3.3b SWOT Analysis By Topic

Connectivity between downtown, other nodes

One of the Village’s greatest weaknesses is its lack of visibility and connectivity to downtown, as well as other nodes that will continue to develop across Greenville. Thoughtfully establishing this missing linkage presents an excellent opportunity to continue to cultivate the area’s vibrancy. GVL 2040, the city’s comprehensive plan that was adopted in 2021, offers a new strategy for Greenville’s growth, which underscores infill and redevelopment as the keys to success. It suggests density be pushed to welldesigned corridor streets that connect nodes offering diverse land uses, like a micro-scaled downtown. As the plan identifies the Village as a node and Pendleton Street as a corridor, the city must prioritize forming a walkable corridor that makes accessing the Village from the West End more obvious.

With the right regulations and street characteristics, adjacent private development should follow that will support this vision. Lastly, embracing these planned extensions of urban development into West Greenville with wayfinding signage and a clearer gateway is paramount.

Neighborhood board, representation

Disagreements between the Village’s stakeholder groups on their vision for the future has driven them apart, leaving some long-term residents feeling disenfranchised. This is especially concerning given the everincreasing development pressure in the Village as a byproduct of interest in its built form and Greenville’s ballooning growth. Therefore, as legacy and even new residents represent those that have the most to gain or lose from the area’s redevelopment, their voices must be amplified. One way to return power to the neighborhood could be through a residentled board dedicated to public consultation of development in the Village. This organization could even be paired with design guidelines, such as the conservation district in Cambridge, MA detailed in Section 3.1a. This board could then be responsible for oversight and approval of all new construction, demolition, or exterior modifications. See Section 4 for a discussion of this concept as it relates to the Village.

Historic protections

As alluded to above, the opportunity for resident-driven oversight of the Village could be structured as a board with jurisdiction over a specific overlay area. Because the Village has ample historic assets, especially those the WLA Historic Survey identified as potentially National Register District-contributing, the conservation district concept to protect historical assets through design guidelines and resident input is all the more logical. Of course, this would require Additionally, the recommended National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) Historic District could be instituted to unlock the federal historic tax credits that might make adaptive reuse even more appetizing for landowners in the area. This would apply to 30 buildings within the district, as well as the Village’s Maternity Shelter Hospital, which could be added by listing it independently, if desired.

Room to grow

Finally, the Village has ample parcels of vacant land and derelict buildings, which present opportunities for infill development that are not at the expense of the node’s historic fabric. Therefore, there is room for the Village to grow its number of local businesses, artists, and population through continued new development at mid-sized scales, adding more density without disrespecting the established development patterns.