Excitement! Excitement is what I feel in taking the reins as Camden’s new mayor. What a great honor to lead the city I love so dearly. First, thank you to all my friends, neighbors, and fellow citizens for trusting me in this new role. Second, I pledge to each of you that I will do my utmost to be the best mayor in America and to help make Camden the best City it can be.
We all should know how lucky we are to live in this great City, where neighbors still know neighbors, people still treat others with respect, and families can grow surrounded by love and support. My goals as Mayor are to continue the good traditions we have and make changes to improve our City even more. We can do this!
Camden has been blessed with strong leadership, including our outgoing mayor and council. We owe them our thanks for their willingness to take on tough matters simply because of their love for our City. We also owe our thanks to our City employees for their dedication and hard work.
Here are a few of my top priorities to get working on right away: recruit new grocery stores to our City; explore innovative ways and modernization efforts to stabilize customers’ utility bills; engage with our citizens to guide development within Camden and preserve our heritage; make Camden a top destination for weekend visitors and tourists, help small businesses grow and prosper; the homelessness issues that have arisen in our downtown. Of foremost importance is improving the communication between our City government and our citizens.
There are other issues to take on, too many to list, but they include improving employee morale, cleaning up our City, modernizing facilities, removing large truck traffic downtown, and making our streets more walkable. I am committed to tackling these issues facing us with the support of our community.
Here are a few concrete steps I plan to implement immediately: regularly issue a newsletter to Camden’s citizens, updating them on what’s happening in the City; create a Mayor’s Cabinet of select nonprofits in the community to coordinate and provide critical services; the appointment of task forces made up of citizens and Council members to make recommendations on specific areas that need improvement in the operation of our City.
Growth is coming to Camden and we don’t have to be beggars anymore; we can be choosers. Together we should determine what Camden’s future will be and what environment our children and grandchildren experience. We hold a sacred trust to the generations that follow us to make Camden a better place than we found it.
Finally, I have decided to donate my Mayor’s salary back to the City of Camden, for the specific purpose of rewarding employees who go above and beyond the call of duty in their work. This decision is not to say that the Mayor and City Council members do not deserve a salary – in fact they deserve more than they receive for all the work they do. However, I am in a unique position after having served in many roles in our state and community and feel like it’s time for me to also give back in this way. My hope is that our City employees take this decision as a manifestation of my commitment to and confidence in them.
The African American Cultural Center of Camden will start Black History Month by hosting a “Let’s Talk About…” symposium on Saturday, February 1st at 1:00 pm in Liberty Hall at the Revolutionary War Visitor Center, 212 Broad Street.
The symposium, “Artists: Gatekeepers of the Human Experience” will feature ethnomusicologist and associate professor Dr. Birgitta Johnson of the University of South Carolina School of Music. Dr. Johnson will explore the field of musicology, its function in society, and what musicologists do in the cultural context, and how that has changed over time.
Light refreshments to be served following the symposium. Registration is not required, but encouraged by calling 803-432-2421 x1153 or emailing kspadacenta@camdensc.org.
The African American Cultural Center will also add additional hours beginning in February, open Fridays from 1:00 to 4:00 pm and Saturdays from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, at 517 York Street. An exhibit featuring some of Camden’s notable African Americans throughout history is on display, and will be added to throughout Black History Month.
The African American Cultural Center of Camden encourages an understanding of and an appreciation for the history and culture of people of African descent through discussions, exhibits, tours, lectures, and genealogical activities. A basic tenet of the African American Cultural Center is that we all are connected and have shared links through places, people, passions, and stories, making a stronger, more united city, state, region, and nation. The African American Cultural Center preserves documents and artifacts which reveal the stories and legacies of the Camden community of African descent.
As snow accumulates and/or turns to ice in the evening hours, we advise residents to avoid driving, if possible, during evening and overnight hours. If you experience a power outage or require any other City service during the winter weather, please call 803-432-2421 or 803-432-0009. City facilities will delay opening until 10:00 am on Wednesday, January 22. All Municipal Court cases scheduled for January 22 are canceled and reschedule notices will be sent via mail.
Here are some winter weather tips for residents and utility customers:
Insulate exposed pipes or faucets to prevent freezing, using foam sleeves or wrapping layers of material.
Close off vents and seal or repair any cracks and openings in doors and windows.
Know where the main water valve is for your home, in case of a pipe burst during freezing temperatures. Please be aware it is not in your water meter box. Should you have an emergency and require city crews to respond to a water leak, please call 803-432-0009.
Turn off your sprinkler or irrigation system, to avoid a rupture or break.
Opening cabinet doors under the sinks in your home, to allow for warm air to reach the pipes. Leaving each faucet on, with a small trickle, to prevent freezing.
If you must be out on the roads during winter weather conditions, please drive with caution, particularly over bridges and low-lying roads where water may pool and freeze. Black ice cannot easily be seen while driving, and is most common during early morning hours or when temperatures fall below freezing.
Stay tuned to your local news outlet for updates and changes as this system approaches. Be safe out there!
The City of Camden, South Carolina (hereafter, the “City”) invites registered architects with historic preservation experience to submit their qualifications to be considered for a historic preservation planning project for Aberdeen, Camden, South Carolina. Shawn Putnam (Planning and Development Director) will receive qualification statements until 12:00 noon on February 14, 2025, via email ONLY at putnam@camdensc.org. Questions should be directed to Mr. Putnam at the email listed above.
Aberdeen is located at 1409 Broad Street, Camden, South Carolina. The Samuel Mathis House, known as “Aberdeen, was built ca. 1805 and is a contributing resource to the National Register of Historic Places-listed City of Camden Historic District. Built by prominent Camden residents Samuel and Margaret Mathis, Aberdeen remained in the family until the 20th century and has been continuously occupied as a family home until it was gifted to the City of Camden in 2021. Originally a simple one-story frame house built over a raised basement, the house sat on 273 acres close to the Mathis Store and a mile from the center of town. As the town grew, the acreage was subdivided and other homes built into one of the first neighborhoods in Camden. Even with the increased size from a ca. 1850 renovation, Aberdeen remains unique as a folk cottage style home in a neighborhood filled with typical antebellum two-story homes. It is also one of the few homes in Camden with Gothic revival elements. Currently managed by the City of Camden, Aberdeen is the only historic home open for tours in Camden. The City seeks the services of a registered architect or team of architects experienced in historic preservation to assess the existing conditions and produce plans and specifications for the stabilization and weatherization of Aberdeen.
The project has been funded by a state historic preservation grant, administered by the South Carolina Department of Archives and History (SCDAH). The conditions assessment and plans and specifications will be reviewed by SCDAH for compliance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.
Nearly 200 walkers and over two dozen pets participated in the First Day Hike at Goodale State Park on New Year’s Day. John Wells, Park Manager at Goodale, led the group on a 2.4 mile hike, previewing new trails under development.
Wells said, “Today, we’re walking in an area of the park that we hope to transition to a new trail system. We just did a thinning of the forest. This forest was very thick and very overgrown and had not been thinned in decades.”
“The First Day Hike,” Wells said, “is a great way to get outside and walk off the collard greens and macaroni and have a good day, spending the first day of the year out in nature, out walking around.” Goodale State Park participates in a nationwide program called First Day Hikes.
The free event was hosted by KC Trails, Friends of Goodale, and Goodale State Park. For more outdoor opportunities in Kershaw County, follow KC Trails and Friends of Goodale on Facebook.
