Rock Hill terminates lease for artists using the Gettys Center without buyer to take over
Rock Hill’s arts community must find a new home for the first time in 40 years.
The Arts Council of York County notified tenants in a Feb. 28 email the city moved to terminate its lease for the Tom S. Gettys Center. Artists have until Aug. 31 to vacate.
The aging building has become “a drain” on city resources, according to Mayor John Gettys. It requires $3.2 million in long-term maintenance projects including a roof replacement, a new elevator and electrical and plumbing upgrades.
A city spokesperson confirmed Rock Hill terminated the lease in anticipation of a future sale, but it has not yet sold the building.
The Gettys Center has long served as a hub for creativity due in part to its accessible downtown location. The building houses nine local artist studios, three nonprofit organizations and artist-run small businesses. Venue space in the building also hosts regular concerts, theater productions and other free and low-cost community events.
“It breaks my heart that the city has just thrown that away, has sold that and taken that away from the community,” said Fred Shope, a resident of 30 years. “Rock Hill will be poorer because of this.”
Shope joined a group of concerned community members Monday in speaking out during the public comment section of the city council meeting. They’re part of a grassroots movement called Keep Rock Hill creative, which seeks to nurture local arts and bring city leaders to the discussion table for solutions that don’t involve kicking artists out of the Gettys Center.
The Arts Council lets nonprofits use the center at a discounted rate. Dylan Bannister, an artist with studio space in the Gettys Center who helped organize Keep Rock Hill Creative, said funds the Arts Council collects from studio and rental space account for about 20% of its annual revenue.
“This is no small figure for an arts nonprofit that’s already doing a ton on a shoestring budget, and who like most arts organizations, are also facing an uncertain future with grants towards the arts and humanities being severely cut at every level,” Bannister said.
No alternative space is lined up for the Arts Council and the artists who use the Gettys Center, he said.
The Gettys Center was constructed in 1931 as a courthouse and post office and is included on the National Register of Historic Places. The center is named after the current mayor’s uncle, a former postmaster who worked in the building before representing South Carolina in Congress for five terms.
Rock Hill publicly listed the 201 East Main Street property for $2.26 million on Jan. 27.
This story was originally published March 11, 2025 at 12:17 PM.
