For 75 years, City Glass has operated by the same principles: honesty, quality and transparency.
Employees and staff at City Glass take pride in the quality of their commercial design and installation work, but President Shawn Holland also credits relationships with his crews and general contractors for their ongoing prosperity.
“No matter the industry, it is of utmost importance to respect team members, partners and customers in both words and actions. Those core values have been part of City Glass since 1949 and impact our business model and work culture today,” Holland said.
City Glass was already operating in Anderson when a young veteran named Dick Ballenger began searching for new direction. Having sustained a brain injury during World War II, he was told by his doctor to avoid sitting behind a desk all day. He and a partner set out to reinvigorate the business. Eventually, his partner went into banking, but Ballenger kept growing the company that would become his legacy. Making it a true family business, he asked his wife to answer the phones one day; and 40 years later she retired from City Glass. Their son, Richard Ballenger, ran the company for many years before selling to Holland, his son-in-law, in 2017.
With a presence in eastern Georgia and Upstate South Carolina, Dick Ballenger expanded City Glass across both states, as well as North Carolina. There were no commercial competitors in Georgia, but he had to stand his ground on the home front.
“Some of the big glazing companies with wider reach tried hard to put Dick out of business,” Holland said, adding that Hart County Courthouse in Hartwell saved City Glass.
Since then, the company has executed an amazing array of work, including Bleckley Station in downtown Anderson.
commercial buildings, making them
feel bigger and more inviting — like the
historic Bleckley Station venue.
“The iconic train depot is now a stunning event center,” Holland said. “Walls of windows and glass doors leading to indoor balconies make the venue feel simultaneously vintage and wide-open.”
As an avid Clemson fan, Holland is also happy City Glass has done everything from replacing windows in historic structures to helping create new buildings on campus. The football, tennis and softball practice facilities, along with Tillman Hall and the Andy Quattlebaum Outdoor Education Center, are among the company’s projects.
According to Holland, the right glass can make or break a building’s functionality, value and appeal.
“The architects design the space, but it’s up to us to help realize their vision,” he said. “We’ve never seen a build we couldn’t achieve.”
Despite its accomplishments, City Glass remains a relatively small company that happens to work with big-name contractors, architects and builders across a fairly large area. It has the experience and bandwidth of a much larger company with the communication practices of a close-knit business.
Looking to the future, Holland hopes City Glass will keep contributing to important local projects while expanding and challenging their design capabilities.
“As my sons grow up and the industry and technology progress, we’d love to see it continue to be a family-owned company with the same values that have brought us this far,” he said.
