Author: Dick Mangrum

The Pickens County Sheriff’s Office is attempting to locate a 21 year old missing Clemson University student that was last seen at a residence in the Clemson area at approximately 11:00 pm on Sunday, February 16th. John Andrew Martin, Jr. is described as a W/M, 5’9”, 145 lbs. with brown hair and blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a […]

What are described as “extra funds” ($877 thousand) will be used to improve three state roads in Oconee County. The decision was reached this morning during a meeting of the county’s state “C” committee. That three-member group handles, at times, millions of state “C” fund monies that are designated for South Carolina counties under what used to be referred to […]

The chiefs of both the police and fire departments in Westminster made their case last night for more personnel in 2020-21. Both departments incurred job losses when the city council chopped city budgets in 2016 to avoid revenue shortfalls. But, as the mayor and council heard last night, the Westminster police and fire departments are having trouble staffing their shifts. […]

The new leader of the Oconee Chamber of Commerce, Joann Johnson, got acquainted last night with the leaders of the city of Westminster. Johnson is hoping Westminster will allocate $5 thousand worth of A-TAX funds to the operations of the chamber, which is now a voice for commerce in the county’s tri-cities of Seneca, Walhalla, and Westminster. The city council […]

Clemson University will revive and modernize its Palmetto Poll by combining social media analytics with traditional polling methods in the statewide public opinion survey. Clemson faculty involved in the Palmetto Poll are gathering data from political conversation using the university’s Social Media Listening Center to inform polling activities around the 2020 Democratic primary and the 2020 Presidential election. The poll […]

If there was an over-riding realization during discussions last night of what Westminster faces with its water and electric power services, it is that the city has a lot of work ahead of it. The concerns heard during last night’s city budget hearings are line losses of electricity and water line pipe leaks—both of which are costly to city government. […]

An analysis by the Washington Post regards Michael Bloomberg, one of the losers in last night’s debate in Las Vegas. Still the ultra rich former New York City mayor is becoming a force to contend to be the Democrats’ Presidential nominee. Oconee County resident and political follower Jim Bohannon this week gave his own analysis of Bloomberg. “We are testing […]

The Joe Biden campaign for President gets a boost tomorrow afternoon in Walhalla.  According to Steve Sperry, chairman of Oconee Democrats, both former Secretary of State John Kerry and Biden’s sister, Valerie Biden Owens, will greet the public at 2:30 tomorrow afternoon at the new headquarters of the county party, at 110 S. College Street, Walhalla.  The public is invited.