Dorn called the announcements “incredible” for a community of Belton’s size, noting that landing two substantial projects within the city limits is a rare achievement in recent years.  The new investments are expected to strengthen the tax base, create new career opportunities for local residents, and reinforce the narrative of 2025 as a year of genuine progress rather than incremental change.

One of Mayor Smith’s signature accomplishments this year has been helping to shepherd a major private investment of approximately $3 million into Honea Path’s downtown core. A local family has purchased the former shirt plant property behind town and is proceeding with a three-phase plan designed to bring lodging, retail, a market, and an event venue to the heart of the community.

A South Carolina law meant to prevent election fraud makes it harder for people with disabilities to vote, civil rights groups claimed in a federal lawsuit.

Under a 2022 law, anyone can vote early with no excuse necessary or request an absentee ballot to vote by mail. To prevent the possibility of fraud, legislators added a limit of five ballots that any one person could request or submit for someone else.

In nursing homes and residential care settings, where residents often rely on a single staff member to help them vote, that makes voting difficult, attorneys for the state American Civil Liberties Union argued in a lawsuit filed in federal court Friday.

Hope Missions of the Upstate is teaming up with other Anderson charities, churches and volunteers to provide more than 300 backpacks loaded with essentials for our neighbors, friends and family in the community who need help. On Dec. 22, from 8 a.m.-noon, an event to distribute the backpacks is scheduled at First Presbyterian Church to distribute the backpacks, which will be distributed to HOPE Missions, The Salvation Army of Anderson, Asher House, and South Main Chapel & Mercy Center.

The meeting agenda calls for a second reading of Ordinance 25-18, which would formally set the city’s next general election for April 7, 2026, covering the races for mayor and council seats one, three, five and at-large seat seven, each for four-year terms. The ordinance also establishes the candidate filing window from noon Jan. 15 through noon Jan. 29, 2026, with any necessary runoff scheduled for April 21, 2026, and directs would-be candidates to file with the Anderson County Registration and Elections Office before paying filing fees at City Hall.

While the majority of today’s modern covers of classic holiday music (there are rare exceptions) cannot compare to the rich arrangements, musicianship and vocals whom they seek to imitate, there are exceptions. These are the ones which almost capture the live-musician feel of the earlier records when multi-track recording was non-existent and there was an energy in the recording sessions that can be felt listening to those sessions. 

“This new center will connect us with a national organization that brings proven best practices,” she said. “They’ll provide free training and help us integrate financial wellness into all of our programs. Whether someone is working with our Pivotal Support, Employment Pathways, or Women and Children’s Succeeding programs, we’ll be able to offer tailored financial coaching.”

Anderson County’s annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony drew a crowd to the county square Thursday evening, after organizers moved the event from Friday due to the threat of rain. The centerpiece of the celebration was the county’s largest tree yet—topping out at 57 feet—transforming the historic square into a festive gathering place for families and neighbors.

Families packed downtown Iva Thursday night as the town’s annual Christmas tree lighting turned the town square on Main Street into a small-town holiday gathering place, complete with student music, children’s choirs and a visit from Santa.  The event, part of a growing slate of seasonal programs in Iva, drew residents of all ages who came not just to see the lights switched on, but to be together.

It's the most wonderful time of the year, time to deck the halls. Anderson, Belton and Honea Path, Iva, Pendleton and Piedmont have already held tree-lighting events, and more county and civic celebrations of the holidays are set, with Christmas parades, tree lightings and other events in the days ahead.

It is a generally acknowledged truth of the season that holiday entertainment often relies on a surplus of goodwill to mask a deficit of swing. Not so in Pelzer, where the Mill Town Players have mounted “A Cool Yule Classic Christmas Concert”—a production that discards the usual charitable grading curve and delivers instead a genuinely fabulous fa-la-la-la-la of a show. 

Anderson County Council on Tuesday approved tax incentives for two major industrial projects expected to bring more than 270 new jobs and more than $22 million in combined investment to the area, underscoring a year of steady economic momentum for the county.

The larger of the two projects involves a European food processing company, well established across the continent but new to the American market. The company, which has not yet been publicly named, plans to invest $13.4 million in a food service facility in Anderson County and create 202 jobs with an average wage of $22.03 an hour.

It’s Giving Tuesday, and the heart of Anderson beats with quiet generosity, a rhythm sustained by the tireless work of local organizations that offer hope, sustenance, and dignity to those in need. From the warm steam rising off weekday lunches at the Anderson Emergency Soup Kitchen to the compassionate outreach of the Cancer Association of Anderson, these groups are the backbone of a community that cares deeply for its own.

Holy Trinity Episcopal Church brings a time-honored tradition back to Clemson this weekend with its 82nd Annual Bazaar and Artisan Market. The event is scheduled for Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the church’s fellowship hall at 193 Old Greenville Highway, directly across from Clemson University.