Our View: On safety, cooperation, projects and planning
We mentioned it before, but it’s certainly worth mentioning again, especially as high school football more officially gets underway following the various jamborees in the area. And that is, our school districts’ leadership does deserve kudos for rolling out some swift plans aimed at averting the type of violence as was witnessed last week at Greenwood High, host of the latest jamboree.
Also as previously noted, these are good steps and certainly warranted, but no one should get too comfortable and think to themselves, “There. Everything’s gonna be all right now.” Be ever vigilant.
A level of cooperation among Greenwood city and county officials warrants a thumbs up. This week, the county fire service and city fire department signed what amounts to a mutual aid agreement. In short, one will help the other as needed without concern for city and county boundaries. This agreement, in case you missed it, pertains only to fire calls and not medical calls. But it’s a great step they have taken.
Also of note and worthy of yet another thumbs up is the county’s report that its penny sales tax collection that funds the list of capital improvement projects throughout Greenwood County remains on track to collect the full amount originally anticipated.
Thumbs up and congratulations to Carol Coleman. The Greenwood native has returned home after some coastal stints to head up the joint city-county planning department following the retirement of Phil Lindler.
Having visited and worked in other areas of the state and even world, Coleman will bring an interesting perspective to the job. She has witnessed the good, the bad and the ugly of planning elsewhere and here, but it is her love for where she grew up that will guide her decisions. She’s not so naïve as to think Greenwood’s city or county will ever be what it was — no, the A&P, JCPenney and Belk are not coming back to Main Street — or that they can or should aspire to be what they once were. But we believe she will help steer planning with the very best interests of the city and county not only in mind, but also in heart.
Originally Published by Index-Journal on:Aug 19, 2022