Cause and Effect:

A market-driven redevelopment strategy rejuvenates a city

Located in the heart of South Carolina, Columbia (population 124,818) first experienced industrial growth along the Congaree, Saluda, and Broad Rivers. Plantations, cotton mills, trains, and other industries lined the riverbanks. The City claimed numerous vacant, dilapidated structures in the neighborhoods of the Congaree region. They included industrial, railroad, and petroleum properties. Uncertainties related to contamination inhibited redevelopment efforts in the region. Brownfield assessments helped the city to resolve some of the uncertainties, and increased the marketability of the sites to prospective purchasers and developers.

• City of Columbia Success Story (PDF)(1 pg, 893 K)