  Hybridy Member Username: Hybridy Post Number: 97 Registered: 08-2006 |
DISCLAIMER - DON'T SHOOT THE MESSENGER I recently left MI to take a position in an architecture firm in Greenville, South Carolina. The best part was counting the SUV's following the moving trucks headed south. Anyway I immediately learned about the swath of new development down here, and I thought it only appropriate considering all the talk of meltdown of sub prime mortgages and such plus Pulte and the general MI economy. Clemson University is heading up a massive auto research corridor here creating thousands of jobs along with the usual trickle down effect. BMW has its North American Headquarters here and everyone drives a new 3-series BMW and Michelin has it headquarters here. Mind you, Greenville is a metro-population of only around 100,000. Most of my info comes from Skyscraperpage.com and others. Here are the relevant links and quotes: "ICAR is expected to create at least 10,000 jobs when completed. The project consists of Clemson, BMW, Michelin, Timken, Microsoft, Nascar, British Automotive, SAE International, IBM, the state of South Carolina, the City of Greenville, Sun Microsystems, BellSouth, the Furman Company, Upstate Alliance, Carolina Crescent Coalition, and more. It is located along I-85 between Woodruff and Laurens Roads. There are five large campuses located throughout ICAR and their set in phases. Right now the first one is under construction and the second one should begin soon. The first phase consists of a 7-story parking garage with an office tower attached to it, Timken facility/Collaboration 3, Collaboration 1, BMW-ITRC(Information Technology Research Center), and the Campbell Graduate Engineering Center." "You think ICAR was big, you haven't seen anything yet. 10,000 residences, 15,000 employees, 1.5 billion dollars. This is a 30-year project and will be located on the other side of I-85 from which ICAR is. The reason their building this is to house the thousands and thousands of workers expected to be hired for ICAR, Millennium Campus, South Financial Group Headquarters, etc." "Expect everything from highrises to houses to offices to retail to restaurants to hotels and to anything else you can think of including light rail in Verdae. This is a huge mixed-use project. All of the houses are going to be TND. (Traditional Neighborhood Development)" http://www.cu-icar.com/ http://www.verdaedevelopment.c om/about/index.php http://forum.skyscraperpage.co m/showthread.php?t=126154 Today's Greenville paper had an article about the city beginning to invest in property for right-of-way for the eventual light rail. So for those of us who truly love Detroit, how can we really ignore this? No doubt it is going to impact SE Michigan. My gf's dad is a 30+ yr veteran at the GM Tech Center and he is on a 5-year plan to leave MI. | ||
Ccbatson Member Username: Ccbatson Post Number: 970 Registered: 11-2006 |
Good for them, and it is in the US. Competition is good, and this would not only improve their local economy, but the nations. It is a message for the competitors to, well, compete. If they do, everybody wins. If they don't they lose. BTW, I strongly believe the Detroit automakers are on the mend and will be competitive in the years to come. | ||
Jerome81 Member Username: Jerome81 Post Number: 1459 Registered: 11-2003 |
I too don't see this as having to automatically mean that whatever created there is taken from here. What I am a little sick of is the woe-is-me attitude of Detroit and its automakers. I really wish they'd take a stand, decide they're weren't just gonna sit around, and show the world they still got it. They certainly have the ability, just wish they'd use it. I think you'd be surprised to learn what sort of cross-company, R&D, technology-driven partnerships exist in Metro Detroit. You just don't hear too much about them. They're a big deal in SC. But they're already everywhere in Detroit. I'm glad to see the auto economy diversifing, and this can be good for everyone. However, the amount of automotive knowledge in metro Detroit and Michigan in general far bests any other region in the entire world. Nobody has the brainpower Detroit has. The problem is they don't need as much of it, and the population can't seem to get enough doom-and-gloom, so they love to pack up and get out rather than fix the problem. A little pride can go a long way. Just because you ain't growin doesn't mean you aren't the best or can't be successful. I think a lot of people associate being new with being better/best. Detroit is just trimmin the fat. But the meat of what's left is still untouchable in the automotive world. (Message edited by Jerome81 on May 31, 2007) | ||
Swillson Member Username: Swillson Post Number: 9 Registered: 11-2004 |
I'm not sure if I should be disgusted or grateful. On the one hand, I'm glad this proposed sprawling monstrosity insn't in my backyard, consuming open space and draining nearby cities. On the other hand, if such a project is a necessity, why the hell were our auto makers and universities not working on it? Anyone know how this project came to be in South Carolina? | ||
Karl Member Username: Karl Post Number: 7807 Registered: 09-2005 |
Unions - or lack thereof? | ||
Lafayette Member Username: Lafayette Post Number: 14 Registered: 03-2007 |
I think unions are causing climate change, too. Oh, wait, that's junk science and a denial of God's creation of man. Sorry, I'll jump over to The Flat Earth thread. Wrong discussion. | ||
Gmich99 Member Username: Gmich99 Post Number: 202 Registered: 11-2005 |
The Verdae Development is interesting, but at 1,100 acres to be developed over 30 years (MSU's main campus is 5,200 acres) I don't think it is the death blow to Southeast Michigan. | ||
Ccbatson Member Username: Ccbatson Post Number: 971 Registered: 11-2006 |
Perhaps, the infrastructure that is being built there is already in place here, and more. | ||
Rocket_city Member Username: Rocket_city Post Number: 274 Registered: 04-2006 |
Who was the politician in the Mackinac Conference media lately who took the trip to China and said that he's scared out of his mind about how big of a threat they are to MI. I especially enjoyed the paraphrase: "Yah, they're building bridges like mad over there. The Mackinac Bridge...shit...they build those, one every day!" China's coming China's coming...and apparently so is the south. Is there a difference? haha | ||
Ccbatson Member Username: Ccbatson Post Number: 988 Registered: 11-2006 |
Hysteria....China is a socialist country starting to come out of the dark ages. The south is obviously, in the same country as Michigan, and competition is a good thing. We have a leg up on them and will need to press our advantage to our mutual benefit. | ||
Cdent Member Username: Cdent Post Number: 3 Registered: 05-2007 |
sounds like a good place to send the first 1.2 million illegal immigrants there and give them legal status and a new job for 1/10th your pay. and we can give them government health care and free housing while were at it. damn I think I may go down there, that sounds pretty good. |
