Redevelopment Areas in Action: Greenville, NC

<p>In a recent post, Tyler Mulligan provided an overview of how local governments can use an Urban Redevelopment Area to attract private investment. This post will describe an example from Greenville, NC.</p> <p>Like many towns in eastern North Carolina, Greenville’s downtown, known to residents as Center City, had experienced significant decline. Once a thriving area, Center City was no longer a prospering place full of commercial and pedestrian activity, instead, disinvestment and development outside of the historic town center had drawn shoppers away from downtown. Center City’s commercial district wasn’t the only area affected – the surrounding residential neighborhoods suffered as well, plagued by safety issues, low home ownership rates, and dilapidated housing. Yet, despite these challenges, residents recognized that Center City had the potential to reinvent itself once again as Greenville’s cultural and commercial destination. East Carolina University (ECU), the state’s second largest university, was the biggest landowner in downtown, bringing a critical mass of students into Center City on a daily basis. And although the number of small businesses in Center City had declined dramatically, residents still frequented the area in order to visit the governmental buildings that remained downtown, such as the Pitt County Courthouse and City Hall, as well as the Museum of Art and County Library.</p> <p>Motivated by a desire to revitalize and rebrand historic Center City, in 2002 the City of Greenville decided to utilize the state’s Urban Redevelopment Area (URA) designation. An Urban Redevelopment Area, or URA for short, is a state designation used by local governments to support [...]</p>