Crescent Startup Community
A mixed-use innovation district supporting entrepreneurs
Fred Dilworth | Project Coordinator | Hartness Development | [email protected]
Hartness Development announces Crescent Startup Community, a large-scale mixed-use Innovation District that will foster innovation as a destination for the support and exchange of entrepreneurial ideas. In partnership with Flywheel, Furman University, South Carolina Research Authority, VentureSouth, and many others, Hartness Development will break ground on the project in early 2022 and Crescent will open late next year with the completion of Phase One.
Committed Partners
A full stack of developmental resources and capital access
In collaboration with institutional partners, entrepreneurship service organizations, and college and university programs, Crescent will offer opportunities to live, work, play, and innovate as the Upstate’s first Innovation District. Through Hartness Development’s partnerships with Flywheel, Furman University’s Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, South Carolina Research Authority, and VentureSouth, Crescent will connect inception and growth-stage companies with students, faculty, and alumni and offer programming designed to stimulate ideation, structured development, and access to investment capital.
Coworking Innovation Space
Flywheel will be the anchor tenant in Phase I of the Project
Flywheel will be operating a 23,000 square foot coworking innovation center with forty private office suites, several coworking areas, a large event space and seminar rooms, and a social commons with a fully stocked beverage bar. Workspaces are fully furnished with high bandwidth internet. Amenities include a fitness center operated by Fitness with a View and an outdoor gathering space and covered entertainment venue.
Revitalizing the Poinsett Corridor
Live/Work/Play/Learn
Located 1.4 miles from the center of downtown, Crescent Startup Community will sit on 7 acres of land ideally located off a new future spur of the Swamp Rabbit Trail and in proximity to many Upstate destinations, including Downtown Greenville, Furman University, and Travelers Rest. Its location on Poinsett Highway is a site rich with innovation history as the former home of the Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company. The site was also home to The Piedmont Shirt Factory, which was a hub of the textile industry when Greenville was known as the textile capital of the world. The location of the factory was within the city’s “Textile Crescent,” an area known for its innovation. The Piedmont Shirt Factory is also where Max Heller, an entrepreneur who would later be the mayor of Greenville, first worked as an immigrant from war-torn Austria during the Second World War.
In the News
Fastest Growing Smaller Cities for Entrepreneurs
Starting a business from the ground up does not require a move to the big city. New ventures are cropping up at a rapid clip in areas like Greenville, South Carolina; Colorado Springs; and Louisville, Kentucky, according to LinkedIn data.