Unity Park (New 160 Acre West End Park)

[GvilleSC]

They’ve cleared a lot of the vegetation, and have a construction shed on site. Has a permit been issued?

[gman430]

9 hours ago, GvilleSC said:

They’ve cleared a lot of the vegetation, and have a construction shed on site. Has a permit been issued?

I haven’t seen one but they do have a general contractor lined up with their signage on site so who knows.

[GvilleSC]

On 1/12/2024 at 8:02 PM, gman430 said:

I haven’t seen one but they do have a general contractor lined up with their signage on site so who knows.

As an update: they've been actively working on this site this week. Silt fencing was being installed yesterday. 

[vicupstate]

Project Preview Meeting 2/27

 

[gman430]

Completion early 2025. Options 1 and 2 below: 

Edited February 21 by gman430

[GvilleSC]

17 hours ago, vicupstate said:

Project Preview Meeting 2/27

 

I thought all of this was a part of Unity Park, or at least wetlands. Intrigued to see what this rezoning is all about. 

[NewlyUpstate]

2 hours ago, gman430 said:

Completion early 2025. Options 1 and 2 below: 

I like design 1 a lot. I also like the orientation facing inwards at the rest of the park. Plus the opportunity to score extra points by nailing a bicyclist on the SRT with a home run is hard to miss.

Edited February 21 by NewlyUpstate

[ingvegas]

I think a soccer field would get more use. Kroc's field is never empty. We need more.

Baseball field will not get used as much by general public, require more upkeep, and has a higher upfront cost. 

[transplant08]

33 minutes ago, ingvegas said:

I think a soccer field would get more use. Kroc's field is never empty. We need more.

Baseball field will not get used as much by general public, require more upkeep, and has a higher upfront cost. 

If they scrap the baseball field for a soccer field, after delaying baseball field for a year because they want to combine construction with the 'tower,' all hell will break loose. 

[ingvegas]

Better that, long term,  than be stuck with a lame graffiti "tower" and a hardly used baseball field left in poor shape -- ten years from now.  

[Danmire]

20 hours ago, ingvegas said:

I think a soccer field would get more use. Kroc's field is never empty. We need more.

Baseball field will not get used as much by general public, require more upkeep, and has a higher upfront cost. 

There is a ton of Greenville history with the civil rights movement  behind the baseball field located there.  

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-10-29/unity-park-recalls-history-of-segregation-and-baseball?embedded-checkout=true

[vicupstate]

On 2/20/2024 at 8:07 PM, vicupstate said:

Project Preview Meeting 2/27

 

Affordable housing project. 48 rental units and 5 for sale.  A land swap with the city will be involved with wetland areas going to the city. Rezoning required but project will only happen if affordable application with the state is successful. units will be geared toward families. 

[gman430]

And still no movement on the honor tower. Maybe by 2030? If we’re lucky?

[ingvegas]

Shhhhh, please. Let it die, quietly. 

[GVLover]

Might as well have NYC/Related Companies donate "The Vessel" at Hudson Yards in place of "Honor Tower". Give Related Co $5 million towards moving + $5 million towards installation since they're not likely not ever open it again there anyways.

It's much more of a center piece (which I believe Greenville is aiming for, not simply a short observation tower) than the current proposal that is posted below. Considering its already an icon, it would drive tourist numbers to Greenville for sure.

And to make it political (unfortunately) the owner of Related Co is a Republican so I would imagine that could help considering the area is red.

Side note: damn , it's nice to be able to edit such images with my S24 Ultra with proprietary apps. 

Edited March 11 by GVLover

[ingvegas]

Interesting case study. It was shut-down due to suicides. Considered an expensive debacle that stopped being frequented after a short period of time. In short, a complete waste. 

Will the Honor soon follow this? 

https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-show-the-vessel-new-york-city-hudson-yards-manhattan-2023-11#the-vessels-interior-was-cool-but-the-excitement-wore-off-quickly-6

[gman430]

They should put a big 15 story size brown box on site that says Amazon Prime on the sides to celebrate the beautiful architecture we have with our downtown buildings or a graveyard with tombstones for all of the failed projects downtown.  

Edited March 12 by gman430

[rabbit seisin]

On 3/11/2024 at 8:14 AM, ingvegas said:

Shhhhh, please. Let it die, quietly. 

Sadly I find myself in this camp, although in theory I think an observation tower in the park could be great.

It would have been nice if the design had shown any appreciation for the people, history, and culture of Greenville. My thought would have been something reminiscent of a textile mill's bell tower (look at Mills Mill, or for a different flavor the bell tower on the old Camperdown Mill #2, which had a bit of a gothic revival vibe going on). Unity Park's other features have industrial motifs already, so it wouldn't have been a stretch. 

[gman430]

Whatever happened to the Mayberry Street sites going out for bid by the city to get developed?  

[GvilleSC]

The materiality and design actually relates quite directly to the other built elements of the park. I don't have a problem with the design. IMO, much like the park itself, it will say positive things about Greenville, including that Greenville is looking forward. 

[gman430]

On 1/3/2024 at 3:55 PM, gman430 said:

Belladina’s next to Miracle Hill has stalled. No work done in months. 

Building is now available through CBRE according to new signage on site. Told you so. I wonder how much money the Belladina’s owner lost spending his own money on renovating the building only to watch it fall through. Ouch. 

Edited March 27 by gman430

[rabbit seisin]

4 hours ago, gman430 said:

Building is now available through CBRE according to new signage on site. Told you so. I wonder how much money the Belladina’s owner lost spending his own money on renovating the building only to watch it fall through. Ouch. 

Yeah this is a shame because I think a cafe/deli in that area has the potential to be very successful. Area already gets a ton of Unity Park traffic and that neighborhood is only going to grow.

Anyway this is complete hearsay and there are two sides to every story, but the story I heard is that the city nitpicked this one to death. 

 

[gman430]

11 minutes ago, rabbit seisin said:

Yeah this is a shame because I think a cafe/deli in that area has the potential to be very successful. Area already gets a ton of Unity Park traffic and that neighborhood is only going to grow.

Anyway this is complete hearsay and there are two sides to every story, but the story I heard is that the city nitpicked this one to death. 

 

That wouldn’t surprise me one single bit. The city loves to hinder economic development with all of their silly regulations and zoning laws. Just look at Whataburger on Laurens Road. Eventually it’s going to bite them in the rear end. 

[GvilleSC]

Can someone remind me what is now under construction at the corner of Birnie and Gower Streets? 

[Horatio Nelson]

1 hour ago, GvilleSC said:

Can someone remind me what is now under construction at the corner of Birnie and Gower Streets? 

Town homes I believe.