of multiple public input sessions planned throughout the process. The transformation plan process seeks to evaluate Highland as a whole, both its assets and its challenges, ultimately creating a blueprint for everything from housing, public spaces, and transportation, to education at all levels and job training programs. Today on the podcast, we're talking with Highland Neighborhood Association President Leroy Jeter, Community Outreach Advocate Wilma Moore, and Bethlehem Center Director Patrena Mims about their impressions of the process so far and their hopes going forward. For more on the Highland transformation planning

If you're a longtime City Podcast listener, you've heard us talk for years about the growing momentum in Downtown Spartanburg. Those of us who spend our working days and leisure-filled evenings walking Main Street have been noticing the increased company for a long time now, and even a cursory glance at the storefronts in our central business district would show you that this isn't the Downtown Spartanburg many of us remember from 20, 10, or even 5 years ago.  The thing is, all that personal experience is just that, personal. Anecdotes from those of us who frequent downtown don't amount to much when trying to land the next developer to tackle a high profile project or when trying to convince current downtown business owners that some of their assumptions are outdated when it comes to who frequents down and when they are here. Luckily, now we've got a couple of useful tools to put some hard numbers to those perceptions. Today on the podcast, we're talking with Jansen Tidmore, Executive Vice President of Corpor

At , Spartanburg City Council voted 6-1 to approve a $4.3 million purchase of the former Integral Solutions property at 450 Wofford Street with an eye towards converting the structure into a new central fire station. Initially included as part of the proposed fiscal year 2019-2020 city budget, Council voted to remove the fire station proposal along with a millage increase meant to partially fund the facility. City Manager Chris Story has previously said that either a millage increase or a reduction in city services would be needed in order to fund either the renovation or new construction for a fire station. Council members Sterling Anderson and Jamie Fulmer have both stated their opposition to any millage increase to fund the station, and Story said at Monday's meeting that several options for funding the new fire station will be presented to Council in the coming weeks.   Today on the podcast, we lay out the process so far with the City Manager, discussing the newly approved facility and the City's plans f

Pedestrians in Downtown Spartanburg will soon have a safer, more visible walk across some key intersections thanks to some planned for the intersections of Main St. and King St., Main St. and Spring St., and Main St. and Magnolia St. Each installation is being designed and painted by a different local artist or artist team with Michael Webster painting Main St. and King St., Matthew Donaldson painting Main St. and Spring St., and Frankie Page and Adrian Meadows painting Main St. and Magnolia St. The artists were chosen by a panel from the Spartanburg Downtown Cultural District Steering Committee made up of businesses, residents, arts leaders, city officials and Chamber of Commerce representatives.    Today on the podcast, we're talking with Eric Kocher, Creative Placemaking and HUB-BUB Director at Chapman Cultural Center, about the murals. We also talk with outgoing HUB-BUB Artist-in-Residence Ambrin Ling about her time in Spartanburg and her collaborative art project, . This project features small paintings

Today on the podcast, we're talking with City Manager Chris Story about the most critical piece of policy produced by our City every year, the budget. Some of the highlights of the upcoming fiscal year budget include a projected four percent growth in overall revenue and a five percent growth in property taxes revenue. That property tax growth represents the biggest gains for the City in more than a decade, a strong indicator of the growth seen in recent years both in Downtown Spartanburg and throughout the city as a whole. New expenditures this year include a three percent cost-of-living increase for City employees, and a $264,000 mandatory increase to the employer contribution to the state retirement system.   We'll also delve into the most contentious item deliberated this year during budget discussions, a proposal to purchase the former Integral Solutions location at 450 Wofford Street and retrofit the building to house a new fire department headquarters at an estimated cost of $9 million and a proposed s

Another summer is upon us here in Spartanburg, and along with the usual complaints about the heat (a more longstanding Southern tradition you will not find) and the questions about where we're all going for vacation this year (somewhere cooler if you're a pragmatist, hotter if you're a masochist) conversations tend to come down to how best to the long days and humid nights we've got coming these next few months.   Today on the podcast, we're helping all y'all out with that question with a rundown of the best ways to spend your summer in Spartanburg. From trails and splash pads to entertainment and events you'd be crazy to miss, we've got all you need to make the absolute most out of the next few months in our city.

It started with a simple question posed in the Spartanburg Herald back in 1919: "Do you suppose it is possible for the world to be different a hundred years from now as our world of today is different from that of a hundred years ago?" A new library exhibit puts context around that question, with panels covering such diverse topics as race relations, downtown and neighborhood development, and how the closing of a World War I training camp on the the city's current westside led to a bear calling Morgan Square home for a time. Today on the podcast, we're talking with Brad Steinecke, Assistant Director of Local History with Spartanburg County Public Libraries about the new exhibit and about how the Spartanburg of 1919 informs the Spartanburg of today.

Earlier this month, the City and its parters in the United Way of the Piedmont, Spartanburg Interfaith Hospitality Network, and Catholic Charities of South Carolina announced the a pilot program for a new homeless day shelter, the Spartanburg Opportunity Center, to be housed in the Northwest Recreation Center. Beginning in July, homeless people in Spartanburg will be shower, wash clothes, store personal items, charge their phones, and receive mail in the facility, filling a crucial gap in service for some of the most vulnerable members of our community. The center will also offer a central location for service providers to connect and provide help for those in need. Opening this July, the pilot program will utilize a portion of the Northwest Center two afternoons per week, with an eye towards a potential expansion into the entire facility when the City decommissions the facility after the competition of the Dr. T.K. Gregg Community Center in spring of 2020. Today on the podcast, we're talking with Karl Rogoze

One person's trash is another person's treasure, right? A traveling interactive art project with roots in Spartanburg is in Downtown Spartanburg through May 5 to test that theory. Barter Boat, a project of Radar Art, a group formed by former Hub-Bub Artists-in-Residence, Anna Abhau-Elliott, Robin Schwartzman, and Desiree Moore, is set up at Fr8yard and will be encouraging passers-by to trade whatever they have at hand for curated assemblages of objects previously bartered at the project's other stops throughout the country   Today on the podcast, we're talking with Anna about Barter Boat, getting an idea of what potential participants can expect as well as delving into the thinking behind the project. Stop by to make a trade, and be sure to follow them on and to keep up with where your objects might end up!