CRE Archives - GSP UPDATES

Economy

“Pay in Laurens is rising faster than anywhere in the Upstate…” (Post & Courier). See also, “Bolstered by the regional powerhouse that is the Upstate’s automotive sector, around 50 percent of Laurens County’s manufacturing production is related to this industry.” (Greenville Business Magazine)

For the past 10 years SC has set records for exports – $41.5 billion last year. Two big exports – tires and passenger motor vehicles. (Midlands Biz, H/T GVL Today)

Teamwork in the Upstate…”The basis of Union County’s approach to workforce development comes down to three important things: location, location, location. Positioned to not only recruit workers from five nearby counties in the Upstate, Union also attracts talent from the Columbia area, as well as Charlotte. Working together with neighboring counties such as Spartanburg and Greenville to share resources and training opportunities has allowed Union to align training programs with real work opportunities and establish a pipeline of skilled workers for local industries.” (Greenville Business Magazine)

Real Estate

“Over the last 12 months in downtown Greenville and downtown Spartanburg, vacancy rates increased and asking rents also increased, which may seem counterintuitive. A deeper dive reveals many of the new mixed-use projects in the CBD take a long time to develop and the retail spaces typically lease up after the major anchor (hotel, apartments, office) is open.” (Upstate Business Journal)

Industrial sites continue to be built (and filled) in Charleston – bringing the total to 57.2 million square feet of warehouse space. (Post & Courier)

Food & Entertainment

Spartanburg was named one of the 25 coolest towns in American. (Matador Network, H/T GVL Today)

Parks & Rec

$27 million has been secured to help clear Camp Croft of leftover munitions. (GoUpstate)

Travel

Charleston added more than 900 hotel rooms in 2019 and set a record for the number of stays. (Post & Courier)

Spartanburg

Just when I thought things might be slowing down around town…

The old Snyder Electric property downtown sold for $6M (the land sits in an Opportunity Zone). Maybe the Grain District’s time has come? (SHJ)

A plan for townhomes at Drayton Mills is approved (118 town homes on 20 acres). (SHJ)

Bon Haven apartment project gets approval. (GoUpstate)

Spartanburg plans road improvements with new funds. (GoUpstate)

Toray Industries has developed new carbon fiber materials that are expected to slash production costs for aircraft parts by up to half…and they have a plant right here in our backyard. (Nikkei) H/T WSJ

Greenville

Carl Sobocinski (Soby’s, The Lazy Goat, Passerelle Bistro, Papi’s Tacos, and more) plans to sell many of his restaurants to employees. (Forbes) H/T Greenville Business Magazine

Top 21 Commercial Real Estate projects in Greenville (Upstate Business Journal)

GVL is working on a long term plan for its development – GVL2040 (City of Greenville) CZB will be the consultant. (CZB) H/T  GVL Today

The State

Mixed signals from SC Ports – TEUs are down for the second month (still the best May ever) but the the number of rail moves at Inland Port Greer continues to rise. (Greenville Business Mag)

What’s behind the numbers? Nothing, literally. Turns out empty containers accounted for nearly 23% of all containers loaded.  “That’s 501,010 cargo boxes filled with nothing but air over the last 11 months — a 36.1% increase over the number of empties crossing the terminals during the same period a year earlier…Empties have helped the port set monthly cargo volume records eight times this fiscal year.” (Post and Courier)

And on a related note…The State Ports Authority seeks an exemption from proposed tariffs on Chinese-made goods, as the import tax would cost it an extra $36 million for 12 cranes it is buying. (Post and Courier)

I found this interesting…China has reduced imports of plastic waste (old water bottles, etc.) but is increasing imports of plastic pellets. Orangeburg, SC is home to a Chinese recycling firm, Ecomelida, that turns plastic waste into pellets. (Greenville Business Mag)

A Charleston cab company disrupts the distruptors. What’s old is new again. (Post and Courier)

The Bigger Picture

Where an entire day’s worth of food comes from. Something we give little thought to, but we should think more about. (Grub Street)

A.I. turns brain signals into speech. This has huge implications for those who are unable to speak, but may be able to communicate with others in the future. (WSJ)

Mobile, AL figured out a way to reduce its number of blighted homes by 45%, from 1,625 properties to 891. (Fast Company)

My Blog

What Will We Leave Behind?  Thoughts on a trail expansion in
Spartanburg. (jpfaris.com)

Subscribe to this Monthly Newsletter