DENMARK, S.C. – The Denmark Planning and Zoning Commission last week agreed to proceed with the next step in finalizing a combined streetscape and revitalization plan.

At the suggestion of project director Harry Crissy, a community and economic development agent with Clemson University, the commission will consider a cost benefit review at its next meeting.

The commission will also consider which plan elements to prioritize for funding and implementation. Recommendations for the adoption of a final revitalization proposal will be made to Denmark City Council, with financial planning getting under way following council approval.

Crissy said the plan was designed as a management guide for economic and community progress in Denmark. It is also intended to be used by Denmark officials as a yardstick by which to measure any new proposals to ensure their success in fulfilling the needs of the residents, he said.

Input gathered at a public workshop from the Denmark community last December was used as the basis for developing the revitalization plan through the Clemson University Schools of Architecture and Landscape Architecture and Planning. Residents identified Denmark’s strengths as the colleges, the small town environment and the location of the community. The weaknesses were identified as the schools, crime, vacant buildings and an unskilled workforce.

“I consolidated all the maps taken from the public workshop mapping exercises into one map,” Crissy said. “We want to keep the places that we like and connect them, force out the places that we don’t like and don’t feel safe and simultaneously work on the places that we want to improve.”

The revitalization plan presented by Crissy focuses on several strategies to meet different community objectives. For the first objective – improving downtown retail activity in Denmark – the suggested actions are to target the housing and retail needs of students at Voorhees and Denmark Technical Colleges and to focus on tourism, transportation and warehousing as economic strategies.

Crissy said looking into warehousing, which is the transporting, repackaging and redistribution of goods, is an economic strategy well suited for Denmark. Such a move would probably require the development of a truck route, although Crissy said this economic strategy would hinge mostly on the use of the railroad.

“When you look at payroll checks generated from warehousing activity in surrounding counties – that’s what’s going out into the community, the growth in just two years’ time has been substantial. From 2004-2006, Berkeley County grew 25 percent in terms of payroll checks from warehousing, Dorchester grew 41 percent from $23-$32 million. Even Colleton, which is just getting started in this area, grew 66 percent from $1,747,000 to 2,898,000. Bamberg County even grew 33 percent, but we were only at half a million dollars in payroll to begin with.”

Developing an Internet café at the corner of U.S. 70 and 321, along with a student-oriented retail center and bowling alley on Magnolia Street, are two possibilities that can be used to connect with students at both local colleges, Crissy said. He also suggested moving the library currently located in the Booker Center next to the old city hall as a way to help create more foot traffic in downtown Denmark.

However, Mayor Carrie Simmons noted the town has already received a grant to move the library next to the fire department. Crissy said renovation of city hall could still be a good place to start the downtown revitalization.

Crissy noted that another action – retirement – could be a potential economic strategy for the future when medical infrastructure development and crime abatement issues are resolved.

The plan’s suggested actions for meeting another identified objective – creating new opportunities for recreation – included the development of a community recreation center and a walking/biking trail. Crissy said the recreation center is something that wouldn’t happen right away, while a bicycle trail could utilize old railroad beds down U.S. 78 from Blackville, eventually connecting with Denmark Tech, with trees and lighting to follow at a later time.

A potential future strategy could be to link both colleges together and improve their connections to the community at large , he said. Crissy said such a move would require an entirely new study.

Finally, the plan included aiding the local schools, reinforcing local programs and workforce development and improving the appearance of the central business district to meet the objective of creating an environment conducive to attracting industry to Denmark.

The proposed streetscape includes brick crosswalks to increase aesthetic appeal, a 10-foot median strip down the center of U.S. 321, the addition of five feet to sidewalks on either side in the form of a planting strip and eight feet of parking lanes. The thoroughfare changes would create a single lane of traffic in both directions.

“Although none of this is set in stone, our experts agree that such a configuration would help beautify and slow down traffic in the downtown area,” Crissy said. “However, this proposal is within S.C. Department of Transportation guidelines.”

Commission members had several questions following Crissy’s presentation, including the need for left turning lanes. Crissy said the questions about the streetscape renovations would need to be addressed by SCDOT engineers.

The streetscape and revitalization plan for Denmark is available for review through the Denmark city administrator’s office or online at www.clemson.edu/barnwell/local/harry/Bamberg5.htm.

T&D Staff Writer Phil Sarata can be reached by e-mail at psarata@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5540.

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