State of the Midlands State of the Midlands

Last Updated: Feb 15, 2022 01:50PM • Subscribe via RSS • ATOM

UofSC to Expand Civil Rights Education With $1.5 Million Gift

Feb 15, 2022 01:50PM ● By David Dykes

Company gift to fund civil rights exhibits, programs and collections

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Design League and City of Columbia Announce Adoption and Ratification of a New City Flag

Mar 11, 2020 09:26AM ● By David Dykes

Supporters say flag design instills sense of pride and spirit reflecting city's vibrancy and creativity

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#YeahTHATAgenda: Greenville Named a Best Beer City, New Home Permits Plummet in SC, Industrial CRE Soars, The Importance of SC's Ports

Aug 12, 2019 11:05AM ● By Chris Haire

South Carolina's Business Roundup for August 12, 2019

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Richland County: In Richland County, workforce development requires a hard-working squad of local and state players

Dec 07, 2018 11:34AM ● By Kathleen Maris

Those are some of the individual players in the field of workforce development all across South Carolina. But what’s far more important than these organizations and offices individually is how they work together to build a fully trained and prepared group of workers who can walk into a new or expanding business with entry-level knowledge on their first day. The connections between these different agencies form the backbone of a healthy crop of employees that can staff a large company and help it excel.

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Orangeburg County: OCtech and Claflin partner with industry to produce the workforce of today and tomorrow

Dec 07, 2018 11:32AM ● By Kathleen Maris

There are two institutions in Orangeburg County that are great examples of how far both technical schools and liberal arts colleges have come in terms of preparing students for their future in an increasingly competitive, ever-evolving workforce.

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Newberry County: Newberry tries new tactics to grow pool of qualified workers, including targeting middle schoolers

Dec 07, 2018 11:30AM ● By Kathleen Maris

It’s all very exciting, but officials say that hiring for those jobs is not as simple as having enough people to fill them. It’s about finding the right people with the right skills. And that’s where it can get complicated. Because communities all over the country are competing for qualified talent, creativity is a must.

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Lexington County: Training Days Finding skilled employees is increasingly difficult, but these groups are improving the workforce pipeline

Dec 07, 2018 11:21AM ● By Kathleen Maris

Low unemployment? That’s typically considered a good thing. But add in an aging workforce and a lack of trained individuals, and companies are feeling the pinch, particularly for highly skilled positions.

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Kershaw County: Kershaw County fosters close-knit workforce development effort between Central Carolina and companies

Dec 07, 2018 11:18AM ● By Kathleen Maris

With Kershaw County’s unemployment rate down to 3.7 percent by mid-summer, demand has risen among employers seeking ways to maintain a skilled workforce.

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Fairfield County: Unemployment is comparatively high in Fairfield, but leaders are training workers and hope to woo an OEM

Dec 07, 2018 11:15AM ● By Kathleen Maris

In Fairfield County, the fight for economic prosperity is being waged on several fronts.

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Clarendon County: First Timers Clarendon sets its workforce sights on the young and underemployed

Dec 07, 2018 11:13AM ● By Kathleen Maris

"With an unemployment rate of around five percent — and I think much of the state is in the same boat — it's a little bit of a challenge to find folks to go to work," says George Kosinski, executive director of the Clarendon County Development Board. "So we are focused on the underemployed people who want to get back into manufacturing or get into it for the first time."

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Calhoun County: Lean manufacturing training comes to Orangeburg-Calhoun Tech

Dec 07, 2018 11:11AM ● By Kathleen Maris

When an economic development incentives package is created for a new or expanding company in South Carolina, there’s often a component related to job training. Calhoun County is no different.

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High-Speed Rail Inches Forward

Dec 07, 2018 11:08AM ● By Kathleen Maris

Leon Stavrinakis hopes persistence will eventually pay off when it comes to advancing South Carolina’s prospects for some type of high-speed rail. The Charleston attorney and member of the S.C. House of Representatives has introduced a bill for three consecutive sessions that would create a state High Speed Rail System Commission. He believes there is a need for such a system in the state.

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The rotten condition of Columbia’s roads are finally being addressed, but a long-term solution is sorely needed

Dec 07, 2018 10:58AM ● By Kathleen Maris

Despite efforts from the South Carolina General Assembly, state agencies, road contractors, economic development agencies, and advocacy groups, the Midlands appears to be stuck in a traffic jam backed up 30 years. While only now en route to clearing over the next decade, time and the elements keep pounding bridges, dams, and roads paved with good intention.

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Richland County: Economy Rests on Stable Legs

Oct 02, 2017 10:54AM ● By Makayla Gay

An analysis by the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce estimated that the gross domestic product of the Columbia metro area (which includes Richland and neighboring counties) grew by 5.4 percent between 2009-13.

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Orangeburg County: Sun-Kissed Appeal

Oct 02, 2017 10:53AM ● By Makayla Gay

From a South Carolina-grown solar farm to a global aerospace company, investments appear to be shining on the Midlands county.

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Newberry County: Building Reputation as a Manufacturing Community

Oct 02, 2017 10:51AM ● By Makayla Gay

Like the quieter, next-generation Samsung washing machines soon to be produced in Newberry County, officials have been conducting discreet outreach for the projected 950 jobs to be filled when Samsung’s new $380 million manufacturing plant is fully operational in 2018.

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Lexington County: Economy Diverse and Growing

Oct 02, 2017 10:51AM ● By Makayla Gay

“You want to be diversified, and Lexington County has that,” says Otis Rawl, president and chief executive of the Greater Lexington Chamber and Visitor Center. The county is growing in both people and businesses. In 2016, the U.S. Census Bureau pegged its population at 286,196, up 9.1 percent from 2010. Sixty-six percent of those folks were in the labor force, the second highest rate in South Carolina behind York County.

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Kershaw County: Concentrating on Tech Training

Oct 02, 2017 10:49AM ● By Makayla Gay

Over the past five years, Kershaw County has seen more than $243 million in new capital investment and more than 600 new jobs. And that’s not even the best news.

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Fairfield County: Hopes Lie in its Project-Ready Industrial Spaces

Oct 02, 2017 10:49AM ● By Makayla Gay

Like many counties in South Carolina, Fairfield County has developed what some call “shovel-ready sites.” These are parcels of land that have been surveyed, zoned, and environmentally qualified in advance and are ready for companies to come in and develop without delay.

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Clarendon County: The "Wheel" Deal

Oct 02, 2017 10:48AM ● By Makayla Gay

Corporations interested in taking Clarendon County out for a spin needn’t look any further than Arnold Kamler. The CEO and president of Kent International, billed as the nation’s largest bicycle manufacturer, is something of a spokesman for one of the county’s most publicized expansions in the last few years.

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Calhoun County: Harvesting Big Deals

Oct 02, 2017 10:46AM ● By Makayla Gay

Actual food comes from somewhere, right? Plenty of that somewhere happens to be Calhoun County.

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Life Sciences Cluster Booms in Midlands

Oct 02, 2017 10:45AM ● By Makayla Gay

A recent study commissioned by the S.C. Research Authority and SCBIO pegs the industry as having an annual economic impact of $11.4 billion. Statewide, the industry has more than 400 companies and employs more than 15,000.

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Infrastructure, Quality of Life Drivers for Food Manufacturers

Oct 02, 2017 10:45AM ● By Makayla Gay

Food manufacturers have quite an appetite for the Midlands; the area is home to such household names as Kraft/Heinz and Starbucks. But what’s encouraging these companies to take a bite out of the Midlands?

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