2021 SCBIZ Magazine - Fall Issue

Fall 2021

Steering through turbulence

S.C. aerospace industry eyes smooth landing amid year of uncertainty ELECTRONIC SERVICE REQUESTED SC Biz News 1802 Dayton St. Suite 101 North Charleston, SC 29405

County Spotlight: Georgetown | Trending: Aerospace in S.C. | S.C. Delivers

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Table of

CONTENTS

FROM THE COVER: AEROSPACE IN S.C. 14 Boeing faces challenges, but sees uptick in plane orders

16 Charleston Southern University launches unique aeronautics program

22 Lockheed Martin begins F-16 sustainment program with Air Force

ABOUT THE COVER Incoming Charleston Southern University sophomore Harrison Hunt is part of the school’s collegiate aviation program, the first of its kind in South Carolina. (Photo/Teri Errico Griffis)

Boeing, which builds its 787 commercial jets in North Charleston, has faced challenges and celebrated successes during a turbulent past year. See the story on page 14. (Photo/Kim McManus)

SPECIAL SECTION

SPECIAL PUBLICATION

INSIDE

Cities Mean

BUSINESS A P U B L I C AT I O N O F T H E M U N I C I PA L AS S O C I AT I O N O F S O U T H C A R O L I NA

ISSUE 2

|

202 1

Laying the Groundwork Cities Focus on Downtown Enhancements as Economic Investments

28 BEST PLACES TO WORK

CITIES MEAN BUSINESS

Celebrating excellence in South Carolina business.

S.C. cities focus on enhancing, renovating downtown areas.

DEPARTMENTS www.scbizmag.com

4 Upfront

2

8 County Spotlight: Georgetown 38 S.C. Delivers 44 1,000 Words

24 LIBERTY TRAIL

Take a trip back in time at American Revolution battle sites across S.C.

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From the

Editor - Steve McDaniel smcdaniel@scbiznews.com • 843.849.3123 Associate Editor - Jim Tatum jtatum@scbiznews.com • 864.720.2269 LOWCOUNTRY NEWSROOM

EDITOR

Executive Editor - Andy Owens aowens@scbiznews.com • 843.849.3142

Dear Reader,

News Editor - Alexandra Ng ang@scbiznews.com • 843.849.3124

The nation’s economy appears to be on an upward trajectory, even as we see the same, disturbing trend in COVID-19 cases. Recent economic reports show that most sectors are rebounding quickly from the moribund state they were in last year, despite the distressing health news.

South Carolina’s big economic drivers, automotive, aerospace and tourism, show promising signs of growth, but with some caveats.

Boeing is dealing with the aftermath of the 2019 737 crashes and quality control issues; BMW, along with every other automaker, is grappling with computer chip shortages and other supply chain issues amid growing consumer demand for vehicles; tourism is surging, even as airlines and the hospitality industry struggle to fill vacant jobs.

This transition period of economic reopening after the gloom of 2020 and early 2021 is the definition of uncertainty. Will displaced employees return to the workplace? When will the supply chain finally settle back into reliability? Will inflation slow to a pace that Steve McDaniel doesn’t rattle the stock markets and consumers? Overriding all of Editor, this chaos is the confounding unpredictability of another wave of SCBIZ Magazine COVID-19 infections.

This issue of SCBIZ magazine focuses on the aerospace sector of the state’s economy, one that contributes nearly $29 billion worth of economic impact across South Carolina. We look at the challenges and successes for Boeing, which is dealing with the parallel disruptions caused by the recent 737 crashes and the V-shaped recovery of the airline industry. Charleston Southern University has launched an aeronautics program, the first of its kind at a public or private state university. The impetus behind the program is a projected nationwide shortfall of pilots over the next two decades, and university officials say the first year of the program has gone well.

Lockheed Martin in the Upstate has begun its sustainment contract with the U.S. Air Force in maintaining and upgrading F-16s, one of the military’s most prolific and versatile fighter jets.

The company will also continue to manufacture F-16s for a growing list of foreign customers.

This issue also includes the annual Best Places to Work in S.C. We highlight the 80-plus companies around the state that make going to work a pleasure for their employees.

Cities Mean Business, a biannual special section in partnership with the S.C. Municipal Association, focuses on how communities across the state are making their downtowns more appealing for locals and tourists as a way to enhance economic activity and livability.

As always, thank you for reading SCBIZ magazine and for being part of a thriving and diverse Palmetto State economy.

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3

UPFRONT regional news | data

S.C. summer tourism ‘exceeds expectations’

S

By Teri Errico Griffis

outh Carolina’s summer figures “are exceeding expectations,” Duane Parrish, director of S.C. Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism, said recently.

For the week of July 11-17, the state’s hotel occupancy was up 77.9% from this time in 2020, and down 1.4% from the same time period in 2019. Occupancy is above national trends for the week, with the U.S. up 71%, an 8.9% decrease from 2019, and South Atlantic up 72.6%, a 5.6% decrease.

In South Carolina, hotel revenue per available room for the same week increased 124% from the equivalent period in 2020 and up 18.5% from 2019. Hotel RevPAR was $131.37 for July 11-17.

Camping continued to dominate state parks’ revnue at 40%. Revenue for June increased 3.3% year-over-year to $5.7 million. Fiscal year-to-date, revenue for

Hotel occupancy, which took a significant hit in 2020, has rebounded to nearly the same levels as 2019 in the Palmetto State. (Photo/File)

state parks, including taxes, is approximately $48.7 million.

Accommodation taxes received, based on May 2021 tax returns, were $8.9 mil-

lion, up 337.3% for the month. Fiscal year-to-date, collections are $65.5 million, up 7.7% compared to fiscal year 2019-2020. Admissions Tax

Section begins on

FAST FACTS | Aerospace in S.C. 400

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Firms in the private sector component of S.C. aerospace cluster

4

136,000

South Carolinians employed in the aerospace industry

$4.1 billion

Export sales of aircraft in 2020

Page 14

5,200

New jobs announced by aerospace firms from 2011-2020

$28.8 billion

Economic impact of aerospace in S.C. Source: S.C. Dept. of Commerce

BMW expands Rising Scholars high school apprenticeship program

By Molly Hulsey

F

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

ifteen rising high school seniors signed on as the inaugural BMW Rising Scholars, one of two workforce development programs the company launched today, in the halls of Spartanburg’s Zentrum.

“Our local career centers do a great job in educating students,” Paul Sinanian, manager for talent programs and training at BMW, said in a news release. “These high school seniors were chosen because of their strong potential and their good problem-solving and math skills. Rising Scholars is a wonderful opportunity for them to acquire technical skills in an advanced manufacturing setting and get paid to learn.”

BMW Rising Scholars offers apprentices an opportunity to work 15 hours a week at BMW Manufacturing’s Training

and Development Center alongside classes at their high school and a participating Career and Technical Education Center starting later this month.

An apprenticeship program registered with the U.S. Labor Department, BMW Rising Scholars, will pay students $12 per hour.

The second initiative, BMW Fast Track, is a 40-hour-per-week “BMW Bootcamp” for recent graduates or experienced individuals with a related associate degree hired on to the manufacturing team.

“The Rising Scholars and Fast Track programs are additional tools that expand our workforce development strategy,” Knudt Flor, president and CEO of BMW Manufacturing, said in the release. “This new pipeline of talent will help us fulfill our long-term goals. With the digitalization of manufacturing technology, it

UPFRONT

collections reflecting April business were $3.9 million, which is a 236.7% increase for May. Fiscal year-to-date, collections are $25.6 million, down 18.6% compared to fiscal year 2019-2020.

Parrish recently attended the U.S. Travel Association board meeting, where he and industry participated in discussions on airline traffic, the meetings market, workforce challenges and travel priorities with industry leaders from around the country. He noted South Carolina is not alone in the challenges the state has faced since March 2020.

But to get back to such summer success, Parrish credits pent-up travel demand and the state’s industry professionals and marketing teams who keep South Carolina top of mind.

“Summer is a beautiful time in South Carolina, and I know it’s a busy time for the industry,” he said in the release.

“Thank you for the long hours, hard work and high standards that you bring to our incredible destinations day in and day out.”

Reach Teri Errico Griis at 843-849-3144.

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5

UPFRONT

Credit One Stadium on Daniel Island reaches milestone

By Andy Owens

BMW’s Rising Scholars with BMW CEO Knudt Flor (white shirt), Lt. Gov. Pam Evette (next to Flor) and Tim Hardee (far right), president of the S.C. Technical College Association. (Photo/Molly Hulsey)

makes sense for us to grow and recruit additional talent as we prepare for our future.”

Both initiatives follow the BMW Scholars high school graduate apprenticeship program for manufacturing technology students, started in 2010. Rising Scholars graduates will automatically become candidates for the BMW Scholars program, which pays $1,500 toward tuition and books at four participating schools while

students attend class full-time and work at BMW 20 to 24 hours a week.

Out of 331 graduates, almost every BMW Scholar has been offered a job with the company, according to the release.

Participating schools include Spartanburg Community College, Greenville Technical College, Tri-County Technical College and Piedmont Technical College.

Reach Molly Hulsey at 864-720-1223.

T

aowens@scbiznews.com

he newly named Credit One Stadium in Charleston has hit a construction milestone with a topping out ceremony by the workers and construction managers from Choate Construction.

A topping out is a moment during a construction project when the last structural beam is lifted into place, typically at the highest point of a building or other structure.

In late July, Credit One signed a multiyear deal to take over the sponsorship of the tournament and the stadium on Daniel Island, formerly known as the Volvo Car Stadium. However, the construction project began months before that deal was announced.

The stadium, which for years hosted

Enhancing the

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the Family Circle Tennis Cup, is undergoing a dramatic renovation of players areas and space for spectators, including a stage house and canopy to cover performers and musicians.

Choate Construction, which serves as the general contractor on the project, has put in tens of thousands of work hours into Credit One Stadium, adding nearly 800 tons of structural steel and 160 tons of

rebar, the company said in a news release.

During this week’s topping out ceremony, project managers gathered within the demolished interior of the former stadium as the last structural steel beam was put into place on the new Credit One Stadium Stage House.

Andy Grayson, senior project manager for Choate Construction, said the company had put in 50,000 hours into the Credit

UPFRONT

A rendering of the newly named Credit One Stadium shows what the final project headed by Choate Construction will look like once completed by spring 2022. (Rendering/Provided)

One project.

“We believe it is important to take a step back to acknowledge and celebrate what’s been accomplished and to thank the team for all their hard work and dedication to the project,” Grayson said in a statement. “In addition to thanking those involved, topping out celebrations historically signify the safe buildup of a structure and good luck for the remainder of construction.”

The new stadium will feature a publicfacing façade with a large concourse, updated restrooms, concession stations and hospitality suites. A four-story stage house is also being added, which will include wellness facilities, premium locker rooms, exercise space, catering and food preparation areas, along with media-access space and production rooms.

Choate said the bowl-like shape of the new stadium means there won’t be a bad seat for anyone watching an event at the venue.

The Credit One Stadium project is expected to be completed in spring 2022.

Reach Andy Owens at 843-849-3142.

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county spotlight

GEORGETOWN

The city of Georgetown boasts many amenities, including the Harbor Walk, a boardwalk that runs the length of the riverfront in the city’s historic district.

GEORGETOWN COUNTY: GETTING THE WORD OUT ON A WELL-KEPT SECRET

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By Jim Tatum, Associate Editor | Photos provided by Georgetown County Economic Development Office

8

For many years, Georgetown County has been one of the best kept secrets in South Carolina – but county leaders are working hard to change that.

Nestled between Horry County to the north and Charleston County to the south, Georgetown County, known as the “Hammock Coast,” has often slipped under the radar. This is an area driven significantly by tourism, but it does not have the instant recognition that Charleston and Myrtle Beach — the top two tourist destinations in South Carolina — both generate.

But many point out Georgetown County can and does provide real competition for its more well-known neighbors. The county has a population of around 60,000, and with miles of beaches, pristine black water rivers, charming small towns and plentiful open space, the area not only holds great attraction for those who want a more relaxing lifestyle, but it offers a wide variety of opportunities for business.

Special Advertising Section

Georgetown Co by the numbersunty

Population: 62,580 Median Household In come: $48,456 Median Home Value: $188,800

Source: U.S. Cens

us Bureau

COUNTY SPOTLIGHT: GEORGETOWN Above, the Choppee Regional Recreation Center is an important community amenity.

Right, the Georgetown Airport is seeing increased activity.

One challenge for Georgetown County now is to balance growth and preservation.

“If you look at the whole environment, all the open space, the towns, everything, Georgetown County has a lot to offer,” County Council Chair Louis Morant said. “Many places today are becoming overcrowded – we want growth, but we don’t want to drastically change our county.”

“This is a beautiful place with great folks and great resources,” Georgetown County Administrator Angela Christian said.

“It really is perfect for the right projects. We want to attract good corporate citizens, people

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who will partner with us, buy into the goal of maintaining our Hammock Coast. We really are the gem of the coast and we want to preserve our sense of self — that’s what differentiates Georgetown County from other places.”

Georgetown County offers a relaxing, easy-going quality of life, yet is less than a 45-minute drive in either direction to major urban amenities, including two international airports. A quality K-12 public education system offers a wide array of college preparatory and technical education opportunities; Horry-Georgetown Technical College, with its career workforce development program, offers higher education and technical programs as well.

The county also boasts a rich and diverse history. The earliest inhabitants were Native American tribes – Waccamaw, Winyah, Santee, Pee Dee, to name a few – for which a number of landmarks and important points of interest are named. The mid-16th century would see the arrival of European settlers, and by 1726, the town of Georgetown would be a thriving seaport. Great wealth would be generated by rice and indigo exports. Rice, in particular, generated such wealth that Georgetown County became the second largest rice culture in known world history.

This wealth was made off the backs of

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COUNTY SPOTLIGHT: GEORGETOWN Above left, the Georgetown County Government offices are housed in a historic home in downtown Georgetown. Above right, Horry-Georgetown Technical College is an important economic development partner for the county.

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many enslaved Africans brought to the New World to work on the plantations. In fact, enslaved people would ultimately clear more than 40,000 acres and dig some 780 miles of irrigation ditches in what is now Georgetown County. The descendants of these enslaved people would give birth to the Gullah and Geechee cultures, which thrive and are revered today in South Carolina and Georgia.

All that wealth also attracted pirates to the

12

Special Advertising Section

area; it is said that more than 2,000 pirates — including Blackbeard, Anne Bonney, Mary Read, and Calico Jack Rackham — lurked in the waters nearby.

The natural beauty, plentiful resources, and rich history all contribute to the unique character and quality of life of the county as well as a plethora of opportunities for tourism, particularly heritage, historical and ecotourism.

The average median household income in Georgetown County is a little over $41,000 per year, and the cost of living, overall, is lower than the state and national average.

Nonetheless, ensuring that enough affordable housing is available while at the same time attracting industry to provide higher paying jobs remains an important priority, Morant said.

“So many of the people who live here have been here all their lives,” he noted. “They love it here and don’t want to live anywhere else – so we want to make sure they have diverse opportunities to earn good wages and have decent housing.”

The county is working on a number of projects, goals and initiatives to achieve this.

For example, Morant said one thing the pandemic illustrated was the need to bring broadband internet service to the entire county. Other important infrastructure projects, such as water, sewer, and road maintenance are also objects of the county’s focus, he said.

The pandemic was also an opportunity to take a good look at Georgetown County’s economic development efforts and identify areas that the county could truly showcase, Christian said.

“That work is paying off,” she said. “We are seeing a pretty substantial increase in inquiries, seeing people taking a hard look at Georgetown County for new projects. I am so very excited about pursing economic development opportunities both within the county and with outside developers, and

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helping our existing industries prosper and grow.”

Georgetown County is a work in progress with its share of challenges, but it also has great resources, Christian said. Location is one; the county is 35 miles from Myrtle Beach Airport and 68 miles to Charleston International Airport, both of which are international hubs, yet it also is home to its own commercial FBOoperated airport. In fact, activity at the airport is up some 30 percent this year, she said.

Georgetown County also is home to one of three state seaports, although these days, freight tonnage entering South Carolina is handled through the Port of Charleston, only 60 miles away. However, while the Port of Georgetown is not being used at all for freight traffic, it does have significant potential for reinvention at some point in the future, Christian said.

Economic Development Director Brian Tucker said Georgetown County prides itself on being business friendly and accommodating of larger companies and industries.

“We welcome industries and understand their needs,” Tucker said. “We stand ready to do what we can to help them succeed.”

With a variety of location options from three industrial parks to open land and shell buildings, the county is constantly working to attract and recruit more industries to the area, as well as take care of the companies who already call the county home.

International Paper has been a major presence in the county for many years, as has MPW Industrial Services, Interfor, Three D Metal Works, SafeRack, American Gypsum, Envirosep, Mercom, AgruAmerica, Peddinghaus and 3V Chemical USA. Newcomers such as Sherpa and Greencore Materials are finding Georgetown County to be an excellent location as well.

“In addition to being business friendly, Georgetown County is a great location because we can easily reach clients from Florida to Alabama, all of whom depend on us for prompt and timely service,” Jared Black, general manager for MPW’s Industrial Water division, said.

“There are exciting things happening in Georgetown County, things that are putting us in contention,” Christian said. “We are a viable, legitimate opportunity for the right people and the right projects.”

13

TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C. The 787-10 Dreamliner is the largest in Boeing’s family of 787s. Production issues at the company’s North Charleston plant have temporarily slowed deliveries to fewer than five jets a month. (Photo/Kim McManus)

BOEING 787 PRODUCTION SLOWS AGAIN, 737 ORDERS PICK UP

By Molly Hulsey

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

www.scbizmag.com

B 14

oeing’s shift of Dreamliner production to Charleston this year has been fraught with challenges at the company-wide and local level. But there have also been a few victories.

Buffeted by pandemic-created travel woes and the discovery of quality-control issues in the 787 passenger airliner, the company’s North Charleston plant delivered its first Dreamliner in April, following a five-month hiatus, to United Airlines, according to the company.

Then, in July, Dreamliner production was cut even further – down to fewer than five jets per month – after the Federal Aviation Administration reported gaps a 1,000th of an inch in the plane’s skin and forward pressure bulkhead, where the body of the plane fuses with the nose.

The flaw impacted 100 jets-in-waiting at the company’s South Carolina and Washington facilities and did not present any

immediate danger, according to a company spokesperson. As the company redirected its resources toward the repair and rework of the jets, it said that it will half this year’s expected Dreamliner production.

The return to previous production rates will be a gradual one, the company said.

Boeing’s three Dreamliner models, including the 787-8, -9 and –10, are produced at the company’s North Charleston campus.

In July, more than 420 Dreamliner jets were on backorder, according to company data.

Recent 787 customers American Airlines and Dublin-based Avolon referred SC Biz News to Air Lease when asked how the production error would impact their operations and scheduled orders. Air Lease did not comment after multiple attempts to contact the plane rental company.

“We will continue to take the necessary time to ensure Boeing airplanes meet the highest

quality prior to delivery,” the company said in a statement following the announcement.

“Across the enterprise, our teams remain focused on safety and integrity as we drive stability, first-time quality and productivity in our operations.”

According to Boeing, the pause in production to fix the issue shows that the company is doing its job to ensure their products are safe and meet the customer’s specifications before delivery.

“As an aircraft manufacturer, you essentially qualify your aircraft based off the engineering drawings, and if your aircraft doesn’t match the drawings, it means that you’ve built something else,” Wout De Backer, an assistant research professor at the University of South Carolina’s McNair Center for Aerospace Innovation and Research, told SC Biz News.

“Even if there were no structural defects or deviations, if it doesn’t match any more what

in 2019, there has been increased scrutiny on Boeing and other manufacturers during the certification and qualification process to ensure compliance with regulations, he added. Boeing’s suppliers across the state too will likely proceed as usual, at least for now, despite the slowdown.

Aerospace suppliers are contract-bound to deliver, and often anticipate that most slowdowns will be tailed by a swift ramp-up in production, he said, adding that Kansas suppliers of the 737 Max fuselages continued to make components for six months after the line was routed, according to De Backer.

Only when they ran out of storage space and there was still no solution in sight did they halt production.

One Boeing supplier, Toray, will not be impacted at the company’s Spartanburg facility, a plant spokesperson told SC Biz News, but that is because – for now – the carbon fiber manufacturer has set its sights on other industrial customers.

The majority of carbon fiber composite product made in the Upstate plant went to Boeing before the plant’s shutdown in summer 2020. The Spartanburg plant has plans to reopen in January.

Other facilities will take over the company’s aerospace production until Boeing’s South Carolina plant recovers lost ground, Toray said.

“Over the last two years with both the COVID lockdowns and the 737 grounding

Reach Molly Hulsey at 864-720-1223 or @ mollyhulsey_gsa on Twitter.

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the manufacturer said they would make, that’s a problem, because now, no one can verify what was actually made.”

De Backer said production errors can occur at any step due to the high complexity of the processes used but noted that if something is off at the manufacturing level, sufficient quality control typically catches this, before downstream processes are affected, as two wrongs don’t generally make a right in the manufacturing world.

“Even seemingly insignificant damage or deviation, what we call ‘barely visible’ or ‘barely noticeable’ in the industry, especially if it’s damage like a hairline fracture or something that may affect component strength, may not affect the aircraft on day one, but because the aircraft will be fully loaded with equipment, people, and pressurized and will probably be flying for 30 years, that barely visible damage may grow to be catastrophic in the long line, if it is not discovered by routine inspections,” he said.

De Backer said that when a company finds that the error could be discovered in already completed and delivered jets, the repair process will be more involved than the usual consumer-targeted car recall.

Non-compliance with technical drawings must be addressed by the manufacturer and commercial operators, either immediately or on the next scheduled maintenance inspection, depending on the severity of the issue.

Following the two 737 Max 8 crashes

TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C.

The recent order for 200 Boeing 737 jets and a sustainability partnership forged with Alaska Airlines in June represent a few wins for a company beseiged by a pair of 737 crashes, production cuts and pauses over the past two years. (Photo/Provided)

situation, the 777x certification challenges and the software and schedule issues with the Starliner capsule and SLS, across the entire business, they could use a few wins,” De Backer said. “They’ve shut down or slimmed down on a lot of their other smaller businesses and side projects, and they’ve really taken a hit on their core business when their 737 program was hit as badly as it was, that hurt them. Their 737 – that’s their Toyota Corolla, their F-150, that’s their proven and reliable cash cow. If they cannot recover the single-aisle workhorse, that’s a bankruptcy-level offense.”

The cost of one 787 Dreamliner is in the order of hundreds of millions of dollars each, and if a jet remains idle, grounded or unfinished in the factory for a month, current inflation prices and cost of resting capital could spur on a $500,000 loss per aircraft per month, he said, not to mention any renegotiation by airlines or customers for late deliveries. That is a major incentive for getting the 100 Dreamliners-in-waiting fixed and into the air.

“Too big to fail,” only works for a limited number of businesses and industries, De Backer said. “And in aerospace, it’s arguable there’s no such thing.”

With massive investments can come massive failures, he said. Sometimes the federal government must step in and subsidize.

Sometimes it doesn’t and the financial side of the coin is resolved through mergers, acquisitions or company division. But if the financials and corporate vision aligns, the company will recover and grow stronger than before, De Backer told SC Biz News.

So far, the 737 Max is that silver lining. In June, United Airlines ordered 200 Boeing 737 Max jets made at the company’s Washington plant – a major victory, according to the company.

“We continue the work to deliver on our commitments to our commercial, defense, space and services customers, while positioning our business for a stable and strong recovery from the pandemic,” the company said in a statement. “In the second quarter, we made progress in safely returning the 737 MAX to service in more international markets and increasing the pace of 737 deliveries.”

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TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C. www.scbizmag.com

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Incoming Charleston Southern University sophomore Harrison Hunt is the school’s first aeronautics student to perform a solo flight. (Photo/Teri Errico Griffis)

TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C.

CSU AERONAUTICS PROGRAM FLIGHT PLAN TAKES SHAPE

By Teri Errico Griffis tgriffis@scbiznews.com

www.scbizmag.com

A

year ago, Harrison Hunt had his career mapped out as precisely as a flight pattern.

He would study engineering at Charleston Southern University on his track to becoming a pilot. After graduation, he’d pay for flight school and join the Air Force before potentially flying commercial.

The training would take years.

Just as Hunt began his freshman year at CSU, the school launched the state’s first collegiate aviation program. The future pilot immediately transferred majors to the professional pilot program, bringing him much closer to his future in only four years.

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TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C.

This summer, he made history as CSU’s first aeronautics student to perform a solo flight.

“I was like, ‘This is what I want to do. I want to be a pilot.’ So I might as well do it now in college,” Hunt said.

He described the first flight in May in a Diamond DA-20 aircraft as liberating.

Hunt’s fast track to a job is not only significant for him, but for the aviation industry. Boeing predicts a global demand of 41,000 pilots and 30,000 technicians over the next two decades in its 2020-2039 Pilot and Technician Outlook.

CSU knows its aeronautics program is still young. The university had hoped it could attract interest from at least a dozen students for fall 2021, but already, 31 have made deposits to enroll, with another four students transferring into the program. Col. C.J. Will, founding chair of CSU’s Aeronautics Department, said 15 more are on the waiting list.

“I was like, ‘This is what I want to do. I want to be a pilot.’ So I might as well do it now while I’m in college.”

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— Harrison Hunt, Charleston Southern aeronautics student

18

“They’re all transferring into our programs because they want to come to Charleston,” Will said. “Several of them grew up here and went elsewhere to start their aviation training.”

CSU taught a private pilot course in the fall and spring and flight safety in the spring.

Students then began flying this summer, with Hunt as the first solo student.

Students are required to take two exams, per Federal Aviation Administration standards: a written exam and a practical, or what’s referred to as a check ride.

CSU provides the ground training, preparing students for the FAA written exams through accredited college classes.

The college has partnered with Charleston Regional Accelerated Flight Training

Founding Chair of CSU’s Aeronautics Program Col. C.J. Will (left) and student Harrison Hunt inspect a Diamond DA-20 aircraft at Summerville Airport. (Photo/Teri Errico Griffis)

TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C. Charleston Regional Accelerated Flight Training and Simulation is a key partner with CSU’s aeronautics program. The South Carolina flight school is only the second school in the state and the first in Charleston approved by the Federal Aviation Administration to offer Part 141 courses for flight training. (Photo/Teri Errico Griffis)

and Simulation, a local flight training and simulation school, to manage flight training. CRAFT has locations at Charleston International Airport and Summerville Airport, and provides the certified flight instructors and aircraft.

In July, the flight school received Provisional Part 141 Training approval from the FAA,

making it the first school in the Lowcountry and only the second in the state approved by the organization to offer the courses.

Co-owner Amanda Aldea said CRAFT prioritizes training for CSU students, working directly with them to schedule flight times.

ColThe staff then has formal reporting procedures back to Will and CSU.

Flight training includes ground instruction from a certified flight instructor, flight and simulation instruction.

“It’s an administrative exercise in making sure the student meets what the FAA prescribes as their requirements, including a certain number of hours, flown solo, at night, cross country,” Will said.

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TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C.

That’s in addition to a student’s regular college courses.

But Hunt couldn’t love the rigors of the program more, calling himself a hopeless flying addict.

Will said the inaugural year has gone well from an administrative end. The first two semesters have allowed CSU to work out the kinks financially and logistically. Will said the relationship with CRAFT also has been a blessing to the program.

“We’ve basically tested the process and the system that need to be in place, because in the fall we’re going to have 30 students show up,” Will said. “We want to make sure the curriculum was solid … and parts were in place to make sure that the students had the resources they need to succeed. And we’ve been able to do that.”

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Time in the sky

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Of the 31 students coming to CSU in the fall, some will arrive with their private pilot license in hand, which Will said will be to their advantage both for college credit and flight hours.

Overall, graduates will earn their private pilot, instrument, commercial, multi-engine and certified flight instructor certificates and ratings, and more than 250 hours of flight time.

To be hired by airlines, the FAA requires that a pilot have 1,500 total flight hours.

Through CSU’s program, students can be hired at 1,000 hours of total flight time, reducing the time between graduation and being hired by up to two years.

“Some may even finish (their hours) by the time we hand them their diploma and go directly to the airlines and start accruing seniority more quickly, get upgrades more quickly and get hired by the major airlines more quickly,” Will said.

Aldea is seeing swift movement in the industry already as travel is picking back up and airlines work to fill pilot shortages. Four of her certified flight instructors were called up to major airlines in the last month alone.

“This is a good thing,” she said. “We train our CFIs up. They get their hours with us, and we know that’s the ultimate goal for them, to go on.”

Almost immediately, she was able to hire four replacements, with more on the way to accommodate CSU students.

This fall, 31 students have committed to CSU’s aeronautics program, with 15 more waitlisted. (Photo/Teri Errico Griffis)

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If CSU continues to see numbers even similar to the interest in the fall semester, the program is going to need a lot more space.

Currently, aviation students are studying at both the CSU campus and CRAFT facilities.

Will’s three-year goal is to find an all-inclusive facility, possibly 10,000 square feet, to expand the program. The site would include a CSU hangar to store planes, classroom and briefing space, storage and a maintenance area. Will is actively looking with the county, state and FAA, particularly in Summerville and Moncks Corner, but space is limited, he said.

“This is going to be one of the principles of the program as we grow,” he said. “The last thing I want is to have 30 students this year and 12 the next because we can’t accept them with facility limitations and space.”

With more room to grow, CSU will not only train pilots, but future maintainers, engineers and leaders. Combined with Trident Technical College’s aviation maintenance program, graduates could ideally feed into Boeing, Lockheed Martin and more regional businesses.

Will has even met with someone interested in starting a charter aviation high school nearby.

“Connect the dots,” he said.

Will doesn’t see CSU becoming the next Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University because his focus is still on individualized attention for students. But growth is imminent and the college’s success is only breeding more and more interest.

“We will become a center of gravity in aviation, not just educationally, but from a business and a government standpoint, too,” Will said.

The S.C. Aeronautical Training Center at Trident Technical College is transforming how education and industry work together in the regional, national and global economies.

TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C.

When the CSU program launched a year ago, Will was uncertain what the pilot shortage and pandemic-related travel disruptions would mean for airlines. Most in the industry thought there would be a two- to three-year lapse in aviation demand and that pilots wouldn’t be retiring immediately, Will said.

“But we’ve seen the opposite. We’re already snapping back with the demand,” he said.

“That V recovery from the airline industry is a very real thing.”

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TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C.

Greenville’s Lockheed Martin facility has long served as a maintenance hub for military and civilian aircraft but has recently expanded its operations to produce and maintain F-16 fighter jets. (Photo/Provided)

CHANGE IN THE AIR FOR GREENVILLE’S LOCKHEED MARTIN FACILITY

By Molly Hulsey

www.scbizmag.com

T 22

he past year may have been one of staggering losses for the aerospace industry; Lockheed Martin’s Greenville facility made it one of unprecedented propulsion for the site.

Not only did production commence on the plant’s inaugural F-16 jets, but 2020 brought in a deal with the Bulgarian Air Force and another unnamed allies for 98 jets totaling $67.1 billion. Aerospace pundits speculated that the 98 jets were bound for Morocco and Taiwan based off Lockheed’s previously announced plans to send 66 Fighting Falcon aircraft to the Asian nation despite China’s threatened sanctions on the company.

Then, at the tail end of the year, the U.S.

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

Air Force announced a 10-year, $900 million contract set to transform the Greenville base into the only corporate F-16 sustainment and support depot in the country.

Lockheed’s Greenville spokesperson Leslie Farmer said that not too much would need to be altered in terms of construction, but over the years, the deal would usher in new careers to the area.

“We’re going to use a lot of what we already have,” she said. “Really, with the F-16 production line being here in Greenville, that has created a lot of opportunity or synergy for this sustainment-type program, where we can utilize different things that we have already implemented on the

“This is kind of a unique situation. This is going to be the first kind of non-military depot that is being set up to support F-16 sustainment.”

— Lockheed Martin spokesperson Leslie Farmer

Lindsley just a few weeks later.

Jody Bryson, president and CEO of the South Carolina Technology and Aviation Center, told SC Biz News that Fox’s “unprecedented partnership” with SCTAC culminated in the latest wins for the former Donaldson Air Base industrial park, and his team looked forward to “taking it to the next level” under Lindsley’s leadership.

Lindsley previously served as the director of modifications, upgrades and overhaul for Lockheed’s sustainment operations after a 36-year career in the Air Force, where he commanded the Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex in Georgia and served as vice commander at the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center, among numerous other positions.

“Walt brings a proven reputation of strong leadership experience and operations and logistics management,” Bruce Litchfield, vice president of Lockheed Martin Sustainment Operations, said in a news release. “He is stepping into the role at a time of incredible growth and opportunity for our Greenville site.”

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TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C.

production side to support sustainment as well.”

Most F-16 depots are located on military bases, according to Farmer. Precious few are corporate.

“This is kind of a unique situation,” Lindsley Farmer said. “This is going to be the first kind of non-military depot that is being set up to support F-16 sustainment. There are two other (contract) F-16 depots internationally.”

The depot has the potential to support 2,000 of the 4,588 F-16 jets used by the U.S. Air Force and allied nations around the world. The first F-16 arrived in March from the Edwards Air Force Base in California.

“The arrival of this first jet marks the beginning of fighter sustainment work at the site and positions Greenville as an F-16 Center of Excellence, supporting both F-16 production and sustainment operations,” Mike Fox, then the Lockheed Martin Greenville site director, said in statement before passing the torch on to retired brigadier general Walt

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A monument commemorates the important but nearly forgotten Battle of Eutaw Springs.

(Brian Keeley Photography)

LIBERTY TRAIL TO BOOST HERITAGE TOURISM, HISTORIC PROFILE

By Jim Tatum

jtatum@scbiznews.com

www.scbizmag.com

F 24

ort Watson. Eutaw Springs. Hanging Rock.

Few people, other than locals and Revolutionary War buffs, have likely ever heard of these and many other such places across the Palmetto State, much less know their historical significance. But the American Battlefield Trust and the South Carolina Battleground Trust, together with numerous partners at the national, state and local levels, aim to change that.

These organizations and partners have launched the Liberty Trail, a connected tour/ route of American Revolution battle sites located across South Carolina. The goal is to create a unique educational and heritage tourism destination through which key battlefields of the Southern Campaigns of the American Revolution will be preserved,

interpreted, and promoted. Launched in 2018, the Liberty Trail will link more than 70 sites across South Carolina, preserve 2,500 acres of battlefield land and create a presence for the trail in 35 of South Carolina’s 46 counties.

“We are here to help showcase the truly national significance of these sites,” Mary Koik, Director of Communications for the American Battlefield Trust, said. “We have a lot of expertise in protecting land — we also have strong background in digital interpretation and bringing 21st century technology to the task of bringing the past to life.”

Why is this important? First, many people are familiar with the Revolutionary War and some of its more famous highlights, including the American victory at Yorktown, which effectively ended the war and secured America’s independence from England. But few people

are aware of the events that led up to that victory — and how easily it could have gone the other way.

“Unfortunately, the way the Revolutionary War is taught in schools these days, they discuss Lexington and Concord, Bunker Hill, Saratoga, then suddenly we’re in Yorktown,” Doug Bostick, executive director of the S.C. Battleground Preservation Trust said. “That leaves out a lot of important events, many of which happened right here in South Carolina.”

In fact, the British capture of Charleston in May 1780 and the disastrous defeat of a Continental army three months later at the Battle of Camden all but spelled doom for the American Revolution in the South and badly eroded patriot morale throughout the colonies.

And yet, less than three years later, Continental and patriot militia forces had managed to drive

Cities Mean

BUSINESS A P U B L I C AT I O N O F T H E M U N I C I PA L AS S O C I AT I O N O F S O U T H C A R O L I NA

ISSUE 2

|

202 1

Laying the Groundwork Cities Focus on Downtown Enhancements as Economic Investments

8 Paving the Way for Success

CONTENTS

Cover Photo: The massive CenterG streetscape project used a shared-surface street concept, a pedestrian-focused design that lacks curbs and makes transitioning the street into a special event space easier. Photo: City of Greer.

BUSINESS A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

5 Reimagining Old Spaces as New Parks

11 Preserving South Carolina’s Unique Downtowns

1411 Gervais St., PO Box 12109 Columbia, SC 29211 803.799.9574 mail@masc.sc www.masc.sc @muniassnsc

Executive Director: Todd Glover Municipal Association of SC

By Jenny Boulware, Main Street SC Manager, Municipal Association of SC

FEATURES

Cities Mean

13 Cooking Up Economic Development

Managing Editor: Meredith Houck Municipal Association of SC Editor: Russell Cox Municipal Association of SC Editorial Assistant: TJ Lundeen Municipal Association of SC Published by

DEPARTMENTS 4

Letter From the Director

15 Hometown Snapshot

By Todd Glover, Executive Director, Municipal Association of SC

www.scbiznews.com A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

#StrongSCcities | Cities Mean BUSINESS 3

Letter From the

DIRECTOR

City government leaders are the first to understand their community’s assets and its challenges, and then work hard to help the community reach its potential. When municipal governments use creativity, diligence and careful attention to detail, they become powerful engines for local economic growth.

This issue of Cities Means Business explores the many ways that local governments invest in themselves to spur transformative changes.

Todd Glover

Executive Director, Municipal Association of SC

One of the feature stories looks at how downtown development organizations in Sumter, Moncks Corner and Williamston delivered new economic opportunities during the coronavirus pandemic. With shutdowns and social distancing requirements eliminating much of the state’s usual tourism activity, these downtown programs turned their attention to marketing the businesses of their core commercial districts to their own residents — people who at times are not aware of the newest developments in their hometowns.

Another article examines streetscaping, which is critically important in business districts but often gets attention only when it’s missing or inadequate. Elements like proper lighting, landscaping, parking and well-built sidewalks can stand as the difference between an inviting place for businesses and a place that visitors will avoid.

Other stories in this issue explore creative solutions that our state’s cities and towns have pursued in recent years. This includes establishing a city-run commercial kitchen incubator to make the difficult process of starting up a local restaurant a little easier, and converting old, disused facilities into brand-new municipal parks or recreation facilities.

The residents and the leaders who choose to make a place their hometown are the ones who best understand its needs and potential. Over and over, we see local governments finding new and often surprising ways to invest in themselves and drive their communities to new heights.

B. Todd Glover tglover@masc.sc

Executive Director, Municipal Association of SC

4 Cities Mean BUSINESS | #StrongSCcities

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

FEATURE STORY

Reimagining Old Spaces as New Parks

By Megan Sexton, Contributing Writer

T

he City of Walterboro is home to South Carolina’s largest municipal park — 600 acres of boardwalk, hiking and canoe trails that wind through the woodlands and creeks of the Ashepoo, Combahee and Edisto Basin that make up the Walterboro Wildlife Sanctuary.

Now, the park has a downtown component, too.

The Walterboro Wildlife Center, featuring an exhibit hall highlighting the significance of the wildlife sanctuary, opened in a formerly vacant building in downtown Walterboro. Displays detail the history and hydrology of what is commonly known as the ACE Basin, and exhibits explain native plants and animal life of the Lowcountry swamps. It also is home to a large meeting space and an amphitheater for public performances and events.

Walterboro is just one example of cities and towns transforming old buildings or abandoned properties for new recreation purposes. From an old sewage lagoon redeveloped as a waterfront park to a former golf course turned into a nature and birdwatching park, South Carolina municipalities have found adaptive reuse solutions that draw visitors to their towns and expand offerings for residents.

In Walterboro, the city purchased an empty downtown building in 2013. The

Walterboro Wildlife Center opened to the public in January 2020.

“The City of Walterboro has invested millions of dollars in beautification efforts to attract people downtown. Repurposing an abandoned building downtown helped the city transform the property into a great public space at the city’s center,” said Jeff Molinari, Walterboro’s city manager. “The creation of the large event space and amphitheater will infuse more vitality into the downtown area that will lead to increased activity over time.”

The Wildlife Sanctuary attracts visitors from all over the country, especially those traveling on the Interstate 95 corridor that passes by the city. Future plans for the center include increasing wildlife programming and presentations, field trips, event rentals for private and public functions, concerts and theatrical events in the amphitheater.

Molinari said the city was able to secure $625,000 in grant funding, including a Hometown Economic Development Grant, over the years to help pay for the center.

The Walterboro Wildlife Center celebrates the ecology of the Walterboro Wildlife Refuge, and also serves as an event and meeting space in the city’s downtown. Photo: City of Walterboro.

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

#StrongSCcities | Cities Mean BUSINESS 5

FEATURE STORY

The Wateree Riverfront Environmental Park, seen on the left, provided a cost-effective new purpose for a former wastewater lagoon.The lagoon is now a pond surrounded by walking trails, and the park offers a kayak ramp onto the Wateree River.

Photo: City of Camden.

“Partnerships were critical to the project.

U.S. Congressman James Clyburn helped the city secure a federal grant to purchase the building and property. The FROGS Committee, or Friends of the Great Swamp Sanctuary, a local nonprofit, helped to keep the idea moving forward, and Colleton County sold an adjacent 75-space parking lot to the city which allowed the city to improve the design by placing all of the parking off-site,” Molinari said.

In Camden, more stringent environmental regulations and improved treatment technologies forced the city to replace the 16.5-acre wastewater treatment lagoon it had operated for 40 years. But instead of simply filling in the huge hole, city staff and council brainstormed what to do with the site and decided on a combination of conservation and recreation.

Now, on the site where Camden’s river ferry operated in the 1700s, sits a place for wildlife, environmental education and recreation opportunities — the Wateree Riverfront Environmental Park.

The City of Camden expanded the site to a 26-acre park with an overlook to the Wateree River. The first phase, which includes walking trails, islands, a parking lot and kayak ramp, was completed in spring 2020.

The park features an accessible ramp compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, and a canoe and kayak slide. About a mile of walking trails wind around the pond, with the land planted with grasses and trees.

6 Cities Mean BUSINESS | #StrongSCcities

The park also provides the only public access to the Wateree River in Camden.

“We wanted to give something back to the public and the environment. While we could have filled it in, the park option created a wildlife habitat and encourages people to get out and enjoy nature,” said Ray Peterson, deputy director of public works and utilities for Camden. “Where once there was a wastewater lagoon, there is now a sheltered conservation area.”

Peterson noted that bird watchers visit the park for the opportunity to see many species of waterfowl and other animals, while kayakers can test their skills in the pond, in addition to launching on the river.

Local students can use the park for environmental education programs, and the facility is close to Camden High School.

“Catch-and-release fishing can be done along the pond banks, and fishermen also can access the river for unlimited fishing, following SC Department of Natural Resources regulations. The fire department also uses the facility for training as well as rescue and recovery operations,” Peterson said.

Among the grants the city received for the project included $500,000 from the Land and Water Conservation Fund through the SC Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism, and $100,000 from the SC Department of Natural Resources Recreational Waters Fund. The city budgeted for the remainder of the $1.4 million project.

Camden also received a technical assistance grant from the Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance program through the National Park Service, which helped facilitate meetings, prioritize objectives and identify possible funding sources.

Camden hopes to expand the park with additional phases that will incorporate more boardwalks and bridges, and may include several observation platforms and possibly a small dock. The city also hopes to add more interpretive kiosks that point out the cultural history of the area along with the flora and fauna.

“The city took an old, outdated wastewater lagoon and turned it into a conservation area where people can learn about their natural environment, get outdoors with their families, and explore the history of the area,” Peterson said. “And, it was done for less than half of what it would have cost if we had simply filled in the former hole in the ground.”

On Hilton Head Island, the town purchased 15 holes of the former Port Royal Plantation Planters Row Golf Course in 2013 to protect the 103 acres from development.

As part of the town and the parks and recreation planning, consultants and town leaders identified the land known as the Mid Island Tract as a perfect spot for a new community park for Hilton Head Island.

In 2020, the town did some work on the land — maintaining a primary drainage

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

FEATURE STORY channel, cleaning up storm damage and removing hazardous trees — to make the property safe for the public to explore. The town also worked with a local Audubon Society group to make sure it protected trees that were known to host native bird populations.

“With growing local interest to allow public access to the property, the town installed a temporary off-street parking area and opened the property to the public for passive use in March 2021,” said Jennifer Ray, Hilton Head Island’s interim community development director. “While remnants of the golf course remain and can be visible, much of the property has returned to nature.

Almost 4 miles of cart paths are now accessible for the public to walk or ride bikes. The site is also popular for bird watching.”

Planners hoped to provide a mixture of passive and active uses at this new park to take advantage of the natural landscape and offset overuse of recreation facilities at some of Hilton Head Island’s other parks.

The list of proposals for the park include a fitness trail, cross country running or single-track bike trail, inclusive playground, and conservation area with interpretation and overlooks. Active recreation facilities on the list include a disc golf course, two to three rectangular sports fields, and a bike pump track — a group of banked turns and other features to be ridden entirely while pumping the bike pedals.

The town is in the process of soliciting bids for a consultant to work with the staff and community on a redevelopment strategy for the property, Ray said.

“This will include design development for the park through to construction. The town is interested in working with local nature and conservation groups to ensure appropriate areas of the property are conserved and enhanced for educational purposes or for hobbyists,” she said.

She also said it was helpful that Hilton Head Island has a land acquisition plan that allows the town to anticipate future needs that can be helped through land ownership.

“The town uses this program to acquire land for investment, conservation and preservation of natural view sheds and corridors and parks,” she said.

The Town of Hilton Head Island is working toward a redevelopment strategy of a former golf course, which could become a new community park.

The property’s old golf cart paths are now open for walking and biking.

Photo:Town of Hilton Head Island.

Still possessing many of the features of the former golf course, the Mid Island Tract may see a variety of new recreation opportunities after its redevelopment. Photo: Town of Hilton Head Island.

The ongoing effort at the former golf course isn’t the only park effort happening on Hilton Head Island recently, as the town opened a park in December. The 10-acre Lowcountry Celebration Park had been under construction since 2018. Now it’s a venue for festivals and special events, the new home for the Sandbox Children’s Museum and a destination playground.

Ray has this advice for other municipalities looking at projects similar to the Mid Island Tract effort: “Include the community in the planning process for new parks. Find

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

out what the people want in their neighborhood. Be sure to focus not only on the community in general, but also neighborhoods directly adjacent to the property. Engage local recreation providers and parks interest groups. Find ways to make fallow property accessible to the public if there will be lag in time before development begins. There was lots of interest from island residents who just wanted to walk on the old cart paths, so the town took measures to bring the property to a safe standard for public use until it is developed.”

#StrongSCcities | Cities Mean BUSINESS 7

FEATURE STORY

The City of Greer

Success

The City of Greer completed CenterG — a streetscape project that has transformed Trade Street into a pedestrian-friendly, aesthetically pleasing and economically thriving central business district.

Photos: City of Greer.

Paving the Way for

By Megan Sexton, Contributing Writer

I

n the late spring of 2020, the City of Greer completed CenterG — a $10-million streetscape project that has transformed Trade Street into a pedestrian-friendly, aesthetically pleasing and economically thriving central business district.

The project was a far cry from what the city had originally discussed years earlier.

Business activity was already strong downtown, with several restaurants located on the main thoroughfare. The project began, Greer Mayor Rick Danner said, as a simple

8 Cities Mean BUSINESS | #StrongSCcities

reworking of the streetscape — “maybe find some places to punch out the sidewalk to accommodate some tables and redo the street with fresh asphalt. Maybe add some street lighting.”

A look at Greer’s downtown today shows what can happen when cities involve community stakeholders and pursue opportunities they believe will pay off. It’s an example of how cities and towns around South Carolina can use streetscaping, lighting and additional parking to improve the economic

health of downtowns and the quality of life for residents and visitors.

In Greer, the process began with input from the downtown business community and residents, with council keenly interested in the process.

“We started to think, ‘If we do something, maybe we should take a bold approach,’” Danner said.

The city hired Kimley-Horn, a design and planning firm, to help plan and design downtown’s new look. Greer settled on a

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

FEATURE STORY

The Town of Ridge Spring

The Town of Ridge Spring made its downtown more attractive and accessible by adding parking, improving streetscapes and enhancing the farmers market.The downtown now features a replica of a water tank from the early days of Ridge Spring, when it was used in part to provide water for steam engines stopping in the railroad town. Photos:Town of Ridge Spring.

shared-surface street concept, which replaces curbs with multicolored pavers and other methods to direct traffic. The change allows the street to be easily transformed into a pedestrian plaza for special events. It’s a look that is common in the plazas of Italy and Spain, but not often seen in South Carolina.

“What it does is take an auto-centric design and flips it to a pedestrian-centric plan. You shrink two lanes of traffic to the bare minimum and take a 4- to 5-foot sidewalk to an 8to 10-foot sidewalk on both sides of the street,” Danner said. “We instantly realized people were so comfortable walking around downtown. It changes the dynamic of the area.”

Although the project was completed during the pandemic, the city was able to stage some limited events during the summer and fall that showed the flexibility of the space.

The lights that are strung across the street have been immensely popular, drawing compliments and downtown photo shoots.

But as the plans grew, so did the budget.

Along with the beautification work, the city’s public works department replaced the aging infrastructure.

“It’s not a cheap project. You need to be upfront about that. We saved some money.

We had a good price on work that needed to be done. We communicated about what we were going to do and how it was going to be done,” Danner said.

The city made it clear at the beginning that its first concern would be keeping businesses open during construction and keeping merchants informed. Greer formed a communications team of staff members, merchants, the chamber, economic development leaders, the contractor and an outside communications firm. Every merchant knew what the city was doing and how long each stage of the process would take.

“We had feet on the ground and on the street that could communicate,” Danner said. “We had a full-time person for the city who was a liaison down there. Our commitment to the merchants was that during the construction process there was never a time when you’d be without your front door for more than three days. Most had alley access or parking lot access. In the end, nobody was without a front door for more than 48 hours. This was a multimillion-dollar project that came in on time, under budget and kept those businesses open. That doesn’t happen without a lot of people communicating.”

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

The success has been obvious. Greer’s downtown has seen more than $100 million of new investment, with a hotel, a city-built parking garage, and 200-plus urban apartments.

In the Town of Ridge Spring, an ambitious plan to enhance the downtown and create more parking was helped by a Community Development Block Grant and funding from the Saluda County Capital Project Tax. Pat Asbill, who has been mayor for 12 years, said one of her goals was to bring more businesses to Ridge Spring’s downtown. The work was successful, with five antique shops and three restaurants operating in the town.

“We’re growing in the way little towns grow. But we didn’t have parking,” she said.

“When you’d come in on a Friday afternoon or a Saturday, there was not a place to park.

That was a good thing, but we had to figure out how to use an old parking lot and an old garden to make room for more.”

The town took over a property that had been leased to a garden club for more than 30 years, rearranged the plantings and added more parking. It also enhanced its farmers

#StrongSCcities | Cities Mean BUSINESS 9

FEATURE STORY

The City of Anderson

Left: Anderson’s latest downtown development efforts include a new hotel and parking deck.

Above: The new mural along Orr Street, a project of Leadership Anderson Class 36, draws from Anderson’s history.

Photos: City of Anderson.

market by adding parking and restrooms. By the end, it had added 30 parking spaces, improved the streetscape, enhanced the farmers market and made the downtown more attractive.

“But we really wanted something that would attract people’s attention,” she said.

That has come in the form of a decorative wooden water tower, a focal point in the town park. It’s a replica of a water tank that was used in the early days of Ridge Spring, when it was used in part to provide water for steam engines stopping in the railroad town.

“It’s absolutely the nicest water tank.

We’ve had a wedding under it already. People come and take lots and lots of pictures. We’re very proud of what we’ve done in the past two years,” she said.

The City of Anderson is also proud of the success that has come following years of work to make the downtown area attractive to residents and visitors.

“Right now, we are seeing the fruits of a couple of decades of infrastructure and streetscape improvements,” City Manager David McCuen said. “We realize that we are not ‘in the business of business,’ but it is our role to 10 Cities Mean BUSINESS | #StrongSCcities

create an environment attractive to business.”

He said the city was particularly proud to see 12 new businesses open downtown in 2020, despite the economic challenges brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

“This speaks to the fact that we focused on a quality foundation on several fronts.

A parking study revealed that our growth patterns could support a second parking garage. This data helped us as we partnered with developers to plan a new hotel, fronting Main Street, and an adjacent 305-space garage,” McCuen said.

The city also improved its downtown landscaping.

“We weren’t afraid to chop things down and dig things up, editing our landscaping to provide shade and aesthetic appeal. We added a horticulturalist to our staff to ensure the health of our trees and to care for a stunning array of seasonal plantings,” he said.

“This has added a layer of organic vibrancy to complement our notable array of public art.”

The city also asked residents, visitors and businesses how they perceived Anderson’s downtown, and used the information to address lighting and general cleanliness issues.

“We moved and added benches and trash receptacles to serviceable positions,” he said.

“Though these things might seem small, we realized they were very important to the overall curb appeal of the city.”

As a new hotel opens this summer, McCuen said the surrounding block will get a major facelift with a shady street to flank the new development. His advice for other cities and towns: plan, but be flexible.

“We had solid streetscape plans and we have revised and updated them over the years. We are always willing to partner with developers to meet their needs where we can and work within our shared goals. And most importantly, be willing to make the financial investment. It will pay off.”

Greer’s Danner also points out the importance of leadership when cities undertake major or minor streetscaping or other plans. “(The CenterG project) made me realize it’s not always just about solutions; it’s about leadership,” Danner said. “We had lots of solutions to do what we wanted to do. It was that leadership by our council and our staff that gave our community and merchants the confidence to say, ‘If you think you can pull this off, we’re willing to take the risk.’”

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

FEATURE STORY

Replacing a compromised structure, the building that houses the Sumter Original Brewery is an example of new construction in a historic downtown. Photo: City of Sumter.

Unique Downtowns Preserving

South Carolina’s

By Jenny Boulware, Main Street SC Manager, Municipal Association of SC

Tourism, one of South Carolina’s major economic drivers, faced a major challenge as the coronavirus pandemic shut down many traditional tourism activities. Recognizing the need to harness a new approach to boost the local economy, communities such as Sumter, Moncks Corner and Williamston shifted their focuses from out-of-state visitors to their own residents by embracing the “love where you live” movement.

Sumter The City of Sumter is known for its U.S. Air Force base and its nationally recognized historic business district. Encompassing more than 60 historic structures dating from 1880 to 1912, Sumter’s downtown has grown into a vibrant destination with restaurants, a hotel and a brewery. This was not the case 20 years ago, when abandoned and underutilized buildings dominated downtown. The transformation required a collective, holistic reinvestment.

Embracing their most fundamental anchors like The Opera House in the heart of downtown, Swan Lake Iris Gardens, and proximity to two state parks, community leaders expanded their focus on Sumter’s arts, entertainment and dining options.

Sumter now offers a full-day downtown experience with live concerts, more than 20 restaurants and overnight stays.

The downtown, said Leigh Newman, Downtown Sumter coordinator, is now “more well-rounded, with lots to offer both locals and out-of-town visitors.”

Even during last year’s pandemic disruptions, the Opera House continued to entertain. Small groups rent the 500-seat venue for private movie events.

Sumter’s extraordinary downtown turnaround has three critical elements: city leadership embraced its role in revitalizing the commercial district, private local investors renovated key buildings and residents began to support downtown’s business community regularly.

Highly successful years of major investment and activity are great, but Newman also acknowledged that slow, incremental progress is just as important.

“Quiet years lay the foundation for future achievements,” she said.

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

Downtown Sumter’s Hy att Place hotel opened in 2018 just acr oss Main Street from the iconic Sumter Opera House.

Photo: City of Sumter.

With the positive developments such as a brewery, hotel and a four-star restaurant, more work lies ahead, especially as Sumter continues to address its empty buildings.

Preserving historic buildings is always a major goal, but the updates needed to make them functional for new businesses are not always possible. For example, the Sumter Original Brewery, which has a rooftop bar, is an entirely new build that replaced a compromised historic structure.

“We still have a long way to go,” Newman said. “As long as you’ve got empty buildings, you’ve got opportunity.”

Moncks Corner Seventy miles south of Sumter, the “Lowcountry’s Hometown” of Moncks Corner has rapidly grown in both population and economic development prospects.

One of Moncks Corner’s valuable assets is #StrongSCcities | Cities Mean BUSINESS 11

FEATURE STORY

Mineral Springs Park, one of the oldest public parks in the nation, sits just next to Williamston’s downtown. Photo:Town of Williamston.

Moncks Corner’s revitalizing downtown is located in the Charleston region, which is experiencing strong overall growth. Photos:Town of Moncks Corner.

located just outside of its downtown: the town’s state-of-the-art Regional Recreation Complex. Its location has helped downtown thrive by providing a hub for sports, and it also serves as the venue for a farmers market and events.

Catalytic projects like the recreational complex have further ignited communitywide developments.

“One of our greatest successes has been the growth in the number and in the quality of businesses,” said Doug Polen, community development director for the Town of Moncks Corner. “When we became a Main Street community, we began a comprehensive approach to business retention and recruitment.

And now there’s a lot more to do downtown.”

A semi-permanent food truck vendor is serving takeout five nights a week and two new restaurants are slated to open. Molly Willard, Main Street director and public information officer, continues to focus on stimulating economic development downtown while Polen facilitates neighborhood developments. This team approach to attract, expand and retain development is what developers and small businesses value most, said Polen.

“You get me and my department to help guide the process,” he said.

In a five-year span, the town’s population increased nearly 30%. This growth surge is both a challenge and an opportunity, Polen said. Part of Willard’s job is to strategically reach these residents and remind them that 12 Cities Mean BUSINESS | #StrongSCcities

Moncks Corner’s commercial downtown has a lot to offer.

“Thousands of Moncks Corner residents commute daily to work in Charleston and Goose Creek, and many have never even been to Moncks Corner’s downtown. They don’t know it’s here,” Polen said.

Williamston Far to the northwest in the Upstate, Williamston is also working to celebrate its small town sense of place and local pride by bringing activity back downtown. Originally a bustling resort town known as “The Saratoga of the South,” Williamston’s resort hotel industry declined in the 19th century. While that industry is unlikely to rebound, Williamston is home to one of the nation’s oldest public parks, Mineral Springs Park, which sits adjacent to its downtown core.

Embracing the Mineral Springs Park as its major asset, the town is working to connect to nearby biking and walking trails to become a bicycle- and pedestrian-friendly community.

Lisa Cope, Williamston’s Main Street director, noted that downtown’s compactness is its draw.

“You can walk from one end to the other and not break a sweat. Pretty soon we’ll have a trail system that will blend recreation and shopping,” she said.

Cope hopes to grow local foot traffic with enough business diversity that residents do not need to go elsewhere. The city has the goal of attracting new business and help residents see the potential of Williamston.

“We are so close to having everything in town — to the point where you don’t need to leave town to shop. The promise of having everything that the average family shopper or recreational visitor needs in the downtown area is exciting,” she said.

Focusing on the distinctive Communities that capitalize on the very assets that characterize their downtowns, like distinctive architecture, pedestrianfriendly environments and unique senses of place, ensure that their downtowns are vibrant, said Jenny Boulware, manager of Main Street South Carolina.

“Not everyone has an opera house or a signature park, but everyone has something that people can’t find elsewhere,” she said. “Cities should encourage residents to rediscover the best parts of their hometown. Spend a day, a weekend, or even a whole week playing tourist. Visit the museums, local attractions, shops and restaurants that you usually only bring visitors to see. This can help you see more clearly how to capitalize on the things that make South Carolina’s downtowns distinctly different.”

Main Street South Carolina is a technical assistance program for communities seeking to revitalize their historic downtown commercial districts. Main Street SC offers several community membership levels ranging in cost and requirements. Learn more at www.masc.sc (keyword: Main Street).

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

FEATURE STORY

p U g n i k o o C Economic t n e m p o l e Dev

By Megan Sexton,

Contributing Writer

C

ity-sponsored commercial kitchens and incubators for food service businesses don’t just result in more food options and an enhanced quality of life — they make good business sense. Just ask a few cities where they are open or in the works.

In Florence, for example, a former warehouse for the Atlantic Coast Line railroad has been transformed into the City Center Market and Kitchen. The 800-square-foot commercial kitchen features rent-by-the-hour space where the city provides large appliances such as stoves, ovens, food processors, meat slicers and large stand mixers, offering entrepreneurs space to make and bake their goods.

“We opened the kitchen in September (2020) and by March we are practically over-subscribed in the rent-by-the-hour kitchen. I do think that COVID has had some impact on folks wanting to pursue new small business ideas, but that can’t be all of the demand on the space,” said Jennie Pezé, project manager for the City of Florence Local Foods Initiative.

Florence’s City Center Market and Kitchen offers rent-bythe-hour commercial kitchen space. Photos: City of Florence.

The city created the commercial kitchen to address food access from multiple angles — providing infrastructure for food entrepreneurs, creating a place for experimentation and a creative enterprise, and including a place to offer nutrition education. The city’s farmers market, hosted on the same property all year, offers a retail outlet for food producers.

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

“We are going for an innovative and multi-layered approach to building the community’s own ability to modernize the food culture,” Pezé said.

The kitchen received financing through TIF funds, or Tax Increment Financing funds. Repurposing the building and designating an overlay district was part of a

#StrongSCcities | Cities Mean BUSINESS 13

FEATURE STORY

larger effort to complement Florence’s work to address community health and wellness, she said.

The Florence commercial kitchen was inspired by Colleton County Kitchen in Walterboro and the Blue Mountain Station in Dayton, Washington, which has a farmers market and food production incubator spaces.

The Florence facility also features three small private spaces for annual lease where food or artisan production businesses can get started, although Pezé said the city has had a more difficult time filling those “nextstep” spaces with entrepreneurs who want to grow their local food businesses. Those tenants can be assisted in developing a transition plan by the Francis Marion University Kelley Center for Economic Development, and will be encouraged to participate in the weekly City Center Farmers Market.

The kitchen continues to grow in popularity, and nutrition classes will start soon.

The facility originally planned these classes with HopeHealth and the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control, but delayed them since last spring because of COVID-19 concerns.

“We are looking at how to expand capacity with the kitchen and with nutrition education. The region needs a food hub, so we need to think about how to participate in that,” she said. “The farmers market, which complements the retail opportunities for some of the kitchen renters, is growing exponentially.”

In Anderson, the lack of commercial kitchen space has meant food entrepreneurs were forced to rent space from restaurants after regular business hours or from community facilities such as churches. Both of those options were problematic because of time

been gifting her popular pimento cheese to friends and family for more than 40 years.

She has never been able to sell the cheese because it would require the recipe be prepared This rendering in a kitchen approved by DHEC. The Andershows the design of son kitchen will allow her the opportunity to Anderson’s planned sell her product and will provide additional kitchen incubator. income she wasn’t expecting as an 81-yearPhoto: City of old, Thompson said.

Anderson.

Laurens doesn’t have a city-owned commercial kitchen, but a coworking and event space in a renovated downtown storefront allows food entrepreneurs and restaurants from other cities to host dining events. The constraints and scheduling issues. Other Midtown Building, located right next to city food entrepreneurs would leave Anderson hall, was a paint store before it was restored and travel outside the region to use shared by private owners to showcase the original commercial kitchens.

The city decided to repurpose 2,500 square wooden floors and exposed brick walls.

Jonathan Irick, executive director of Main feet of city-owned property to create a shared Street Laurens, said no food preparation kitchen incubator. Located on the street level takes place inside the building. Instead, resof a downtown parking garage, the facility will feature two kitchens, one for general food taurants set up mobile kitchens in the outdoor area and serve food indoors. It offers a production and one designed specifically chance for residents to enjoy types of food for baking. Other amenities will include a that aren’t readily available in Laurens. packaging area, cold and dry rentable storage For example, Halls Chophouse from and retail space for product displays. Kitchen Greenville served a four-course Valentine’s rentals will be available daily and programs Day meal, while barbecue and sushi reswill be scheduled every month, said Mary taurants also have set up pop-up outdoor Haley Thompson, project manager in Anderkitchens and served meals indoors. Take-out son’s economic development office. options also are available.

Anderson’s City Council pursued this “It’s been a huge success. All of the events project with a vision and hope to see new have sold out,” Irick said. “For one thing, businesses open, products launched and they’re offering food we don’t have here in partnerships created around the local food Laurens. It’s also the experience. This buildindustry, she said. ing was completely owner-financed and “A major obstacle for food industry rehabbed during COVID. They bought it in entrepreneurs is the inability to access comDecember 2019 and started working on it in mercial kitchen space. Due to regulatory March 2020. All the renovations were done requirements and the high costs associated with commercial kitchen equipment, region- last year. In the middle of COVID, this was al producers are unable to meet the consum- our bright spot.”

As the world begins to recover from the er demand for such value-added products,” pandemic, shared commercial kitchens and Thompson said. “City staff reported consistent feedback from our pipeline of local food incubators may even provide a few rays of hope for the future. entrepreneurs that support this need.”

“Due to the recent global health crisis, Anderson was awarded $500,000 from the concept of a shared kitchen incubator the Appalachian Regional Commission and may be an economic development trend and $500,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriway of the future for food entrepreneurs,” culture’s Rural Business Development Grant Anderson’s Thompson said. “As food busiprogram for the construction of the project, which is expected to be complete by early 2022. nesses have shut down around the world, shared kitchen incubators have the power to Local food entrepreneurs are already promote stability and reignite growth among eager to use the facility. Thompson said one those affected.” of those entrepreneurs, Diane Leary, has

14 Cities Mean BUSINESS | #StrongSCcities

A publication for the Municipal Association of South Carolina

HOM ETOWN

SNAPSHOT

the Mountains,” Known at the “Main Street to shadows of the the City of Walhalla sits in the thwestern nor Blue Ridge Mountains in the early 2021, Main corner of South Carolina. In ntown development Street Wahalla, the city’s dow Aspiring level of its organization, advanced to the et South Carolina participation in the Main Stre receive three years program. At this level, it will it build a strong of hands-on guidance to help g its downtown operation focused on diversifyin economic base.

Photo: Main Street Walhalla.

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British General Charles Lord Cornwallis and his army out of the Carolinas into Virginia.

But even though most people are aware of the British surrender at Yorktown, the war in South Carolina would continue another 14 months until they evacuated the Carolinas As is noted on the Liberty Trail website, “Many historians consider the Revolutionary War to have been decided in the swamps, fields, woods and mountains of the South, won by the resilience and determination of Continental soldiers and Patriot militia. Although the full story of the Southern Campaigns is not widely known, the events of 1779-1782 in the Carolinas directly led to an American victory in the war. We call this history The Liberty Trail.”

The Liberty Trail is currently the largest scaled preservation and interpretation project in the country right now, Bostick said. Since launching in 2018, the Liberty Trail has raised, and spent, some $11 million on the project.

“We have done some very creative things to make this all happen,” he said. “The story of South Carolina and the Southern Campaign is a very compelling one, which makes it easy to share.”

One of the most compelling aspects of South Carolina’s story is the life and exploits of Francis Marion, “The Swamp Fox.” “His life and times are an important part of the Liberty Trail. He’s well-known literally across the entire country,” Bostick noted.

Indeed, a major factor that led to the British defeat at Yorktown was the constant hit and run raiding, harassment, and supply line disruption conducted in the Carolina back country by Marion and other patriot guerrilla leaders such as Thomas Sumter (the Gamecock), Andrew Pickens (the Wizard Owl), William Bratton and others.

“Cornwallis and his army didn’t come marching proudly into Yorktown,” Bostick said. “They came limping into Yorktown.”

More than 250 battles, raids and skirmishes were fought in South Carolina between 1779 and 1783. The Liberty Trail project had to winnow it down to around 70 sites. Plans call for the first phase of the trail to open to visitors by the end of the fall. That first phase will extend some 400 miles through more than a quarter of the state’s 46 counties and will include five new battlefield parks and 11 existing parks, and 14 roadside pull off sites.

New features, including The Liberty

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TRENDING: AEROSPACE IN S.C.

Liberty Trail Facts The first phase of the Liberty Trail opens 16 park sites and 14 roadside pull-off sites. The driving route extends nearly 400 miles and visits more than one quarter of South Carolina’s 46 counties. More sites will be integrated into the Liberty Trail individually, as they are ready.

The Initial Phase includes: Five New Battlefield Parks: • Fort Fair Lawn, Berkeley County — no current interpretation • Eutaw Springs, Orangeburg County • Camden, Kershaw County • Hanging Rock, Lancaster County — no current interpretation • Waxhaws, Lancaster County

11 Existing Parks to Receive Interpretive Upgrades:

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• National Park Service (4): o Fort Moultrie National Monument (Charleston County) o Kings Mountain National Military Park (Cherokee and York Counties) o Cowpens National Battlefield (Cherokee County) o Ninety Six National Historic Site (Greenwood County) • U.S. Fish & Wildlife (1): o Fort Watson (Clarendon County) • State of South Carolina (3): o Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site (Dorchester County) o Musgrove Mill State Historic Site (Spartanburg and Union Counties) o Blackstock Battlefield State Historic Site (Union County) • Local Parks (2): o Historic Camden (Kershaw County) o Historic Brattonsville (York County) • Charleston Gateway Experience at Marion Square

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14 New Roadside Pull-Off Sites: See map on page 27 for listings and locations of first phase sites.

Trail mobile app, will be implemented later.

“It is meant to be a self-guided driving tour,” Bostick said. “We will have an interactive app, but we will also be implementing interpretive technology at many of the sites.”

For example, some places will have interactive signage, flat, clear signs looking out into the present-day landscape, but with holographic images and interpretive data superimposed on the landscape within the sign. In other areas, devices similar to the binocular viewfinders that once were part of places such as the Charleston Battery will be installed.

These will also super-impose interactive visual interpretive data as one views points of interest on the present-day landscape of the battle site, Bostick said.

“For example, all that’s left Baron Johann DeKalb was wounded 11 times during of Fort Watson is the Indian the Battle of Camden. (Brian Keeley Photography) mound it was built on,” Bostick “The role preservation plays in that is vital – said. “With the technology, the more that is protected and interpreted, the visitors will actually be able to see the fort more people want to visit and stay,” Koik said. where and how it was.”

The historical accuracy is paramount, “It escalates, the more you can get people to come see, the better it is for your community.

Bostick noted.

“We do extensive archeology at every site we The Liberty Trail is doing that, building sites acquire,” he said. “We do not do anything on and tying them together, which gives people a any site until we know and have mapped out unifying experience and turns it into a journey they want to take.” the exact location of every battle.”

In South Carolina, especially with heritage There is also an exciting and important economic development component, heritage tourism, people tend to think of Charleston tourism, which is expected to bring a significant first. However, heritage tourism works on a smaller scale, too, Koik said, pointing to economic boost to the state.

“People living in these communities may not communities in Montana that have benefited have thought about what a unique feature they from tourism generated by the Little Bighorn might have right in their back yard,” Koik said. battlefield, site of the battle known as “Custer’s “But they have something that makes them not Last Stand.”

The numbers support that in South Carolina “Any Town USA. Once you start looking at as well. For example, in 2018, according to the that, you can draw people from elsewhere.”

This is especially good for smaller National Park Service, nearly 100,000 people communities; tourists come visit and spend visited Ninety Six National Historic Site in money but don’t stay permanently. That means Greenwood County, spending $5.6 million, a small town, for example, does not have to which supported a total of 82 jobs, $2.4 million spend more on infrastructure permanent in labor income, $4.2 million in value added, and $7.3 million in economic output. residents require.

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25 24

28 29

23 22 21 20

19

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18 16

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INITIAL PHASE 15

13 14 12

1

Charleston Gateway

13

Wyboo Swamp

2

Fort Moultrie National Historical Park

14

Great Savannah

15

Fort Watson at Santee National Wildlife Refuge

5

Halfway Swamp

4

3

Sullivan’s Island

4

Stono Ferry

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5

Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site

17

Ox Swamp

18

Tearcoat Swamp

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Fort Fair Lawn

7

Mepkin Plantation

8

Avenue of Cedars

9

Wadboo Bridge

10

Biggin Church

11

Moncks Corner

12

Eutaw Springs

19

Historic Camden

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Hobkirk’s Hill

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Camden

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Rugeley’s Mill

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Hanging Rock

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Waxhaws

Huck’s Defeat at Historic Brattonsville

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King’s Mountain National Military Park

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E 10 9 D

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Cowpens National Battlefield

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Blackstock Battlefield State Historic Site

E X I S T I N G PA R K

29

Musgrove Mill State Historic Site

PULL-OFF SITE

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Ninety Six National Historic Site

NEW LIBERTY TRAIL PARK

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6 7 B

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Bostick said the parks are expected to eventually attract more than 90,000 visitors a year. He alluded to a conversation he had with a town councilman from a community in which one of the Liberty Trail park sites is being developed. The councilman had expressed appreciation for the idea, but admitted he was not that familiar with history. His question was “why should I care about this.”

“I said to him, ‘what would a new group of 90,000 people coming here, even if they only bought gas, a soda and a pack of nabs, do for your town,” Bostick said. “He said that it would be a real game changer. I said, ‘that’s why you care.’”

An app is also currently being developed for the Liberty Trail. This app will not only guide visitors on their journeys along the trail, but also provide comprehensive, real time information on other nearby places of interest to visit, suggestions for restaurants, shopping, gas, etc.

If all goes as planned, parks on The Liberty Trail should should start opening by the end of the fall, Bostick said.

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BEST PLACES TO WORK

Best Places to Work in S.C. Where the state’s happiest employees spend their work week

B

est Places to Work in South Carolina is a multiyear initiative to encourage the state’s companies to focus, measure and move their workplaces toward excellence in the hope that they will attract and keep talented employees.

Recognizing the Best Places to Work in South Carolina is an initiative between SC Biz News – publisher of the Charleston Regional Business Journal, the Columbia Regional Business Report, GSA Business Report and SCBIZ magazine – and the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce.

The companies who choose to participate are surveyed by Best Companies Group, an independent research company. The research is a two-part process. In part one, the employer completes a questionnaire about employee policies and procedures, among other information. In part two, employees

answer a survey.

The collected information from both sets of questions is used to determine the strengths and opportunities of each participating company. The workplaces are then ranked based on this data.

All participating companies receive an individual Assessment Findings Report that not only summarizes and sorts employee

feedback, but includes South Carolina benchmarking data for comparison.

Each participating company pays a fee that covers the cost of research, the survey and report. The cost an individual company would have to pay if the analysis were done independently would be considerably more.

Economies of scale apply when Best Places Group conducts a survey with a large number of companies from the same state.

We are convinced that the real value of participating in the program is not whether a company wins an award but in the employee survey feedback it receives. The report will enable a company to develop and implement the strategic steps necessary to create a great workplace and continue to improve the performance of its business.

On the following pages, we present the Best Places to Work in South Carolina for 2021.

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Sponsored by

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BEST PLACES TO WORK

LARGE COMPANIES

The companies are listed by ranking; this listing includes companies with 250 or more U.S. employees.

1. Edward Jones

City: Florence Employees: 46,498 Industry: Financial Services

www.edwardjones.com

Rated the top financial services company to work for in America last year by Fortune magazine, and accumulator of a host of workplace awards, no wonder Edward Jones is the nation’s largest financialservices firm with 14,583 U.S. locations. Edward Jones associates enjoy flexible, family-friendly workplaces where community involvement is encouraged and compensation includes trimester bonuses, profit sharing and limited partnership in the firm. Caregiver benefits, appreciation weeks and many more benefits are hallmarks of a company where employee-partners can grow their careers. Edward Jones is the 2021 No. 1 Best Place to Work SC among large businesses.

2. Brasfield & Gorrie LLC City: Greenville Employees: 3,400 Industry: Construction

www.brasfieldgorrie.com

The 2021 Engineering News-Record Southeast Contractor of the Year, Brasfield & Gorrie is one of the nation’s largest privately held construction firms, providing general contracting, design-build, and construction management services. Its caring and family-like culture values people and promotes collaboration and team spirit. Many employees have spent their entire careers with the company. Free identity theft protection, health/wellness and robust community service activities are among the benefits employees appreciate.

3. Boingo Wireless City: Charleston Employees: 393 Industry: Technology

www.boingo.com

City: Greenville Employees: 7,600 Industry: Architecture

www.burnsmcd.com

Burns & McDonnell is a 100% employee-owned company made up of more than 7,600 constructionrelated professionals who strive to create amazing success for clients. The 5% turnover rate is one of the lowest in the nation because of an ownership culture that empowers staff to make important decisions and chart their own path. The occasional surprise six-packs of beer are just one of the little perks that demonstrate the attitude that permeates the company.

5. American Specialty Health City: Columbia Employees: 1,328 Industry: Health Care

www.ashcompanies.com

American Specialty Health (ASH) is one of the nation’s largest health services companies and an innovator in the health and wellness arena.

Dedicated to improving lives, ASH embodies that by providing employees with access to an impressive roster of wellness benefits, social activities and quality extra-curricular activities. The average tenure of senior leadership is 17 years due to a tightly bonded ecosystem of innovation.

6. PURE Group of Insurance Companies City: Charleston Employees: 899 Industry: Insurance

www.pureinsurance.com

PURE is a member-owned property and casualty insurer designed exclusively for financially successful families. PURE’s employees enjoy worklife balance and the company of their colleagues every day. Pure offers employees a wide variety of holistic care assistance, including emotional intelligence training, life transition skills, a meditation and mindfulness course and wellness and yoga on the roof. During the pandemic, the firm established Coworker Coffee meetings pairing employees individually to get to know each other.

“Our employee stock ownership plan means our people aren’t just employees — they’re 100% owners of the firm. They share directly in the company’s profit and success.”

— Burns & McDonnell

www.scbizmag.com

Boingo keeps the world connected to the people and things they love wirelessly. Boingo prides itself on fostering a diverse and inclusive culture where everyone can be their authentic self. The company offers an incredible benefits package including unlimited vacation, 12 weeks paid parental leave, tuition reimbursement, gym reimbursement and much more, like, make-your-own-bath-bomb days, or a kitchen stocked with fresh fruit and vegetables.

4. Burns & McDonnell

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BEST PLACES TO WORK

7. Life Cycle Engineering Inc. City: Charleston Employees: 470 Industry: Engineering

www.lce.com

For more than 40 years, Life Cycle Engineering has provided engineering solutions that deliver lasting results for customers. LCE’s vision is to create a work environment where employees have fun, develop personally and professionally, and create profit.

Having gone virtual, LCE has replaced frequent in-house celebrations with virtual events like trivia sessions and cook-alongs. The staff is so close that everyone from the receptionist to the CEO knows their fellow employees’ names.

8. South Carolina Federal Credit Union City: North Charleston Employees: 509 Industry: Banking

www.scfederal.org

Employees at SC Federal describe the credit union as a community, not a company. Their focus on providing a remarkable employee experience is the reason behind employee tenure, double the industry average. This experience includes exceptional benefits, a dynamic culture, and an emphasis on diversity, internal promotion, and a dollar-for-dollar 401(k) match up to 10% of income. The organization also employs an innovative performance management model, in which managers deliver consistent, timely feedback to employees.

9. Hudson Automotive Group City: Charleston Employees: 2,634 Industry: Automotive

www.hudsonauto.com

A recipient of the top award for customer service from Honda, Ford, Nissan and Toyota, Hudson Automotive Group believes people are the key to success. Consequently, the company provides strong benefits, a great work/life balance and a welcoming family-oriented culture. Employees never have to prepare their own breakfast or lunch because the break rooms are constantly stocked with healthy meals. That explains the company’s low turnover and rapid growth, even during the pandemic.

10. Hire Dynamics City: Greenville Employees: 429 Industry: Staffing

www.scbizmag.com

www.hiredynamics.com

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Hire Dynamics is an award-winning, industry-leading staffing company that believes employees come first.

Staff are always encouraged to focus on helping others with a servant leadership approach. The company empowers staff to think like a business owner and aim to be the No. 1 staffing firm that you would refer to your friend. At Hire Dynamics, there is a belief that service is a pleasure that brings everyone joy.

11. The Spinx Company

14. Atlas Technologies Inc.

City: Greenville Employees: 1,670 Industry: Retail The Spinx Company operates over 80 fuel and convenience retail stores throughout South Carolina, and is the largest privately held retailer headquartered in the state. Everyone from founder and chairman Stewart Spinks to customer service representatives in each store live and work by core of values including teamwork, accountability, and customer focus. A holiday club savings program, recognition for service and Friday fun food days are among the benefits of working at Spinx.

City: North Charleston Employees: 256 Industry: Technology

“We embrace and encourage a genuine open-door policy and authentic relationships between employees and their managers, so that everyone can feel safe, heard, and valued.”

— S.C. Federal Credit Union

15. Terminix Service Inc.

12. Hall Booth Smith P.C. City: Mount Pleasant Employees: 522 Industry: Legal

www.hallboothsmith.com

A full-service law firm with a regional office near Charleston, HBS is committed to cultivating an environment of inclusion, professional advancement and success for every person at the firm. Hall Booth Smith cares for the health of its employees, with 100% paid health insurance and a $3,000 health savings account for each. With flexible work schedules to accommodate individual needs and opportunities for attorneys to work part-time, HBS is a great place to work.

13. Sentar

City: North Charleston Employees: 289 Industry: Defense

www.sentar.com

Sentar is a woman-owned small business providing advanced cybersecurity and information assurance services, primarily within the DOD and Armed Forces.

Run by management with a committed open-door policy lauded by employees, Sentar has been recognized as one of the Best Places to Work in South Carolina for six years straight. Staff work hard and play hard, with activities like scavenger hunts, pizza Fridays and oyster roasts.

www.atlas-tech.com

Founded in 1997, Atlas Technologies Inc. is an innovative provider of leading-edge information technology solutions to government and industry partners. With a well-rounded culture that attracts the best talent from within the IT industry, this veteran-owned business has made the Best Places to Work SC list four straight years. Atlas has an Ambassador program that provides new team members with a mentor from day one and employeeled community volunteering.

City: Columbia Employees: 1,063 Industry: Pest Control

www.trustterminix.com

Locally family-owned and operated, Terminix Service Inc. is the industry leader in providing quality pest control you can trust. Employees appreciate a company culture that rewards hard work: A best Place to Work SC since 2014, all six region managers and 56 branch managers were internal promotions, as was much of the corporate staff. Team building and company gatherings with games and prizes help promote a family-at-work atmosphere.

16. Duck Creek Technologies City: Columbia Employees: 838 Industry: Technology

www.duckcreek.com

Building the technology solutions the insurance world needs but has never seen, Duck Creek Technologies puts people at the core of its success.

The company tells prospective employees, “Come fly with us,” and offers a collaborative and supportive environment featuring Duck Creek University for employee training. Quarterly awards, generous benefits and a wellness program highlight the perks at Duck Creek.

17. Total Quality Logistics City: Charleston Employees: 5,000 Industry: Transportation

www.tql.com

A Best Places to Work SC for the 10th consecutive year, Total Quality Logistics arranges the pick-up and delivery for business-to-business freight movements across North America. Fierce dedication to the company’s winning principles – integrity, honesty and teamwork – motivates the company to continually exceed the expectations of employees, customers and carriers. A pet club, time off to volunteer in the community and company-wide beer drops to celebrate milestones are favorites with employees.

18. Advanced Technology International

City: Greenville Employees: 1,013 Industry: Distribution

www.scansource.com

www.ati.org

ScanSource Inc. is a leading global provider of technology products and solutions. It is a great place to work because of the amazing, family-like company culture that truly lives its core values. Named a World’s Most Admired Company the last five years

by Fortune magazine, the company provides a host of creative benefits such as weekly yoga and Zumba classes, an emergency fund for employees, an on-site wellness clinic and incentives to volunteer in the community.

19. Marsh & McLennan Agency Mid Atlantic

23. ACS Technologies Group

A nonprofit that manages the business operations of federally funded R&D programs, ATI has been named one of South Carolina’s Best Places to Work for the fifth consecutive year. It has earned a platinum award for hiring veterans the last two years and offers an exceptional culture of lifelong relationships and purpose-driven work with an emphasis on volunteerism and charitable donations of $70,000 last year.

City: Greenville Employees: 808 Industry: Insurance

www.marshmma.com

Marsh & McLennan Agency provides best-in-class risk prevention and insurance services for midsize companies in the U.S. The firm strives to create a workplace where integrity, collaboration, passion, innovation and accountability come to life. Colleague appreciation and engagement is embedded within the culture. Employees feel supported by the agency, which provided $500 reimbursements for working from home during the pandemic.

20. SYNNEX Corp.

City: Greenville Employees: 2,507 Industry: Technology

www.synnexcorp.com

SYNNEX is an industry leader in IT distribution with more than 30,000 technology products from more than 300 of the world’s leading and emerging manufacturers. A big company with a small-company feel, the workplace is marked by casual dress and a culture in which fun and work/life balance are priorities. Employees appreciate the healthy recipe exchange, the Veterans Day shirt fundraiser benefiting the USO, and a host of wellness initiatives for employees.

21. Samet Corp.

City: North Charleston Employees: 339 Industry: Manufacturing

www.sametcorp.com

Cities: Columbia, Greer Employees: 555 Industry: Distribution

www.cameronashleybp.com

Cameron Ashley Building Products is a leading distributor of specialty building products.

Espousing a Play to Win attitude means “doing our best, expecting to win, and having fun doing it.” Employees are empowered to make their own decisions and are given the right tools needed to succeed. They enjoy a work environment of casual attire, flexible work hours and Fun Fridays with themed parties like beach day, a company barbecue, or even tailgating.

City: Florence Industry: Technology Employees: 375

26. NHE

ACST is the most trusted name in church management software. ACST takes care of employees by providing for their physical, financial and personal well-being with myriad benefits and a great work/life balance.

Those benefits include a free full-time, on-site health care clinic that is run by a licensed nurse practitioner and a 401K plan with a 6% matching contribution.

Employees are dedicated to the company mission and appreciate career development pathways that facilitate internal promotions.

www.nhe-inc.com

www.acstechnologies.com

“Many associates have voiced their pride in how the company has reacted and supported associates during this past year.”

— SYNNEX Corp.

24. T-Mobile USA

City: North Charleston Employees: 74,965 Industry: Telecommunications

www.t-mobile.com

T-Mobile believes that employees with diverse backgrounds bring innovations that serve customers, communities and teams. The company is committed to diversity and inclusion and to developing and promoting from within. Development programs include a generous tuition assistance program and Trident Tech classes on-site for free. The facility includes a fully equipped gym, a movie theater, massage chairs, Karaoke lounge, multiple coffee bars and much more for an exquisite employee experience.

City: Greenville Employees: 309 Industry: Real Estate NHE provides professional association management, conventional and affordable apartment management, and service coordination to communities across the Southeast. Recognizing that the team is the key to success, the company offers the advantages of a smaller, family-owned business with the professionalism and comprehensive benefits package generally only available with much larger companies. Among the fun team-building operations is the company ping pong table, pitting co-workers against each other.

27. Select Health of South Carolina

City: North Charleston Employees: 514 Industry: Health Care www.schealthofsc.com First Choice by Select Health of South Carolina is your hometown health plan. A Best Place to Work for 13 consecutive years, Select Health employees love the award-winning wellness program, which offers wide-ranging activities year-round aimed at improving physical, financial and emotional wellbeing. With a new focus on communicating across a 100% remote environment, Select Health transformed its business model to expedite decision-making and engender trust with associates.

28. CarolinaPower City: Greer Employees: 771 Industry: Construction

www.carolinapower.com

An employee-owned company that embraces the principles of Servant Leadership, CarolinaPower’s employees are encouraged to continually strive to enhance their careers and personal lives. CarolinaPower has established a safety-first workplace and supports younger employees with apprenticeships, a formal mentoring program and extensive opportunities for continuing education and professional growth.

www.scbizmag.com

As a premier building company, Samet Corp. is a family-owned business whose family extends to the people who work for it. Samet provides flexible scheduling, continuing education opportunities and a robust health care program. Employee camaraderie extends far beyond the office in the form of community service, outreach events, company outings and holiday parties. Samet employees are easy to spot because they are equipped with branded shirts, sweaters, blouses and jackets.

25. Cameron Ashley Building Products BEST PLACES TO WORK

City: Summerville Industry: Project Management Employees: 269

22. ScanSource Inc.

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BEST PLACES TO WORK

29. RealPage Contact Center – Greenville City: Greenville Employees: 2,826 Industry: Contact Center

www.realpage.com

The RealPage Contact Center is the nation’s largest centralized real estate contact center service provider.

RealPage rewards performance with bonuses, incentive prizes such as Ipads, TVs and personal time off. It has monthly paid philanthropy events and onsite recreational options, including massage chairs and arcade games. The results show in retention rates, employee engagement results, and positive input from the community and properties the company supports.

30. Savannah River Nuclear Solutions City: Aiken Employees: 6,800 Industry: Nuclear Energy

www.savannahrivernuclearsolutions.com

Since 2008, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions has been the management and operating contractor for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site near Aiken, S.C. The company supports worthwhile causes, with $1 million in contributions just last year. Creative schedule options, career development programs, food trucks on site, and wellness program and visual arts competition are among the benefits provided by the company.

Its employee suggestion program, begun in 1952, is reportedly the longest-running in the country.

31. Charleston Water System

City: Charleston Employees: 425 Industry: Water and Wastewater Utility Charleston Water System is a public water and wastewater utility providing clean water services to greater Charleston. Employees take extra pride and satisfaction in knowing that they are working for their community, friends and neighbors. Charleston Water employees cherish the opportunities to give back to numerous charities and causes both with money and time. An on-site nurse and wellness committee help keep the staff healthy.

32. Palmetto Citizens Federal Credit Union City: Columbia Employees: 304 Industry: Banking

www.palmettocitizens.com

Palmetto Citizens is a member-owned financial institution working to be the best place for members, as well as a great place to work. The credit union helps each staff member develop through a variety of projects, leadership groups and a young professionals program. Palmetto Citizens provides no-cost health and life insurance, and 401(k) matches up to 9% of salary. Palmetto Citizens supports the communities it serves through efforts with a variety of charitable organizations.

33 Travel Nurse Across America City: Florence Employees: 294 Industry: Staffing

Tnaa.com

Travel Nurse Across America is a staffing agency that places health care workers on temporary assignments in acute-care facilities nationwide.

Employees know what obsessing over the relationship actually means. Working remotely even pre-pandemic, TNAA already had a system built for connecting workers virtually. The company offers hotel discounts nationwide and a corporate chaplain. and has been named a Staffing Industry Analysts Best Staffing Firms to Work for.

“Our associates appreciate being recognized and rewarded for the work they do. Our annual incentive program provides $2,000 for meeting team goals and achieving results.”

— Charleston Water System

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BEST PLACES TO WORK

MEDIUM COMPANIES

The companies are listed by ranking; this listing includes companies with 50-249 U.S. employees.

1. SpinSys

City: Charleston Employees: 167 Industry: Technology

www.spinsys.com

SpinSys develops systems integration solutions for cloud-based services, specializing in enterprise sustainment and modernization.

The company says it is a best place to work “because we have endless snacks, multiple flavors of La Croix, and awesome employees.” With professional development a priority, each new employee is assigned a mentor. A dedicated culture squad plans regular group outings outside of work, with a goal of making it impossible for employees not to have fun. A great work environment includes sit-to-stand desks, coffee machine, and a fully stocked kitchen, not to mention bake-offs, game nights, access to a meditating app and women’s book club.

2. Haig Point Club & Community

4. Frampton Construction

6. PhishLabs

www.haigpoint.com

www.frampton.construction

www.phishlabs.com

City: Hilton Head Island Employees: 170 Industry: Hospitality

Haig Point is a charming, isolated sea island community just off the southern coast of South Carolina. With a culture that focuses on family first, and an emphasis on diversity and compassion, the club continued to employ and pay benefits for all employees during the pandemic, even preparing meals for those who needed help. Employees enjoy the natural beauty and tranquility that surround them and amenities like lunch on the beach.

City: Ladson Employees: 50 Industry: Construction

Frampton Construction is a full-service construction firm specializing in commercial and industrial construction. Team members are encouraged and expected to challenge the status quo and have a direct line to company leadership. Among the benefits provided by the company: health insurance 100% employer paid, including dental and vision; reimbursement for gym memberships; and a popular golf putter and ping pong table.

3. Recruiting Solutions

5. AMAROK

www.recruitingsolutionsonline.com

www.amarok.com

City: Columbia Employees: 60 Industry: Staffing

AMAROK provides electric fencing and other perimeter security solutions that keep criminals off customers’ property. AMAROK’s culture values teamwork, customer service, integrity and individual excellence, all while having fun. AMAROK sponsors numerous parties and celebrations, a roster of professional development activities and team charity events. Staff appreciate the flexible work schedules and work-fromhome options.

PhishLabs is the leading provider of 24/7 managed threat intelligence and mitigation services that protect enterprises from digital risks. It is on the Best Places to Work SC list for the sixth straight year by combining meaningful work with a collaborative, team atmosphere. Employees enjoy a modern office environment, on-campus restaurants, and plenty of employee engagement/team building activities. The company organizes fantasy sports leagues and a beer keg on tap in the break room.

“We have occasional happy hours and host watch parties for certain sporting events during work hours. We also conduct office pools for big sports tournaments with gift cards for winners.”

— Frampton Construction

www.scbizmag.com

Recruiting Solutions is a local, independent, womanowned staffing and recruiting company. It boasts a collaborative company culture, ample opportunities for professional development and growth, and unique employee perks, like weekly “brain breaks, bowling parties and painting classes. The culture at Recruiting Solutions is highly collaborative with an open-door policy among employees and leadership. Combining work and fun is normal at Recruiting Solutions with regular “Lunch and Learns,” “Social Fridays,” discount gym memberships and more.

City: Columbia Employees: 193 Industry: Security

City: Charleston Employees: 116 Industry: Cybersecurity

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BEST PLACES TO WORK

7. PRTC

City: Walterboro Employees: 88 Industry: Telecommunications

www.prtc.us

PRTC is a member-owned cooperative providing a complete telecommunications solution to homes and businesses of the Lowcountry. A family-friendly workplace focused on employee work/life balance, organization management maintains an open-door policy to all staff. PRTC’s wellness program includes fitness tips, mental health assistance and financial management. Its support for military veterans is exemplified by its Above and Beyond Award for employer support of the SC Guard.

8. Trehel Corp.

City: Greenville Employees: 61 Industry: Construction

www.trehel.com

A six-time Best Places to Work SC honoree, Trehel Corporation has been committed to the design and construction of high-performance buildings that enrich the human experience. Fostering relationships is the guiding force in both business and community endeavors. Over the years, Trehel has continued to develop its culture through employee engagement initiatives, team building exercises, enhanced benefit packages and community outreach. Employees enjoy tickets to sporting and cultural events, Christmas gifts, leadership training opportunities and more.

“During the pandemic, we’ve hosted Virtual Happy Hours where employees can have a drink and chat with one another over video — just to hang out and be able to spend time with one another like we used to!”

— KeyMark 9. NCEES

City: Greenville Employees: 81 Industry: Nonprofit

www.scbizmag.com

www.ncees.org

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The National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing professional licensure for engineers and surveyors. The organization engenders a spirit of teamwork in a comfortable and progressive workplace where communication is open and the team is diverse and inclusive. NCEES offers generous 401(k) and PTO benefits, and a focus on wellness, exemplified by weekly chair massages and daily 10-minute walks.

10. New South Construction Supply City: Greenville Employees: 89 Industry: Distribution

www.newsouthconstruction.com

New South Construction Supply provides concrete and masonry accessories, rebar, wire mesh and waterproofing materials in the Southeast. The company offers a wide array of unusual benefits including an Associate Hardship Fund and an annual company kickoff meeting at a resort for all associates and their spouses/ partners. Its college internship and Manager-in-Training programs help recent college graduates succeed in the company. Associates rave about the family-first environment where promotions come early and often.

11. TPM Inc.

City: Greenville Employees: 80 Industry: Technology

www.tpm.com

TPM is the Southeast’s local one-stop shop for engineering and design solutions, graphics, and document management. Family-owned and operated, TPM enjoys a low staff turnover rate and average tenure of 10 years because it provides a family atmosphere in every office. The company encourages employees to ask themselves everyday if they are doing the right thing to embrace change, become experts in their field and provide customers with exceptional leadership.

12. KeyMark

City: Liberty Employees: 77 Industry: Technology

www.keymarkinc.com

KeyMark, a six-time Best Places to Work SC company, provides intelligent automation to clients and offers a unique culture that makes each day in the workplace meaningful and fun. Employees say the company keeps an open door to feedback and cultivates a culture of trust. The company boasts grilling for employees during good weather, a video gaming society and family gatherings at football games to boost team spirit.

13. Lee Distributors City: Summerville Employees: 156 Industry: Distribution

hjleedistributors.com

Lee Distributors joined Reyes Beer Division in 2006 and operates from two warehouses in Summerville and Ridgeland. Lee’s No. 1 asset is its people. Lee takes pride in the culture and environment they provide for their employees so they, in turn, take pride in their work. Lee’s commitment to their people is reflected in their recognition as a Best Place to Work in South Carolina.

14. Koops Inc.

City: Greenville Employees: 221 Industry: Manufacturing

www.koops.com

Koops works with manufacturers to improve their machine automation and material handling systems and processes. Koops is committed to individual growth and career opportunities, and to development of people pursuing their strengths. The result is an awesome team and culture to work in, and a work environment that’s easy to enjoy. The cornhole, ladder toss and KanJam tournaments and homemade salsa contests add zest to a happy workplace.

15. Find Great People City: Greenville Employees: 78 Industry: Recruiting

www.fgp.com

Find Great People is a nationally recognized talent acquisition and human resources consulting firm that recognizes it takes great people to find great people.

FGP treats its employees to themed meals and the FGP Olympics, and during the recent pandemic lockdown, sent care packages to every employee. Offering a flexible workplace, commitment to diversity and fun perks like bowling night and Starbucks treats, FGP makes sure every employee feels appreciated.

16. First Reliance Bank City: Florence Employees: 177 Industry: Banking

www.firstreliance.com

First Reliance is a community bank that lives its core values, which are built around customers. The bank is committed to supporting its staff and even held a graduation ceremony in its lobby for 11 associates’ children who graduated in 2020 during the pandemic lockdown. A family-friendly culture permeates the company with Christmas raffles, Football Fridays, recognition for veterans and a host of benefits, including discounts on financial instruments like mortgages and car loans.

17. Central Electric Power Cooperative Inc. City: Columbia Employees: 51 Industry: Electric Utilities

www.cepci.com

Central Electric Power Cooperative Inc. is a generation and transmission electric cooperative owned by the South Carolina’s 20 distribution electric cooperatives. It offers employees a remarkable benefits package that includes a defined benefit pension plan and a 401k, AAA membership and health club reimbursements, in-house classes on financial wellness, healthy living, and professional skills development. Employees love working in a collegial, team-oriented environment with a commitment to member service, rather than profit.

18. CF Evans Construction www.cfevans.com

CF Evans is a third-generation, family-owned construction management company recognized as a Best Place to Work for 12 years in a row and winner of the 2017 Multifamily Builder of the Year by the National Association of Homebuilders. Proud of its family-first culture, the company’s 2,000 training programs foster employee growth and its annual career path discussions create a roadmap to employees to fulfill their goals.

19. Mashburn Construction City: Mount Pleasant Employees: 89 Industry: Construction

www.mashburnconstruction.com

Mashburn Construction, a statewide general contractor, represents a company of resilience, familyoriented culture and dedication to its employees and clients. With a full-time wellness coordinator and healthy lunch and learns, the company has reached the American Heart Association Workplace Health Achievement Gold Level each of the last two years. The open-door management policy and team atmosphere are supplemented by fun team events like axe throwing, go-cart riding and bowling.

25. Spero Financial Federal

“We are a family. We say Credit Union City: Greenville this every year but we fight 158 fiercely to maintain that sense Employees: Industry: Banking of family and that culture www.spero.financial that makes us a best place to Spero Financial was chartered in 1935 as a not-forwork. The company trusts us profit financial cooperative with one mission: to improve financial lives. Twice named the state’s best and really listens to us.” credit union by Forbes, its team of mission-driven — CF Evans Construction

22. Infinity Marketing

26. Softdocs

Infinity Marketing is a full-service, fully integrated advertising agency passionately focused on providing clients with innovative ideas and marketing solutions.

Infinity believes in the power of relationships and treating each other fairly and with respect. The work environment is professional, but flexible, and the culture is open and transparent. Employees love the constant professional development, team-building and fun celebrations around holidays.

www.softdocs.com

20. Mount Pleasant Waterworks

23. The Brandon Agency

www.mountpleasantwaterworks.com

www.thebrandonagency.com

City: Mount Pleasant Employees: 136 Industry: Water and Wastewater Utility

Cities: Charleston, Myrtle Beach Employees: 66 Industry: Marketing

Mount Pleasant Waterworks (MPW) is a public utility that provides water and wastewater service to the Town of Mount Pleasant. A six-time Best Places to Work SC awardee, MPW hosts employee appreciation events with cash prizes such as Food Truck Fridays and surprise ice cream socials. MPW pays 99% of all health insurance costs, while also offering competitive salaries. The average employee tenure is 14 years and turnover is less than 1%.

The Brandon Agency is a marketing firm that ignites growth and builds brands with compelling results.

A company of business minds and creative hearts, Brandon is committed to providing a fun, challenging and rewarding work environment that attracts, develops and retains the very best people. A petfriendly company where the “fun committee” rules supreme, and safe space discussions allow any employee to say what they feel without judgment.

21. LimRic Plumbing Heating & Air

24. Carolina Trust Federal Credit Union

City: Charleston Employees: 70 Industry: Mechanical Services

www.limric.com

City: Myrtle Beach Employees: 86 Industry: Banking

www.carolinatrust.org

A four-time Best Place to Work SC, Carolina Trust prides itself on its mission of owners serving owners and putting people over profits. Carolina Trust promotes from within whenever possible and supports employees in their career aspirations. Any day at the credit union might be a special day for employees with fun-themed events, regular lunches with the CEO, free Coastal Carolina fair tickets and periodic gift bags.

City: Columbia Employees: 104 Industry: Technology Softdocs is the only education-focused provider of enterprise content management, e-forms and workflow solutions. The company offers telecommuting options and flexible scheduling and regularly recognizes employees for their accomplishments and encourages open doors so that everyone shares a clear vision for the future. Softdocs regularly contributes to charitable causes that are championed by employees and sponsors Food Truck Fridays, weekly Bible study with free pizza and employee appreciation lunches, dinners and activities.

27. CUI

City: Simpsonville Employees: 110 Industry: Distribution

www.cuiheat.com

CUI has grown to one of the largest independent distributors of heating and gas products in America by making employees its top priority. Taking its cue from an annual employee survey, management works to ensure employees know that their family and health come first. A flexible family-owned company that eschews the sterile corporate environment, CUI employees enjoy a team atmosphere and an annual Dollywood trip.

28. JEAR Logistics City: Mount Pleasant Employees: 122 Industry: Transportation

www.jearlogistics.com

JEAR provides full and less-than truckload services throughout the U.S. and Canada. The company encourages staff to #findyourimpact in any manner that matters to them. Employees may be found playing ping pong or cornhole, or throwing a football around, making JEAR a Best Place to Work SC for the seventh straight year.

www.scbizmag.com

LimRic takes great pride in cultivating a fun, familyoriented environment where employees love their jobs, and are provided with every opportunity to learn and further their career. Open and timely communication builds transparency and trust throughout the organization. A family company that recognizes aboveand-beyond dedication, it sends flowers to employees’ homes and organizes team building activities like paintball, boat trips and team breakfasts.

professionals come to work each day committed to enhancing the financial lives of the members. Their family-centric culture encourages each team member to bring their entire, authentic self to work each day and celebrates the unity that can be found in diversity.

City: Greenville Employees: 76 Industry: Marketing

www.infinitymkt.com

BEST PLACES TO WORK

City: Orangeburg Employees: 97 Industry: Construction

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BEST PLACES TO WORK

SMALL COMPANIES

The companies are listed by ranking; this listing includes companies with 15-49 U.S. employees.

1. Scott and Co. LLC City: Columbia Employees: 19 Industry: Accounting

www.scottandco.com

Scott and Co., the 2021 No. 1 Best Place to Work SC among small businesses, provides extraordinary tax, audit, accounting and consulting services. The company believes its people come first and places no limitations on where they can do their work. A Best Places to Work SC honoree nine years running, the firm promotes a healthy work/life balance, including flexible scheduling around core business hours, halfday Fridays in the summer and lunch-hour massages. There are many bonus opportunities for going above and beyond and for bringing in new clients. Throughout the year, the firm provides meals, snacks and beverages; cultivates talent; supports professional development; and guides staff through the firm’s mentoring and training programs. Scott and Co. believes happy employees translate to happy clients.

2. HudsonMann Inc.

4. Parish & Partners LLC

6. Custom Recycling LLC

www.hudsonmann.com

www.parrishandpartners.com

customrecyclingsc.com

City: Mount Pleasant Employees: 26 Industry: Consulting

For 28 years, HudsonMann has partnered with federal contractors and subcontractors to provide reliable affirmative action programs. The company has been growing on a foundation of dedication to its work, customers and team. Providing strong benefits, a great work/life balance and a welcoming family-oriented culture has kept turnover low and put HudsonMann on the Best Places to Work SC list five years running.

3. THS Constructors Inc.

www.scbizmag.com

Parrish & Partners is a civil engineering firm that consults on transportation infrastructure projects. The firm provides a professional work environment that has a friendly, family culture. It ensures employees have what they need to do their best work and grow professionally, while recognizing they have families and a life away from work. P&P provides employees with free snacks, Amazon gift cards and a popular fantasy football competition.

City: Greenville Employees: 28 Industry: Construction

5. Cognito Forms

THS Constructors provides design-build, design-bidbuild, and construction management services to clients in a wide variety of markets. The company provides a welcoming environment for employees that continually encourages open communication, collaboration and transparency. The espresso bar with barista, fantasy football competition and weekly happy hours complement a workplace focused on blameless problem solving and career growth opportunities.

www.cognitoforms.com

www.thsconstructors.com

36

City: Columbia Employees: 48 Industry: Engineering

City: Columbia Employees: 29 Industry: Technology

Cognito Forms provides small to mid-size organizations with a form-building platform to automate business processes and conduct business online. The company creates an environment where team members feel ownership of and accountability for their work, solving problems collaboratively. Team members work at versatile sit/stand desks in open spaces with natural light and living plants. Team building includes themed breakfasts, a conference/ping-pong table and more.

City: York Employees: 21 Industry: Metal Recycling

Custom Recycling LLC is a metal recycling company that provides its employees with opportunities to grow, support their families and be involved in the community.

The company offers generous pay and benefits and rewards 10-year employees with an all-expenses-paid trip. With flexible scheduling, annual bonuses and copious PTO, employees enjoy work/life balance.

7. The Brand Leader City: Greenville Employees: 15 Industry: Marketing

thebrandleader.com

A branding agency focused on outdoor active lifestyle, financial, and tech, The Brand Leader puts its employees first — and always. From unlimited vacation to profitsharing via annual bonuses, it’s not merely work-life balance that attracts and keeps employees at this fast-growing international firm. No-meeting Mondays, Waffle Wednesdays, office bikes and showers, and beer and wine in the office make The Brand Leader a special place to work.

8. Kopis

www.kopisusa.com

Kopis leverages technology to make business life better through custom software, product development, and tech solutions. The perfect storm of drive and flexibility, talent and personality, creativity and processes pushes the Kopis team to do the best work of their lives, serve customers well, and have fun doing it. The always-filled keg-erator in the kitchen is an added touch.

9. Palmetto Technology Group City: Greenville Employees: 30 Industry: Technology

www.goptg.com

PTG helps companies of every size increase security, boost productivity, streamline business processes, and protect against downtime and lost data. Staff serve each other and each customer by 1) Engaging with Heart, 2) Thinking Forward, and 3) Doing it Right, leading to bestin-class employee and customer retention. A seven-time Best Places to Work SC honoree, PTG offers unlimited PTO and six weeks paid maternity/paternity leave.

10. SIOS Technology Corp.

City: Columbia Employees: 42 Industry: Technology

www.us.sios.com

SIOS Technology Corp. makes software solutions that provide IT resilience for critical applications that businesses depend on. SIOS provides a global company in a small-company environment with a diverse workforce. Employees are provided opportunities to innovate and dream as well as the freedom to fail forward and learn as they go. Flexible work rules and an open kitchen, fully stocked with snacks and drinks, contribute to the culture of success.

11. SCRA - SC Research Authority City: Columbia Employees: 34 Industry: Research

www.scra.org

A public, non-profit corporation, SCRA fuels South Carolina’s innovation economy by accelerating technology-enabled growth in research, academia, entrepreneurship and industry. Named a Best Place to Work for the ninth year in a row, SCRA believes that employee satisfaction leads to client satisfaction – the ultimate driver of long-term success.

City: Greenville Employees: 23 Industry: Marketing

fuelforbrands.com

Fuel is a marketing agency that blends the talents of experts to create excellent branding and marketing campaigns in a supportive, exciting and inspiring

13. Rhythmlink International LLC

Connectivity Point Design & Installation provides commercial technology solutions for audio-visual equipment, security systems and networking installation services. The family-owned company prides itself on its family-first rule, offering flexibility to employees in special situations. With flexible schedules and competitive pay and benefits – and free massages! – Connectivity Point believes employees are experts in their field and each one is an integral part of the company.

City: Columbia Employees: 49 Industry: Manufacturing

www.rhythmlink.com

Rhythmlink designs, manufactures and distributes medical devices and provides custom packaging and products, private labeling and contract manufacturing. This is Rhythmlink’s 10th consecutive visit to the Best Places to Work SC list, thanks to a culture that makes customers and employees feel valued and heard, responding to employee surveys with action. The company even pays for employees’ identity theft protection.

14. Total Beverage Solution City: Mount Pleasant Employees: 42 Industry: Wholesale

www.totalbeveragesolution.com

Total Beverage Solution, a full-service importer and supplier of beer, wine, spirits and ciders, is among the Best Places to Work SC for the fourth consecutive year.

TBS’ inclusion on the list is a result of understanding the importance of work-life balance, allowing generous time off or flexible working hours as needed, not to mention fully funded supplier immersion trips for employees to locations like New Zealand, Italy and Germany.

15. Crawford Strategy City: Greenville Employees: 30 Industry: Advertising

www.crawfordstrategy.com

Crawford Strategy is a full-service marketing agency in Greenville that loves to create custom marketing solutions to help brands grow. Once the right people reflecting the team’s five core principles are in place, they are supported with professional development, weekly happy hours and year-end bonuses. A culture committee hosts activities and celebrations, and ensures that all 30 hungry, humble and smart people spend their days in a best place to work.

16. Rhodes Graduation Services Inc. City: Summerton Employees: 32 Industry: Graduation Supplies

www.rhodesgraduation.com

Rhodes is the largest Jostens representative in the U.S., providing rings and graduation supplies to more than 35,000 students annually. Rhodes treats customers and employees like family. As a family-owned, customercentered organization it is focused on developing its people and making sure that they realize their fullest potential.

City: Columbia Employees: 17 Industry: Telecommunications

www.connectivitypoint.com

18. Quality Business Solutions City: Travelers Rest Employees: 35 Industry: Technology

www.qualitybsolutions.net

Quality Business Solutions provides comprehensive managed IT & cybersecurity services. Located on a 200-acre horse farm in Travelers Rest, QBS offers a beautiful and casual work environment. Employees live by the company motto, “Going above and beyond in the name of true partnership.” For a break, staff can hang out with the horses and the company cat and dog, enjoy the coffee bar with free snacks or take advantage of free tickets to local sports teams.

19. AMBAC International Corp.

City: Elgin Employees: 37 Industry: Manufacturing

www.ambacinternational.com

Ambac is an innovative provider of critical power and fluid components. As employee-owners, employees are the foundation of the company, with several generations making AMBAC their choice of work.

As owners, employees are regularly educated on company goals and financials. The family-friendly atmosphere is highlighted by weekly spirit days, cornhole, food trucks and barbecues when goals are met.

20. Ringo Fire City: Greenville Employees: 42 Industry: Marketing

www.ringofire.com

RingoFire is a rapidly growing creative agency open to diverse hires, while offering a great balance of culture and business. The organization has a “put team members first” mentality, emphasizing growth both personally and professionally. The agency is a place where free meals and live music appear frequently for staff. Despite doubling in size during the pandemic, the company was able to maintain the culture that it was built on, remaining flexible and supportive.

www.scbizmag.com

12. Fuel

17. Connectivity Point Design & Installation BEST PLACES TO WORK

City: Greenville Employees: 49 Industry: Technology

work culture. The team is scrappy, passionate, all-in, respectful of each other and of clients, and basically obsessed with clients’ success and satisfaction. A social committee and a work/life balance committee keep things light, and the free week off at the end of the year keeps everyone fresh.

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S.C. DELIVERS

Ports, Logistics & Distribution

Consumer interest in boats has spiked during the coronavirus pandemic, but boat makers and dealers are struggling to meet that demand amid supply chain shortages and delivery delays. (Photo/Teri Errico Griffis)

BOAT SALES SURGE IN S.C. AS SHORTAGES DELAY DELIVERIES

By Teri Errico Griffis, tgriffis@scbiznews.com

www.scbizmag.com

W 38

ith the pandemic forcing people to find isolating, outdoor activities, boat sales have skyrocketed over the last year across South Carolina.

Sportsman Boats in Summerville is producing nearly 400% more units compared to pre-pandemic levels, and the manufacturer is still struggling to keep up with soaring demand.

“With COVID, everyone could safely be on the water, be with their family, be outside,” said Katie Barrow, the company’s marketing coordinator. “Boat sales exploded …

It’s been shocking.”

Just a few years ago, the company could complete two boats a day and keep up with orders. Now they’re up to eight, and sales haven’t stopped.

The accelerated interest in outdoor activities combined with

labor and supply chain shortages and shipping delays over the last year have pushed South Carolina’s $5 billion boating industry to its brink. Manufacturers can’t keep up with staggering spikes in demand, and companies have even begun trading supplies with one another to help get product out the door.

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— a critical element to building boats.

Barrow said Sportsman, which manufactures center-console family fishing boats, called competing companies to trade excess resin for foam, engines and other urgently needed items.

“Any item on a boat, there’s been a shortage of this year,” she said.

Falcon Bass Boats in Newberry, even with a niche market as a two-seater fishing boat, has shared a similar experience.

“The reality is the boat industry, we’re good people. We like each other, we get along with each other,” said Falcon’s director of marketing Lisa Waller. “So yes, we make those phone calls to share the things that we have in order to help everyone to get boats out the door.”

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Uncharted waters

40

Like every other industry, Sportsman and Falcon had no idea what to expect when the country shut down in March. Both companies kept on employees with pay while they waited, and Sportsman has since been desperately hiring to keep up.

Falcon Bass Boats recorded all-time high sales for most of the pandemic. While completed boats have trended slightly downward recently with supply chain issues, Waller said sales are still there, and the company’s experiencing record orders.

“Supply chain issues have been huge, huge barriers and disruptions for us,” Waller said. “If we had every access to everything we needed when we needed it, we would definitely be far, far ahead of where we were last year.”

On average, a Falcon boat takes nine days to build from start to finish, with the company sending five to six out the door a week. But time and again, near-complete boats have been sitting, waiting for UPS and FedEx to deliver final pieces, she said.

Lee Falls, a sales professional at Palmetto Boat Sales in Charleston, said in his 20 years in the business, he’s never seen a demand for boats this high with people coming in every single day ready to buy something.

Tim Long, general manager of Long’s Marine Center, is seeing the same activity in Anderson.

“Anything having to do with the outdoors, there’s a high demand for it now,” Long said.

“It’s not just boats. Trucks, RVs, motorcycles, jet skis, ATV, everything, anything that’s got to do with outside, everybody’s in short supply of.”

A long wait Prior to March 2020, new boat orders took between eight and 12 weeks to fulfill, Falls said, but he feels six months is a more reasonable timeframe these days. Looking ahead, if people want to purchase a boat for next spring, he and Long suggest placing orders now.

“Right now, if you ordered a boat, if it was a sold boat, it would get here in late November, early December,” Long said.

“Motors are anywhere from four months to a year depending on the brand and horsepower you’re looking at. Even boat trailers are two months out.”

Waitlists are then growing longer and longer each day with a shortage of engines from Japan, a shortage of containers coming from Southeast Asia, a shortage of labor to unload ships in California, Oregon, Washington, and a shortage of truck drivers, Falls said.

Already, Sportsman and Falcon products are spoken for as soon as they hit the dealership, if not sooner.

In typical times, every boat the companies plan to manufacture is claimed as a slot for a dealer to sell at a later point. In these demanding times, Barrow and Waller said slots have been bought before the boat is even built, making almost every product a custom order right now.

Waller recently posted an unfinished Falcon boat on Instagram and received dozens of dings that day asking if the vessel was available for purchase and where.

“The boat was in production and hadn’t even left Falcon, and already people were clamoring for it,” she said.

Barrow foresees this trend continuing for the next year at least.

The National Marine Manufacturers Association reports the Palmetto State already has more than half a million registered boats and ranks seventh in the U.S. in boat ownership, with one in 10 South Carolinians owning a boat.

“I think an interesting part of COVID was people realizing what’s important to them, so because our boats are built for families, that trend is going to stay strong,” Barrow said.

The family fishing boat manufacturer opened in 2011, sold its first boat in 2012 and established its Summerville manufacturing

facility in 2013.

The company has since grown to 350 employees, with 300 workers in the warehouse and more still needed.

Owner Tommy Hancock, one of the original founders of Sea Pro Boats Inc., created a business model to build everything possible in-house, including pouring molds and upholstering seats. Sportsman then brings in items like mirrors, grab bars, Yamaha engines and electronics.

The boat manufacturer’s own trucks and employees deliver the boats to more than 50 dealers up and down the East Coast, in Texas, Maine, Michigan and even Australia — all of which are also struggling with low inventory.

Long said that there are only four boats left on his lot, and the workforce shortage on the manufacturing level is only making the boat supply smaller.

With the record sales and people using their boats more in 2020 and 2021 than they had in years, he added, there’s an increase in service work that needs to be done — and less crew to do the work.

“A lot of it has to do with the stimulus checks, where people could just sit at home and make more money, as much as they could working. That’s the big issue,” Long said.

As a member of the S.C. Boating & Fishing Alliance, Waller is heading up the workforce development sector and said the labor shortage is a huge focus. Not only is the challenge in finding workers, but in finding skilled workers who can use small tools, have worked with lamination or resin, or have other transferrable skills.

Barrow sees the ability to hire as an opportunity for Sportsman, when so many other companies have had to lay off employees. She, too, shifted into Sportsman mid-pandemic, coming from the education sector with a welding background.

“It was just very scary to watch an uncertain time where people worried they might get laid off, they might not find another job,” she said. “And then for this company to say ‘We’re hiring. Please come apply here,’ it was really neat. I mean, it saved me. It’s just such an opportunity to be a company who is able to offer more jobs for the Charleston area.”

Molly Hulsey contributed to this report. Reach Teri Errico Griffis at 843-849-3144.

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ADUSA’s largest distribution center opens in Mauldin

By Molly Hulsey

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

ADUSA manages Ahold Delhaize e-commerce and traditional distribution centers expected to grow to 27 in 2023. (Photo/Provided)

A new supply chain network is establishing its territory in the Upstate as its customer Food Lion takes over Bi-Lo stores scattered across the region.

ADUSA Supply Chain sent out its first shipments from a new Mauldin campus July 17 after acquiring the center from C&S Wholesale Grocers — Bi-Lo’s former sup-

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plier — in May. Southeastern Grocers struck the deal to sell the distribution center at the same time they agreed to sell 62 stores — mostly Bi-Lo stores — to Food Lion.

According to a news release, the facility is now one of the largest distribution centers in the company’s network. Once fully operational, the Mauldin site will fulfill grocery, fresh, frozen, health and beauty care orders for nearly 200 grocery stores. Dairy, fresh and frozen products are the first to begin shipping from the site.

ADUSA Supply Chain is a family of supply chain companies that serves grocery brands of Ahold Delhaize USA including Food Lion, Giant Food, The Giant Co., Hannaford and Stop & Shop.

“The opening of the Mauldin distribution campus is another important step forward in our work to transform the ADUSA supply chain network, deepening our distribution reach into the Southeast,” Chris Lewis, president of ADUSA Supply Chain, said in the release. “Continuing to expand the network infrastructure is core to our ability to serve brands like Food Lion that trust us to always deliver so they can be there for their customers with fresh, in-stock products whenever, wherever, however they want to shop.”

In Mauldin and across 17 other network locations, the supply chain network continues to actively hire drivers, selectors, forklift operators, facility maintenance personnel and sanitation personnel to support its growth.

Selectors, sanitation personnel, forklift drivers and maintenance personnel will be employees of ADUSA Distribution, the distribution company of Ahold Delhaize USA. Truck drivers will be employees of ADUSA Transportation, the transportation company of Ahold Delhaize USA, according to the release.

Since May, more than 250 associates have been hired and onboarded at the campus, which will ultimately employ more than 800 in the Upstate. The 1.1 million-squarefoot campus consists of nine buildings and a training and conference center.

By Molly Hulsey

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

Malouf announced the purchase of the 1.2 million-square-foot warehouse in June. (Photo/ Provided)

www.scbizmag.com

As Laurens County ushers in new investment and industry, the county’s economic development group seeks to attract and retain a healthy workforce through what the organization calls “vibrant, resilient and livable communities.”

The most recent economic development announcement in the area, Malouf Companies’ $47.2 million investment toward a new warehousing and distribution center at 101 Michelin Drive in Laurens, is expected to create 240 jobs in the area, according to a news release.

Site preparation and building improvements, aided through a $200,000 Rural Infrastructure Fund grant from the state, is slated to reach completion this year before a Nov. 30 opening date.

“We are thrilled to have Malouf locate in Laurens County,” Laurens County Council Chair Brown Patterson said in the news release. “They will be a great addition to our corporate community. Laurens County continues to create good jobs and capital investment in manufacturing and distribution operations, and we are excited about the opportunities that Malouf will provide for our citizens.”

The company warehouses and distributes home furnishing and other consumer products, while also providing technology, retail and logistics services throughout the United States. Ryan Egbert, the company’s national distribution director, said in the release the S.C. facility will offer more space under one roof than its existing North Carolina location as the company fields the market’s intensified demand for consumer goods — one positive impact of the pandemic economy.

“This space will simplify our supply chain process by allowing us to consolidate all of our specialty retail products in one place for East Coast fulfillment,” Egbert said in the release. “We are excited to be in Laurens and hope to impact the community in a positive way as we have done at our other locations.”

One of those impacts is heightened aware-

ness of the need for community “livability” as counties and cities compete to attract and retain a healthy industrial workforce.

“Quality of life has quickly become a priority in the world of economic development and site selection over the past couple of years, and this will continue to strengthen Laurens County’s competitiveness,” Whitney Lagrange, Laurens County Development Corp. director of marketing, said in the release.

S.C. DELIVERS

Laurens County selected for new industry, development project

43

www.scbizmag.com

1,000 WORDS

44

A whitelip snail is one of many interesting sights along the Mountain Bridge Passage Trail in the Ashmore Heritage Preserve.

Located in northern Greenville County, the preserve encompasses 1,125 acres and is part of the S.C. Trails program. (Photo/Kim McManus)

Our “Coffee With…” page features an Upstate business executive sharing insights about their business, the industry in which they work and the community in which they live. Where’s the coffee, you ask? Well, that occurs in an accompanying video. We sit down with the executive – over coffee – to see what else is on their mind. children, grandchildren, get married, or other life events occur that people may not think about.

Lesson 3: Be willing to look at things differently and understand how changes in market conditions impact you in the long haul.

FOR INVESTORS WHO WANT TO RECONSIDER THEIR RISK TOLERANCE OR RISK EXPOSURE IN 2021, WHAT STEPS SHOULD THEY TAKE? To revisit your plan, make sure you’re still comfortable with the asset allocations that are in your portfolio. Then make sure you are communicating with your advisor about your plans. You want planning to be an ongoing, thriving engagement with your advisor.

HOW CAN AN INVESTOR’S LONG-TERM GOALS IMPACT THE STRUCTURE OF THEIR PORTFOLIO? Today, we’re “having coffee” with Claude C. Robinson®, Senior Vice President and Wealth Advisor at Regions Private Wealth Management.

You can check out Claude’s video on GSA Business Report’s YouTube channel or on one of our two e-newsletters, Morning Blend or GSA Daily (Monday – Friday).

THE PANDEMIC BROUGHT MARKETS TO A HALT IN MARCH 2020, BUT THE RECOVERY PERIOD HAS BROUGHT MANY SECTORS TO NEW HEIGHTS BY THE END OF THE YEAR. ARE THERE LESSONS THERE FOR INVESTORS ABOUT “STAYING THE COURSE?” Lesson 1: If you’re comfortable with your allocations and the asset classes you hold for the long term, then stay the course and stay invested.

Lesson 2: Estate planning is really key to giving investors a peace of mind. Revisiting that plan again is so important, especially as you have

Investments, Annuities, and Insurance Products Are Not FDIC Insured Are Not Bank Guaranteed May Lose Value Are Not Deposits Are Not Insured by Any Federal Government Agency Are Not a Condition of Any Banking Activity

By looking at the long term portfolio build, you can determine income sources in the long term— looking for stability and managing risk.

SHOULD INVESTORS REVISIT THEIR GOALS IN 2021 BASED ON THE 2020 VOLATILITY? If you haven’t revisited your goals talked with your advisor, or heard from your advisor, now might be a good time to do that. Looking at markets holistically, rather than what we think or expect, really can prevent us from making drastic changes until we know what the implications are.

WHAT CONCERNS SHOULD INVESTORS WHO ARE NEARING RETIREMENT CONSIDER IN 2021?

First, look at how you need to generate additional income, and that relates to how your asset allocations are set. Are you getting some additional revenue from the equity side of the portfolio? Second, assess both your income and

asset allocation from a total return standpoint, not just what the market is doing today.

THERE IS A NEW PRESIDENTIAL ADMINISTRATION IN POWER. WHAT MIGHT THEIR PROPOSED POLICIES MEAN FOR CLIENT PORTFOLIOS AND INVESTMENT STRATEGIES? Like any new presidency, there are going to be some policy changes. Talk with your advisor about anything you have questions about or don’t understand. Our guidance is to wait and see what actually comes into play in terms of policy changes, and at that time, we can make appropriate changes to individual portfolios and planning.

DUE TO ECONOMIC UNCERTAINTIES, THE STOCK MARKET CONTINUES TO REMAIN VOLATILE. WHAT ARE YOU TELLING YOUR CLIENTS ABOUT THESE MIXED MESSAGES? In terms of financial related activities,, we really look for long term strategic planning. On the short term, there was a lot of market volatility of course.

The S&P was really down and times like these often present temptations to react out of fear or anxiety. However, the worst times to be making decisions are from an emotional standpoint. This is where having a good long term strategic wealth management plan comes into play.

WHEN SHOULD ONE CONSIDER A PRIVATE WEALTH ADVISOR, AND WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO GET STARTED? If you’re thinking about your financial future and how you achieve success for both you and your family then it’s time to engage in conversations. We are here to help.

Learn more at regions.com/WealthSC

Regions Bank, member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender. This information is general educational or marketing in nature and is not intended to be accounting, legal, tax, investment or financial advice. Statements of individuals are their own—not Regions’. Consult an appropriate professional concerning your specific situation.

Only bank products are FDIC insured.

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