Twenty-one students, representing all five school Anderson County school districts, were honored on Monday for their work in promoting acceptance and diversity. The annual Cory White Diversity Awards, sponsored by the Anderson County Human Relations Council, recognized the student achievements in a ceremony at the Anderson Civic Center.

The Anderson Soiree returns this weekend with the event’s first national headliner act, Country Music Star Josh Turner, joining the city’s signature arts festival which will feature local artists, food, a children’s area and two days of music on multiple stages across downtown.

Anderson City Council will give final vote to a plan to rezone 3.5 acres on the southwestern corner of South Murray Avenue and West Franklin Street from Multi-Family Residential to Planned Development District 2. 

It started with a dream. More than a quarter-century ago, a woman in Anderson County wanted a safe and nurturing place for women who faced life-debilitating issues due to drug and alcohol abuse to find a better way.

Proceeds from the event will go to the United Way's Camp iRock program, a summer reading camp for kids who need a little extra help reading on grade level.

Live music, food, arts and crafts, and a car show were among the highlights of the festival at the Starr walking track.

Despite the unseasonal heat and a busy calendar across the county, an estimated crowd of more than 3,000 visited Belton for Saturday's event, which also featured music, events for kids and a car show.

Anderson County Museum Curator Dustin Norris recently offered a presentation on the topic, outlining why it’s unlikely the Spanish explorer was in Anderson almost 100 years before the Pilgrims arrived in America.

Riddle said the town is working to meet the challenges of growth, and making headway on such projects as making main street safer and managing growth despite tight geographical boundaries.

For more information or to apply, call 864-260-4035.

The event is free and open to the public, and is aimed as a chance for those who have volunteered, supported financially or benefited from their work to celebrate, as well as to raise awareness of the ministry to the broader community.

The couple renovated almost every square foot of the 1883 structure, saving the sanctuary and upgrading the rest of the building and grounds to create a wedding chapel and event facilities.

Anderson County Council on Tuesday approved tax incentives for Michelin to expand their operations in the county, with a new $56.28 million investment which will create 51 full-time jobs with an average salary of $31.50 per hour.

The City of Anderson broke ground on the $13.75 million Linley Park Park Project on Monday. Full story on project here.

May 2 brings the return of the Piedmont Natural Gas Downtown Block Party at Carolina Wren Park, with concert from 6-9 p.m. As always, admission is free and the public is invited. The event is made possible by the efforts of J. Carey Jones and his team of volunteers at Anderson's Main Street Program.

The new park will include an extensive redesign of the park (see below), with trails, a new pavilion, playground equipment, traffic and parking changes, and a priority of restoring the Whitner Creek which runs through the park to a natural state.

Cooke, who opened Fork Grove BBQ in Anderson a year ago in the old Sadlers Creek BBQ building, and has since gained quite a bit of attention for his authentic Texas take on smoking meat.

Roughly 200 people representing seven countries will gather for the meetings on such topics as transportation, renewable energy, and arts and culture.

Students who aren’t considered poor enough to eat for free pay 30 cents for breakfast and 40 cents for lunch. Nearly 10,000 students statewide qualify for that rate, while 622,000 can eat for free. The budget clause advocated by Sen. Katrina Shealy would ensure no student would need to scrounge up nickels and dimes to eat.

More than 31 professional chili cooks from across the United States and Canada will compete for a chance to make it to the World Championships in one of four categories: Red Chili, Chile Verde, Homestyle Chili and Salsa.