Lower Greenville is taking on a facelift. New businesses are popping up everywhere and crime rates are going down.

The Lower Greenville Neighborhood Association has high hopes for the area, according to the president of the association, Patricia Carr.

“We are all terribly excited about the new businesses that are coming in,” Carr said.

“We have worked for three, almost four, years in improving the lowest Greenville area specifically with an eye toward all of lower Greenville and we’re really happy with the positive turn that its taking.”

Construction may be prominent now, but in the next few months and years Greenville will keep progressing.

Every month something new is coming up.

Places like Mudsmith Coffee and WalMart are some of the new businesses, with Trader Joe’s under construction and set to open in the first quarter of this year.

Even though this construction has caused some parking issues, residents are mostly happy with the progress.

“Parking on the street has been bad, but there’s lots back behind the stores that’s free so that are really nice,” Lower Greenville resident Alicia Christman said.

Store owners don’t seem to have any complaints either.

“I think it’s a nice change from before. It’s a lot cleaner now. I think the grocery store across the street will help us a lot because it will bring a bunch of people that don’t usually come down here,” Kush manager Farhad Ata said.

The Lower Greenville Neighborhood Association has high hopes to reduce crime in the area as well.

“The street construction council member Angela Hunt said the city was not going to invest money in street construction until crime went away,” Carr said.

Residents agree that construction has helped lower crime.

“It’s gotten rid of a lot of the crime in the area, and it’s definitely more family-friendly and there’s just some really cool places to hangout,” Christman said.

This is only the beginning for Lower Greenville’s new makeover. The new places are improving the area and the LGNA expects even more great things to come.

“There are going to be more improvements in the works over the next few years and we’re really excited that our neighborhood is having another renaissance,” Carr said.