Florence, South Carolina - big town renaissance

[LSyd]

when Hauntedheadnc posted his Florence thread a few years ago i was kicking myself for not photographing the grit. i'd been by on I-95 a lot for work and threw it a few times on the way to Myrtle Beach, but never thought of going and photographing it.

then i went downtown for work this summer and was surprised by the change from his thread. Downtown is undergoing a massive boom after a 2010 initiative, with blocks of renovation and some new construction. the skyline is dominated by a brutalist metropolitan building; despite its fugliness, it has one of my favorite toilets in the world, with a floor to ceiling window looking out at some gritty industrial warehouses, churches, and railroads.

Florence is the main city of an MSA of about 200,000. it was chartered in 1871 and incorporated in 1890:7 following the 1888 creation of Florence County. Prior to its charter, the city was part of one of the original townships laid out by the Lords Proprieters in 1719. The area was gradually settled through the late 19th and early 20th century. Early settlers practiced subsistence farming and produced indigo, cotton, naval stores and timber, which were shipped down the Pee Dee River to the port at Georgetown and exported. In the mid-19th century two intersecting railroads were built, The Wilmington and Manchester, and the Northeastern. thanks Wikipedia


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new courthouse construction

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McLeod regional hospital

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the McLeod complex has reused several historic buildings, including this old train station


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[hauntedheadnc]

An LSyd thread with no replies? What manner of fuckery is this?

[Bedhead]

Nice to see those older structures getting some love.

[ColDayMan]

Thanks!!!

[Wigs]

thanks for the downtown tour!
Florence has been my parents home for the past 9 years.

When they arrived from Canehdia in 2007 (due to my father's work), Downtown Florence was in *rough* shape.
Pretty much 85-90% of the storefronts were boarded up or unused.

Now there's a boutique hotel, many restaurants, some shops, etc. It's getting better by the year!

It cannot be overstated that Florence benefits from the Drs. Bruce and Lee Foundation which has provided untold millions towards building of the following cultural institutions downtown:

Florence Public Library c.2003 (the HQ of the Florence County library system)

sciway.net

Florence Little Theater c.2008

florencedowntown.com

Francis Marion University Performing Arts Center (also home to the Florence Symphony Orchestra FSO) c.2011

tripmondo.com

Florence Museum Of Art, Science & History c.2014

tripadvisor

All of these cultural institutions have been built in the last 2-13 years
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*UPDATE* More downtown development:

FMU (Francis Marion University) Luther F. Carter Center for Health Sciences building recently opened (older pic)

This $15.5M facility will train nurse practitioners, PA (physician assistants) students, medical students and also clinical psychology students
The city of Florence gave $3 million, South Carolina gave $5 million, and the Dr.'s Bruce and Lee Foundation donated $7.5 million to open the doors.
wpde.com

Emerson Luxury Apartments (83 units) attached to a new 340 space parking garage under construction

scnow.com

Hyatt Place Hotel (103 rooms) about to start construction

scnow.com

[Danny]

Florence is a nice looking city.

Thanks for the pictures, LSyd!

Congrats and greetings from Madrid, Spain.

[dc_denizen]

great pics! love to see refurbishing smaller cities.

[Ex-Ithacan]

Nice to see Florence is making a rebound. I was there in 2006 and the downtown wasn't much at all. I was pleasantly surprised to see the progress at the McLeod Medical center (your pic #46). It was under construction when I visited


And I guess we have similar taste LSyd:


I couldn't pass those rascals up.

Thanks for the updated tour.

[Buckeye Native 001]

Drove through it four years ago on the way to/from Myrtle Beach via Columbia. Neat looking town that at the time (2012?) looked like it needed a little TLC. Looks like it's getting that now

[LSyd]

thanks for the replies and additional info. good eye Ex-Ith.

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[volguus zildrohar]

Not too shabby there.