Starting Saturday, Feb. 21 and continuing for up to two weeks, all lanes of North Church Street from St. John Street to just south of the former Hammond Brown Jennings building will be closed as demolition work on that building nears completion.
The City has worked with the S.C. Department of Transportation on a detour route for motorists traveling through downtown that will take advantage of the large traffic capacity on St. John, Pine and Henry streets and Daniel Morgan Avenue.
The complex demolition of the building, located at 167 North Church Street, began in December. The closure of North Church Street is necessary because of the risk of portions of the building falling into the street during the final stages of demolition. The methodical, step-by-step process of demolishing the building is necessary because of its close proximity to the Business Technology Center building next door.
Signs informing motorists of the closure and directing them to the alternate route will be placed along both Church Street’s southern and northern approaches to downtown. Approaching from the South, the detour directs motorists west on Henry Street, then north on Daniel Morgan Avenue until it intersects with North Church Street at the Marriott Hotel & Conference Center. Approaching from the North, the detour directs motorists east on St. John Street, south on Pine Street, then west on Henry Street until it intersects with South Church Street at Bethel United Methodist Church. Local traffic will still be able to access the Church Street entrance of the Magnolia Street Parking Garage, as well as Kennedy, Main and Commerce streets. Commerce Street allows access to the Dunbar Street Parking Garage.
“We understand that closing any section of Church Street for any length of time will be a significant inconvenience, and this is not a decision that was made quickly,” City Manager Ed Memmott said. “After exploring other options, it became apparent that closing the street was the best way to ensure this complex demolition could proceed safely. We ask for people’s patience as we work with the contractor to ensure this stage of the demolition is completed as safely and as quickly as possible.”
While the demolition work will require the street closure for up to two weeks, City Building Official Buddy Bush is hopeful it will take less time. The City will keep the public updated on the work and the timeline for reopening the road through a variety of communication platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, its free mobile app, HeySpartanburg!, and the City Channel on Charter Cable Channel 192.
After an engineering report determined the building, located at 167 North Church Street, was structurally unsafe, the City required the building’s owner, Arthur State Bank, to either repair or demolish the structure in July. See the interactive map below to view detour routes and street closing locations.