Downtown Development Update: Spartanburg, SC

I have no problem admitting it: I am a small-town kid. I spent my first 22 years in two southern towns: Greensboro, NC (about the size of Providence) and Lexington, VA (very small). My first ever post for the Brown Political Review was about the future of small cities and towns. Small towns have a lot of heart, which is why I am appreciative but not so surprised by the volume of correspondence I have received since my previous post about Spartanburg, South Carolina. So many thanks to all the Spartanburg citizens who have reached out to me, shared that post, and pointed out what I overlooked. So, I went back to the Hub City to reexamine what I missed.

The first major initiative I saw in Spartanburg was the ongoing Northside Initiative, an infill project on the north side of Spartanburg’s downtown. The anchor of this project is the new campus of the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM). VCOM, an affiliate school of Virginia Tech, was founded in Virginia to help reduce the rural doctor shortage.  Via offers the DO degree, a four-year medical degree that is somewhat different from the MD degree. Via has two operating campuses, in Blacksburg, VA and Spartanburg, with a third proposed campus under construction in Auburn, Alabama.

Across the street from Via will be a new farmer’s co-op and community garden. This area, called the Healthy Food Hub, will be good for the city, especially since the farmer’s market now accepts EBT cards. The delicious Coffee Bar has been donating coffee grounds to fertilize local plants. Also, the neighborhood elementary school has overhauled its curriculum to become the Cleveland Academy of Leadership.

Elsewhere downtown, the old Spartanburg High School, my grandfather’s alma mater, has become the downtown campus for the community college, a beautiful renovation to save an historic building.

Also in town is a neat public work of art: the Spartanburg Soars kite exhibit, tied into kite-flying community events for spring –  a great way to make a vacant lot come alive.

The other recent major development in Spartanburg came from Converse College, (Go Valkyries!) a month or so back: a major tuition drop to $16,500. Recently a JC Penny worker claimed he was fired for telling the truth about sales: that store employees mark $7 shorts up to $14, then put a sign next to it saying “50% off.” Consumers would end up buying these shorts feeling that they got a deal. The truth is many colleges do this. They’ll raise the tuition, and then offer students scholarships to flatter them into coming. Converse President Betsy Fleming believes this transparency and affordability will attract talented women from all backgrounds to Converse College. So, in honor of the 125^th anniversary of the women’s college, the board of trustees cut tuition 43%.

I am sure I have left off many other things. Thanks again to all the Spartanburg residents who are justly proud of their hometown.  Please let me know what else I overlooked.