010219 Newsandpress

2 OPINION 4 OBITUARIES 8 PUZZLES 11 CLASSIFIEDS QUOTE ‘All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.’ EDMUND BURKE Vol. 145, No. 1 NewONE SECTION • 12 PAGES s&PressESTABLISHED 1874 JANUARY 2, 2019 75¢ Darlington, S.C. WWW.NEWSANDPRESS.NET Carolina Bank officials planning new $1.3 million downtown facility By Bobby Bryant The new one-story build- munity by building a new right time to show a commit- Morphis said officials hope to by another, bigger bank, you Editor ing, estimated to cost about Carolina Bank in downtown ment to Darlington. begin construction in January, are further reduced to a line of [email protected] $1.3 million, will replace the Darlington. … We are looking The plan has been in dis- and expect it will take six to code … and the location of 60-year-old next-door branch forward to offering our cus- cussions for a couple of years, eight months to complete. As Darlington may be losing your bank is just another spot once construction is finished, tomers the services you’ve Morphis said. for the building’s look, on their map.” one bank on the Public hopefully by late summer, said come to rely on in a modern He said Carolina Bank Morphis said it will be very Square, but it’s going to gain “That isn’t true at Carolina Jamie Morphis of Hartsville, banking facility.” would have proceeded with similar to Carolina Bank’s Bank,” the letter continues. another. senior vice president for Investing in Darlington is the plan even if voters had office on Irby Street in About a month after finan- “Founded right here in Carolina Bank. exactly the note the bank approved a referendum to Florence. Darlington County, Carolina cial giant Wells Fargo revealed “We’re excited about it,” wants to hit, Morphis said, raze the 1960s-era In the letter sent out to pro- Bank has been independently plans to close its branch at 58 Morphis said. “Our employees now that the city has already Courthouse and build a new mote the new bank, Carolina owned and locally operated Public Square, the Pee Dee- are excited about it.” lost one national bank (Bank one – a proposal that, if it had Bank officials emphasized the focused Carolina Bank says it In a letter sent to some of America) and is going to passed, could have meant fast-changing financial land- for over 85 years. will construct a “modern Darlington-area residents lose Wells Fargo in February, massive amounts of construc- scape. “Our branch managers and banking facility” at the inter- over the past few weeks, as well as seeing changes at tion/demolition work a few “You want to work with staff are your neighbors. We section of North Main Street Carolina Bank said: other banks. dozen yards from the site of people you know and trust,” are the people who shop with and Orange Street, adjacent to “Darlington is our home, and “It’s a lot of changing of the new bank. the letter says. “To one of the you, sit next to you at church, one of its older, existing we are committed to seeing it hands,” Morphis said. That site now holds noth- big banking chains, you are and who you see at football branches that will be phased grow and flourish. That’s why He said Carolina Bank ing but an ATM; it was once simply an account number. If games and Christmas out. we are investing in our com- executives felt this was the the location of a Hardee’s. that big bank is swallowed up parades.” help you become more resilient ‘We need more to further damage from other disasters,” Odom said. space’ “Darlington County developed the first Hazard By Samantha Lyles Mitigation Plan in 2005 and Staff Writer that was approved by FEMA in Trinity-Byrnes Collegiate 2007. School celebrated the comple- That plan was written by tion of a new building that will Pee Dee COG (Council of allow its student body a bit of Governments) and when they room to ease those growing developed it they did it for the pains, and allow the school to county as well as the four allocate improved classroom municipalities in the county. In spaces for its science and math 2012 when they did a revised curriculum. plan, it is renewed every five “We've been growing quite years, the planning team … rapidly for the past few years. decided that instead of having I've been here for seven years, a generic plan like what Pee and we've gone from 99 stu- Dee COG had done they were dents to 273 students…. and going to make one that was our goal is toward 300-plus stu- more specific to the disasters dents. That growth has precipi- that come in to Darlington tated the idea that we need County based on historical data more space, and particularly an and the experience of those area where we can expand our who were on the planning math and science programs team.” with more classroom space,” said Ed Hoffman, Head of Sheila Baccus, Elaine Reed and John Segars get sworn in during the Jan. 2, 2018, Darlington City Council meeting. PHOTO BY MELISSA School for Trinity-Byrnes. ROLLINS Developing Fourth Trinity-Byrnes offers 15 Advanced Placement courses, Street in Hartsville and a number of rigorous col- By Samantha Lyles lege preparatory courses Staff Writer focused on the growing STEM Darlington County Year in Review (Science, Technology, At their Jan. 9 regular Engineering, and Math) field of In only 12 months … ought to let each other speak its own road repairs. us with your presence.” monthly meeting, Hartsville study. We hired a new Darlington before you interrupt. The City “This is another situation City Council approved the pur- police chief. of Darlington is in Darlington where local government is chase of several parcels of land The future of the We hired a new county County; go to the Darlington being controlled by the ‘Disasters that as part of the city's plan to fur- superintendent of education. County Council meetings and Legislature. Until they are will- ther develop the Fourth Street Courthouse We had two hurricanes. watch how they act at council ing to release and allow us to come in to corridor. We had too many floods and meetings. They let each other act as a governing body for a Darlington County’ These properties were By Samantha Lyles too much rain. speak; they don’t care what you county – as was prescribed in approved for purchase through Staff Writer We said no to a plan for a say. You can say what you want the 1974-75 Local Government passage of the following ordi- By Melissa Rollins nances: At their Feb. 5 meeting, new Courthouse. to; you have the floor. You all Act – we're just sitting here as Staff Writer We lost a Darlington law- shouldn’t be interrupting each puppets,” said Kilgo. No. 4318 approves the pur- Darlington County Council enforcement officer to an other. Stop acting like kids. You chase of 0.083 acres located at planned to hear a presentation Society Hill is one step clos- on the results of several listen- ambush attack on several offi- are all grown-ups. Act like it.” ‘It is my honor er to being prepared for a disas- 316 Reservoir Street from cers in Florence. Darlington County Heyward Gainey for $65,000. ing sessions related to the ter after making plans to adopt County Courthouse, which That was some of what hap- Representative Robert Williams to serve’ a resolution for a hazard miti- No. 4320 approves the pur- pened in 2018. Here’s a recap told council members that if chase of property at 313 were held across the county in gation strategy. December. of the rest. they are interested in doing By Samantha Lyles Molly Odom, Emergency Reservoir Street and the corner -- Bobby Bryant anything other than working to Staff Writer of Coker Street from Danny L. Facilitators Charles Management Coordinator for Weathers and Betty Parker make Darlington better, they the Darlington County Byrd and David C. Byrd for are in the wrong place. “It is A crowd of fresh faces greet- $110,000. from the Weathers Group of JANUARY Emergency Services, spoke to Columbia conducted the ses- very crucial, critical to all of us, ed guests at Lamar Town council about the plan during No. 4321 approves the pur- 2 0 1 8 to unify ourselves,” Williams Council's Jan. 8 meeting, their chase of property located at 315 sions, and Weathers is set to the Jan. 9 town council meet- present the findings of these said. “It is timeout for games. If first since the election of a new ing. Chinaberry Drive and the cor- you’re into playing games, you mayor and three new council ner of Reservoir Street from sessions in his report to coun- ‘Stop acting like “In 2002 the Disaster cil. During these meetings, res- need to go to the Olympics.” members. Mitigation Act was passed by Shirley G. Anderson for schoolkids on a Mayor Darnell McPherson $60,000. idents got the chance to voice the federal government, which their opinions on whether the playground’ joined new Town Council mem- is where a lot of FEMA money No. 4322 approves the pur- ‘We're just sitting bers Lang Howell, Inez B. Lee chase of property located at 311 County Courthouse should be comes from for recovery from a rehabilitated, replaced with a here as puppets’ and Tamron McManus, all of disaster and a couple of great Reservoir Street from the estate By Melissa Rollins whom won their seats in the new facility, or left as-is.

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