Adaptive Reuse, Community Development

In 2022, 1st & Main transformed the historic Mt. Zion Institute School in downtown Winnsboro, SC into the Fairfield County, SC Government Complex. The site, with buildings dating back to the 1880s, includes the main classroom structure, auditorium, gymnasium, cafeteria, and teacherage. The buildings were slated for demolition in 2017 by the Town due to neighboring resident pressure and previous failed attempts at redevelopment.

Rory, with close family ties to the Town and buildings (many in his family attended Mt Zion), was determined to save the beautiful structures and saw an opportunity for a catalyst project in downtown. Working with Fairfield County, 1st & Main convinced the Town to forgo demolition and adaptively reuse the site as a County Complex. The current County facilities were decentralized, structurally unsound, and generally not suitable to meet the needs of the County. The new complex at Mt Zion allows the County to locate Administrative Services, Sheriff's Department, 911 Call Center, Parks & Recreation, and the County’s early childhood development services in a central location. The redeveloped Gymnasium has provided increased recreational offerings for the County’s residents and has allowed the County’s daycare services to expand. In addition, the restored theater has provided needed production space for the local Players group, Rotary Club, Chamber of Commerce, etc. when it’s not being used for Council Chambers. And the historic teacherage building (c. 1880) will soon house the Fairfield County Heritage Museum.

1st & Main utilized state and federal historic tax credits, New Market Tax Credits, and SC's abandoned building tax credit to rehab the structures, working closely with the County on their spatial needs. The complex re-occupied downtown Winnsboro's largest building, significantly increasing daily activity to the central business district. The project was delivered in December 2021.