Budgets, garages and council rules, explained by Spartanburg's own staff.
City of Spartanburg staffers Jess Sadeo and Christopher George explain how their city works, from the fiscal year budget and ARPA-funded housing to downtown garages and the council-manager system. The banter is loose and self-mocking, and guests like City Manager Chris Story handle the hard numbers.
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Spartanburg City News is what happens when a city's marketing and communications staff decide to explain their own government out loud. Jess Sadeo, marketing manager for the City of Spartanburg, most often introduces the episode as host. Christopher George, the city's communications and engagement director, appears alongside. The introductions are a running joke. Christopher gets a different description each time, colleague in one episode and supervisor in the next, and at one point says he accumulates new titles with every episode. Even the name comes in for ribbing, when someone points out that calling it the City of Spartanburg City Podcast is a little redundant. Then the talk turns to city business, and it gets specific fast. Money is the backbone. City Manager Chris Story joins for the 2023 fiscal year budget, with a warning up front that municipal budgets make for a nerdy conversation. The point is also made that caring about tax dollars should not require being a nerd, even if understanding every line might. Another episode follows ARPA funds into affordable housing and ends by sending people to a link showing how the money has been spent so far. The housing discussion covers senior housing on the north side that stays full with a long waiting list and work with the city manager's office, Spartanburg County and One Spartanburg. It also covers a strategy council has supported: market-rate developments that include a share of affordable units. Downtown is the other constant. A look back at recent growth covers historic redevelopments, including an anchor on East Main and the Montgomery Building, and admits East Main has not seen as much development as other parts of town. 'Why Downtown Spartanburg Growth Matters' brings together Chris Story and Will, a downtown expert who joined the city in late 2011. They recall a campaign about downtown's economic power, which they see as a forerunner to the One Spartanburg vision plan. The parking episode includes Sophia Lathbury, an intern from Wofford College. It explains how the city tried to keep people coming downtown while construction removed spaces they had used for years. For civics basics, 'What is a Council-Manager Form of Government?' is the clearest place to start. It sets out who sets policy, who runs daily operations, and how the mayor votes like any other council member, with no veto. Most of the jokes are self-directed. In the parking episode, Jess is signed off as convenient, abundant and safe, but not cheap. The substance holds up between the jokes: square footage, apartment counts, waiting lists, garages. What comes through is a city explaining itself in plain terms, with some office humor along the way.
Made for: Suits a listener who wants to know how Spartanburg spends its money, develops its downtown and splits power between council and city manager, and who enjoys some office banter along the way.
What sets it apart: The people explaining things are city employees and the city manager, so the episodes include working detail like housing waiting lists, the thinking behind garage parking messages and ARPA spending breakdowns. A running joke about ever-changing job titles keeps it light.
Official podcast of the City of Spartanburg
A downtown parking spot disappears, and you want the city's reasoning, not another shrug.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A clear, grounded look at how Spartanburg uses funding and development leverage to support affordable housing.
Spartanburg's affordable housing picture comes through in practical terms, with city support, LIHTC scoring, and development strategy all tied back to projects such as Danbury and Kennedy Street apartments.
A practical look at how Spartanburg is managing downtown parking, access, cost, and construction disruption.
Downtown parking becomes a real management test when construction disrupts familiar routines and the customers local shops count on. Jess Sadeo, Christopher George, and Wofford College intern Sophia Lathbury walk through the city’s response, from garages and parallel spaces to…
A candid, practical look at how downtown became central to Spartanburg's civic and economic planning.
Downtown Spartanburg is presented as a useful study in how civic priorities gather force over time. The episode links the city's economic recovery to a campaign about downtown's economic value, then follows how that thinking helped set the stage for downtown's place in the One…
A clear, grounded look at the projects that shaped downtown Spartanburg's visible transformation.
Downtown Spartanburg's growth is framed as a steady chain of choices, not a sudden boom. Jess Sadeo and Christopher George walk through that momentum by way of projects such as Aug Smith and the Montgomery Building, giving the story a practical scale through the apartments,…
A plainspoken guide to who sets Spartanburg's policy and who turns it into city work.
Spartanburg City Podcast returns with a clear, useful walk-through of how city council's policy role connects to the city manager's daily administration.
County government, translated into everyday Missoula life.
Hosts Christopher George and Jess Sadeo interview David Mayhar about the Lead Safe Spartanburg program, a HUD-funded initiative to reduce lead hazards.
City officials discuss COVID-19 response, governor's orders, and encourage supporting local restaurants.
City officials discuss the 2020 census, its importance, and how residents can complete it online, by mail, or by phone.
Spartanburg City News centers on how about $16 million in ARPA funds became a lever for affordable housing, with roughly $5 million set aside and about $3.8 million allocated to projects that helped attract close to $60 million in development.
Spartanburg City News says downtown parking remains abundant, with more than 3,300 garage spaces and no increase from the long-running 50-cent hourly rate.
Jess Sadeo and Christopher George frame this Spartanburg City News episode as a follow-up on “the why of economic development,” with City Manager Chris Story and former podcast host Will Rothschild joining the conversation.
Jess Sadeo and Christopher George trace downtown Spartanburg’s growth from the post-Great Recession period around 2012 through the current wave of development.
Jess Sadeo and Christopher George reopen the Spartanburg City Podcast with a refocused mission: explain local government, policy, and operations instead of broad community chatter.
Pastor Nanny Jeffries says Angels Charge Ministry began in Spartanburg in 2014 to help women return to society after incarceration.
Hurricane Helene caused damage across Spartanburg that city officials said exceeded their expectations for the storm.
Duncan Park Lake has reopened to boating and fishing after decades without access.
City officials discuss the upcoming fiscal year budget for Spartanburg, explaining how tax dollars are allocated.
City Manager Chris Story discusses the latest city council decision to maintain the vehicle closure on Morgan Square and plans for future enhancements.