Morgan Square Redevelopment Committee to weigh opinions on downtown Spartanburg's future
During Monday evening's Spartanburg City Council meeting, the council approved the resolution to create a Morgan Square Redevelopment Committee.
The approval was unanimous among the councilpersons present at the meeting.
Halsey Cook, CEO Milliken & Co., will serve as chairman, with the following acting as members on the committee.
►Raj Patel, Co-owner Cribbs Restaurant & Main St. Pub
►Betsy Teter, Founder Hub City Press
►Tori James LeRoy, Co-owner Two Doors Down clothing store
►Lauren Rogers, City Design Review Board Member
►Jamar Brown, City Planning Commissioner
►Brenda Lee Pryce, Former state representative
►Alex Powell, Johnson Development
►John Bauknight, Broker with NAI Earle Furman
►William Gray, McMillan Pazdan Smith Architects
►Jack McBride, Founder and Cairman, Contec, Inc.
Spartanburg Mayor Jerome Rice and Manning Lynch, Spartanburg County Council chair, will both act as ex officio members of the committee.
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Members of the committee will serve as spokespersons for people in the community with opinions on the matter of Morgan Square's future.
"Our goal is to get it right, not get it quick," Spartanburg City Manager Chris Story said.
The purpose of the committee is to weigh the opinions in the community and come to City Council after a 6-12 month period of surveying with some recommendations about what Morgan Square's future should look like.
"We have to figure out how to reimage and redesign Morgan Square," Rice said.
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Story said that he wants the decision of Morgan Square's future to reflect the diversity of opinion within the community. He said forming this committee is one step in making sure that everyone is represented.
Rice said the committee is not being formed in place of the upcoming vote for the street closure. On Aug. 8, City Council will still vote on whether or not to reopen the portion of W. Main St. that has been closed to traffic since May 2020. City Council voted 4-3 last August to keep Morgan Square closed to vehicle traffic for 12 more months.
"I only have one vote in this, and my vote right now is to keep it closed," Mayor Rice disclosed. "I've had a lot of feedback from our residents in the city who are encouraging me to continue in that vote."
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Regardless of how the vote turns out, Rice said the committee will serve to help determine what the future of the area will look like, whether that be with foot or vehicle traffic
Brandi Wylie is an intern for the Spartanburg Herald-Journal and Greenville News. Reach her via email at bwylie@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Morgan Square Redevelopment Committee on downtown Spartanburg's future
