New housing at Pendleton Lofts, future plans for the old Riverside School, paving needs, sewer updates and events leading into the fall and holidays are all propelling growth in the Town of Pendleton.

The town is working with Anderson School Dist. 4 and Tri-County Technical College on a plan for the future of the historic Riverside Middle School building which will be vacated with the middle school moves into the current high school building next year. Built in 1954 as part of a sweeping state plan to provide newer, higher-quality schools to Black students during the segregated era, Riverside occupies both a literal and figurative corner in Pendleton’s civic imagination.

“It’s a great facility,” said Pendleton Mayor Frank Crenshaw. “We want to see it become something really positive for the community, not just that side of town, but all of Pendleton.”

Veteran Sports Journalist Cobb Oxford put together a team of experts to discuss the history of the Clemson vs. South Carolina Football rivalry recently at the Anderson County Museum.

The Clemson-South Carolina football rivalry is memorable for its depth of tradition, wild stories, and impact on generations of South Carolinians. The annual contest is not simply a game — it’s a day when lines are drawn, allegiances are reaffirmed, and the entire state stops to watch history unfold.

The panel included Tim Bourret, former Clemson Sports Information Director and considered by many to be a walking encyclopedia of Clemson football, Filmmaker Chris White, writer and producer of the documentary “Bragging Rites: The Carolina-Clemson Rivalry,” and Veteran Sports Journalist Rudy Jones.

Moving into the last months of the year, Williamston Mayor Rockey Burgess is presiding over something that looks like major steps toward growth in the town.

A new restaurant reopening, a housing subdivision rising up, the promise of a new national retailer on the horizon all are welcome. MVPizza, once a dependable mainstay for Friday nights and family dinners, has been resurrected with a new owner and a redesigned interior. The walls are lined with photographs of Palmetto High School athletes—Most Valuable Players memorialized in black-and-white and color, a nod both earnest and clever to hometown nostalgia.

These atmospheres matter. They matter because the town’s economic lifeblood, strangely enough, flows through its kitchens and dining tables. More than $15 million in food sales pass through Williamston each year, yielding over $300,000 in hospitality taxes—numbers Burgess cites with both amusement and conviction.

New businesses are signals of growth as the City of Belton moves into fall.

 "We have two exciting businesses that are very close to being here," said Belton Mayor Eleanor Dorn. One of them, a business already located in Anderson County, plans to relocate to Belton's city limits, bringing up to 100 jobs. The other is a Zaxby’s franchise, which has received corporate approval and is ready to break ground once a final logistical detail is resolved.

The new industrial facility, Eastern Engineered Wood Products, is now under construction, and the town is working to secure two other major projects.

T.L. Hanna 40, Wren 27        

BHP 42, Westside 6

Powdersville 35, Pendleton 7

MVP 41, Crescent 19

Liberty 42, Palmetto 19

In the small, historic town of Pelzer, a quiet battle is being waged over its identity. At the heart of it are three aging structures, remnants of the town's mill history, that Mayor Will Ragland is fighting to save and restore. Ragland views their preservation not just as an act of historical stewardship but as a key to securing the town’s financial future.

For years, the town has faced a familiar struggle for places built around a single industry: how to maintain a sense of history while charting a path forward. According to Ragland, Pelzer has found a compelling answer in its own past.

"One of the many things that makes Pelzer unique is its history," Ragland said in a recent interview. "It's important to save the last few original buildings we have."

South Carolina can begin giving voter information to the federal government, the state Supreme Court said in a Thursday opinion.

The six-page opinion overturned a circuit court judge’s decision last week that the state must hold onto its data on 3.3 million registered voters — including names, birthdays, addresses, drivers’ license numbers and final digits of Social Security numbers — while a lawsuit plays out over privacy concerns.

On Thursday, AARP South Carolina paid tribute to Kelly Jo Barnwell with the inaugural AARP Community Impact Award for her “exceptional dedication to uplifting older adults and young people in Anderson County.”

Over the past two decades, Barnwell has transformed the Jo Brown Senior Center (an organization named after her mother, the late Linda Jo Brown who was the program’s first director from 1981-1993) into a welcoming home for AARP Chapter 3693, coordinating programs that keep older adults engaged through activities such as line dancing, quilting, and bridge. She also relaunched her mother’s signature event, the Golden Years Jamboree, which celebrates older adults while raising funds for local nonprofits including the Cancer Association of Anderson and the Westside Community Center.

South Carolina’s housing agency is quadrupling its original plans for the construction of new homes selling for far less than the state median price.

Then the agency wants to help families buy them.

The state Housing Finance and Development Authority had sought to boost the number of affordable homes on the market with a 30-house pilot program.

“We’re making good progress on that,” said Smith. “We actually had an engineering firm come in and do a structural evaluation of the old building to identify any hazards such as mold and asbestos and things like that. And we're going to put in for a grant, it's called a stabilization grant through the state.”

The Belton Area Museum celebrated its 50th Anniversary on Sunday by honoring those people, groups and businesses who have contributed to the city’s growth and history.

Founded by concerned local citizens to preserve the rich local history, the museum’s mission encompasses genealogical, archival, cultural, and natural history, as well as the traditional, visual, and performing arts.

As the anniversary of September 11, 2001, approaches, the Rock Springs Fire Department and Belton City Fire Department on Sunday hosted their annual memorial walk honoring the first responders who died in the line of duty. More than a simple march, the event has evolved into a powerful and public act of remembrance, ensuring that the legacy of those who gave their lives is not forgotten.

Sunday’s 2.5-mile walk began at Rocksprings Fire Department and ended at the Belton City Fire Department where participants joined in the ringing of the bell, a solemn tradition honoring the memory of the individuals who died that day.

In a new effort to help senior citizens recover from storm damage, Rebuild Upstate, a local nonprofit, is partnering with Anderson County to offer financial assistance for home repairs. The program, funded by the S.C. Housing Trust Fund Disaster Assistance Program, is aimed at low-income homeowners in unincorporated areas of the county.

Now entering its fourth year, the event has earned a reputation for its relaxed atmosphere and standout jazz performances. This year’s headliner, Will Matic & Friends, will take the stage with special guests including Ray McGee, Wanda Johnson, and others selected by McGee himself.

South Carolina’s employment agency is spending $13 million for an online tool meant to act as “the world’s most knowledgeable guidance counselor” for high schoolers in the state.

The Department of Employment and Workforce will use the funds — $10.3 million in one-time money and $2.8 million in new annual dollars — to hire an outside contractor to build and maintain what the agency is calling an “Education and Workforce Portal.”

Elections Day is two months away and Anderson County is still looking for election workers. For the Nov. 4 election, early voting will run Oct. 20-31.

All cities and towns in the county, except for the City of Anderson which holds elections in April, will have some council members and some will also have mayoral candidates on the ballot. The City of Anderson will join the rest of the towns/cities to vote on the the countywide Capital Sales Tax for Roads.

In a move aimed at managing the county's rapid expansion, the Anderson County Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a temporary ban on new housing developments. The measure, which takes effect immediately, places a 90-day moratorium on any residential project in unincorporated areas that includes more than four lots.

Twelve local citizens spoke in favor of the moratorium before the vote.

For years, the event’s musical lineup leaned heavily on country music. This year’s choice of the legendary R&B and funk group Kool & the Gang paid off handsomely. The crowd of more than 11,000 that packed the William A. Floyd Amphitheater was not only a record but a clear message that Anderson is ready for something different. It was an intergenerational gathering, a mosaic of senior citizens, young children, and everyone in between, all of whom found a reason to move to the same beat. One can hope this sends a clear message for future Labor Day celebrations.

For many Americans, Labor Day is simply a three-day weekend, filled with barbeque, football and gatherings to mark the end of summer and the beginning of the school year.

Thanking American workers for the labor that made America great sadly doesn’t enter the conversations of many..

So on this weekend, I want to send out a heartfelt thanks to laborers across this country, without whom none of us would have a home to live in, a street or highway to get us to and from work, or the electric/gas power and basic utilities that keep America working.

As we mark another Labor Day, working Americans, both union and non-union, have a long list of reasons to thank the labor movement-including giving workers the right to paid and unpaid leave. Many of these men and women in the labor movement gave their lives to secure a better future for all workers in this country.

Along with churches, libraries, schools and national parks, labor unions are among the building blocks that made America great.