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Lexington has done a solid job locally of promoting itself as "not Columbia", basically a safe, suburban, family-friendly alternative to downtown and Forest Acres is equally well-respected locally. Since Columbia doesn't have a national or even regional reputation, there's less incentive at the moment to say "I live in Columbia" as most people outside the state will still ask "where's that?".
Columbia has never really figured out its core identity and that brick flag exercise (hideous) a few years ago didn't help. There was an article recently about pushing the rivers and I think that's an interesting angle. I was in Chattanooga recently and quickly realized that the branding far exceeded the actual experience of the city. Chattanooga has become known as a big outdoor city, but when you see it, there's very little actual development on the river and the city is still mid-conversion on a lot of factories and warehouses. Still, the branding resonates and seems to work based on the tourism infrastructure I saw.
By contrast, Columbia has a well-formed downtown and it keeps getting better. They could easily start promoting adventure tourism (rafting, hiking). Once the Boyd bridge, Williams Street extension, and more of the path to Lake Murray are in place, the city can really work on signposting with the goal of building out something similar to the Colorado River/Lake Travis/Lady Bird Lake in Austin.
Alternatively, Elgin could focus on branding and position itself as a nice alternative to Columbia, just depends on which is better and faster at storytelling.
Totally Agree...
Elgin could easily market itself as a "small town" outside of the cap city. Unlike any of the other towns in the midlands.. Elgin feels like a true town and less of a suburb or small city (i.e. Lexington, Cayce, West Columbia, Forest Acres, and Irmo) Blythewood is more of a traditional suburb and Arcadia Lakes is a glorified HOA. Elgin can harness the suburban growth along the Richland County line to boost its taxbase while trying to add to the small town feel that its "Downtown". It wont be the same as say Newberry or even Camden but could provide a nice small town core with a few unique businesses as attractions in a more rural small town feel which is absent in most midlands cities.
On a related note Batesburg Leesville has potential as well. but seems more detached from Columbia proper though it is certainly in the metro.
I dont know why Columbia -West Columbia-Cayce do not do more to promote the river. To me it is one of the only things that makes Columbia more unique than a Charleston, Myrtle Beach and Greenville -though Gvile certainly has proximity to a lot of outdoor activities. Columbia has it in the heart of the community. Throw up a gondola and a few zip lines over the river along with kayaking that is visible parts of the waterfront...I know the zoo has some of these but you have to go to the zoo to appreciate them...Something along the waterfront between West Columbia and Columbia would be way more popular and accessible.
The Homeless Cneter that has been talked about for a few years may be close to becoming a reality. I saw a tweet that mentioned Farrow Rd as the location but the article did not confirm that.
COLUMBIA — Gov. Henry McMaster’s budget request for the upcoming legislative session includes $10 million for a homeless center in Columbia.
If approved toward the end of this year’s legislative session, around May or June, the Hope Center would be an upgraded version of the Columbia’s rapid shelter, a hub of services and 50 short-term shelters announced in September 2022 in the area.
The City of Columbia and Richland County would each pitch in an additional $10 million for the facility, which would house 500 people in separate units and include services like mental health and addiction treatment, urgent care, counseling, a food bank and pharmacy, Columbia Mayor Daniel Rickenmann said during a Nov. 6 interview.
The center is based on a model used by Houston, Texas, which has helped the city reduce their homeless population, McMaster said.
Several state agencies offering health services have made plans to move out of their current offices on Harden Street, making the need for consolidation more important, Rickenmann said.
The announcement comes in the wake of Finley Park’s closing near Main Street, which displaced a number of people experiencing homelessness and food services that took place there. Protests against the park’s closure, part of the city’s redevelop of the downtown park, called on the city to do more to aid its transient population.
THis will be interesting... The only place they can put this on Farrow will likely be on State Property just above I-20 any other location.. the community will likely go ballistic. There are plenty of places below I-20 where it could go that get it closer to the City Center but I cant imagine the neighborhoods along there standing for it. Especially Greenview which is one of the largest in the City. I believe Congressman Clyburn lives/lived in Standish Acres which is closer to Columbia College Drive @ Farrow. I guess we will find out.
I remember there was talk of closing the Norfolk Southern rail line that runs from USC/Five Points up to Beltline and on the Farrow and routing those trains down the track that runs near North Main and down into the Vista. It would eliminate several problematic RR Crossing though the eastside of the City. The problem is that it would have doubled the number of trains coming through Eau Claire/North Columbia. They were going to put in those "smart crossings" so that trains wouldnt have to sound their horns as much but I think it never got off the ground because of the anticipated opposition. So .....
THis will be interesting... The only place they can put this on Farrow will likely be on State Property just above I-20 any other location.. the community will likely go ballistic. There are plenty of places below I-20 where it could go that get it closer to the City Center but I cant imagine the neighborhoods along there standing for it. Especially Greenview which is one of the largest in the City. I believe Congressman Clyburn lives/lived in Standish Acres which is closer to Columbia College Drive @ Farrow. I guess we will find out.
I remember there was talk of closing the Norfolk Southern rail line that runs from USC/Five Points up to Beltline and on the Farrow and routing those trains down the track that runs near North Main and down into the Vista. It would eliminate several problematic RR Crossing though the eastside of the City. The problem is that it would have doubled the number of trains coming through Eau Claire/North Columbia. They were going to put in those "smart crossings" so that trains wouldnt have to sound their horns as much but I think it never got off the ground because of the anticipated opposition. So .....
Sounds like Gov McMasters office jumped the gun on the location, but it’s still a possibility. From the States article today
A location for the would-be campus has not been determined. The governor’s office said an unoccupied Department of Mental Health building on Farrow Road might house the campus, but the city is still looking for a better location that doesn’t create another barrier for residents to access services, according to the mayor’s office.
Lexington has done a solid job locally of promoting itself as "not Columbia", basically a safe, suburban, family-friendly alternative to downtown and Forest Acres is equally well-respected locally. Since Columbia doesn't have a national or even regional reputation, there's less incentive at the moment to say "I live in Columbia" as most people outside the state will still ask "where's that?".
Columbia has never really figured out its core identity and that brick flag exercise (hideous) a few years ago didn't help. There was an article recently about pushing the rivers and I think that's an interesting angle. I was in Chattanooga recently and quickly realized that the branding far exceeded the actual experience of the city. Chattanooga has become known as a big outdoor city, but when you see it, there's very little actual development on the river and the city is still mid-conversion on a lot of factories and warehouses. Still, the branding resonates and seems to work based on the tourism infrastructure I saw.
By contrast, Columbia has a well-formed downtown and it keeps getting better. They could easily start promoting adventure tourism (rafting, hiking). Once the Boyd bridge, Williams Street extension, and more of the path to Lake Murray are in place, the city can really work on signposting with the goal of building out something similar to the Colorado River/Lake Travis/Lady Bird Lake in Austin.
Alternatively, Elgin could focus on branding and position itself as a nice alternative to Columbia, just depends on which is better and faster at storytelling.
As far as "not Columbia" I was just saw that house hunters in January did an episode in Lexington. There was NO mention of the Columbia whatsoever. Even all the footage was drone shots of downtown Lexington. In most episodes that I have glanced at in the past they usually always give a nod to the Central City/main city then pivot to whatever suburban town or community, If you were unfamiliar with Lexington you would think it was a central city somewhere in South Carolina... Again, not a criticism but it underscores your point of how they are starting to distance themselves from Columbia likely for marketing and potentially political reasons
I think you're overthinking the issue big time. Of all the things SC'ers routinely complain about, the Panthers might not even make the list.
Really??? Are you a Panthers fan? I've been since their inception and I've heard complaints from the fan base since '96. I complain at times myself but for fans to complain when they were 15-1 was pretty eye opening. The longest running complaint is the one that popped up on here a few days ago... they're in Charlotte and not SC. Fans saying Columbia was supposed to have them. That was NEVER the plan. I saw some saying the Panthers don't do anything for SC as well. Do you know how hard it would be to cover two entire states as far as community service? That's too high of an expectation. Most teams only cover a little outside of their metro areas, but I do remember the team going to Charleston, I believe, after the flood of 2015 and helping out. That was a pretty cool gesture. I also remember a few players being at Shaw AFB in Sumter a few years ago as well.
Lexington has done a solid job locally of promoting itself as "not Columbia", basically a safe, suburban, family-friendly alternative to downtown and Forest Acres is equally well-respected locally. Since Columbia doesn't have a national or even regional reputation, there's less incentive at the moment to say "I live in Columbia" as most people outside the state will still ask "where's that?".
Only if you leave the state off. The SC city that can be identified without the state appellation the most is Myrtle Beach because it has a certain level of name recognition and doesn't have a namesake anywhere else in the U.S. Although most people automatically think of our Charleston when the city is mentioned by itself, apart from some well-known identifying feature or fact mentioned at the same time (coastal location, colonial/Confederate history, Gullah culture, etc), you've gotta make sure the WV capital city isn't in view instead.
Otherwise, Columbia has a fair bit of name recognition as the state capital, and USC to a certain extent, even if most couldn't locate it on a map or couldn't tell you anything else about it. I'd kinda liken it to Albany, NY in this regard.
Only if you leave the state off. The SC city that can be identified without the state appellation the most is Myrtle Beach because it has a certain level of name recognition and doesn't have a namesake anywhere else in the U.S. Although most people automatically think of our Charleston when the city is mentioned by itself, apart from some well-known identifying feature or fact mentioned at the same time (coastal location, colonial/Confederate history, Gullah culture, etc), you've gotta make sure the WV capital city isn't in view instead.
Otherwise, Columbia has a fair bit of name recognition as the state capital, and USC to a certain extent, even if most couldn't locate it on a map or couldn't tell you anything else about it. I'd kinda liken it to Albany, NY in this regard.
I take your point, but I don't think Charleston, WV is on the map. The test here is that Charleston is usually listed on its own, while Charleston, WV always has the state included except maybe in local West Virginia comms. I lived in Virginia where arguably Charleston, WV should have higher name association, and yet Charleston, SC was always the default. In that sense, Charleston won the branding challenge.
Columbia is a bit harder because there are Columbias in most states, a few better known (MO, MD). Even if people are aware it's the state capital, they may know nothing about it. To your point, it's a relatively generic name on paper akin to Augusta (ME), Albany (NY), or Lincoln (NE). Since most people don't have a strong association with Columbia, totally agree that leaving the state off seems like a great opportunity. Of course SC also has its own historical associations, so they can also consciously avoid some of those land mines.
It irks me that USC California won the branding battle over USC Carolina even though Carolina was founded first.
Just for the interlocking S-C logo, but the press around it suggested it was USC overall. Not a good outcome.
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