As early voting for the South Carolina primary elections closes, 3,610 have cast votes in Anderson County. This represents 2.97 percent of the 121,145 voters eligible to vote in this election.

John and Dixie Benca have enduring memories of their first date. It was at the Steak and Ale Restaurant, where they both also worked, the site of many of the couple’s family memories and special events. Thirty-seven years later, the couple is planning to open the second site in the reboot of the Steak and Ale chain in Anderson. The Bencas, who own McGee's Scot-Irish Pub, a favorite spot in downtown Anderson for more than 30 years, are ready for the challenge of adding a new restaurant experience to the area.

What she seems to have learned above all is that the town’s future depends on a web of partnerships. Legislators in Columbia matter, Anderson County Council matters, and so do the people who show up for meetings, sponsor events, volunteer for recreation, or help restore a building on the square.

Anderson County Council approved a series of tax incentives on Tuesday, two of which bring the promise of new jobs and the third a new investment to expand an existing company’s operations.

The current budget proposal contains no property tax increase, and a two percent raise for county employees.

Williamston Mayor Rockey Burgess talks about growth as something to be watched, managed, and occasionally persuaded not to ruin the afternoon. With a string of new businesses moving in, the town’s biggest summer events are returning, and a heavily used public park is getting a round of improvements that Burgess is proud of the town’s progress.

In a town with so much history visible and still standing, the restoration of a two-story building on the village square aims to keep such structures a part of the community for generations to come.

Passenger service ended in 1951, and the building moved through later lives — offices, a furniture store, then abandonment — until Anderson Attorney Steve Krause, his wife Linda and a small circle of partners began imagining what it might mean to give the place back its original shape without pretending it could ever become what it once was.

In the first six months of Rick Sanders’ tenure as mayor, the has moved smoothly into the role as only one already deeply connected to the town might do. Sanders, who also owns Westy’s Antiques and the Lincoln Tap Room, said the job has suited him because it lets him do what he has always preferred to do: talk to people, knock on doors, and try to pull a community closer to itself. That instinct has is already shaping the town’s public life.

The proposed budget, with general-fund appropriations of $137,873,400 and a total millage ceiling of 83.2 mills, exclusive of debt-service millage to be set later by the auditor.

What is remembered most often is not so much our father’s instruction as it is about the way he calibrated our lives. If you had a good father, and I am blessed to be among that tribe, you might have learned most from how your dad lived in those disguised ordinary, everyday moments and how he related to those around him, especially those in need.

With close to 12,000 students and more than 1,700 employees, the district is the largest in Anderson County.

The Anderson County Farmers Market officially kicks off the season Saturday with more than 34 vendors. Local farmers will on hand with green beans, squash, potatoes, sweet corn and even the possibility of a few summer tomatoes. Local arts and crafts merchants will also be featured at the market.

Nearly 10,000 more Anderson County voters cast ballots in the 2026 primary elections than in 2024. This represents 26.57 percent of the county’s registered voters. A total of 34,246 voters went to the polls, including 9,161 who voted early. Early voting for a runoff election is scheduled for June 17-18, for the runoff election date June 23.

Tri-County Technical College has been named one of 10 finalists for the 2027 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, placing the institution among a small group of colleges nationally recognized for producing strong student outcomes. The prize, backed by $1 million in award funds, is the Aspen Institute’s signature honor for community colleges, with an emphasis on completion, transfer, and jobs that lead to family-sustaining wages.

What they are hoping to build is not another predictable downtown menu.

Anderson County Council will have three new members after Tuesday’s statewide primaries, with voters replacing two incumbents and one new member filling a seat to be open at the end of the year. Two county council members also held onto their seats.

Voters would be best served by being allowed to enter a polling station without feeling that they need a repairman’s costume or other disguise to be left alone when coming to vote.

King, author of “Waterfall Hikes of Upstate South Carolina,” was born in Anderson 81 years ago, and has spent his years moving through the Upstate with the patience of a cataloguer and the appetite of a hiker who never quite stopped being curious.

The summer calendar already promises more chances for community gathering. A planned “Splashing in the Park” event has been folded into an August back-to-school bash, which Smithwick said will focus on collecting hygiene products for middle- and high-school students. He argued that these items are often overlooked in school supply drives, even though they are among the most needed. In early July, Pelzer will also host a novelty with a competitive streak: the first annual Pelzer vs. West Pelzer adult softball game, set for July 3 at Bill Hopkins Field, followed by the town’s Fourth of July celebration on July 4. Food trucks, fireworks-friendly fanfare, free hot dogs, bounce houses and music from Sammy Horn and the Slamming Sammies are all part of the plan.