I hope everyone is enjoying the final days of Spring and looking forward to some amazing summer plans. As a city, we have been able to move our focus away from addressing pandemic-related issues and return to more exciting work to improve our community, including the return of our popular On the Ave summer street party events.
We are also seeing progress in many other areas as well! I am excited to share the following updates to some long-awaited projects:
1. Clemson Park Pump Track: This bike skills track, located at Clemson Park and funded through Duke Energy and SC Recreation Trails Grants, has enjoyed great success in its first few months! As one Clemson resident shared with me recently: “My son wants to go every day! Every time we’ve been, we see so many kids riding, and they are doing a great job taking turns. I have seen lots of skinned hands and knees, but I think it’s good for the kids to get back up and keep riding!” I agree! It is so great to see our kids gathering at our oldest community park as it gets new upgrades, and more improvements are still to come.
2. Green Crescent Trail Phase I: Building trails from scratch is not easy, but we are already seeing the hard work pay off. We look forward to completing our first phase of the Green Crescent Trail by 2023. It will start at Clemson Park and will continue through Gateway Park on SC 93, with the goal of eventually connecting the Green Crescent Trail into Clemson University’s in-progress widening project on Perimeter Road (between US 76 and Cherry Road), which will include a 10-foot-wide multimodal walking-biking trail.
3. Police Station Addition and Renovation: Our original police station was built for a department of 15 officers. This addition accommodates 30-plus officers and provide new technology and meeting space. This project was long overdue and will be a great asset to our police department and our community.
I certainly enjoy sharing the positive things happening in our community, but I also recognize we always have more work to do. We are a growing city, and with the positives of growth also come challenges.
For anyone who hasn’t noticed (no one, right?), we have increased traffic and increased construction work, which leads to rising concerns about how this growth will affect the future of Clemson. Your City Council takes all of your concerns seriously, and our leaders dedicate the bulk of their time to looking for actionable answers. As seven people representing a community of thousands, we face the significant challenge of balancing individual needs with group solutions, but we knew this when we signed up for the responsibility. We also recognize that our city is full of knowledgeable resources, and we rely on expertise from many places – including you!
As you prepare to send us an email, text us an idea, post on social media, or make a phone call to voice a concern, please know that our first question to you will be, “What do you think is a good solution?” Because of how quickly we’re growing and changing, many of the concerns brought to Council have never been entertained before. Sometimes old problems still aren’t fixed because we haven’t secured a viable solution. However, you might have the answer! And if so, we want to hear it. You elected us to serve you and to be a champion for your best interests. We are prepared for the hard conversations, and we appreciate and value your input and feedback because we know the best pathway for building a better Clemson is building it together.
As always, I want to hear from you! I use social media as a way to distribute information but never as a catalyst for conversation. Call me. If I see you out in the community, stop me. I am happy to sit down over a cup of coffee. Let’s Talk!
Go Tigers!!
Mayor Robert Halfacre
We are also seeing progress in many other areas as well! I am excited to share the following updates to some long-awaited projects:
1. Clemson Park Pump Track: This bike skills track, located at Clemson Park and funded through Duke Energy and SC Recreation Trails Grants, has enjoyed great success in its first few months! As one Clemson resident shared with me recently: “My son wants to go every day! Every time we’ve been, we see so many kids riding, and they are doing a great job taking turns. I have seen lots of skinned hands and knees, but I think it’s good for the kids to get back up and keep riding!” I agree! It is so great to see our kids gathering at our oldest community park as it gets new upgrades, and more improvements are still to come.
2. Green Crescent Trail Phase I: Building trails from scratch is not easy, but we are already seeing the hard work pay off. We look forward to completing our first phase of the Green Crescent Trail by 2023. It will start at Clemson Park and will continue through Gateway Park on SC 93, with the goal of eventually connecting the Green Crescent Trail into Clemson University’s in-progress widening project on Perimeter Road (between US 76 and Cherry Road), which will include a 10-foot-wide multimodal walking-biking trail.
3. Police Station Addition and Renovation: Our original police station was built for a department of 15 officers. This addition accommodates 30-plus officers and provide new technology and meeting space. This project was long overdue and will be a great asset to our police department and our community.
I certainly enjoy sharing the positive things happening in our community, but I also recognize we always have more work to do. We are a growing city, and with the positives of growth also come challenges.
For anyone who hasn’t noticed (no one, right?), we have increased traffic and increased construction work, which leads to rising concerns about how this growth will affect the future of Clemson. Your City Council takes all of your concerns seriously, and our leaders dedicate the bulk of their time to looking for actionable answers. As seven people representing a community of thousands, we face the significant challenge of balancing individual needs with group solutions, but we knew this when we signed up for the responsibility. We also recognize that our city is full of knowledgeable resources, and we rely on expertise from many places – including you!
As you prepare to send us an email, text us an idea, post on social media, or make a phone call to voice a concern, please know that our first question to you will be, “What do you think is a good solution?” Because of how quickly we’re growing and changing, many of the concerns brought to Council have never been entertained before. Sometimes old problems still aren’t fixed because we haven’t secured a viable solution. However, you might have the answer! And if so, we want to hear it. You elected us to serve you and to be a champion for your best interests. We are prepared for the hard conversations, and we appreciate and value your input and feedback because we know the best pathway for building a better Clemson is building it together.
As always, I want to hear from you! I use social media as a way to distribute information but never as a catalyst for conversation. Call me. If I see you out in the community, stop me. I am happy to sit down over a cup of coffee. Let’s Talk!
Go Tigers!!
Mayor Robert Halfacre
