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I am sure this has been discussed before on here in its own thread or in another but I wanted to bring it up.
As SC continues to grow, I am curious to see what that will mean in 2025. Sure we can look at all different projections, but that only says a part of what SC could look like, and is also based on historical figures. That being said, this is completely subjective (which is why I want to post this) so everyone may have a different idea, but what are a few things you see happening to SC in the next 20 years or so from a population stand point?
Like for example, could you see one or more of our cities become major metros? Could some cities sprout up and overtake others? Do you see cities or areas long considered to be independent become a part of an MSA?
OR one or more MSA's become CSA's?
Well I only know about Charleston but in the next decade, the port is opening a new terminal, Volvo and Daimler are opening plants, the Westedge project on the peninsula is going to be mostly complete.... probably some other stuff I'm forgetting
Everything will look the same, just more crowded. Nowhere in SC is growing drastic enough to see drastic changes, like Raleigh post 1990s or Atlanta post 1980s or Austin post 2000s.
In just a few short decades, those cities are seeing influx of top flight companies, infrastructure like sprawling highways, beltways, and overpasses, taller and flashier skyscrapers, airport growth on a huge scale, etc.
I see none of that for us. SC has had the same tallest building since 87 and nothing currently proposed looks to challenge that, we still dont invest enough in education, so we're not going to attract the top dollar companies that ATL, RDU, and AUS are attracting, nor can I see us investing in more highways; though we need them. CHS airport is growing fast, but i cant imagine them doing something like adding another runway or overseas flights anytime soon.
We'll be better off then than now, but I dont see Chas, Gville, Cola, or Myrtle making huge enough leaps to look like a completely different city/metro, unlike the 3 I mentioned.
As early as 1970, Greenville County was more populated than Wake County (Raleigh), and now 4 decades later, Greenville is at 480K with Wake either past or on 1 million. Cant imagine anything in SC, even Charleston, growing that fast, especially in such short time, with the growth mindset and business/political/education climate we have.
Well 2025 is only 10 years away, so I don't see anything really drastic occurring within that time frame. And new MSA/CSA designations are based on Census data and the next Census is in 5 years, so that's even less time for anything to happen on that level. Like Jandrew5 said, everything will pretty much look the same, just with more people.
Everything will look the same, just more crowded. Nowhere in SC is growing drastic enough to see drastic changes, like Raleigh post 1990s or Atlanta post 1980s or Austin post 2000s.
In just a few short decades, those cities are seeing influx of top flight companies, infrastructure like sprawling highways, beltways, and overpasses, taller and flashier skyscrapers, airport growth on a huge scale, etc.
I see none of that for us. SC has had the same tallest building since 87 and nothing currently proposed looks to challenge that, we still dont invest enough in education, so we're not going to attract the top dollar companies that ATL, RDU, and AUS are attracting, nor can I see us investing in more highways; though we need them. CHS airport is growing fast, but i cant imagine them doing something like adding another runway or overseas flights anytime soon.
We'll be better off then than now, but I dont see Chas, Gville, Cola, or Myrtle making huge enough leaps to look like a completely different city/metro, unlike the 3 I mentioned.
As early as 1970, Greenville County was more populated than Wake County (Raleigh), and now 4 decades later, Greenville is at 480K with Wake either past or on 1 million. Cant imagine anything in SC, even Charleston, growing that fast, especially in such short time, with the growth mindset and business/political/education climate we have.
In general I agree, I don't see anything of that scale happening anywhere in sc, especially in just ten years. Our bigger cities are growing but not exploding. I actually prefer that for myself. I have no desire to live in an area adding 50k or 100k a year with commute times stretching into hours. I have never delved deeply into the reasons why NC cities and places like Austin boomed while SC cities have not to that extent, but it would indeed be an interesting study. I do not know how corporate tax rates compare for example. But I do know that, recently, a lot of companies have gone to bigger cities for reasons as simple as bigger and better connected airports.
The only point I might argue is the education one. As someone who works in education in SC, I truly feel that our education system is much better than people think. Our reputation was probably better deserved in the past, but it has come a very long way in the past 20 years, and we have some of the highest standards in the country now.
I would guess that our cities will continue to see steady growth over the next ten to twenty years and they'll be bigger versions of their current selves. Right now, it seems that Charleston is on the biggest population swing, but not by a lot, and all our main cities are seeing good projects develop, some active planning taking place, and adding unique character.
In general I agree, I don't see anything of that scale happening anywhere in sc, especially in just ten years. Our bigger cities are growing but not exploding. I actually prefer that for myself. I have no desire to live in an area adding 50k or 100k a year with commute times stretching into hours.
Quote:
I have never delved deeply into the reasons why NC cities and places like Austin boomed while SC cities have not to that extent, but it would indeed be an interesting study.
I do not know how corporate tax rates compare for example. But I do know that, recently, a lot of companies have gone to bigger cities for reasons as simple as bigger and better connected airports.
The only point I might argue is the education one. As someone who works in education in SC, I truly feel that our education system is much better than people think. Our reputation was probably better deserved in the past, but it has come a very long way in the past 20 years, and we have some of the highest standards in the country now.
I would guess that our cities will continue to see steady growth over the next ten to twenty years and they'll be bigger versions of their current selves. Right now, it seems that Charleston is on the biggest population swing, but not by a lot, and all our main cities are seeing good projects develop, some active planning taking place, and adding unique character.
That's easy: for Austin and the Triangle in particular, it's due to top-notch universities that have leveraged research for economic development purposes. And TX and NC historically had lucrative industries that gave those universities substantial boosts in terms of funding and endowments (oil and tobacco, respectively). For Charlotte, the banking industry played the primary role in its rapid growth over the years, and progressive banking laws, first by NC and then nationally, allowed visionary leaders like Hugh McColl to turn the city into a powerhouse for that industry. By comparison, SC's main legacy industry, textile production, was never quite as lucrative and globalization decimated it within the state.
I think an interesting change to watch for will be our state's shared culture as our three principal cities grow towards and past the one million mark and our rural counties and small towns continue to decline. As more of us grow up and live in "real cities" and fewer of us grow up in small towns, you have to wonder if South Carolina culture writ large will become more urban and national - and less country and Southern - as a result.
I can see it going either way. Urban growth and rural decline could make us more cosmopolitan, or we could remain decidedly Southern in character.
I think Charlotte just up the road represents a city that has gotten more cosmopolitan but yet retains a very distinct Southern quality to it.
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