Upstate Guy

I think we have a sizeable Canadian footprint in the upstate with both companies and Canadian expats. I was in Toronto last week and almost everyone I spoke to had a relative in South Carolina or came here to visit (even Greenville) for vacation. Michelin had a footprint in both locations as well. On a side note...I think that this connection would be great for us. It would give us a link to a slightly different international network. I do agree that we could go after other destinations with domestic airlines...but they already have us as a captive audience and know we will connect connect connect to get there.

I hope these flights do very well and are full so that Frontier can expand offerings from Wednesday and Saturday to every day and more destinations. I also hope that with the addition of Frontier that Jet Blue gives us a little more attention and the other airlines drop their prices a bit more. Overall...I am very excited to see GSP grow and succeed.

I think another brewery in that area would be great. The baseball field idea would be awesome but I double that we will get a minor league team given that Greenville and Columbia are so close...however, what if a stadium were built to house the local colleges? (USC/Wofford/Converse) and maybe some HS playoff games or big local rivalry games.

I keep talking about this whenever someone brings up Haywood Mall. The mall needs to do basic, simple maintenance. 1) Repave/surface the parking lots 2) Put some landscaping out in the parking lots. It is acres of asphalt with nothing in sight. I know it would be a big undertaking..but maybe ever 20-30 spaces put in an island with mulch and a crepe myrtle. 3) Powerwash the outside of the building...it looks dingy. If that doesn't work...paint it. And finally...maybe they should really start to consider selling off the parking lots that are outside the parking lot ring road. (there are two large areas besides the main access to Haywood Rd)

I think this route is going to do well....and I am sure American did its homework. With all the people who go to Florida for cruises, Miami is not a little more viable. For everyone who likes the Caribbean, it just got a bit easier. Plus...we are now even more tied into the American Air network with access to an additional hub. My question is...is this an additional two routes or are two routes being pulled from other American hubs that we already serve?

Just had a thought...and it may be one that has already come up. I think using this site as a tourist draw would work out well...just not sure what could go there. It is THE prominent location in downtown now, has quick road access, a parking garage across the street with bridge access. I know there is an aquarium in Charleston, but why not in the upstate and catering to inland water species. It could be a companion to the Greenville Zoo. Or... A place set up like The Discovery Place in Charlotte but geared more towards older kids. Thoughts??

The upfront cost is something that the city and county are going to have to come to terms with. There are businesses willing to help out with this. Maybe they would be willing to front the cost of park and ride passes for their employees for the first year who wanted to use it.

The Children's Museum opening is going to bring a new level of life to downtown during the day. I am beyond impressed with what Spartanburg has done over the last 10 years with revitalizing downtown.

I am hoping those talks from last year will result in 1-2 flights a day to Miami with American. Does anyone know if GSP offers any kind of incentives to the airlines for new routes and service? Can Greenville/Spartanburg county/city pony up for new rout incentives?? I would think both Greenville and Spartanburg would benefit from a connection to Denver or the West Coast.

I think park and ride locations feeding in from the Golden Strip, Wade Hampton, Furman, and Easly would be helpful to the system. The thing that strikes me as being very odd is the lack of any connection between routs except in downtown. There needs to be a circular route around the midpoint of each route that runs around the city. This may be the circulator route others have spoken of...I am not an expert or even somewhat informed about this topic. I also think I direct bus link from the Airport to downtown would be useful. On a side note...can anyone explain to me why the system insists on buying big busses? Would it not make more sense to buy smaller busses and add more as ridership increases thus increasing frequency? I know personnel costs are a big part of the system's budget but its just a thought.

For what my 2 cents are worth...I would like to see a much larger portion of residential replace some of the office/retail space. With the glut of office space already available, I don't see the need for it right now. Otherwise, I am excited to see development start to fill in the gaps alone 385.

Random thought...I don't see this location as being far away from anything but I enjoy a good walk (except in the current weather). It's apx. 1100 feet to Main street and if you go to main and turn down main its 2200ish to the One Plaza area. IF they do build a hotel here, it would be really smart to include a downtown shuttle that runs every 15-30 minutes from the hotel all the way to the West End with a stop at One Plaza, the Peace Center, and the Ball Field. It would be a selling point for anyone not staying for an event at the Well.

At this point, I am going to say any development is better than nothing at all on that site. The site itself has so many issues that it has to deal with. I would be happy with a good 5-6 story building or in a perfect world a "ONE" sized building.

I agree with several points that have been made across this... 1) The mall needs to resurface its lots. I honestly can't recall that being done in my lifetime. and they are worn/stained by years of use. 2) Update the plantings in the parking areas and maybe create entry plaza areas like the South Park Mall in CLT. 3) Sell off some of the outlying parking for redevelopment. 4) Maybe do a serious power washing of the exterior of the mall.

With this new connection starting...IMO the logical conclusion would be to create a direct connection to Salters Rd. or throw a bridge across 85 that lines up with the Market Point Connector.

I can't remember exactly where it is...but it had to do with the CEO meeting with airline reps in Texas since the last commission meeting.

Having one in downtown would also serve the Cherrydale up through Furman...even if it is smaller.

Totally agree that a small target, even one with a grocery area would be good for downtown and the people who live there.

From reading the documents that have been put on the web for today's GSP board meeting, we could possibly see more service by American. It would be nice if we could get direct service to their hub in Miami. Not only would it give direct flights to a vacation destination but would be another great "connections" opportunity. It would also be the 6th hub of American Air that we would have direct flights to. I wish the airport could lure JetBlue in with 2-3 flights a day to either JFK or Boston Logan and hook us into that network.