How to build a new downtown? In York County, it takes $150M, patience and a do-over

It’s taken longer than expected, but Tega Cay is building its downtown from scratch. So city officials know they have to get their “Main Street” right this time.

“Everybody wants it to get here yesterday,” said Mayor Chris Gray. “And we do too. The excitement level, it’s stayed at a healthy pitch.”

Groundbreaking should happen soon on a private developer’s $150 million mix of residential and retail construction between Stonecrest Boulevard and Dam Road. The concept involves a new roadway lined with shops and apartments that would connect historic and newer parts of the city.

When the city approved that concept two years ago, the idea was to start construction in early 2023. Site problems pushed that the timeline back, but city officials remain confident the project will begin soon.

“It’s one of the bigger projects the city’s ever had,” said city development services director Nick Cauthen. “The sooner the better.”

Main Street idea in Tega Cay

A Kinger Homes and Charlotte Living Realty development team approached the city three years ago to get information on the property. Not long after his election in 2021, Gray pitched that group his Main Street concept. Something smaller but similar to Market Street in Baxter, or Kingsley in Fort Mill.

The city agreed two years ago to allow up to 542 residences and 400,000 square feet of commercial space on 56 acres. It also allowed up to 100,000 square feet of medical, professional or office construction.

The development group bought the Tega Cay property a month later for $8.4 million.

Smaller scale than Baxter or Kingsley? This York County site might have elements of both

Initial plans had construction starting on the Dam Road side. Topography issues meant dirt would have to be moved from one side of the project to another, balancing the site. The switch to starting construction on the Stonecrest Boulevard side caused delay.

The development group submitted construction plans late last year. The city replied with comments but hasn’t had anything resubmitted. There’s ongoing progress, Cauthen said. It’s up to the developer how fast the project moves; zoning and land uses are already in place.

Gray and Cauthen estimate groundbreaking could happen this summer or early fall. With months of clearing, grading and infrastructure placement it likely would be next year before construction starts on buildings, Cauthen said.

Project manager Paul Sagadin, with Charlotte Living Realty Group , gave a similar timeline. There’s a proposal to add more park space. And a marketing package with details on homes and commercial construction should come within two months.

“We’re getting ready to start moving some dirt,” Sagadin said.

From a sports facility to Main Street

Five years ago, Tega Cay had a much different vision for the Main Street property.

Mooresville, N.C.-based Game On Development offered plans for a sports wonderland. The former salvage yard between Stonecrest Boulevard and Dam Road would become an almost 80-acre destination with a hotel, movie theater, commercial and residential space to support athletics.

The $40 million to $50 million Game On project centered on a two-level sport facility with an Olympic size and smaller pools, eight basketball courts, four multipurpose fields and indoor and outdoor tennis courts.

The city annexed and rezoned the property in 2016. The sports complex and hotel were part of phase one plans, to open by 2025. By 2020 the city and developer realized the sports piece wouldn’t happen, as city leaders at the time wouldn’t offer tax concessions to continue the deal.

Before the Panthers, another massive York County sports site fell through. Here’s why.

Some remnants of the Game On plan remain. The Trinity at Tega Cay townhomes were built. Apartments above businesses remain a key piece of Main Street. The fallout with Game On also caused the city to mandate more commercial construction earlier in Main Street redevelopment plans.

“They have to have commercial in the first phase,” Cauthen said. “That was a big sticking point.”

An unusual Main Street approach

Tega Cay in unique in York County.

The other eight cities and towns were incorporated more than a century ago. Tega Cay was born in 1982.

Rock Hill, Fort Mill and Clover started with downtown Main Street businesses that grew outward into thriving communities. Tega Cay will use its Main Street concept to connect two well-established but distinct areas.

Historic Tega Cay is the peninsula filled with older homes, parks and the city golf course. Newer Tega Cay off S.C. 160 is a swath of new home subdivisions and businesses anchored by the Stonecrest shopping center. The Main Street property sits near the entrances to both.

“It’s in the middle of Tega Cay,” Gray said. “This is going to be a means to bring everybody together.”

Tega Cay had 4,300 residents in 2000. The city is now up to more than 14,000 people, in what U.S. Census Bureau figures show is one of the most affluent and diverse communities in the region.

Gray points to the South Asian grocery store Triveni Supermarket planned on Stonecrest Boulevard to serve a growing Indian population in the city. Tega Cay has countless residents who moved south or east to live here, which creates a niche for Main Street commercial space.

“We’ve got a lot of diversity in our community. And those specialty shops — that’s where everybody can find something from home,” Gray said.

What stores are coming to Tega Cay?

Gray wouldn’t offer names, but said there have been conversations with several anchor stores about setting up shop in Tega Cay. There haven’t been discussions with a large grocery store, although the mayor sees a possible fit for a smaller, high-end grocer.

“We absolutely want local business in there,” Gray said. “There are a few national chains that we think will be able to participate with us.”

The developer will be in charge of signing tenants, but Gray anticipates “typical Main Street stores” with some reaching a few stories tall. There also isn’t much office or medical space available in the city, so he expects opportunity there.

The city’s aim is to make sure that business growth happens on the front end of Main Street.

The development should take three or four years to complete. The city agreement two years ago set minimum requirements of 100,000 square feet of commercial and 50,000 square feet of office space. Tega Cay intends to hold firm to the commercial growth.

Developers often want to start with residential construction to support the business that follows it. Municipalities typically want the commercial growth since it increases the tax base more.

Residences on top of businesses at the Main Street site require both, and that commercial growth will come without the tax breaks it would’ve taken to keep the Game On project afloat.

“This whole project is meant to put taxpayer dollars into our city,” Gray said, “without pulling taxpayer dollars out of their wallets.”

Reality Check reflects the Rock Hill Herald’s commitment to holding those in power to account, shining a light on public issues that affect our local readers and illuminating the stories that sets the Rock Hill region apart. Email realitycheck@heraldonline.com