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Lunch at Newry Cafe

This past Tuesday I picked up Ken Cothran at Clemson and we headed over to the Newry General Store and Cafe for lunch. I wanted to see what they had done with the old store and how the development looked from the community side.

As we drove down the valley into the village it didn’t look like things had changed that much. There were some nicely renovated houses sitting right next door to dilapidated heaps.

Even this old run down houses are sturdily built and could be restored. It takes a lot of vision to see their potential, and I applaud those that have kept up these old mill houses. The problem is that there are long time residents of the village still living in squalor with trash all around their yards and with major problems with their houses. They most likely don’t have the financial resources to do a restoration, and it’s neither feasible or ethical to make them move just because they don’t fit in with the new community ethos.

Ken and I made a loop through the village then found ourselves on Sub Station Road. This turns into a winding dirt road that takes you back out to the main highway. Along this route I could see the locations of the illegal dumps I’d found on the paddling trip.

We made our way back to the village and found parking at the general story. This is what the store looked like in 2010. The post office was still active, but the store itself was boarded up.

This is its new updated look.

There were quite a few other patrons in the cafe when we arrived. The cafe serves breakfast and a limited number of sandwiches for lunch. When I tried to order a Diet Coke I was informed that they didn’t carry any of the name brand sodas. I opted for tea to go along with my chicken salad sandwich.

Since it was such a nice day Ken and I took our meals out on the back deck overlooking the mill complex. The sandwiches were huge and kind of hard to manage.

After lunch we browsed through the store. Not only did they not have name brand sodas, it didn’t look like they had any name brand anything. It was an interesting collection and they had most of the supplies would need such as milk, flour, sugar, etc., but if you wanted something familiar you would have to look elsewhere.

The post office is still active. Next to the PO boxes a set of wide stairs led upward. Ken and I got permission to go up and take a look at the event space upstairs.

We also had a good view of the new apartment complex, including the old mill and the new addition.

After lunch we drove through the complex itself. It seemed…empty, like not many people yet lived here. There was a moving van and some activity, so at least a few people had moved in.

As we drove through the lower level parking garage of the new building this feeling was really brought home. There were absolutely no cars. Either they were all at work, or this place is empty. It also confirmed my feeling from my paddling trip that the developers weren’t taking advantage of water access. Instead of a nice water area, there were air handlers for HVAC.

Ken and I rounded out our trip by driving around Issaqueena Lake, then headed back home. On the way we talked about what we had seen. I applaud the developers for what they have accomplished with saving the old mill. I think there are other things they could have done, but I have no idea what their budget constraints were. I do think they missed some opportunities that would have paid off in the long run, such as developing the waterfront a bit more. We wondered who the market was for these apartments. Certainly not for students. It’s too far to Clemson and probably too expensive. It’s also not terribly convenient for day workers. Retirees? Again, there aren’t that many conveniences nearby. I may be way off base, but I fear that isolation is going to work against them, and that this is why things look so empty.

As for the store, the food at the cafe was good and about as expensive anywhere else. The store itself is another matter. It might make for a destination to find interesting new things, but as a place to pick up your regular supplies it falls short.

Then there’s the issue of gentrification. I think Newry has made great strides and is heading in the right direction (despite the above comments), but it still has a long way to go. I’m not for forcing out long time residents, but the place does need to be cleaned up. If nothing else, I wish they (whoever “they” might be) would take responsibility for the illegal dumps and get them cleaned up. Then, maybe, the water would be even more appealing and this location even more of an attraction.

UPDATE: Newry Store and Cafe just announced yesterday (5/4/2024) that they are “closing for the foreseeable future.”