Representatives from Thrift Development, the city of Simpsonville and Simpsonville City Council gathered together Aug. 4 to break ground on the city’s downtown project.
The first phase kicked off before the groundbreaking and involves removing the four concrete islands on Main Street in Simpsonville as part of a planned traffic realignment, streetscape improvements and other infrastructure work related to the project, which was approved in July 2022.
A crew works to remove concrete islands in downtown Simpsonville. Photo by Jeannie Putnam“Removing this island represents the first visible step in a project that is the result of years of planning, design and coordination,” said Simpsonville Mayor Paul Shewmaker. “The Downtown Simpsonville Project will address transportation and infrastructure needs while supporting a more accessible, connected and inviting downtown.”
Photo provided by city of SimpsonvilleThe project is expected to take two years and includes changing traffic flow within a five-block radius of Main Street to a counterclockwise traffic pattern recommended by the South Carolina Department of Transportation. The changes include:
- Turn College Avenue and Curtis Street into one-way roads from North Maple Street through the Academy Street intersection
- Cars coming from Interstate 385 would turn left on College Avenue and right on Curtis Street
- A traffic light would be installed to allow oncoming traffic from Curtis Street to turn right onto Academy Street
For more information, visit simpsonville.com/administration-dep/downtown-master-plan.
