Spartanburg Metropolis Council members agreed with a advice from metropolis supervisor Chris Story to carry off on a long-awaited mission to redevelop Morgan Sq..
That’s as a result of a number of different downtown building tasks are looming together with a resort, workplace constructing, and flats – all a part of the Johnson Group’s Undertaking Core growth – in addition to a brand new joint city-county authorities middle.
The federal government complicated will located on the nook of Church and West Broad Streets instantly behind numerous Morgan Sq. enterprise.
Morgan Sq., trying west: Spartanburg Metropolis Council members have agreed to carry off for now on plans to redevelop the sq.. Enterprise proprietor Brian Greene applauded the council’s choice to permit for different downtown growth to happen earlier than reconstruction of Morgan Sq. takes place.
If the Morgan Sq. renovation started within the coming months, that might make for disruption “on the entrance door and the again door of companies on the similar time,” Story mentioned.
He mentioned it might be “cheap to time that mission on a special schedule.”
Council member Jamie Fulmer agreed that too many disruptions might “stunt development and negatively affect companies which have invested in our downtown.”
“It is smart to me that we not do all of this without delay,” Fulmer mentioned.
Different council members concurred, although Erica Brown mentioned she was “past annoyed” that the Morgan Sq. redesign had not already occurred.
“We began speaking about this again throughout Covid,” she mentioned.
To allow downtown eating places to serve patrons outdoors throughout the pandemic, the town shut down the stretch of West Most important Avenue alongside Morgan Sq.. The highway closure was standard with enterprise homeowners and the general public.
In 2023, a committee comprised of native enterprise homeowners, elected officers, and different neighborhood leaders accredited a plan to revamp the sq..
“Morgan Sq. must be rockin’ and rollin’ by now,” Brown mentioned.
Fulmer mentioned he was dissatisfied that the mission hasn’t come to fruition but, however he hopes the delays have given metropolis leaders priceless time to look at choices and higher perceive Morgan Sq.’s function in downtown’s future.
Amongst different tasks, he talked about the opening of Fifth Third Park. “We’re getting an opportunity to see how the stadium and the Spartanburgers change the mosaic of downtown,” he mentioned.
Brian Greene, a accomplice within the Morgan Sq. Hospitality Group, attended the July 14 council assembly. His firm owns Delaney’s Irish Pub.
He was glad the town council determined to attend on the Morgan Sq. renovation.
“I would like that was already achieved, however contemplating the timeline, it looks as if a prudent factor to do to place off,” he mentioned.
Downtown clock tower additionally affected by growth
Development tasks within the downtown space will even have an effect on the small island of land on the intersection of West Most important and Spring streets.
Story beneficial making the intersection a standard four-way cease to permit for the brand new resort on the outdated Herald-Journal property and to enhance present site visitors movement and pedestrian walkways by means of the realm.
He mentioned metropolis planners have “prioritized pedestrians and usable public house.”
Story mentioned the plans might end result within the dismantling of the town’s clock tower, which was first put in on the intersection of Most important and Liberty streets in 1979 and moved to its present location on the western fringe of Morgan Sq. in 1986.
Growth tasks in downtown Spartanburg are more likely to have an effect on the small island of land the place the historic clock tower stands. Spartanburg Metropolis Council members are weighing choices for the clock tower’s future.
The clock tower’s historical past dates again greater than 100 years, having been a function of the county courthouse on Magnolia Avenue.
Designs for the brand new city-county complicated embody a clock that Story mentioned would “appropriately acknowledge the unique historical past” of the tower, which many neighborhood members now see as a vital downtown landmark.
He added that the items of the present clock tower might be preserved as a part of a show to honor its place within the metropolis’s historical past.
A number of council members expressed hope that the clock tower might be moved in its entirety to a brand new location.
“It’s essential to individuals,” Fulmer mentioned. “As we age, the tower takes on a stage of historic significance.”
This text initially appeared on Herald-Journal: Spartanburg Metropolis Council considers Morgan Sq., clock tower futures
