GREENVILLE, S.C. (WSPA) – The city of Greenville announced plans Monday to sell the current city hall building for redevelopment.
Greenville City Council gave approval for the city manager to enter into an agreement to sell the building at 206 South Main Street to M. Peters Group for $12.5 million and purchase the bottom two floors of the Bowater building on Camperdown Way, according to the city’s announcement.
A location Greenville Mayor Knox White calls iconic.
“It’s totally unique in the world at Reedy River Falls,” White said. “It also turned out that by moving to the waterfall area we will save about $1 million in the plan. We have accessibility with City Council Chambers on the first floor, more accessible to the public, better more accessible parking for the public, more flexible space for City Hall employees and workers. All the boxes are checked.”
The redevelopment of the current city hall building would include extensive interior renovations, a new façade, and an additional six floors of condo space, according to plans shared by the city.
White said the council went through a long process of due diligence and determined moving City Hall’s location and redeveloping the current building is overall a better plan for the city’s future.
“It also gives us an opportunity to redevelop this building to make this more of a commercial space, restaurants, shops, stores, offices, providing a better tax base on this side of town,” White said. “Taking a building that was very much, let’s just say ugly 1970’s and reskinning it making it look entirely different and adding four to five floors to the top of the building as well.”
White said there is no room for growth at the current location and it would cost too much to build a new City Hall.
“Public private partnerships are the way to go,” White said. “By sharing the cost with private sectors, moving into an existing building we’re saving millions and millions of dollars and at the same time getting a really special place for City Hall.”
The city said it reserved the right to keep ownership of the first five floors of 206 South Main Street if they cannot finalize a deal for the Camperdown Way building. In that case, the city said construction would take around three years at a cost of nearly $16 million.
In both plans, city council chambers would be moved to the first floor.
The Mayor’s Office, City Manager’s Office, City Attorney, Economic Development, Communications & Engagement, and Parks, Recreation & Tourism departments will stay in downtown while all other city departments will move to a renovated building on Halton Road, the city announced.
