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Here are some renderings from about a year ago of Finlay park if anyone's interested.
This is the $20M plan proposed by consultants. Benjamin immediately acknowledged that it was not feasible and said he would be more willing to move forward with a $10M plan. Of course he can throw out any number he wants because there does not seem to be any money available. Meal tax dollars are devoted almost entirely to arts organizations and Bull Street and Finlay was not included in the penny tax plan.
Hopefully the city can get a grant or maybe mobilize a second penny sales tax?
Either would be a hard sell politically. Federal money is in short supply post-stimulus and the county's usage of penny sales tax money is under investigation by the SC Department of Revenue.
With the Fireflies stadium and Tin Roof area now online, there seems to be plenty of space for performances of different sizes. The State published an article a couple years ago in which I believe the River Alliance criticized the Sasaki design of the riverfront park. They said it was too artificial and that the ampitheater in particular would not be appropriate; rather, they want a more natural looking park. The park will not be built for many years because the penny sales tax is up in the air pending the SCDOR investigation, that immediate area is damaged from the October floods, and SCANA still has to remove black tar from the river just south of the Gervais Street Bridge.
The city had to pay a huge settlement to the architects that designed the conference hotel where the Hilton is now located. I think it would be best for them to leave economic development project to actual developers. Their role is to provide a vision and help guide growth, not to initiate it themselves. Parks are clearly the city's domain, but paying extra for features that are not needed will not curry them any favor among residents who are already cagey about the level and nature of spending.
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Finlay Park
