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And when you talk about improving the downtown area, the public works complex should be near the top of the discussions. That's a major eyesore in my opinion, and you can hardly miss it from any vantage point on the east side of downtown. I'm sure it won't be replaced, but it needs to be gone like yesterday. It's a huge ugly barn on the east edge of the downtown area. A new public work building should be build somewhere else, and that area redeveloped. And when you think about it, that Piggly Wiggly store looks so outdated and out of place, that can be gone as well and a new city-county complex can go there, over looking all of downtown.
The health department could use a update and makeover. Sitting in the exact same chair in the waiting area as a 30+ year old that i sat in as a kid in the 80s is a bit depressing.
The public works could be moved to a spot along eastern bypass/378, 15 South within industrial park or 521 south near continental tire. A midrise apartment/mixuse building could go on that lot
Attract more retail to downtown. Old kangaroo store could be a new gas station or small restaurant. Old riteaid could easily be a new dollartree. Good Causal resturants/bar-grills are always popular in downtown settings
The health department could use a update and makeover. Sitting in the exact same chair in the waiting area as a 30+ year old that i sat in as a kid in the 80s is a bit depressing.
The public works could be moved to a spot along eastern bypass/378, 15 South within industrial park or 521 south near continental tire. A midrise apartment/mixuse building could go on that lot
Attract more retail to downtown. Old kangaroo store could be a new gas station or small restaurant. Old riteaid could easily be a new dollartree. Good Causal resturants/bar-grills are always popular in downtown settings
I'm really surprise the city let that building just sit there, deteriorating after all these years. That's another eyesore. At the very least, that property can be cleared and a just made a parking lot until something comes along. The people working at Wells Fargo Bank can use that as parking space, but that old gas station should have been gone long time ago.
I wonder if that Kangaroo still has underground gas tanks? If it does.. that is likely the main reasons why nobody has messed with it. If it becomes a gas station again and the tanks are old or there are new regs in place.. then it could be an expensive proposition. I could see Tuomey possibly buying it and the rest of the block except the Dry Cleaners and expanding their campus to Liberty Street.. That would be a good use of that block.
The health department could use a update and makeover. Sitting in the exact same chair in the waiting area as a 30+ year old that i sat in as a kid in the 80s is a bit depressing.
The public works could be moved to a spot along eastern bypass/378, 15 South within industrial park or 521 south near continental tire. A midrise apartment/mixuse building could go on that lot
Attract more retail to downtown. Old kangaroo store could be a new gas station or small restaurant. Old riteaid could easily be a new dollartree. Good Causal resturants/bar-grills are always popular in downtown settings
yeah.. if they move out 521 they could move onto the waste water treatment site as it is city owned and there is plenty of ground around there for parking.. I would develop a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the current Public Works site and see if any developers come forward with creative ideas for it. The city could throw in the incentive that they would clear the site(and clean it up) so the developer could start from scratch and even sell/convey the site below market or free ONLY IF the site is substantially redeveloped and the return on investment is realized in a decade or so in increased tax revenues and sales tax from residents on this site patronizing downtown businesses.. The beauty of the RFP is that its non binding.. its simply the city putting feelers out there to see if there is any interest in the site.. IF they get a good proposal.. .then they can negotiate.. if they dont.. they can cancel it.. The fact that it is in an Opportunity Zone.. means there would likely be some interest.
If you or IPAPER go to this meeting.. feel free to throw that out there...if there is a web feedback... I may offer it up as well...
I wonder if that Kangaroo still has underground gas tanks? If it does.. that is likely the main reasons why nobody has messed with it. If it becomes a gas station again and the tanks are old or there are new regs in place.. then it could be an expensive proposition. I could see Tuomey possibly buying it and the rest of the block except the Dry Cleaners and expanding their campus to Liberty Street.. That would be a good use of that block.
I believe they did removed the tanks in recent years. I believe that's when I thought they were getting ready to tear it down and put something else there. It looks pretty tacky just to leave it there like that. It's at a busy intersection in the core of downtown. Safety can also be an issue, a hiding place for criminals at night, or a stake out place to watch people using the ATM machine at the bank just across the street.
I took a good look at that old Kangaroo station this morning, and it really looks bad and in very bad dilapidated state. Another major eyesore downtown in the shadow of the hospital, and across from a major bank. The people at the bank should be complaining as well, they should be concern about their safety and the safety of their customers using the ATM. They shouldn't want something looking that bad just across the street from them, it drags them down as well. Come on city of Sumter, you can do better than that. That building should have been gone long time ago, it look so dirty and nasty right at busy intersection. You have to pay attention to detail, and overlook nothing. You can do all that work into improving the area, then it's taken away or diminished by the surrounding eyesores.
When I mentioned up thread about turning downtown into an open air art museum. I was talking about something along these lines like in this video, and of course cool statues as well. Streetscape art throughout the area.
I may attend one of the planning department meetings in March, if I can work it out. Having public input is a start, but it just can't start and stop there, it have to move beyond the masterplan board. Can't just be something to make everybody feel good about things, and then fizzle out. But, I'll give them credit for making a start. I hope they keep us updated on some the results.
Last edited by ipaper; 02-01-2019 at 08:28 PM..
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