Anderson Growth Includes New Housing, Main Street Paving, Parks Update

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

Recreation expansion, paving Main Street downtown, and movement on new housing developments are among the most recent highlights of the City of Anderson.

The $13.4 million Linley Park Project was officially opened to the public Friday, with trails, a new pavilion, new playground equipment, and the restoration of Whitner Creek which runs through the park.

The new renovations connect to the north end of the park which added trails and landscaping in 2013.

The Cater’s Lake Project is still projected to be complete by the end of 2025.

"Hopefully it will be finished by the end of the year,” said Anderson Mayor Terence Roberts. “To have two major parks (of the city’s 16 parks) renovated within a year's period of time is a big deal.

“Cater’s Lake is centrally located, surrounded by a neighborhood that are capable of walking to that park,” said Roberts. “I've heard positive feedback from everybody on it."

Meanwhile the plan approved by city council to pave a portion of Main Street running through downtown is well under way.

"It's gone faster than I thought,” said Roberts. “Anytime you have a city as old as ours, when you start going beneath pavement and ground, there's always surprises. But I think they're right at Main and Market, they're ahead of schedule. I don't know, but hopefully it'll be done by the end of the year.”

The city is replacing and shoring up aging infrastructure under the street, including water and sewer lines, and running fiber optics underground as part of the project, which will pave from Tribble Street to River Street.

Roberts said roads in the city could benefit greatly if a proposed one-penny capital sales tax is approved by voters in November. The funds would be exclusively for road and bridge repairs and the list of priorities include both municipal and county roads. Safety and traffic at intersections is of particular concern to the city.

"Well, from our point of view, we appointed a commissioner, Trey Thomas, and Trey appointed two more people from the City of Belton, the City of Pendleton. And as you know, the county has three appointees for us. We gave a presentation to our council about some of the projects that we thought would help. Mainly for us, I think we're trying to make sure that intersections are taken care of. There's some intersection projects and road projects and sidewalk projects that we think would be very helpful if that referendum passes. I think last November, one of it passed, the other one didn't pass. And this is-"

Roberts said while he does not like to impose fees on voters, this one is important.

“We need to take care of ourselves, and some of those (road) fees will be paid by people that don't live here,” said Roberts. “That’s the progressive part of this tax that I like.”

Plans for more downtown housing, including affordable housing, is also moving ahead, Roberts said.

Property at the corner of Murray Avenue and Franklin Street will be developed into 80 units aimed at workforce housing, with rents based on income.

"Firefighters and teachers and hotel workers and restaurant workers need to have a place that's fairly close to where they work at a price that is based on how much they make,” said Roberts. “Hopefully they can start the construction of that later this fall."

Across from the Anderson County Farmers Market, the city is poised to begin work in the fall at the old Chem-Tex property, a 150+-mixed-housing project which has faced delays waiting on tax credits.

“That one is almost ready to go,” said Roberts. “I think sometimes on the private sector side, the bank underwriting wanted some things changed within the original agreement, but pretty much the funding's there, and they have done everything with the city to start. I would think, hopefully. in the fall, that project will start too."

The property will feature market-rate apartments near downtown.

The two projects would represent the most housing starts in decades.

Roberts discussed these projects and other progress in the city in this interview with the Anderson Observer.