TechPark

TechPark is a business park and neighborhood revitalization project located in Rock Hill, South Carolina. The park, which contains 10 acres of lakes, community walking trails and wooded areas, was built upon a site adjacent to an abandoned cotton mill and serves as an example of a successful community revitalization effort that combines economic development, revitalization of a low-income neighborhood, and preservation of natural beauty and wildlife habitat. 

The Manchester Cotton Mill, built in 1891 and closed in 1981, served as the nucleus of economic activity in the Rock Hill area. At its peak, the mill employed more than 1,500 people. After its closing, however, the mill property and adjacent residential properties depreciated, and the area quickly deteriorated. 

In March 1988 the Rock Hill City Council adopted the Manchester Redevelopment Plan, designed to revitalize the area surrounding the mill by building a business park, rehabilitating the mill and its surrounding steam generation lakes, and attracting private investment. The Plan also included beautification efforts that included creating public green space, improving the neighborhood residential area and working with the community to help plan future development. 

TechPark has been an enormous success. Numerous new businesses have been attracted to the area, serving as the employment base for nearly 1,000 local residents. The redevelopment plan's dedication to natural resource conservation has ensured the preservation of local wooded areas and the steam generation lakes surrounding the mill, providing habitat for a variety of local wildlife. In addition, a neighborhood park has been constructed, which serves the adjacent low-income community. Improvements in the region have raised property values, increasing the wealth of local community property owners. 

Finally, the development has attracted good corporate citizens. The aesthetic beauty of the area is highly valued by corporate residents of TechPark, and they have made efforts to thank the community for the opportunity they have been given. A consortium of TechPark businesses, for example, have made a donation to a local radio station to air "Ed Line," a talk show about Rock Hill schools hosted by Rock Hill schools Superintendent Phil McDaniel. 

Program Highlights 

Investment & Economic Development 

• Received $10 million in bond money financed through innovative Tax Increment Bonds in which the tax base within the redevelopment area is frozen when the bonds are issued, and as new businesses locate within the area, the tax increment created by these businesses is used to repay the bonds.
• TechPark is home to more than 90 businesses.
• The mill was converted into offices and a warehouse, and 75% of its 50,000 square feet of office space have been occupied.
• Neighboring York Technical College provides special employee training for local residents.

• TechPark's trails are incorporated into the citywide greenway public trail system.
• The steam generation ponds were rebuilt and have become the home to a variety of waterfowl.
• Approximately thirty acres of the vacant mill property along the Manchester Creek has been protected from any future development.
• The former steam generation ponds were converted into larger ponds that serve as a source for irrigation throughout the park, thereby recycling the lakes' water.
• A large, natural wooded area surrounds the ponds, creating an attractive habitat for a variety of wildlife, including herons, hawks, Canadian geese, ducks, fish and reptiles.

Vital Statistics

Program Management/Partnerships: The Rock Hill Economic Development Corporation, the TechPark Property Owners Association, private developers and local businesses. 

Budget: $10 in public money was raised through the issuance of bonds, and $30 million in private investment has been attracted to the project. 

Community Served: The roughly 45,000 residents of Rock Hill, and in particular the low-income residents living adjacent to TechPark in the Manchester Redevelopment area. 

Measures of Success:

Rock Hill's public $10 million investment has spurred $30 million in private investment.

A portion of the historic mill has been preserved.

The aesthetic improvements realized at TechPark have increased property values, spurred investment, revitalized a local community and provided a safe, permanent habitat for wildlife.

The local tax base has grown from $330,000 in 1986 to just more than $3.7 million in 1993, an increase of more than 1000%.