Here’s why TIME’s Money magazine ranks Rock Hill among country’s best places to live

Mayor John Gettys knows what he loves about living in Rock Hill. But people from clear across the country choosing it among the nation’s best places to live in U.S.?

“I wish I knew,” he joked. “We’d bottle it.”

On Sept. 17, TIME publication Money magazine put out its list of the best places in America to live. Rock Hill came in at No. 49. Only Mount Pleasant (No. 25) came in higher among South Carolina cities and towns. North Carolina also had two municipalities with Cary (No. 5) and Chapel Hill (No. 33).

The listing is based on economic growth, affordability and quality of life in an area. The Rock Hill writeup notes the city’s modest family income and typical home cost compared to other top municipalities, suggesting it’s “a place where residents can live well on less.”

It also picked out the Gettys Art Center downtown and Come-See-Me Festival among highlights. The listing included everything from population and projected job growth to the number of sunny days each year, home price to income ratio, high school graduation rate and average commute time.

The city combines “decorous Southern charm with a vibrant arts scene,” according to the listing. Melanie Cooper with the Arts Council of York County isn’t surprised by the description.

“All of York County has amazing arts programming,” she said. “Over the last few years many of our municipalities could have taken the slots (on the Money list).”

Still, Rock Hill stands out with its two buildings on Main Street home to galleries, studios and retail. The city supports its art community, Cooper said.

“It’s the entire city, really, that gets behind the arts,” she said. “Rock Hill engages with its local arts in a way that really boosts the local arts economy.”

Community theater, a film festival, and blues and jazz festival are some examples of how people can “tap into their creative side” during the day or after hours.

“The arts don’t just impact the people who are creating it,” Cooper said. “It becomes an outlet for people in the evenings or on the weekend. It inspires people.”

Beyond just livability, Arts Council studies show the area generates more than $2 million in revenue and $27 million in overall annual economic impact with the equivalent of 846 full-time jobs solely in arts-related activities.

“It provides the economics,” Cooper said. “The arts are a business.”

Another Rock Hill staple, the annual spring Come-See-Me Festival, had high billing in the recent listing. The 10-day event each year draws more than 100,000 people. It’s run almost entirely by volunteers.

“It’s about 600 volunteers and about 50 team leaders, and the executive team and the board,” said Chad Echols, chair for the 2019 event.

Echols said he has enjoyed the festival since he was a child. Since it started in 1962, the festival has been growing with events for all ages.

“That’s the origin of the festival,” he said. “Even the name of it was meant to draw folks into the Rock Hill community, let them see what we have to offer and enjoy the area that we enjoy living in every day.”

Since his election last year, Gettys has been sharing his vision for Rock Hill as a city looking to become increasingly significant.

“What I try to tell people is we’re a community that does believe in opportunity for all people, and we’re a community that is not satisfied with being successful,” he said.

Downtown revitalization efforts including breweries, restaurants, office space, a major indoor recreation center and more are bringing “a lot of energy into town right now,” Gettys said. There also are partnerships to improve educational and employment opportunities for residents of all income levels and abilities.

Gettys said such a well-known publication tabbing Rock Hill as a great place to live lends credibility to the energy here.

“It’s just a precursor of what we can become,” Gettys said.

Echols credits smart moves by city leadership in the transition from a textile city for casting the spotlight on Rock Hill. An emphasis on sports “creates some national attention” and gives Rock Hill a “broader reach than we’ve probably had,” he said.

Being close to Charlotte helps, too, he said.

“Once they taste the local flavor, the reality of Charlotte becomes less of a day-to-day priority, because Rock Hill has so much to offer,” Echols said.

With access to the Catawba River kayaking and other recreational activities, Cooper sees the city as something rare on a list that includes many smaller towns or suburbs. Rock Hill has its own arts, restaurant and activity scene independent of Charlotte to the north, but also easy access to the larger city to add variety.

“It really is the total package,” Cooper said.