HARTSVILLE, SC (WBTW) – Big changes are heading to Hartsville after the city received a $500,000 grant with an additional $1.5M loan from the Byerly Foundation. In total, the city received $2M grant/loan for redevelopment.
City Manager Natalie Zeigler says under the agreement, the city plans to bring in at least $10M in private investors.
The goal of the revitalization project is to attract more people to the area with new features including additional restaurants, retail stores, mixed-use public space, and a canal.
City leaders say they are also working on a major housing project in response to a study that revealed the immediate need for more accommodations. The City is planning to build an apartment complex with at least 130 units between 4th and 6th streets. It aims to cater to young professionals in the area who are forced to commute from other cities such as Florence every day due to a lack of housing to Hartsville.
“We hear all of the time ‘we cannot find a place to live’ so they have to live thirty minutes away. And once we lose them to a different town, we might lose them when they go to buy their house,” said Zeigler. “We want to keep them here when they get to here. This is where they choose to live and then they buy a house, raise a family, this becomes their home.”
Murphy Monk, the Communications Coordinator for Hartsville Young Professionals, says adding young professional housing to the city could benefit the entire area and prove to visitors that Hartsville is a thriving, up-and-coming city.
“I think it just does a lot for the town as a whole. It lets people know Hartsville has a lot going on. Hartsville’s not going anywhere. Our downtown is only getting more and more beautiful every day,” said Murphy.
Officials plan to present the housing study to developers soon.
