Dry conditions and lingering drought have the Reedy River running low.
By Tom Poland, A Southern Writer
TomPoland.net
The South Carolina Upcountry beautifully blends natural and man-made attractions. That would please Frank Lloyd Wright who championed the philosophy that a building should grow from its site, use natural materials, and unify with the landscape. Wright designed Greenville’s Broad Margin. Completed in 1954, it’s one of only two Wright designs built in South Carolina. Wright didn’t live to see Greenville’s Falls Park, but he’d certainly appreciate it. It’s one of the country’s top urban waterfalls, showcasing the cascading Reedy River.
Greenville has unique man-made attractions too, among them a store that keeps the legendary general store alive. Mast General and Falls Park connect in more ways than the 12-minute walk that takes you from the store to Falls Park and the once-beleaguered Reddy River, once known as the “Rainbow Reedy.”
In the late 1800s, textile mills along the Reedy discharged dyes into the water. That old out-of-sight, out-of-mind mentality ruled the day. The Reedy ran red one day, blue another, green still another, and other hues on other days. The dumping went on for decades. At long last cleanup efforts, stricter regulations, and community groups such as Friends of the Reedy River (FoRR) greatly improved conditions.
Today, Reedy River Falls’s an oasis in an upscale, upstate metropolitan area. People enjoy a Chattooga-like setting without having to drive 60 miles into the rugged northwest corner.
Now, about those connections between Falls Park and Mast General. They began when Mayor Knox White and others invited Mast General to look at Greenville’s dynamic Main Street, then leaning from restaurants toward retail. On March 12, 2003, Mast opened there, its first store located outside North Carolina. It turned an 1891 Meyers-Arnold Department Store into a general store.
Mindful of the falls’ uniqueness and environmental stewardship, Mast General supported efforts to keep the Reedy River clean by donating to Friends of the Reedy River. Mast General’s annual Friends Day, held in early to mid-September since 2008, donates 10 percent of Friends Days’ sales to FoRR.
Consider FoRR, founded 1993, as Greenville’s “voice of the river.” Its work includes two major volunteer river cleanups each year (river sweeps), pollution reporting, streambank monitoring, floodplain projects, advocacy for sustainable development, and other water-quality and watershed improvements. Company-wide Friends Day totals have reached tens of thousands of dollars.
Mast’s Greenville store also supports related conservation through Land Trust Day (first Saturday in June), donating 20 percent of that day’s sales to Upstate Forever, which protects land, wetlands, riverbanks, and open space in the Upstate, including areas tied to the Reedy River watershed and the Swamp Rabbit Trail. Contributions represent ongoing, recurring commitments rather than one-off gifts. Mast General Greenville encourages its employees to volunteer in the “river sweeps,” which clean the waterway of litter, etc.
Greenville grew up along the banks of the Reedy, a river flowing out of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Though the river has gone through some tough times, folks dine in outdoor venues overlooking a healthier river—a waterway at home with city-scapes and landscapes. Complementing and expanding the view is Liberty Bridge, a unique curved suspension footbridge overlooking Reedy River, its falls, and the city.
Whitewater gives mankind a soothing sound, a calming presence. To enjoy that in the heart of a city is rare. No longer the Rainbow Reedy, the river’s much healthier than in the past, yet faces challenges.
Meanwhile Mast General supports other environmental and conservation efforts including the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, Friends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Pisgah Conservancy, Gateway Nature Preserve in Winston-Salem, and the Palmetto Trail in South Carolina, and other conservation and sustainability efforts.
