Approximately 17 acres northwest of Greenville’s Unity Park will be preserved as natural green space through a joint effort by local public and private entities.
The city of Greenville plans to purchase two parcels on Reach Street from the Salvation Army, which has owned the land since the late 1960s. The undeveloped property is located within the floodplains of the Reedy River and Long Branch Creek.
Greenville City Council recently authorized the $420,000 land purchase at its April 13 meeting. A mix of public and private funding will be used to purchase the 16.8-acre site, including:
- $120,000 from the city of Greenville
- $100,000 from the Greenville County Historic and Natural Resources Trust
- $100,000 match from the South Carolina Conservation Bank
- $100,000 in combined contributions from the New Leaf Fund and the Community Foundation of Greenville
Negotiations for the land purchase were led by the Greenville County Historic and Natural Resources Trust. The trust was created by Greenville County Council in 2020 to protect natural, historical and cultural resources across the county.
The open space acquisition marks the trust’s first partnership with one of the six municipalities in Greenville County. Carlton Owens, the trust’s technical advisor, explained that the “layer cake approach” to conversation is a common model since it often takes multiple partners to successfully complete.
“This is one project out of 30 that the Greenville County Trust has been involved in in its first five years,” Owens said. “Our hope over time is that we in Greenville County can meet the international goal for open space and land conservation – that’s 30% of land area being maintained as natural habitats for wildlife, for water, for air quality, for all the things that go with it.”
Open space preservation
The city aims to preserve approximately 35% of Greenville’s remaining vacant land as open space, a goal outlined in the GVL2040 Comprehensive Plan. Greenville City Manager Shannon Lavrin said the land purchase at Long Branch Creek will be the largest to date in support of this goal. The city previously purchased an adjacent 4-acre parcel on Willard Street in 2022.
Greenville City Councilmember Lillian Brock Flemming said preserving open space ensures the city’s residents can live safe and healthy lives.
“This is Greenville – hello – Greenville. So if it’s Greenville, there should be some green in Greenville,” Fleming said. “But more importantly, for the welfare and safety of the community, we need green spaces, and I’m very happy to be a part of this.”
Future enhancements are envisioned for the purchased property to improve flood capacity, elevate stormwater resilience and preserve the wildlife habitat. The open space acquisition is also part of a larger effort to preserve more than 60 acres of contiguous natural floodplain along Long Branch Creek, which is a tributary of the Reedy River.
Owens said they are in discussions with a private property owner who owns approximately 20 acres of floodplain adjacent to the city-owned parcels. Approximately 18 acres of land further up Long Branch Creek are owned by Naturaland Trust, a local nonprofit conservation organization.
“The long-term vision would be if we could get all this land along Long Branch Creek and enhance it, where there would be less flooding downstream and more natural habitats here. Everybody wins,” Owens said.
Quotes
“We have to spearhead projects like this, pull them together so that we can come up with a jewel. This is going to be another jewel for Greenville, not just the county, but the city also.” – Greenville County Councilmember Alan Mitchell.
“Unlike most other parklands which are developed for intensive recreational use, this one will be to allow nature to do what nature does. Flood when the flood rains come, allow those flood waters to slowly be released out and reduce flooding downstream.” – Carlton Owens, technical advisor for Greenville County Historic and Natural Resources Trust.
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Property background
The Salvation Army previously used its property along Reach Street as a recreational site for its Boys and Girls Club, now named the Red Shield Youth Center.
The land also served as the inaugural site of First Tee Greenville, a nonprofit organization that provides golf lessons to help local youth build character. The organization is currently known as First Tee Upstate South Carolina.
“We are very excited about this opportunity. Not only are we able to partner with the city, but we’re able to preserve this property,” said Bea Walters Smith, director of community relations and development with the Salvation Army of Greenville.
