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Sumter County updates: road paving bids, airport ramp funding, Magnolia Apartments delay and public concerns
Summary
Administrator Gary Mixon updated council on multiple projects: bids forthcoming for $3.4M in road paving, a $4.468M FAA-backed airport ramp reconstruction, delay to Magnolia Apartments tax‑credit timeline, library staff transition issues, and public comments included requests for road paving and expanded transit funding.
Sumter County Administrator Gary Mixon reported progress on several capital and community projects during the July 25 council meeting.
Mixon said a Judicial Center audiovisual-system replacement is estimated at $574,202 and faces delivery delays that may push completion to January 2024. The county will issue requests for bids to pave the remaining 4.2 miles of roads covered by the 2014 capital‑projects sales tax (the 2014 Penny for Progress) with an estimated cost of $3.4 million; awarded contractors would have eight months to complete work.
The Magnolia Apartment complex, proposed for the former South Carolina Mental Health facility site, suffered a one‑year delay in the tax‑credit schedule: preliminary applications are due in December with scores in January 2024 and grant awards expected in July 2024. Mixon said the county combined two parcels to create a larger site and that project developers will seek a City of Sumter letter of support to improve grant competitiveness.
Airport liaison Johnathan Bryan described reconstruction of a deteriorated airport ramp with a $4,468,000 total cost funded 90% by the Federal Aviation Administration, 5% by the South Carolina Aeronautics Association and 5% by Sumter County.
On the library transition, county staff have begun integrating library employees into county human resources, though Information Technology coordination remains under review because the library previously used state IT services. Mixon also noted the Bookmobile grand opening as a community success.
During the public‑comment period, residents asked council to prioritize road paving in Happy Homes Development (Shelia Grant) and to increase funding for the Santee Wateree Regional Transportation Authority to aid needy residents (Dr. Brenda C. Williams).
