Our Work: America's Favorite Past Time

March Madness has not yet started but the buzz seems to be about baseball, America's favorite past time. Major League training camps begin this month, Clemson and the University of South Carolina games are well under way, and the high schools have started practice. The Upstate of South Carolina is a hotbed for college and professional baseball prospects. Clemson and USC are nationally ranked, and their rosters are peppered with in-state athletes.

To get to the collegiate level, boys (and girls) start playing at an early age. Sometimes it is the uniform that most sparks their interest. Often it is the dad who knows he has fathered a Major League All-Star. Following success in the local little league program, the players advance to travel baseball where they play in tournaments year round. These tournaments not only provide stiff competition, but the privilege of hosting a tournament can bank a huge paycheck for municipalities.

Craig Gaulden Davis has been instrumental in creating two of the most popular "destination parks" in South Carolina. The award-winning Heritage Park in Simpsonville, which opened in 2004, features both active and passive recreational activities. The complex has six baseball fields, a training field, a custom playground, walking trails, picnic shelters and the Charter Amphitheatre, also designed by CGD.

Another regional park, and arguably the most popular baseball destination, is the recently completed Tyger River Park in Spartanburg County. Tyger River has twelve baseball fields, plus a championship field and a dynamic playground featuring an observation tower. Both parks have an architectural style that makes them unique and memorable to teams travelling from neighboring states. Heritage and Tyger River have proven that investment in these facilities creates significant revenue for restaurants and hotels in the vicinity.

Kim Poole
Office Manager/Switch Hitter

Craig Gaulden Davis is blessed to have many loyal and faithful employees. None are more devoted than Kim Poole. Kim serves as the firm's office manager, but her role is much more than the title suggests. She is our receptionist, our marketing assistant, our archivist, our party planner and jack of all trades. She is a truly the switch hitter that every company desires.

Having worked at CGD for thirty years, Kim's historical knowledge has proven invaluable. She can recall which projects the firm has designed and who the architect was on each project. With many repeat clients, Kim's recollection is very useful.

While not at the office, Kim feeds her fascination with European sports cars by volunteering with the annual Euro Auto Festival at BMW and relaxing at her beautiful lakefront home with husband Frankie and energetic Welsh Corgi, Lucy.

Firm News:
Legacy Charter School Upgrades Again

Craig Gaulden Davis is working with Legacy Charter School to renovate all the classrooms at the middle/high school campus. Originally, the home of Parker High School, Legacy purchased the property and relocated its middle and high school to the campus in 2010. This is the sixth renovation in which CGD has assisted Legacy, whose mission is to educate underserved urban students.

CGD Selected to Work with
Anderson Five

Craig Gaulden Davis has been selected for an Indefinite Delivery Contract with Anderson School District Five. The firm's initial project with the District will be a roof replacement at Westside High School. Anderson Five is the eighth school district that CGD has worked with the in the past ten years. The firm currently has on-call design contracts with Greenville County Schools, Oconee County, Lander University and Clemson University in addition to Anderson Five.

On the Boards: New Library in Harlem

Craig Gaulden Davis has been selected to design a new library in Harlem. No, the library is not in Harlem, New York, but in Harlem, Georgia. The library is a key component of an overall master plan to revitalize the downtown business district and create opportunities for civic engagement and cultural activity for the growing bedroom community located just outside of Augusta, Georgia.

Earle Gaulden, one of our firm's founders, established CGD's reputation as the premier library design firm in South Carolina. He trained the next generation of architects and interior designers that carry forward his passion for library design today. The Harlem library will be CGD's third library in the Augusta area. The Evans Columbia County Main Library was completed in 2005 and the Augusta Richmond County Main Library was opened in 2010.