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I think it's fair to characterize construction in Columbia over the past few years as mainly student housing and new inventory in the city center that (probably) relocated people who might otherwise have lived further out in the city. Main Street and the Vista have been bright spots, but it feels like development in these neighborhoods satisfied pent-up demand. My overriding concern is the lack of net new activity in the city, which is really more of a reflection on the region's slow/stagnant growth.
The region isn't stagnant and growth levels are about average compared to regional peer metros, maybe even a bit above average actually. Off the top of my head, I know that Columbia (metro) is growing faster than Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Augusta, Chattanooga, Mobile, and Montgomery.
Now it's fair to talk about the type of developments that have been built in recent years but I certainly happen to think that downtown retaining people that would have otherwise moved out to the 'burbs as a good thing. If the last round of development mostly satisfied pent up demand, then why is it so difficult to take a "wait and see" approach with respect to the next round of development and we already know there are several planned as standard (non-student housing) residential developments. Is that not a positive sign?
The approach to Charleston and the arrival into the city from I-26, and the approach to and arrival into Columbia feel like day and night in terms of development. When I am in Columbia, it does feel stagnant, and in my opinion the majority of the buildings built for USC students within the last decade have done nothing much to improve the city’s aesthetics if anything. Architecturally they range from too busy to too bland, and I’m tired of the denuded look of the top floors of so many new apartment buildings. They appear as though the contractors ran out of building materials and had to finish the top floors with something else, all because someone came up with the notion that the top floor appearing at odds with the rest of the building would be a daring architectural statement, or something. But everywhere you look in Charleston, both downtown and in the peripheral areas, there is either a new building going up or another one undergoing renovation, with many more projects in the pipeline. This is my perspective after living in Columbia 31 years and in Charleston for the last three and a half.
I completely disagree with this assessment, especially after having entered Columbia via Knox Abbott Dr/Blossom Street from Cayce earlier this year for the first time in a while. I had actually completely forgotten about the new apartments on the Cayce side which I think are very nicely done and complement the new residential developments at Blossom and Huger across from Palmetto Compress. The only ones that come across as somewhat bland to me are the ones built by the old coliseum because they still have that blond brick thing going on which is starting to feel like overkill in that area.
But at this point, I already know that going forward, Columbia won't ever be good enough in your eyes. The fact that you've managed to go from one extreme when you lived in Columbia to the other now that you no longer live there is still so utterly mind-blowing to me though.
All in all though, this is starting to get a bit exhausting. If folks are hellbent on seeing everything in their own city as half-empty, who am I to tell them it's half-full? I'm very well-aware that Columbia has slipped a bit in some areas in recent years but the way folks have been talking over the past year or two in this subforum, you'd think it was well on its way to becoming a hollowed-out Rust Belt city or something. I'll probably start pulling back and just observing from afar or not even at all because it just doesn't seem to really be worth it anymore.
The region isn't stagnant and growth levels are about average compared to regional peer metros, maybe even a bit above average actually. Off the top of my head, I know that Columbia (metro) is growing faster than Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Augusta, Chattanooga, Mobile, and Montgomery.
Now it's fair to talk about the type of developments that have been built in recent years but I certainly happen to think that downtown retaining people that would have otherwise moved out to the 'burbs as a good thing. If the last round of development mostly satisfied pent up demand, then why is it so difficult to take a "wait and see" approach with respect to the next round of development and we already know there are several planned as standard (non-student housing) residential developments. Is that not a positive sign?
It probably depends on the economic development pattern. It feels like Austin, Portland, and Denver have become more prominent by becoming places people wanted to live, which employers then followed. I'm not sure how true that is though, it could be purely anecdotal. On the other hand, places like Houston and Dallas feel more like places where people live because employers have located/been organically built there. I think Columbia would fall in the latter since it hasn't necessarily had that cool factor.
If that's true, the growth of the city overall should reflect the economic outlook of the region. It's in somewhat of a tough position because of the things we've all discussed (proximity to ATL and CLT, small state, county sniping, etc.), but ultimately future growth would seem to be reliant upon an expansion of the economic pie, if you will. My point is that it's hard to imagine a lot more people living downtown without a substantial increase in companies located in or near downtown. There may be a slow dribble of relocations from the suburbs, but I wonder how many there actually are in that category.
As much as I like Columbia, it will always be a step child to ATL and CLT.
Well always is a long time, but for the foreseeable future? Sure. But that doesn't mean that Columbia won't eventually be a competitor to those cities, in much the same way Nashville and Charlotte compete with Atlanta despite being significantly smaller metros.
It probably depends on the economic development pattern. It feels like Austin, Portland, and Denver have become more prominent by becoming places people wanted to live, which employers then followed. I'm not sure how true that is though, it could be purely anecdotal. On the other hand, places like Houston and Dallas feel more like places where people live because employers have located/been organically built there. I think Columbia would fall in the latter since it hasn't necessarily had that cool factor.
If that's true, the growth of the city overall should reflect the economic outlook of the region. It's in somewhat of a tough position because of the things we've all discussed (proximity to ATL and CLT, small state, county sniping, etc.), but ultimately future growth would seem to be reliant upon an expansion of the economic pie, if you will. My point is that it's hard to imagine a lot more people living downtown without a substantial increase in companies located in or near downtown. There may be a slow dribble of relocations from the suburbs, but I wonder how many there actually are in that category.
I certainly agree with you concerning the need for more companies to locate in and around downtown; there's no question about it. Hopefully there will be several more stories like Capgemini's downtown expansion in the near future.
I do love Columbia, and speak positively of it everywhere I go. I just worry, maybe unnecessarily, that we're falling behind in a region that is exploding. I know the folks on the coast, and in the Upstate talk down about us, but I don't. I'm no urban planner, just going by the eyeball test. I also don't mind constructive criticism, so Mutiny keep checking in. Hopefully the Kline Property will finally be realized, and the riverfront will be brought the forefront.
It’s not like downtown Columbia and the close-in areas aren’t growing at all. There is some activity. It just isn’t that intense right now.
It's good to have natural breaks in between development cycles; they allow the market to better absorb the new residential units and planners to assess impacts on traffic patterns and such.
I also think we underestimate the value and impact of the redevelopment of existing properties on the urban landscape. The ironic thing about that is that rehabbing small, traditional storefronts is what typically results in the biggest changes in pedestrian activity and vitality in downtown settings.
It's good to have natural breaks in between development cycles; they allow the market to better absorb the new residential units and planners to assess impacts on traffic patterns and such.
I also think we underestimate the value and impact of the redevelopment of existing properties on the urban landscape. The ironic thing about that is that rehabbing small, traditional storefronts is what typically results in the biggest changes in pedestrian activity and vitality in downtown settings.
Agree. There has been a good bit of redevelopment of existing buildings in Columbia, which we needed more than new development with “cranes in the sky.” Main Street really has found a solid footing and I don’t see any sign of that abating.
Also, just because there aren’t cranes doesnt mean new development isn’t happening. It just means the development is a mid-rise, like Brookland or the new apartments at the kilns in Cayce. There is a mixed use development being built on Devine and Forest Drive. Hotel Trundle and the new Holiday Inn were built without the need for a crane.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m as eager as anyone to see Kline get started. I’d love to see cranes downtown. But the lack of cranes doesn’t mean a lack of development.
I don’t understand people who seek out negativity for negativity’s sake. It’s tiring and is a drain on this forum.
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