ChartSpan has been and continues to be a huge success story here in Greenville so don’t let the headline fool you. The company has said that it will be downsizing it’s office space needs from the current 100,000 SF at N. Main and Washington in downtown Greenville to a new location that will be about 10,000 SF. The new space will be mostly for executives according to the ChartSpan article in the Greenville News.
The company noted that they had been looking at an option to provide for more flexible and home-based work options for their employees 6 months prior to Covid-19. But given the lock downs and challenges opening offices, they did a survey of their employees and 82% wanted to continue to work at home according to the company.
According to ChartSpan’s website, they are “the largest chronic care management (CCM) service provider in the U.S. We provide a comprehensive set of care services for Medicare beneficiaries across the country. By providing access to care services specifically designed for chronically ill patients, our team of seasoned clinical experts are able to help patients live fuller and healthier lives while also reducing their medical costs.” The company continues to do extremely well. Here’s the link to the latest news about ChartSpan.
It will be interesting to watch the transition back to opening offices not only in the Greenville area but all across the country. I have heard of other firms doing similar things. It would seem that we might see a substantial reduction in the demand for Class A office space but time will tell. Of course the landlords and brokers involved in Class A are pretty savvy so we’ll have to watch what they do and if we see much of a change in price, terms and incentives.
High speed rail may be coming through the Upstate in the next decade and developers and government officials look for ways to develop this connection.
We haven’t seen the cost-benefit analysis on what appears to be anywhere from about $5 billion investment to $15-$20 billion investment. High speed rail has run in to many challenges in California where it has been underway for years. Perhaps it can be done here in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina faster and better…only time will tell. Here’s the official page from the Georgia Department of Transportation: Atlanta to Charlotte: Passenger Rail Corridor Investment Plan along with the US Dept of Transportation.
Lots of stories have been published recently. Here are just a few:
Charlotte Observer: High-speed rail could link Charlotte to Atlanta in 2 hours. Have your say next week.
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Atlanta-to-Charlotte high speed rail: Beneficial or boondoggle?
Curbed Atlanta: What to know about the Atlanta-Charlotte high speed rail proposal
FoxCarolina: Open house showcases possible high-speed rail line connecting Atlanta and Charlotte; would run through Upstate
Charlotte Five: Charlotte to Atlanta in 2 Hours
What do you think? Should we spend what appears to be somewhere between $5 billion and $15 billion for this project?
The City of Greenville Planning Commission will be reviewing the plans for the proposed billion dollar redevelopment plan for County Square. There are many neighbors who have expressed concerns given the rezoning request by the developers. Some of the concern is the number of stories of the buildings that may be allowed to be built.
Here’s the link to the agenda for today’s City of Greenville Planning Commission meeting. Here is the 57 page support document for the proposed development that was included in the planning commission’s agenda.
Greenville County and the developers of the billion redevelopment plan called County Square are still negotiating with the City of Greenville. While there are still lots of details to hammer out, no doubt all of those will get agreed upon with the possible exception of the City of Greenville’s demand that 10% of the housing be designated at “affordable housing.” The Greenville News has an excellent in-depth article today regarding the County Square project. In addition, there is a follow up story with concerns that neighbors have regarding the redevelopment of their neighborhoods.
This seems like a big reach by the city. Why is it this city councils all across the country feel they can interfere with projects like this and make a claim to get affordable housing. If the city wants affordable housing then collect whatever fee you think is necessary to fund your efforts and go build it elsewhere.
There are lots of places in Greenville to build affordable housing for people that the city can then manage. The developers should ask the city how much money are they looking for and pay them off.