Downtown Mixed-Use Village Envisioned As City's New Centerpiece

"City leaders contend they have a prime opportunity to recapture the center of the downtown as the perfect place to work, live and shop as they develop the area behind the Marriott Hotel, known as Renaissance Park.

The parcel is between 15 and 18 acres and should be developed, according to the city's new master plan, as a mixed-use village to include about 750,000 square feet of space as a two-story development or 1.1 million square feet if it is built as three stories. The village center of Renaissance Park would include high-end specialty retail, office buildings and about 40 apartments or condominiums. A neighborhood grocery store, nestled on a lower level beneath other stores, could also locate there, according to the master plan.

If the project is developed correctly, which is the city's intent, the site will link Wofford and Converse colleges with downtown and create an urban, pedestrian-friendly environment for those living in the area and for patrons of the cultural center and Marriott, City Economic Development Director Julie Franklin said."