Spartanburg Water Provides Grant Support to Spartanburg Area Conservancy (SPACE)

Spartanburg Area Conservancy (SPACE) was recently awarded a grant for $6,600 by Spartanburg Water to assist with safe access to the Glendale Shoals Preserve.

Spartanburg Water presented SPACE with a check for the grant in January, which represented equal contributions from both the Commission of Public Works of the City of Spartanburg and the Spartanburg Sanitary Sewer District Commission.

“We’re proud to support SPACE in providing an improved and more accessible entry point to the beauty of Glendale Shoals Preserve,” said John Montgomery, Chairman of the Commission of Public Works of the City of Spartanburg. “Our community is lucky to have a partner like SPACE who is committed to preserving our area’s natural spaces and offering residents the opportunity to learn about the benefits of conservation.”

SPACE acquired Glendale Shoals Preserve in 2022 to protect it from high-density development and has been working to restore native habitat, as well as to maintain the site as a cultural landmark of historical significance and local biodiversity. In 2024, SPACE partnered with the State of South Carolina, Spartanburg County, and additional organizations to conserve what is now known as Glendale Nature Park — a 945-acre track adjacent to the Glendale Mill site. Together, the Glendale sites comprise a connected conservation corridor of over 1,300 acres.

“Spartanburg is blessed to have preserved, natural and historic sites like Glendale Shoals Preserve,” said Louie Blanton, Chairman of the Spartanburg Sanitary Sewer

District Commission. “Any investment we can make in ensuring these sites are more accessible to residents will have long-lasting benefits for our community.”

SPACE plans to revitalize the public access point to Glendale Shoals Preserve from Emma Cudd Road. The organization wants to remove and replace the existing overlook and stairway to create safe access to the shoals, install a kiosk with park rules and educational content about the preserve, and clean up the site by restoring native habitat and incorporating a “Keep Spartanburg Wild” mural in place of existing graffiti and invasive plant species. SPACE is partnering with PAL to expand PAL’s trail system into the Preserve, which will increase foot traffic throughout the area. The revitalization of the public access point from Emma Cudd Road will serve as a long-term investment in public safety, environmental stewardship, and community engagement. 

The mission of SPACE (Spartanburg Area Conservancy) advances the promotion, protection, and preservation of natural resources and open space in the Spartanburg community. The Mission of SPACE is to advance land conservation, parks management, and environmental outreach by providing public access to green spaces and the natural world to citizens of Spartanburg County. SPACE identifies as a grassroots nonprofit dedicated to protecting natural lands in the Spartanburg community and sustained through volunteerism, responsible stewardship, and sustainable management of resources.

ABOUT SPARTANBURG WATER: Spartanburg Water, an industry leading utility, is comprised of Spartanburg Water System and Spartanburg Sanitary Sewer District. It serves a population of nearly 200,000 within Spartanburg County, as well as others in parts of Greenville, Union and Cherokee counties. With the help of its dedicated team of nearly 300 employees, each day it produces an average of 25 million gallons of drinking water and cleans 14 million gallons of wastewater for its customers and community.