WELCOME FROM O U R M AY O R
GP McLeer Mayor, City of Fountain Inn
Welcome to Fountain Inn! On behalf of our City Council, our staff, and your neighbors, we’re happy you have chosen to spend some time in our fair city! Fountain Inn’s location in southern Greenville County and northern Laurens County makes our city the perfect location for those looking to live in a small town, but still have easy access to all that our part of the state has to offer. Our businesses, from small stores to large manufacturers, provide stable employment opportunities, while our housing market makes it possible for families to have a wonderful place to come home to after work or school. Our business community continues to grow, with over $300 million in investment and 1,000 jobs created in just the last two years - and that’s just in our large manufacturing sector in and around Fountain Inn. Add to that the over 10% increase year-over-year in new business licenses (a marker of our small business growth), and the dozen or so new establishments in and around our historic downtown. Business is good in Fountain Inn! Paired with the healthy growth in new business, we’ve seen our fair share of residential growth as well. At the City, I’m happy to report that we’re working on ways to make sure that, as we grow, we’re modernizing our zoning and taking big steps to ensuring that the character, small town charm, city services, and the infrastructure that make our community one of the best small towns around are all aligned so that we never grow out of who we are. Our community is buzzing throughout the year with activity, and I hope you will be able to experience some, or all, of it at some point. Our summer concert series, Sounds of Summer, takes place every Friday, and our Farmers Market is open on Saturday mornings during the summer. You can stop by our Splash Pad on Main during the warmer months with the kids or take the whole family to one of our great parks. In the fall, between the Chamber’s Aunt Het Festival and our community Halloween events, you’ll have lots of opportunities to see your neighbors, meet new folks, and frequent our local shops. Christmas is a special time in our town, with our “Christmas INN Our Town” festival, you can take a quaint horse-drawn carriage ride through the city, take a photo with Santa, and do a little (or a lot!) of shopping. Whether you’ve just moved here, opened your business here, or you’re just visiting, thank you for being a part of our community’s story!
Shawn Bell City Administrator City of Fountain Inn
CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS
Jason Sanders Ward 1
Jay Thomason Ward 2
Joey Garrett Ward 3
Phil Clemmer Ward 4
John Don Ward 5
Mack Blackstone Ward 6
W H AT ’ S N E X T F O R F O U N TA I N I N N ? Our city has seen many positive investments, from Greenville County building a state-of-the-art education facility to industrial manufacturing bringing well-paying employment opportunities. Revitalizing historic downtown Fountain Inn is our next focus. Downtown Fountain Inn became an aspiring South Carolina Main Street community in 2021. Main Street is a nationally recognized technical assistance program that empowers communities as they revitalize their historic downtowns, encouraging economic development and historic preservation. The mission of Main Street Fountain Inn, a department of the City of Fountain Inn, is to preserve, manage, promote, and enhance the development of Fountain Inn’s historic downtown. All our work in Main Street will fall under one of the four key program areas: Design, Organization, Promotion, and Economic Vitality. We are working to partner with local businesses and property owners to enhance the design of downtown through a series of grants designed to revitalize our Main Street program area downtown. Outdoor Expansion and Beautification Grant: The grant provides up to 50% of project costs up to $20,000 in fund reimbursement to commercial properties within the Fountain Inn Main Street Program Area with infrastructure expenses to expand or beautify outdoor space intended for public use. Façade Improvement Grant: This grant provides up to 50% of project costs up to $10,000 in the fund reimbursement to commercial properties within the Fountain Inn Main Street Program Area to restore or improve building façades. Outdoor Seating and Accessories Grant: This grant provides up to 75% of project costs up to $4,000 in fund reimbursement to commercial properties within the Fountain Inn Main Street Program Area to create vibrant outdoor areas. We are excited to see how this program, in partnership with our local businesses and property owners, will transform the design of our downtown.
FOUNTAININNCHAMBER.ORG
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