Rock Hill planning commission recommends rezoning for Emmett Scott parking expansion after resident objections

The Rock Hill Planning Commission on Tuesday recommended that City Council rezone several parcels near the Emmett Scott Recreation Center to Office Institutional to allow expansion of parking to serve McGirt Auditorium and the Emmett Scott campus.

The recommendation, approved 6–1, applies to a set of parcels north of Crawford Road including 804 Crawford Road and parcels at 809 Taylor Street and 309–310 Tim Street and one parcel south of Crawford Road (illustrated in staff materials). Staff told the commission that the overall project will yield 388 parking spaces across the northern and southern sites; the auditorium’s fixed seating will exceed 800 seats and parking calculations use one space per three fixed seats.

City planning staff described a recent City Council action that rezoned the Emmett Scott campus to Office Institutional in November 2023 to resolve setback issues during renovation of the McGirt Auditorium and said the current request would make the adjacent support areas’…