About Belinda, Her Family, and Her Neighborhood
Belinda has been married for almost 30 years to her husband, Richard Gergel, a Columbia native and attorney. They have two children, Robert Richard, a 2007 graduate of New York University in Film Studies, and Joseph, a junior at New York University studying photography. Two spoiled dogs—Charlie and Ladybug—round out the family!
The Gergels reside on Pendleton Street in the city’s University Hill neighborhood, between USC and Five Points, in a home built in 1909. The Gergels love the “front porch culture” of their historic neighborhood and its tree lined streets in the heart of the city. Belinda is a devoted gardener with a special love of antique roses. She raises many variations of “the Old Roses” in her garden and has won numerous blue ribbons at the South Carolina State Fair.
The University Hill neighborhood, a stone’s throw from the State Capitol, USC, and Main Street, has undergone enormous change since its establishment in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. By the 1960s it had had lost a significant number of its family homes to unchecked development that in some instances leveled historic homes to create unpaved lots for USC parking. Dedicated neighborhood leaders worked with city officials to establish a local historic district in the early 1970s and the neighborhood began to once again attract new residents. Homes were lovingly restored and review by city officials assured appropriate new infill development. In recent years the neighborhood has been featured on historic tours and is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
University Hill residents know firsthand the experience of violent and petty crime and the value of a strong and visible police presence in our neighborhood. We also know that the place that city government touches its citizens most directly - in the routine work of city operations including trash and garbage collection, street repairs, inspections, and lighting - profoundly influences the way we experience life in our city. We appreciate the value of our strong neighborhood association and dedicated neighborhood leaders in addressing issues that build our neighborhood and our city.