Uniquely positioned to accommodate industrial expansion while maintaining residents’ high quality of life, South Carolina’s Fairfield County is ready to grow. The state’s Department of Commerce recently identified this rural county as South Carolina’s next big growth area. There are multiple reasons for this prediction, including its proximity to Charlotte, Columbia, the new SCOUT Motors facility, and Interstate 77.
“Rural doesn’t equate to isolated,” Ann Broadwater, Director of Economic Development, points out. The county may only have 20,000 residents, but employers are able to draw from a workforce of around 1.3 million people from the surrounding area, which is easily accessible by Interstate 77. There are plenty of development spots—many of which are empty parcels owned by the county—within a mile of an interstate exit.
Indeed, “ease of access is one of the biggest selling points for us,” says Fairfield County Public Information Officer Gene Stephens.
Local leaders are taking an active role in attracting and supporting incoming employers. “Fairfield County is actively engaging in site preparedness and can offer a plethora of incentives in addition to a sense of place along with the pro-business attitude of the state,” Broadwater says. “We are active participants within the state’s Launch to Legacy program, helping businesses that locate in South Carolina continue to grow here. In fact, we had the first economic development announcement of the year, with Capital Concrete choosing a location that is currently undergoing construction in our Walter Brown II business park. We have had numerous industries expand within our county, showcasing how our county and state are ready for business,” she shares.
“Our community is coming together to invite growth—our council and administration and the community as a whole,” adds Stephens. “We’re just in the position where we want to welcome growth with open arms, and we want to be smart in how we navigate and direct the growth here in Fairfield County.”
One of the county’s most exciting new developments is the SCOUT Motors facility currently under construction. “Since the announcement of SCOUT, Fairfield has been launched to the top of mind of site selectors and prospective investors alike,” says Broadwater. “With the announcement of a potential 4,000 jobs nearby, there is a lot of interest in industrial and residential development within our county.”
The county is developing a 1,500-acre megasite that will include rail access and a new interchange for easier access to Interstate 77. “The I-77 megasite sets Fairfield apart because of the access a company would get from locating there,” Broadwater says. “It could also increase revenues for the county in an area that has room for manufacturing growth.”
Recently, the County completed a speculative building located in Fairfield Commerce Center. This 91,000-square-foot tilt-up structure is designed to expand to 250,000 square feet and has four dock doors, one of which is drive-in. Located in a class A, County-owned and controlled industrial park, the site is just three miles from Interstate 77 and has one-day ground access to 70 percent of the United States market. The facility is ideal for a single user looking to purchase a ready-to-go facility. “We built that so a company could come in and go ahead and start doing what they need to do,” quickly and efficiently, says Stephens.
Fairfield County has already had great success filling available spaces. “We have managed to bring over six manufacturers within the past few years because of our commitment to product development, ensuring that we have sites ready for build-out or up-fitting,” Broadwater says. “Companies have a need for speed-to-market and when they find an existing building in an attractive market ready for occupancy, it helps get product out to customers faster. When companies come for site visits, we ensure that they have everything they need to make an accurate decision on whether they can be successful in their operations. We ensure that all our sites have due diligence completed, removing risk from the decision-making process.”
The County markets available sites through the Palmetto Sites program and through Locate SC, South Carolina Commerce’s database of available industrial spaces. “By participating in these programs, it allows maximization of visibility while demonstrating that industrial use is the best possible use of the land that we are developing, with proven strategies offered by a professional opinion and analysis,” Broadwater explains.
Local leaders are staying a step ahead by ensuring there will be enough housing for the County’s predicted growth. Designed to recruit and retain teachers, the rent-controlled Village in Winnsboro is a new housing development for faculty and staff of the County school district. “The Village in Winnsboro gives teachers a chance to live close to work, spend their money locally, and save for a down payment on their own house,” says Broadwater. “This project shows how corporations, local government, school boards, and state legislature can work together to provide adequate housing to those in need.”
The community has been an enormous success. “We had way more applications than we could have possibly filled with those 16 homes,” says Dillon Pullen, President and CEO of the Fairfield County Chamber of Commerce. In response, the County plans to build additional houses within the community as soon as possible. In addition, local leaders have also put notable effort into developing the Lake Wateree area.
Fairfield County is also improving its downtown areas, which will make the area even more attractive to newcomers. The State of South Carolina has provided $2 million for downtown revitalization projects in the town of Winnsboro, to include building renovations and landscaping. In addition, a private company has purchased the old country club, which includes a hotel, and an old bank building for development as a multi-use facility. The town of Ridgeway is currently developing a museum that will welcome visitors soon.
Fairfield County isn’t just a location for incoming business and development; it is also a destination for tourists, particularly for its pristine natural landscapes. “When we look at statistics that we get from our regional tourism agency, when we get statistics as far as local sales taxes and A&H taxes, they all tell us that people love coming to Fairfield County to enjoy the outdoors,” says Pullen. “And that’s wonderful for us because it’s sustainable.” In fact, the number of visitors is expected to continue to grow. “I see that number rising and rising and rising, and I don’t see a plateau anywhere in the future,” he says.
The county boasts two large lakes with amenities and a wide range of outdoor experiences and trails, including the most popular access point for South Carolina’s cross-state Palmetto Trail, and Carolina Adventure World, one of the leading ATV parks in the southeast with over 100 miles of trails. In 2023, Carolina Adventure World added an outdoor concert venue that will host a three-day music festival this month that expects to bring in 20,000 people.
Tourists and locals alike flock to Lake Wateree State Park, the only self-sustaining state park in South Carolina. “During summer months, reservations for camping spots are usually made a year in advance,” says Broadwater.
The South Carolina Railroad Museum is another popular destination. The only train museum in the state where visitors can ride a train, the museum offers barbeque dinner rides, Santa train rides, Easter bunny rides, pumpkin patch rides, and open-air cars, as well as basic train rides.
The Fairfield County Museum, too, is an active part of the local community. “They specialize in conserving history and telling the story of our county since its inception in 1785,” Broadwater says. “In doing so, the museum has worked to increase the signage of all of our historical land markers.” The museum is home to The Fairfield County Genealogy Society, which improves access to genealogical information by maintaining an educational research center and sharing cultural, genealogical, historical, and biographical information.
With so many assets already in place, as well as a wide range of development underway, there is plenty for Fairfield County to look forward to. “The future of our county is bright,” Broadwater summarizes. “We see a growing and prosperous economy that will stand the test of time.”
