The Town of Pelzer grew up around The Pelzer Manufacturing Company. At one point four mills were operational. A close knit community grew around the mill, which became the heart of the Town. According to the 1890 census, 4,181 people lived in Pelzer. Today, only 103 people live within the Town limits of only 0.2 square miles and 33 homes, yet seven mill parcels are located within the Town limits. Altogether over 500 homes make up the mill village which surrounds the mills and just outside the Town limits.
Pelzer Manufacturing Company was sold to Lockwood-Greene in 1923, then to the Kendall Company in 1936. Subsequently, the mills were sold to the Gerber Company (Gerber) in 1986. Gerber ceased operation in the late 1990s. The textile mill decline in Pelzer was compounded by the introduction of synthetic fibers and then the foreign outsourcing of textile work. With the decline and closing of Gerber, the Town of Pelzer struggled. In 2003, the shuttered mill was sold to Greenlight Enterprises, LLC (Greenlight) and Brickyard Trucking, Inc., a subsidiary of Greenlight. With the sale, the people of the Pelzer community anticipated positive changes. They hoped for jobs to be created, homes to be built, new or improved recreational facilities, more attractive green space, etc. Soon, demolition work began at the old Pelzer Manufacturing Company. While the town’s people were sorry to see this part of history being torn down, they were still eagerly anticipating positive change. Unfortunately, once the salvageable materials were removed, work ceased, and the site was left in a deplorable condition. Since then, Greenlight which is located in Utah has been an absentee owner. Greenlight representatives have spoken with representatives of the Town and have indicated that they would like to sell the property.
Within the Pelzer community, the parcels that formed the original Pelzer Manufacturing Company are the greatest brownfields concern. The mill is comprised of thirteen non-contiguous parcels with seven of the parcels located in the Town limits. Without assessment, there is no hope of redevelopment.
In 2002, Friends of Pelzer (FOP), a non-profit organization, was formed with the goal of restoring historic and new buildings, revitalizing businesses, starting a community center, and beautifying the Town with new parks and landscaping. The Executive Director of FOP successfully marketed the mill parcels to a developer. The developer had the parcels under contract for sale, so FOP inquired about the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC)’s Voluntary Cleanup Program (VCP). SCDHEC personnel reviewed available environmental information and found that a substantial amount of assessment was still needed on the upper mill and the lower mill properties. The potential environmental problems caused the prospective purchaser to lose interest in the properties.
This Community-Wide Hazardous Substance Brownfields Assessment Grant will allow the Town to answer the questions associated with the environmental unknowns and, once again, make the Town attractive to future development — eventually bringing more jobs and an increased tax base to the community as well as preserving and enhancing greenspace.
