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March 2009

20 Answers: Mayor Knox White

He has guided the city through an historic and transformational decade, and he talks to G about the changes he’s championed, childhood ambitions, the next big ideas for downtown, and his Segway-driving skills.

• Hometown: Greenville
• Position: City of Greenville mayor since 1995
• Education: Greenville High, Wake Forest University, and USC School of Law
• Notable: Received the Greenville Chamber of Commerce's 2009 Buck Mickel Leadership Award

1. There was a time in elementary school when I thought I would become an Episcopal priest. I attended a religiously affiliated grade school
(Christ Church).

2. I’m not fluent, but I do speak German.

3. I wish the old City Hall building and the train station were still around. Both would be prides of our community if only they had not been so short-sightedly demolished.

4. Downtown’s missing a great bookstore, a cinema, and a drugstore. We’re actively pursuing all of these.

5. I’d like to create a new park along the Reedy River—on the other side of Academy Street. We have over 200 acres of floodplain property there that could be transformed into a new center of recreation. It would also be a magnet for redevelopment.

6. At home, I’m working on downsizing. I’m tired of yard work.

7. I enjoy being an attorney and serving as mayor, but I think I would like to be an urban planner. Or a history teacher.

8. I have two bikes that I ride: A mountain bike at home and the bike at City Hall, which is a Trek commuter bike that stays downtown. I enjoy riding, and it's a good way to get a closer inspection of the city.

9. I took a “test run” on a Segway (personal transporter) around the Poinsett Club parking lot. Once I got the hang of it, it was great. I didn’t hit a single pedestrian.

10. The idea for the lights in the trees is one of the little things that makes the pedestrian experience downtown unique. I think I first saw this idea in Chicago. But yes, I do take down my Christmas lights at home—after Christmas.