By Natalie M. Zeigler
City Manager
Fairly often, residents bring us commendations for City of Hartsville employees who are helping people around our community. The Fire Department, for example, has recently taken part in inspecting and installing smoke alarms in targeted neighborhoods. Our police officers, meanwhile, are handling everything from wellness checks to crowd assistance for events in addition to their regular patrols and investigations. I’ve heard from residents who had downed limbs carried away by Environmental Services during this past winter’s brief ice storm and I’ve heard from parents who are looking forward to another summer at the Piratesville Splash Pad at Byerly Park.
The City of Hartsville’s services are here for the roughly 7,800 people who call Hartsville home. Our fire protection services go further than that, covering roughly 31,000 Darlington County residents in their response area. Business license records currently show 552 businesses physically located in the City of Hartsville, and another 644 from out of town conducting business here.
All these residents and businesses have a variety of needs for their city government. Tap water needs to flow, and sewers and stormwater basins need to drain. Trash and recycling need to be collected every week, streets need to be lit every night. Beyond the day-to-day necessities, we also provide the services which everyone would like to never use, but should be glad to have available, such as fire suppression, medical first responder services as well as crime protection and investigation.
The local economy hinges on our ability to remain attractive to industry, and government projects are all contributing toward that goal. When prospective industries and employees are evaluating Hartsville, they’re looking at our schools and medical facilities, but they’re also looking at a broader picture of what creates a strong quality of life. This is an important part of why we focus so strongly on building a vibrant downtown, seen in projects like the upcoming effort to repave East College Avenue and its public parking lots. It’s also a reason why we focus on building up a robust system of city parks. Soon, Lawton Park will be receiving new playground equipment, including some elements geared towards handicapped children as part of our effort to include children of every ability level in our parks. The excellent facilities we’ve created at the Byerly Park Recreation Complex have helped attract major events like the Dixie Girls Ponytails World Series, which will draw in 600 or more athletes and their families from across the Southeast to Hartsville this July.
The city government’s revenues come from quite a few sources – property taxes, business licenses, state taxes are some of the most significant – and they head toward an equally diverse number of services. The common theme among all these services, however, is that we are reinvesting in our community. Effective governmental services are a crucial ingredient in any successful community, and right now, Hartsville has quite a few of them.
Natalie Zeigler is the City Manager of Hartsville. For more information, call City Hall at 843-383-3015 or email info2@hartsvillesc.gov.