NEWS UPDATES

Accommodations tax: Committee cuts back grant requests

Dana Arneman, chairman of the Georgetown County Accommodations Tax Advisory Committee, said the decisions about how to spend county tourism money this term were going to be very difficult before a hearing Thursday at the old county courthouse. Read more...

Owen Sullivan ties a bag in a chain of plastic bags collected by Waccamaw Intermediate students for an environmental awareness project. They stretched around the school campus. Tanya Ackerman/Coastal Observer

THE WEEK’S TOP STORIES

Politics: Candidates expect to spend more on local races

Incumbents have an early lead in fundraising in County Council District 6 and state House District 108. Read more...

Pawleys Island: Like flood insurance rates, houses may go higher

New houses in the town of Pawleys Island could rise by a foot or two in order to keep ahead of rising federal flood insurance premiums. It’s one of a range of measures the town plans to study this year to help earn a reduction in premiums. Read more...

Highway 17: Group wants to extend landscaped corridor

Litchfield’s landscaped median may be expanding. Tom Leis, president of the Litchfield Corridor Beautification Committee, said he wanted to get an estimate of the cost of three new beds for a .6-mile stretch of median between Sandy Island Road and Brookgreen Gardens. Read more...

Education: Jazz musician finds new gig at high school

When he was 12, De’Sean Jones was listening to a recording of Charlie Parker on sax playing with trumpeter Miles Davis and told his father he could play that. Want to bet? his dad asked. Read more...

Schools: Budget challenges remain as demands grow

A centerpiece of Gov. Nikki Haley’s education budget will provide reading coaches to the state’s elementary schools. It’s a measure that will help the Georgetown County School District’s goal of cutting by half the number of students who don’t score “proficient” on the state’s reading test. Read more...

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