Portsmouth leaders outline downtown strategy after Greenville study tour

Portsmouth elected officials, city staff and local economic-development stakeholders met in a city-led workshop to discuss lessons from a study tour of downtown Greenville, South Carolina and how those lessons might be applied to reimagining Portsmouth’s downtown.

Attendees said Greenville’s revival hinged on mixed-use housing, consistent streetscape design and a long-term plan enforced across administrations. "We become what we think about," Mayor Shannon Glover said in opening remarks, invoking the visit as a prompt to change how Portsmouth imagines its downtown.

Workshop organizers and participants laid out why the Greenville example matters: Greenville used coordinated public-private financing, consistent branding, frequent downtown programming and visible anchor projects — including Falls Park on the Reedy River, a performing-arts center and a baseball stadium — to draw residents and visitors and to make its downtown a 24/7 destination. City Manager Steven Carter said Greenville’s success included cultural and organizational choices Portsmouth must replicate: "We have to change the expectation that people have when they come to Portsmouth," Carter said, urging unified storytelling, a downtown management authority and routine events to provide reasons for residents and visitors to return.

Participants emphasized five interlocking priorities observed in Greenville and recommended for Portsmouth: housing, aesthetics, destinations and anchors, retail and community perception. On housing, speakers highlighted mixed-use development with residential units above ground-floor retail and noted Greenville’s use of a housing fund and developer incentives to attract projects. Alisa Winston, executive director for the Portsmouth Housing Authority, referenced Greenville’s affordable-housing trust and said the city there had made a substantial investment in that fund; she also emphasized linking economic-development goals and housing supply. Council members and housing consultants recommended a 20% workforce-housing expectation for new projects, a practice attendees said Greenville applies to some developments.

On streetscape and aesthetics, the group pointed to Greenville’s wide sidewalks, tree-lined blocks, diagonal curb parking and consistent signage and lighting — all planned with a landscape architect on a block-by-block basis. Attendees noted Greenville’s regular downtown maintenance (trash pickup and pressure washing) and “ambassador” training for downtown employees as measures that reinforced a clean, safe pedestrian environment.

Participants described anchors and programming as central to Greenville’s draw. Attendees cited Greenville’s Falls Park and Reedy River restoration, the Peace Center performing-arts venue and a mixed-use baseball stadium as examples of placemaking that helped create steady foot traffic. Anthony Brown, an Economic Development Authority board member, summarized economic-impact figures he collected on the trip and attributed large annual impacts to several Greenville venues; he presented those figures as examples of the scale anchors can generate.

On retail, Mayor Glover and others said recruiting a mix of retailers — from regional anchors such as the Mass General Store to national specialty stores — helped broaden Greenville’s appeal. Several speakers credited early investment in higher-end retail and a strategy of building foot traffic through housing density and hotel growth.

Speakers also flagged organizational and financing tools Greenville relied on: a dedicated downtown partnership or development authority to coordinate street-level management, a mix of financing tools including hospitality taxes and public–private partnerships, modest gap funding to attract developers, and a persistent multi-decade commitment that outlasted electoral changes.

Workshop leaders closed with near-term, locally specific ideas and follow-ups. The mayor described a proposed roundabout and fountain treatment near the pavilion incorporating a historic statue and said the city plans a public celebration tied to demolishing an old jail complex in 2026 as a highly visible redevelopment milestone. The Portsmouth Partnership announced an ongoing community survey linked to Main Street accreditation and invited public participation via QR codes distributed at the meeting.

No formal votes or ordinances were taken at the workshop; participants were collecting written reflections to inform an ongoing downtown strategy and follow-up work by city staff and boards.

The discussion will inform further planning by city staff, the Economic Development Authority and community partners as Portsmouth develops a coordinated approach to downtown redevelopment.