Coastal Observer

Education: Special election will fill District 6 school board seat

Kristie Baxley has resigned her District 6 (Pawleys Island/Litchfield) seat on the Georgetown County School Board. Baxley’s resignation was approved by the board this week. Baxley and her husband sold their house in Litchfield...
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THE WEEK’S TOP STORIES

Environment: North Inlet agreement balances science and recreation

DeBordieu and the Baruch Foundation said this week they have reached an agreement in a lawsuit over the ownership of tidal property in North Inlet. If approved by the court, the agreement will preserve...
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Safety: With new burn ban in effect, Prince George residents review fire plans

A ban on outdoor burning is in effect in Georgetown County for the second time in three weeks due to a heightened risk for wildfires. In the wake of a March 1 wildfire in...
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Sales tax: Judge rules for county in suit over funds from 2014 referendum

The town of Andrews waited too long to challenge the 2014 capital project sales tax referendum that included $1.5 million for a building to house its police and fire departments that became a $5.7...
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Sales tax: Lawsuit over funds from 2014 referendum heads to trial

Six weeks before collections begin on Georgetown County’s 1-cent capital projects sales tax, a lawsuit prompted by a tax that took effect 10 years ago is due to go to trial. The dispute between...
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Nonprofits: Clemson football coach found his Christian faith on the field

Clemson University football coach Dabo Swinney has advice for high school athletes: chase your dreams and dream big. “You never know. But I do know this: you can’t just dream big,” he said. “You...
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Coronavirus: Five years later, finding lessons from the pandemic’s trauma

Five years ago this week, a global pandemic hit home in South Carolina when Gov. Henry McMaster closed schools. Dr. Desmond Young, a pulmonologist with Tidelands Health, was on the front lines of fighting...
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Land use: Planner will continue to serve without formal reappointment

Georgetown County Council made 13 board appointments this week. Marlajean Hamby wasn’t one of them. Her first term on the Planning Commission expires this month, and although her name was on the council agenda...
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Murrells Inlet: Initiative will collect data along with litter

It’s in the pluff mud. In the ocean. In the stomachs of sea turtles and aligators. In the bodies of humans. Plastic is everywhere. A three year project underway in Murrells Inlet wants to...
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Education: Schools seek funds to hire additional staff

As the enrollment of Waccamaw Elementary School grows, principal Ashley Cameron needs more teachers. Cameron asked the Georgetown County School Board this week for money in next year’s budget to hire another special area...
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Health: Collaborative looks for ways to improve care for mental health and drug abuse

Susan Myers is a counselor at Tidelands Health, but last fall she was selling drugs to people already enmeshed in a web of addiction. She was only playing a role in a program called...
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Safety: Crews keep wildfire from reaching Prince George homes

Midway Fire Rescue Chief Brent McClellan has seen a lot of things in his 31 years as a firefighter. But until last Saturday at Prince George he had never seen a mountainous wall of...
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THE WEEK’S FEATURED STORIES

Environment: Agency schedules hearing on Midway Inlet dredging permit

A hearing next week will solicit public comments on a plan to dig sand from Midway Inlet to help renourish a portion of Litchfield Beach. The Peninsula at Inlet Point South Homeowners Association is...
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BUSINESS NEWS

Observer staff wins 15 state press awards

The Coastal Observer staff received 15 awards for reporting, writing, photography and design, in the S.C. Press Association’s annual news contest. The paper won first place for General Excellence among the state’s medium-sized weeklies....
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LOCAL EVENTS

Meetings

Georgetown County Board of Education: First and third Tuesdays, 5:30 p.m., Beck Education Center. For details, go to gcsd.k12.sc.us . Georgetown County Council: Second and fourth Tuesdays, 5:30 p.m., Council Chambers, 129 Screven St., Georgetown. For details, go to georgetowncountysc.org. Pawleys Island Town Council: Second Mondays, 5 p.m. Town Hall, 323 Myrtle Ave. For details, go to townofpawleysisland.com. , .

COASTAL OBSERVER