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Upstate Forever Releases
Upstate Forever recently completed its Special Places Inventory for Greenville County. The project was made possible by a grant from the Community Foundation of Greater Greenville. Greenville County is one of the fastest growing and most rapidly changing counties in the United States. Its population is increasing at the rate of 16 people per day, while its land is being developed at the rate of 9 acres per day. That is the equivalent of almost an entire new Haywood Mall every week. The good news is that growth provides jobs and keeps our economy strong. The bad news is that the manner in which growth is taking place has already destroyed many of the county’s important natural and historic resources, and many others are now gravely threatened.
Greenville County’s spectacular economic success is due in large part to these resources. It is no coincidence that marketing materials for the county almost always show one or more of the county’s special places. For example, the Greenville Chamber of Commerce’s current “Welcome to Greenville” billboard features Table Rock and the adjoining reservoir. Today quality of life is one of the key factors that determine where people live and where businesses locate. For most people, the place is now more important than the job.
No element is more important in determining an area’s quality of life than the extent and quality of its natural and historic resources. Thus, the protection of these resources should be a priority not only for environmentalists and historic preservationists but for everyone. The purpose of the Special Places Inventory is to provide a list of the county’s special places. Our hope is that the study will increase public awareness of these places and lead to the protection of many of them before it is too late.
We are convinced that Greenville County can “have it both ways” — we can continue to grow and prosper economically, while at the same time protecting the resources, features, and structures that make this county such an extraordinary place. But this cannot happen by accident – it will take funding, public support and political courage. We hope this study is a step in that direction. To
read the report, please click the link below.
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