Rapid Growth Drove Anderson County News in 2023
Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer
Anderson County and the towns that inhabit it experienced another year of rapid growth in 2023 in economic development, recreation, the arts and more.
The county added more than 1,500 jobs as established companies expanded and new businesses chose to build in Anderson County. International investment in the county, which leads the state in overseas companies, added three more investments in overseas businesses bringing new jobs to Anderson. Unemployment continued to slide back toward the historic pre-pandemic numbers as well. More than $100 million in new investment was part of the new jobs announcements.
County council also approved funding for a new $72 million detention center to replace the overcrowded and crumbling jail built in 1958. The new facility promises to be safer and offer better service both for law enforcement and inmates, and will include more mental health evaluations and services.
Council also approved a $8.3 million bond to repair long overdue repair and construction needs at the historic Anderson County Courthouse, which celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2023. The tile roof and structure issues in the old building were closing in on becoming critical.
Council will vote on the final reading Tuesday on a referendum to ask voters for a one-cent sales tax increase to be used exclusively for roads. The tax, which would expire in seven years, would allow the county to catch up with road repair and maintenance, which has lagged since the days of road commissioners running the county. The estimated $40 million annually from the funds would for the first time allow the county to bring all roads up to standard. A recent study of the 1,534 miles of county roads provided a roadmap for how much needs to be done.
Across the street at the “new” county courthouse, recalled parts in the new elevator closed the building to court proceedings for the last half of the year. As the county awaits the repair/replacement of the faulty parts, court is being held at other buildings including the historic courthouse, the 1428 building on Pearman Dairy Road and the assessor’s office on River Street.
Anderson County’s Emergency Management System was chosen best in the state, in 2023, and honored alongside County EMS Director Steve Kelly, who was named South Carolina EMS Director of the Year.
The historic Robert Anderson fountain, which for many years resided on the square in downtown Anderson was restored to its original state, including lights and returned to the grounds of Anderson County Museum this year. The meticulous work was done by the same Charleston company that restored the H.L. Hunley.
A few blocks away, work on the restoration and reclamation of the old post office downtown, which had been remodeled and used as a funeral home for close to a century. The work included removing non-historic elements and restoring the interior of the space to what it looked like when it opened more than 110 years ago, including the marble floors and postal worker teller windows. The building will be occupied by Coldwell Banker Caine, with a restaurant on the bottom floor.
Downtown Anderson also saw the opening of a new restaurant, Up on the Roof, on the top of the new parking garage downtown. The City of Anderson also approved redistricting of council seats in 2023.
Across the county, towns and cities put to use a combination of federal and state funding sources to improve infrastructure, especially in the wastewater and sewer areas. The upgrades and extensions of many of the systems will better serve citizens and provide future capacity for economic development projects of future industrial needs.
Meanwhile, despite the hundreds of new housing units under construction this year, a housing shortage has pushed up rent prices to historic highs. Anderson saw the third largest increase in rent in the United States over the past three years, and prices continue to climb. The county and its cities and towns are looking for ways to provide affordable housing, but it’s a steep climb.
One of the most visible accomplishments of the year was the completion of the walking trail that stretches almost five miles, from the wooded track behind AnMed’s S.C. 81 campus on McConnell Springs Road to the civic center. The project kicked off two years ago and extended the East-West Parkway Trail and was paid for with federal funding. The trail is getting almost constant use, especially on the end near the hospital.
A committee to explore a new trail system that starts in Anderson and ends in Belton also met for the first time this year. Plans for the trail along the old rail line property are expected to be revealed in the first quarter of 2024.
One of the other obvious improvements from 2023 is the new stage at the Anderson Civic Center amphitheater. The stage, much larger than the aging portable stage used before, helped bring such acts as Darius Rucker, PitBull and Martina McBride to Anderson, and has already signed a deal for a two-day country music festival in July 24 which includes such acts as Travis Tritt, Jason Aldean and Kid Rock.
Next door the outdoor theater, Kid Venture 2.0 opened this year, with an expanded and totally accessible playground. A splash pad and other water features were also popular this summer when the park reopened. Additional expansion is expected in the year to come.
In education, Anderson County School Dist. 4 passed a referendum to allow bonds for a new high school and upgrades to every other school in the county’s fastest growing district. The district had already put aside some funding, but the bond will mean no larger classroom sizes or portable buildings in the district, expected to grow by a third in the next seven years, and which has seen more than a thousand new houses added in the past couple of years.
Pendleton growth is expected to continue as new development is under way for a planned community on the old Cheney Mill property, as well as finally moving ahead on cleaning up the rubble of the old Pendleton Oil Mill with future plans for development.
Similar work is under way in Honea Path, where a pair of grants will make possible the clean up and development of the old Chiquola Mill Property. Iva and Pelzer are also moving ahead with plans for finding use for old mill sites in their communities.
Anderson School Dist. 5 chose a native Andersonian to replace retiring Superintendent Tom Wilson, who stepped down after 10 years. Brenda Kelley, who was born in Anderson County and a Westside High School graduate, took the helm before the current school year. The timing was great, since Westside won its first state football championship since 1969.
West Pelzer was awarded the 2023 Municipal Association of South Carolina Achievement Award for “superior and innovative efforts in local government.”
West Pelzer Mayor Blake Sanders said the town received the award based on the “reinvigorating our once vacant business district into a vibrant collection of locally owned businesses.”
Sanders stepped down as mayor after eight years, and has announced he is running for the S.C. House Dist. 9 seat, which will be vacated by Anne Thayer at the end of her term in 2024.
In other politics, many of the county’s towns and cities held elections and saw most incumbents returned to office in 2023.
Meanwhile, Melody Hodges Duncan, the wife of U.S. Rep. Jeff Duncan, Rep-S.C. Dist. 3, the representative for a district which includes Anderson County, filed for divorce. In court filings, she said Rep. Duncan left their marriage after he admitted to her he has had an ongoing sexual relationship with Liz Williams, a Washington lobbyist. In court filings, Duncan’s wife said her husband has had a previous affair over the course of their nearly 35-year marriage. Duncan has yet to announce if he will run for reelection in 2024.
In other news:
The Anderson Emergency Kitchen, which serves a hot meal three days a week to those in need, relocated to the old Roy’s Diner building on South Main Street in Anderson, allowing for a place to dine-in and visit.
Meals on Wheels of Anderson opened senior centers in Honea Path and West Pelzer where activities and classes will be scheduled each week in those communities. Meals on Wheels also raised more than $100,000 at their annual summer event at Green Pond.
Thanks to the work of the Cancer Association of Anderson, the Hot Air Affair brought balloons back to the Celebrate Anderson event this year.
Piedmont made significant progress in refurbishing the historic YWCA building to be used as a community museum.
Iva began work to move the Anderson County Library Branch downtown, after selling the old library to School Dist. 3.