Greenville City Council's 2023 ordinances: Woven project, development code, airport study

On Dec. 11, Greenville City Council swore in five returning officials: Mayor Knox White, city councilmembers Ken Gibson, Dorothy Dowe, John DeWorken and Public Works Commissioner Phillip Kilgore, after winning the election last November.

In 2023, an important election year for the city, Greenville City Council decided on different aspects affecting the city - including affordable housing, growth and development and passing a budget.

Here are some of the top decisions made by city council in 2023:

City Council passes fiscal year 2024 budget

At its second reading, city council approved a $237 million budget that did not include any tax increases but did comprise of a $1 monthly solid waste fee increase and a 3.5%  wastewater fee increase.

Included in the budget was a dedication of $3.75 million to affordable housing, 10 new police officers and five new firefighters.

The budget also incorporated $1.6 million this fiscal year for the Greenville Transit Authority, $3.4 million for parks and recreation and $19 million from the Neighborhood Infrastructure Bond for things such as sidewalks and community center improvements, which included $1.8 million for Nicholtown Community Center upgrades.

New development code approved

City council approved the city’s new development code in June. The new code, which was developed for more than a year, went into effect in July.

According to the city’s website, the new code is “designed to protect existing neighborhoods from incompatible development, provide new housing options at various price points, steer more intense development to major roadways, provide more recreation and open space and enact new road, sidewalk and bicycle standards to improve mobility throughout the community and take vehicular pressure off our streets.”

Included in the new code are incentives for new zoning districts, and calls for the city to develop around major intersections as Greenville continues to grow.

Airport district planning study approved

In October, city council adopted the Greenville Airport District Planning Study.

Located just 10 minutes from downtown Greenville and encompassing the Downtown Municipal Airport, Greenville’s Airport District received recommendations for adding sidewalks for pedestrians, Swamp Rabbit Trail connections, a skate park and a runway viewing platform.

The recommendations from a study were released in September. City of Greenville’s Planning Commission held a public hearing in October as well.

Plans for funding are included as well:

• Public-private partnerships

• Tax increment financing

• Municipal bonds

• Federal, state and local grants for transportation improvements

• Capital Improvement Program within the city’s annual operating budget

• Federal tax incentives

• Grant funding

Controversial Woven project approved

In January, city of Greenville approved West Greenville’s Woven with a 4-3 vote.

The controversial project bears a complex history.

Last July, the city of Greenville’s Planning Commission recommended denial to city council, citing concerns surrounding its mass and density. Approved by city council in August, the project returned to the Planning Commission during the city’s second reading.

After changes to the project, such as reducing units from 254 to 214 and increasing affordable housing units from 10% to 20%, city council and the planning commission approved the project.

Developed by Woodfield Development, the project, which will be located along Pendleton Street, includes 214 multifamily residential units and 20,000 square feet of retail and commercial offerings.

44 of the 214 units will be utilized for affordable housing.

City council also approved a loan agreement in September between Greenville Housing Fund and Truist Bank providing $13.4 million for affordable housing projects throughout the city.

On the same night, city council passed a resolution offering support to the Greenville Housing Fund for fiscal years 2026-2033, still subject to an annual appropriation from council.

Four city affordable housing projects are in the pipeline in 2023, representing a total of 549 units planned across developments.

For example, 147 units for senior housing will have area median income (AMI) restrictions of 30-60% and are planned near Unity Park. AMI is used as a common metric for affordable housing and means a project will have prices that an individual making a certain percentage of the median income in the area could afford.

The new projects represent a $11.9 million investment from the city and are a total investment of $176 million.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Here are the top ordinances passed by Greenville City Council in 2023