Friday, October 26, 2007

Autumn Enhances Upstate's Regional Beauty

It is that time of year again! Leaves are changing color and turning trees into unmatchable works of natural art right before our eyes. October is annually my favorite month in the Upstate because of perfect weather and impressive natural beauty. This also means that it is time to take a drive to the nearby Blue Ridge Mountains to see the greatest scenery on display in the South.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

McBee Avenue Residential - Part II

Recent growth in appeal for residential units along McBee Avenue in downtown Greenville has helped to bring other commercial and business space simultaneously. Many of these places are located at McBee Station, an attractive large scale mixed-use development just a few blocks east of Main Street. This new center has several apartments, luxury condominiums, a Publix supermarket, a Staples office supply store, and lots of smaller spaces for shops and cafés. Most of the project is still under construction, but the two main retail anchors have opened to the public and are very welcome additions to the thousands of citizens downtown during the daytime and evening hours. I have enjoyed the deli at Publix and have bought needed supplies at Staples. I am also very excited about seeing the other shops and cafés open up soon. The separate apartments are currently being leased, and the condos over the shops are being sold.

Stay tuned for Part III...

Monday, October 22, 2007

Annual Event Provides Opportunity to Meet Local Artists


It is nearly that time of year once again. The annual event called, Greenville Open Studios, will take place on the weekend of November 3 & 4. To view an extensive list of the participating artists, click here. The Arts are thriving in Greenville and this event is a unique way to learn more about the people behind the beautiful work.
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I will continue the "McBee Avenue Residential" series soon, but need to take a few updated photos to post now that the work is nearing completion on McBee Station.

Friday, October 19, 2007

McBee Avenue Gaining in Residential Appeal

McBee Avenue in downtown Greenville is becoming a new hot spot for residential developers. The various projects being built are unique and range in price from relatively affordable apartments to high dollar luxury condos. This post will be the first in a short series showing a few of the new developments helping to shape this street's future.

This photo shows the corner of McBee Avenue and Spring Street, where the recent addition of Jimmy John's sub shop to phase one of The Bookends development has been successful in attracting pedestrians further off of Main Street. A future phase called The Washington, is expected to be announced soon.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Quality Produces Quantity in Greenville

Every week in Greenville, visitors come to the city to see what it has to offer. Quite often these visitors are here for more than a time of pleasure and refreshment. Instead they are in town seeking a new place for themselves and their families to call "home." They are here looking for a new life, whether because they are unhappy with their current lives, or because they may be facing other uncontrollable challenges such as rising taxes and cost of living surpassing their budget. It may even be something completely different, which they are unwilling to share with others at this point in time. What initially brings these people here is not as important to me as what they discover once they have arrived here, and it appears that Greenville is proving to be a rewarding surprise for most of them.

There is a great article on the front page of this week's Greenville Journal, written by my favorite staff writer, John Boyanoski. It is titled, "Bound for Greenville and a new home," and has the heading, "It's quality of life and not just jobs that draws people here." Throughout the entire article, Mr. Boyanoski provides several quotes from newcomers who love their new lives in Greenville and also shares interesting population statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau. This evidence clearly indicates that Greenville has become a more attractive place for people of all ages to live, work, and play - not just a good place to do business.

Greenville's high quality of life has begun to produce a larger quantity of new citizens. That is what every growing city should hope to accomplish.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Successful Annual Festivals Draw More Than Just Visitors

One of our local TV stations (WYFF News 4) this evening at 6:00pm aired a story about the overall success during this past weekend's Fall For Greenville festival. Of special note during the broadcast was the mention of several people planning to visit downtown more often, and one man interviewed went so far as to say that he now plans to purchase a condo downtown in addition to his suburban home - all as a result of the attractive and celebratory atmosphere felt during the festival.

This is one of the reasons Greenville is such a special place. Street festivals have been a common way of life for many years, but the 3 decade old (and counting) continuing revitalization of our beautiful downtown has created the best possible venue for such events. The reward is proving to be well worth the amount of time and money spent, along with the other stress endured and barriers crossed to make this place what it is today. The future is even brighter as a new downtown master plan is currently being developed by Sasaki Associates of Boston, with the help of the City and many local citizens. A website called Plan-It Greenville is available to anyone interested in helping the City develop a plan that will work for everyone living here in the future.

Monday, October 15, 2007

Fall For Greenville, "Heaven on Main Street"


This year's annual festival broke a record for estimated attendance, with more than 200,000 people packing Greenville's award-winning Main Street over the weekend to participate in food, music, cycling, and much more!

Welcome!


Hello visitor and friend! Living in Greenville, South Carolina, USA, I have been blessed with countless places nearby to reflect on both the beauty and the pleasure of life in this wonderful region known as, "the Upstate of South Carolina." The goal of this blog will be to share a bit of my experiences around this area, specifically my hometown of Greenville. I hope you will enjoy the memories and feel free to post comments to help make this a truly fun and interactive blog.