‘Watch the south side’: Why this new development could preview the future of Rock Hill
Many of Rock Hill’s most prominent public figures gathered in the heat Thursday morning, under a tent in front of a building that hasn’t been much of anything for a long time.
“What you see today will not be what you see in a few months,” said property owner and developer Vincent James, with Impact Change. “What you see in a few months will not be what you see in a few years. Now we can finally say that change is happening.”
James, of Charlotte, intends to transform property where a dilapidated shopping center sits at the juncture of Heckle Boulevard, Saluda Street and Albright Road. There’s a demolition night planned later this summer the community can attend. Then, Three Points of South End will build up not only new structures, but a community.
“Today we come here to celebrate this place because it’s been a dead zone in the City of Rock Hill,” said city Councilman Perry Sutton. “And today we celebrate the resurrection of what we’re now calling Three Points.”
Sutton grew up down the street from the site and remembers it as a Winn-Dixie. He was involved in a bad wreck nearby while still in high school. For many newer to Rock Hill, the Three Points site may not bring memories of an active, thriving place.
“You don’t have to be from this area to know what this area looks like in any city,” said Dawn Johnson, board chair with Rock Hill Economic Development Corporation and founding member with the Black Economic Leadership League of Rock Hill.
Johnson said James wasn’t deterred despite four years of various plans for the city, working through city approvals and challenges common to large-scale redevelopment. Plus challenges unique to a place and time, from the blighted nature of the property to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Johnson said the Three Points site can be an extension of the type of new economic life seen in the city with Knowledge Park in the downtown area. She also sees in James someone as interested in growing the community as he is a portfolio.
“We knew that everything he’s doing was not just about developing buildings or building development, but it was about building people,” Johnson said.
The new development will have an almost 20,000-square-foot anchor grocery store. Another building will house the BELL Incubator for Economic and Social Impact. That two-story building will have 10,000 square feet on the ground level, almost 5,800 square feet on the upper one and an almost 2,000-square-foot roof terrace.
Two outparcel buildings will have 3,200 square feet each. Plans mentioned Thursday are for restaurants -- one a casual dining restaurant, the other fast food.
The partnership with Black Economic Leadership League and a grocery store are similar to prior iterations James had for the property. A grocery store is key for people on the south side to have access to fresh food. The BELL center is all about education and attainment.
“The focus will be workforce housing, development and education, business and innovation, and leadership development and training,” James said.
James believes the south side of Rock Hill is an area with a bright future, if given the opportunity. The Three Points site in particular is one that has come to be known for crime and trucks in search of a place to park overnight, James said.
“All nestled within a community that’s crying out, hungering for change and for growth,” he said.
James wants to create something catalytic for the south side. Something that ties into The Clinton ConNEXTion, which aims for overall economic and social growth on the south side of Rock Hill.
Mayor John Gettys called Thursday’s gathering the end of the beginning. Four years of planning led to where James is now, which in turn is likely to spur growth beyond the Three Points property.
“We have a private developer partnering with the City of Rock Hill to make things better tomorrow than they’ve been for many, many days in the past,” Gettys said.
Gettys sees in Three Points a model others can follow.
“Rock Hill will always partner with people that have the people’s interest, rather than a spreadsheet, at heart for where we’re going,” Gettys said.
Sutton echoed what many civic leaders said Thursday, that Three Points could be the start of what an area of Rock Hill needs. A start that will lead to much more.
“Watch the south side of Rock Hill,” Sutton said. “Watch the Saluda corridor. Watch Ward 5 and watch the City of Rock Hill, because we’re getting ready to take off.”
This story was originally published June 10, 2022 at 7:59 AM with the headline "‘Watch the south side’: Why this new development could preview the future of Rock Hill."
