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Welcome to Code Spartanburg
The City of Spartanburg is updating its zoning ordinance to create a modern, user-friendly set of development regulations that reflects the community’s vision and guides how Spartanburg grows and reinvests in the years ahead.
Throughout the process, residents, businesses, property owners, developers, and other community members will have opportunities to help shape the new code.
Mayor Jerome Rice
Call to Action
I want to take this opportunity to tell you about a project that may not sound exciting at first, but that I believe will shape our city for a generation.
Zoning is the set of rules that determines what can be built in Spartanburg, and where. It is not something most of us think about often, but it touches nearly everything we love about this place. It is present in the front porches and shade trees of our older streets, the walkability of our neighborhoods, the life of our downtown, and the opportunities available to families who want to build a life here.
Our current zoning ordinance was adopted more than 35 years ago, written for a Spartanburg that no longer exists. More importantly, it is not equipped to shape the Spartanburg that is coming.
As in many other areas, Spartanburg has never been afraid to lead when it comes to zoning reform. In 2014, we became the first city in South Carolina to adopt a form-based code with the adoption of our Downtown Code, a move that has since enabled the remarkable progress we have seen in the heart of our city. Code Spartanburg builds on that experience and on the vision our community set out together when creating and adopting our Comprehensive Plan.
I want to be clear about what this project is and is not. We do not want to change what makes our neighborhoods great. We want to build from the lessons those neighborhoods have taught us. We are not taking away rights any property owner holds today. We are clarifying opaque rules and creating an ordinance that works for all of our property owners. We are not taking away the protections that safeguard the character of our community. We are bringing our rules in line with the shared vision of our community.
That vision came from you, first through the Plan Spartanburg public process that created the Comprehensive Plan, and now through this ordinance update, which will be guided by that same principle. We will take this journey together. I have great confidence in what we will build, because I have great confidence in this community. My colleagues and I on City Council want to hear from the people who live here, and I hope you will take part.
Get Involved, Upcoming Events and Opportunities
Kickoff Public Meeting - October 7
Spartanburg County Public Library - Barrett Room
Time: 4:30pm to 7:30pm
Kickoff Public Meeting - October 8
Dr. T.K. Gregg Community Center
Time: 4:30pm to 7:30pm
Why Now?
Why Now?
Our zoning code hasn’t kept pace with our city
Spartanburg is growing and changing, but portions of the current zoning ordinance are still rooted in standards written more than 35 years ago and amended piecemeal since. The result is a code that’s difficult to use, hard to administer, and often out of step with how people actually live, work, and get around today.
A modernized code gives the City a tool that can keep up: one that supports housing affordability, reflects the priorities of Plan Spartanburg, and treats every neighborhood fairly.
Plan Spartanburg’s guiding principles — Character & Authenticity, Enhanced Connections, Dignity & Belonging, and Improved Health & Wellness — will directly shape the new code.
What the new code is meant to achieve.
What is Zoning?
What is zoning?
Zoning is a set of local regulations that determine how land and buildings may be used and developed in Spartanburg.
Zoning helps shape the look, feel, and function of the city by establishing rules for what can be built, where it can be located on a property, and how development relates to neighboring properties and streets.
In simple terms, zoning helps answer questions like:
- What can be built here?
- How large or tall can it be?
- Where can it be located on the property?
- Where should parking, landscaping, signs, and other site features go?
Zoning is one of the primary tools the City uses to implement Plan Spartanburg (the comprehensive plan). You can consider the plan the blueprint for how the City manages growth, protects neighborhood character, supports economic development, provide housing; and ensures that new development contributes positively to the community. Zoning is the tool that helps make it happen.
While zoning influences how property may be developed, it does not determine who owns property or what businesses or residents may occupy a building, provided the use complies with applicable regulations.
See Zoning in Action
Zoning includes many of the standards that shape how buildings and sites are designed. Explore the examples below to see how some common zoning standards work.
Project Timeline
How long will it take to update the zoning ordinance?
The zoning ordinance update is expected to take approximately 16 months to fully complete. However, the project will also include a phased implementation strategy that allows the City to address urgent issues and known challenges in the current ordinance through targeted “quick fixes” while the larger zoning update is underway.
The Process
Timeline
Community Engagement & Communication
Current Phase: Project Kickoff
Existing Code Assessment
Zoning Framework & Initial Drafts
Quick Fixes
Draft Code Development & Public Review
Adoption & Implementation
Get Involved
Help Shape Code Spartanburg
This code is being written with Spartanburg, not just for it.
Ways to Get Involved
Stay in the loop
Get zoning code rewrite updates directly in your inbox, including upcoming meetings and engagement opportunities, new draft documents, public comment periods, and major project milestones and updates.
Get Involved, Upcoming Events and Opportunities
October 7 & 8
Join the project team to learn about the zoning code rewrite, understand what the project will address, and share your priorities for Spartanburg’s new code.
Both meetings will cover the same material. Attend whichever date and location works best for you.
Kickoff Public Meeting - October 7
Spartanburg County Public Library - Barrett Room
Time: 4:30pm - 7:30pm
Kickoff Public Meeting - October 8
Dr. TK Gregg Community Center
Time: 4:30pm - 7:30pm
Kick Off Meeting Materials - October 7 & 8
Kick Off Meeting materials will be available here leading up to the meeting.
Meet the Team
Who is Writing the New Code?
The City has selected a consultant team led by TSW and Code Studio, with support from Arnett Muldrow & Associates, Austen & Gowder, LLC. The team also includes Interboro, a nationally recognized community planning and engagement firm. Together, the team brings a wide range of expertise in zoning, land use, community planning, economic development, and public engagement.
The consultant team was selected through a competitive bidding process based on its understanding of local zoning and development issues, extensive experience with zoning and land use regulations at both the local and national levels, and commitment to tailoring its approach to Spartanburg’s unique character, opportunities, and challenges.
Throughout the project, the team will work closely with City staff, stakeholders, and community members to develop a zoning ordinance that reflects Spartanburg’s vision while supporting thoughtful growth, investment, and a strong sense of place.
The Team
The City of Spartanburg Planning Department is leading Code Spartanburg on behalf of the City and will work closely with the consultant team throughout the zoning code rewrite. The Planning Department will help ensure the new code responds to local needs, implements the vision of Plan Spartanburg, and results in clear, practical regulations that can be effectively administered and understood by the community.
TSW is the lead consultant for Code Spartanburg and will manage the project while providing zoning, planning, design, strategy, and overall project coordination. With more than 35 years of experience in planning and code development, TSW specializes in creating clear, user-friendly regulations that translate community goals into practical standards that work both on paper and in practice.
Code Studio will work closely with TSW to support zoning strategy, code development, and graphics. Nationally recognized for highly visual and easy-to-use development codes, Code Studio specializes in translating planning and design concepts into clear regulations that are understandable to the public, practical for staff to administer, and capable of producing predictable development outcomes.
Greenville-based Arnett Muldrow will support Code Spartanburg through planning, community engagement, and economic analysis. The firm brings experience working with communities across the country to connect planning and regulatory decisions with market realities, economic development opportunities, and practical implementation strategies.
Interboro Partners will support community engagement, communications, and project strategy throughout the zoning code rewrite. The firm specializes in inclusive and creative approaches to public participation, using a variety of outreach methods to meet people where they are and ensure that a broad range of community voices can meaningfully contribute to the planning process.
Charleston-based Austen & Gowder, LLC will lead the legal review of the new zoning code and provide legal support throughout the project. The firm specializes in land use, zoning, and municipal law and will help ensure that the new regulations are clear, legally sound, defensible, and practical to implement.