Category: News

The speaker for the luncheon marking the 52nd South Carolina Apple Festival explained just how important the tourism business is to South Carolina and how small town Westminster plays an important role in that. “Tourism in South Carolina represents a $16 billion boost to our state’s economy,” said Marion Edmonds. He is the 35-year director of communications for the South […]

Westminster Mayor Rick McCormick gave a welcome from the city to the large crowd attending the Rotary Club’s annual Apple Festival luncheon. He said his city has done what it can to show its best appearance to this week’s visitors. The mayor also announced a new business opened today—the Music Hall. It will hold a concert tonight on its first […]

More arrests have been made in the Oconee Sheriff’s Office continuing anti-drug sweep called Operation Infinity. By August 22, nine people had been arrested and charged. Today’s announcement states an additional 10 persons have been arrested and booked into the county detention center.  

In Walhalla and Westminster, identical numbers of city residents are seeking city council seats in November. The candidate fields were set today with the close of filing. For three Westminster seats, there are six candidates. They are incumbents Reid Adams and Rusty Cater. Challengers are Bill Brockington, Yousef Mefleh, Susan Ramey, and Doug Williams. Walhalla also has six candidates for […]

A Walhalla minister who has advocated an expansion of bus passenger service to his city and area applauds the move this week by Oconee County Council to form a transit authority task force. And the Rev. Richard Reams of St. Luke United Methodist has received an application to be considered for the task force. Over the last year, Reams has […]

A rare get together of the South Carolina and Georgia governors and their lieutenant governors is planned this month at the Hartwell Dam. There, the emphasis will be on water and how it’s managed in the large reservoir separating the two states. South Carolina State Representative Don Bowen of Anderson says it’s at this meeting, on the morning of Wednesday, […]

State troopers report an accident in rural Oconee this morning—believed to have involved a pedestrian on the Mountain Road near highway 11. The accident was reported shortly before 6:45 this morning. No other details immediately available.

An apple pecan pie proved tasty enough for the judges to award Westminster’s Beulah Farmer as overall winner in this year’s adult division of the South Carolina Apple Festival baking contest. Judges Ken Sloan, Phil Shirley, and Ray Chandler had their work cut out for them. They had to sample all sorts of entries—pies, cakes, and strudels and the like. […]

A period of dry weather has allowed workers to make strides at the property for the new high school near Walhalla. Dr. Michael Thorsland, acting superintendent of education, pronounced the work site as having gone “vertical” in the last few days. A couple of walls have gone up and are especially visible, Thorsland says, for those driving south on 11. […]

A bridge replacement project has been completed, and the state DOT plans to re-open the Burns Mill Road Bridge near West Union around 9 o’clock this morning. Traffic has detoured around the bridge since March 2012 when the DOT announced the discovery of a deteriorated bridge pile. According to DOT workers, the first sign this morning of the bridge re-opening […]