‘Right where Rock Hill started’: How the city may prime another new downtown rebirth.
Rock Hill has had its share of recent success redeveloping downtown property. They’re at it again.
Rock Hill City Council gave initial approval to three agreements when it met Jan. 27, all aimed at turning over property primed for new construction.
One agreement involves the city and Rock Hill Economic Development Corporation. The city owns 101, 119 and 121 West White St. The city bought the long-time Salt Water Seafood Market site late last year and has two adjacent properties. The downtown properties need environmental study and likely environmental cleanup.
“This is right where Rock Hill started,” said Stephen Turner, city economic and urban development director. “These parcels have had development on them for 175 years.”
The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control has a voluntary cleanup program that allows new owners of sites with suspected environmental issues to test and improve the property at a lower cost than the initial owner would face. If RHEDC comes in as a perspective buyer from the city — with intent to find and have the city eventually sell to a developer — the economic development corporation qualifies for the program.
“The city and RHEDC have done this in the past on the Annex property on West White Street,” Turner said. “RHEDC is doing this with the county on the Good Motor Company site. We’re doing this with a private owner on the (former) Herald site. We’ve done this a lot to take old abandoned properties and put them back on the market.”
If RHEDC finds a developer interested in the property once it’s granted a clean bill of health, the economic development group would come back to council for a vote on the project. City leaders say the environmental work makes properties far more attractive to developers by eliminating environmental liabilities on sites where businesses operated for decades.
“We do this all the time with properties to make sure that they become marketable,” said Mayor John Gettys.
The sale contract gives the city and economic development corporation 180 days, though RHEDC could request a 30-day extension.
A similar agreement involves two parcels on West Black Street, which the city would sell to the Housing Development Corporation of Rock Hill. Council passed first reading on that arrangement, too, on Jan. 27.
One is almost two acres between West Black and West Main streets, just beside the railroad tracks parallel to Dave Lyle Boulevard. The other is less than two acres opposite West Black, fronting South Wilson Street.
“These have had some speculative interest,” said Jennifer Wilford, city housing and neighborhood services director.
Still a third agreement to get its first reading involves less than an acre on West Main, beside on of the two parcels on West Black.
“These are all connected to each other,” Wilford said. “We’ll hopefully handle them under a singular voluntary cleanup contract.”
Each of the decisions still requires a second council reading to adopt.
Similar agreements to the ones passed Monday came on the front end of major redevelopment projects which now have Rock Hill with more than half a billion dollars of recent or coming redevelopment in and around the Knowledge Park area. The Lowenstein Building and Rock Hill Sports & Event Center are just two large projects already open. Clearing for or construction on parking decks, a hotel, apartments, commercial sites and more surround them.
