Local author John Boyanoski will be signing copies of the revised edition of “Reimagining Greenville: Building the Best Downtown in America” on Saturday, Jan. 26, 2018 from 2-4 p.m. at Joe’s Place Bookstore in Greenville.

First released in 2013 with numerous reprints since, this new edition expands on the story of how Greenville’s downtown transformed from ghost town to one of the most celebrated examples of urban planning in the country.

The books focuses on the some of the key elements in the transformation including the reopening of the historic Poinsett Hotel, the beautification of the Reedy River, the construction of a Main Street baseball stadium, and more.

The book was the idea of Greenville Mayor Knox White, who wanted to chronicle the behind the scenes stories of how downtown evolved over the decades. As the city’s mayor since 1995, White has been a key figure in creating and adhering to the plans that have landed Greenville numerous accolades in the past decade.

To aid with the book process, White joined Boyanoski, who wrote about many of the key developments while a writer with the Greenville News and Greenville Journal. Boyanoski has written three other books: “Ghosts of Upstate South Carolina” (2006), “More Ghosts of Upstate South Carolina” (2008), and “Palmetto Pigskins” (2010).

“Greenville has a great story and I am honored to have been allowed to try and capture part of it,” Boyanoski said.

The new edition was created because so much has changed about downtown in the past four years, including hundreds of new apartments, more parking, an expanding West End area, and overall growth of the streets beyond on Main Street.

Downtown success has garnered national media attention as everyone from the New York Times to the Atlantic to American Spectator to Outside Magazine have written large stories about how Greenville was reshaped. In addition, the city hosts thousands of leaders from other communities each year that come hearing want to learn more about how Greenville grew.