Mountain View Baptist Church has stood in the heart of Greenville’s Newtown community for more than 100 years.
It has witnessed the changes and challenges experienced by the historically Black community. Now the church, located at 111 Cagle St., has created a new master plan to revitalize the area west of downtown and north of Unity Park, on the edge of the Southernside neighborhood.
Stacey Mills, pastor of the church, presented the Newtown community master plan to the Greenville City Council during a work session held Nov. 24.
“We believe, as a community entity, we’ve done the legwork and now are asking for the support of this council for this project,” Mills said.
The community master plan covers 48 parcels consisting of 91 acres of land in Newtown. The church began purchasing property in 1997 and now owns 40 parcels within the community. The remaining eight parcels are owned by private entities, including CSX Railroad, Legacy Early College and Greater Greenville Sanitation.
The church established the Parish House Community Development Corporation to complete the master plan in partnership with Johnston Design Group. The planning process began in 2022 with front porch interviews, a design charrette and young professional workshops.
From these meetings, the master planning team identified seven guiding principles:
- Supporting a healthy lifestyle and community
- Offering equitable and diverse housing options
- Supporting a vibrant private sector and entrepreneurial scene
- Creating educational opportunities
- Celebrating black culture through art, food, fashion and community
- Restore the outdoor landscape for STEM learning
- Maintaining Mountain View Baptist Church as the community’s anchor
The master plan reimagines Newtown as a vibrant mixed-use community with 500 new housing units for up to 1,500 residents. The housing would range in size, density and price point.
“There’s a place for every generation, every economic step,” said Scott Johnston, founder of Johnston Design Group.
The residential areas of Newtown would branch off from a new commercial and cultural center of the community. This section would include retail, restaurants and office space centered around a community green space. Mountain View Baptist Church would also be relocated to stand at the entrance of the town center.
Green spaces would be created across the community, such as trails, parks and a community garden. Other elements proposed in the master plan include a 600-person outdoor amphitheater, a baseball field, a neighborhood school, an outdoor classroom, a welcome history center and more.
Moving forward
Several steps will need to be taken to move forward with implementing the master plan, including rezoning the 48 parcels. The community currently has a mix of single-family residential, service and industrial zoning within the city. Parish House Community Development Corporation will work with city staff to rezone Newtown.
The master plan is expected to be presented at the city’s Project Preview Meeting in December. Greenville City Manager Shannon Lavrin said community feedback will need to be gathered before moving forward with rezoning.
A new flood zone for Newtown is also proposed in the master plan to help mitigate flooding. Low-impact uses such as green spaces and trails would be built in the community’s flood zone. Mills said the wetlands, which comprise more than 20 acres of land, are currently owned by CSX Railroad.
The team plans to request the city of Greenville and Greenville County adopt resolutions to assist with property acquisition and infrastructure funding for affordable housing. Mills said three key parcels included in the master plan have yet to be acquired.
“We’ve done our homework around that as well and are looking for assistance and having the right conversations with the right people in developing a strategy,” Mills said.
Mills said he hopes they can start building houses in 2026.
