Spartanburg City News Podcast

Earlier this month, the City and its parters in the United Way of the Piedmont, Spartanburg Interfaith Hospitality Network, and Catholic Charities of South Carolina announced the a pilot program for a new homeless day shelter, the Spartanburg Opportunity Center, to be housed in the Northwest Recreation Center.

One person's trash is another person's treasure, right? A traveling interactive art project with roots in Spartanburg is in Downtown Spartanburg through May 5 to test that theory.

Hello Family, a proposed collection of support systems that would seek to improve outcomes for young children and their families by providing a continuum of evidence-based services for all children born in the City of Spartanburg from prenatal care through age five. Today on the podcast, we sit down for a conversation with City Manager, Chris Story to get an overview of the challenges the program would seek to address and the strategy it would employ to do so.

It's the oldest home in the city limits of Spartanburg, and for for most in town, that's all they know about the Seay House—if they know anything at all. Today on the podcast, we're learning more about this wonderful local historic asset with Colleen Twentyman, Collections and Educations Coordinator with the Spartanburg County Historical Association and Dr. Phillip Stone, Wofford College Archivist.

Today on the podcast, we're talking with Melanie Terry, Special Events Coordinator with Chapman Cultural Center, about Spartanburg Soaring, a free international kite festival set to fill the skies above Barnet Park with hundreds of colorful flying works of art on April 13. Along the way we also talk about the return of the organization's Downtown Programming series, which brings musicians and performers to the streets of Downtown Spartanburg every Wednesday–Saturday during the warmer months.

Today on the podcast, we're talking with developer Andrew Babb about 142 Social, the latest renovation project to add to Downtown Spartanburg's residential and commercial boom and getting his perspective on this historic period of growth and development in Downtown Spartanburg.

A recent reorganization of Spartanburg Urban Mission CDC with Ruth’s Gleanings healthy food rescue—in partnership with FoodShare South Carolina in Columbia and funding from Mary Black Foundation—has created an innovative approach to tackling problems of access and affordability for healthy, fresh produce. Today on the podcast, we're talking with Tonja Smith, Executive Director of Spartanburg Urban Mission about FoodShare Spartanburg.

Today on the podcast, we're talking with Simone Mack-Orr, General Manager of CycleBar Spartanburg about a high-energy boutique group fitness concept set to add something entirely different to the gym landscape in Downtown Spartanburg.

Today on part two of our podcast with community leaders in Highland, we're talking with Highland Neighborhood Association President Leroy Jeter, Community Outreach Advocate Wilma Moore, and Bethlehem Center Director Patrena Mims about their hopes for the future of their community.

Today on part one of our podcast with neighborhood leaders in Highland, we're delving into the background of one of Spartanburg's proudest and most misunderstood communities as the City and the community begin to move forward on a master planning process to create a holistic blueprint for the area's future.

Back in 2013, Spartanburg City Council passed a plan to improve key streets in Downtown Spartanburg, widening sidewalks and enhancing the pedestrian experience in some of the areas that City Staff then believed would be keys to driving future growth and development in our urban core. So now, four-plus years after the plan was passed and after nearly all the proposed streetscaping projects have been completed, how did we do?

Today on the podcast, we're joined by Jennifer Evins, President of Chapman Cultural Center and partner on a development set to bring 18 single-family homes and 10 townhomes to a long-vacant 4.5 acre parcel, about her first foray into the development world and what this new neighborhood will offer for those looking to call Downtown Spartanburg home.

Last fall, we met HUB-BUB's latest pair of artists-in-residence, Ambrin Ling and Marisa Adesman and had a great conversation about the residency, Spartanburg, and what they planned to do with their time while here. Today on the podcast, we're here to find out how it's going so far and to get details on a wonderful new project they'll be working on during the remainder of their time in Spartanburg

Are you a dedicated Dowtown Spartanburg visitor looking for a way beat those post-holiday winter doldrums? This week’s podcast is very much for you. For the first time ever on the podcast, we’ve got the entire City Communications Department team here to tell you about a pair of social media projects that might just make this January and February a bit more exciting.

It's a year that saw progress throughout our city, and this week on the podcast, we're taking a look back at what 2018 brought to Spartanburg and offering a peek at some of what the next year will hold for us.