Business Images Florence, SC 2010

BUSINESS

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FLORENCE, SOUTH CAROLINA

What’ss Onlinee See video of a Florence retail tradition that helps put food on the table

No Slowing Down New investment, jobs bolster Pee Dee economy

Forging Strong Ties Innovation builds region’s manufacturing base

Playing Up Downtown The district shows off its newest attractions

SPONSORED BY THE FLORENCE COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIP | 2010

Leatherman Realty, Inc.

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If you are making a move to South Carolina’s Pee Dee area, our Relocation Guide will make your move a smooth and trouble-free experience.

Moving to a new community can be difficult for a family. That’s why we have prepared a comprehensive relocation package. Our goal is to NBLF UIBU USBOTJUJPO BT TNPPUI BT QPTTJCMF GPS ZPVS FOUJSF GBNJMZ 'SPN schools to shopping, doctors to day-care, our guide has a variety of resources to help you get acclimated to your new community.

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BUSINESS 速

35 Workstyle Forging Strong Ties

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The region builds a diverse and innovative manufacturing base.

Stretch Your Legs

22

Vibrant parks, trail system ensure plenty of outdoor recreation opportunities.

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Table of Contents Continued

ON THE COVER The lobby of the new Florence Little Theatre PHOTO BY BRIAN McCORD

IMAGESFLORENCE.COM

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Honda of South Carolina Mfg., Inc.

Home of the best associates producing quality Honda products!

www.honda.com

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FLORENCE

Insight Overview

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Business Almanac

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Business Climate: No Slowing Down

14

Transportation

40

Energy/Technology

44

Economic Profile

55

Livability

32

Playing Up Downtown

28

Education

32

Health

36

Photo Essay

48

All or part of this magazine is printed with soy ink on recycled paper containing 10% post-consumer waste.

PLEASE RECYCLE THIS MAGAZINE

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BUSINESS ®

FLO RENCE, S O U TH CARO LINA

BRING THE PARTY TO US OR WE BRING THE PARTY TO YOU

2010 EDITION , VOLUME 4 MANAGING EDITOR BILL McMEEKIN COPY EDITOR JOYCE CARUTHERS

GREAT

Food

GREAT

Catering

BIG

Smiles

ASSOCIATE EDITORS LISA BATTLES, JESSY YANCEY STAFF WRITERS CAROL COWAN, KEVIN LITWIN CONTRIBUTING WRITERS PAMELA COYLE, JOE MORRIS DATA MANAGER CHANDRA BRADSHAW SENIOR INTEGRATED MEDIA MANAGER SUZI McGRUDER SALES SUPPORT MANAGER CINDY HALL SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER BRIAN McCORD STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS JEFF ADKINS, TODD BENNETT, ANTONY BOSHIER, J. KYLE KEENER PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECT MANAGER ANNE WHITLOW CREATIVE DIRECTOR KEITH HARRIS ASSOCIATE PRODUCTION DIRECTOR CHRISTINA CARDEN PRODUCTION PROJECT MANAGERS MELISSA BRACEWELL, KATIE MIDDENDORF, JILL WYATT SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNERS LAURA GALLAGHER, KRIS SEXTON, CANDICE SWEET, VIKKI WILLIAMS LEAD DESIGNER JANINE MARYLAND GRAPHIC DESIGN ERICA HINES, JESSICA MANNER, MARCUS SNYDER WEB IMPLEMENTATION DIRECTOR ANDY HARTLEY WEB DESIGN DIRECTOR FRANCO SCARAMUZZA WEB CONTENT MANAGER JOHN HOOD WEB PROJECT MANAGER YAMEL RUIZ WEB DESIGN LEAD LEIGH GUARIN WEB PRODUCTION JENNIFER GRAVES COLOR IMAGING TECHNICIAN ALISON HUNTER AD TRAFFIC MARCIA MILLAR, PATRICIA MOISAN, RAVEN PETTY CHAIRMAN GREG THURMAN

Monday-Saturday 5-10 p.m.

PRESIDENT/PUBLISHER BOB SCHWARTZMAN EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT RAY LANGEN SR. V.P./CLIENT DEVELOPMENT JEFF HEEFNER SR. V.P./SALES CARLA H. THURMAN SR. V.P./OPERATIONS CASEY E. HESTER V.P./SALES HERB HARPER

1247 Irby St. U Florence

www.victorsbistro.com

V.P./SALES TODD POTTER V.P./VISUAL CONTENT MARK FORESTER V.P./EDITORIAL DIRECTOR TEREE CARUTHERS V.P./CUSTOM PUBLISHING KIM NEWSOM MANAGING EDITOR/COMMUNITY KIM MADLOM MANAGING EDITOR/TRAVEL SUSAN CHAPPELL PRODUCTION DIRECTOR NATASHA LORENS PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR JEFFREY S. OTTO CONTROLLER CHRIS DUDLEY ACCOUNTING MORIAH DOMBY, DIANA GUZMAN, MARIA MCFARLAND, LISA OWENS RECRUITING/TRAINING DIRECTOR SUZY SIMPSON DISTRIBUTION DIRECTOR GARY SMITH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DIRECTOR YANCEY TURTURICE IT SERVICE TECHNICIAN RYAN SWEENEY HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER PEGGY BLAKE SALES SUPPORT RACHAEL GOLDSBERRY SALES/MARKETING COORDINATOR RACHEL MATHEIS EXECUTIVE SECRETARY/SALES SUPPORT KRISTY DUNCAN OFFICE MANAGER SHELLY GRISSOM RECEPTIONIST LINDA BISHOP

CU S TO M M AG A Z INE M ED I A

Business Images Florence is published annually by Journal Communications Inc. and is distributed through the Florence County Economic Development Partnership.

For advertising information or to direct questions or comments about the magazine, contact Journal Communications Inc. at (615) 771-0080 or by e-mail at info@jnlcom.com.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: Florence County Economic Development Partnership 1951 Pisgah Road • Florence, SC 29501 Phone: (843) 676-8796 • Fax: (843) 676-8799 www.fcedp.com

VISIT BUSINESS IMAGES FLORENCE ONLINE AT IMAGESFLORENCE.COM ©Copyright 2009 Journal Communications Inc., 725 Cool Springs Blvd., Suite 400, Franklin, TN 37067, (615) 771-0080. All rights reserved. No portion of this magazine may be reproduced in whole or in part without written consent.

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See video of a Florence retail tradition that helps put food on the table

FLORENCE, SOUTH CAROLINA

No Slowing Down New investment, jobs bolster Pee Dee economy

Forging Strong Ties Innovation builds region’s manufacturing base

Lifestyle

Playing Up Downtown The district shows off its newest attractions

SPONSORED BY THE FLORENCE COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIP | 2010

Find out what it’s like to live here and what makes the community such a special place to be.

Read the magazine on your computer, zoom in on articles and link to advertiser Web sites.

NEWS AND NOTES >> Our editors give you the Inside Scoop on the latest development and trends in the community.

Workstyle

SUCCESS BREEDS SUCCESS >>

A spotlight on the region’s innovative companies

Meet the people who set the pace for business innovation.

DIG DEEPER >> Plug into the community with links to local Web sites and resources to give you a big picture of the region.

DATA CENTRAL >>

Greater Florence

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

A wealth of demographic and statistical information puts the community at your fingertips.

See the Video Our award-winning photographers give you a virtual tour of unique spaces, places and faces.

VISIT: WWW.FLOCHAMBER.COM

GUIDE TO SERVICES >> Links to a cross section of goods and services special to the community

GO ONLINE

IMAGESFLORENCE.com

610 W. Palmetto St. P.O. Box 948 Florence, SC 29503 (843) 665-0515

IMAGESFLORENCE.COM

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Overview

Florence, a Great Place To Live and Work 1. Location Florence County is in the center of northeastern South Carolina at the junction of Interstate 95 and I-20. With nearly 75 percent of the nation’s population within a day’s drive, it is an ideal location for distribution, manufacturing and retail.

2. Proven Success The region is a proven location for world-class business and industry, including ABB, Anheuser-Busch, Assurant, DuPont, FedEx, GE Healthcare, Honda, Johnson Controls, Nan Ya Plastics, PepsiCo, QVC, Roche and SmurfitStone Container.

3. Education and Training Local public and private schools offer families a broad range of educational and extracurricular opportunities.

Francis Marion University and Florence-Darlington Technical College help create an abundant workforce.

The Southeastern Institute of Manufacturing and Technology and the Center for Accelerated Technology Training provide industryspecific training.

A symphony orchestra, museums, performing arts center, live theater, parks and other recreational amenities are easily accessible.

7. Warm Climate Exceptionally mild winters allow for fun in the sun almost year round. The agricultural community enjoys an extended growing season averaging 241 days (March through October).

8. Top-Rated Health Care Florence County’s two major hospital systems, Carolinas Hospital System and McLeod Health, contribute significantly to the quality of life as well as the economic growth of the entire Pee Dee region.

6. Quality of Life Florence offers

10. Hub of It All As the hub of retail trade, services, entertainment, business and health care for a regional population base approaching 700,000, Florence County enjoys assets well beyond those found in most tertiary metropolitan markets in the United States. Nonetheless, small-town charm has been maintained. In short, Florence County offers “Global Reach ...

With a Southern Touch.”

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Florence Marion Timmonsville

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Lynchburg

Effingham

5. Low Real Estate Costs The county offers some of the lowest real estate prices in the nation – commercial, industrial and residential. Expansion Management magazine’s 2007 Business Attraction rankings placed Florence fifth in the nation for affordable housing.

The county has an active speculative building program, with certified sites and parks waiting for new investment. To view current buildings and sites, visit www.fcedp.com.

Florence County

4. Incentive Programs Florence County and South Carolina offer a series of customized performancebased incentive programs designed to reduce both start-up expenses and operating costs. Timely and aggressive programs can be devised to help meet the needs of individual prospects.

9. Available Buildings and Sites

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Pamplico

Coward Olanta Scranton 378

Lake City

378

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Johnsonville

a plethora of choices in restaurants, lodging and cultural activities.

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Almanac ON THE TRAIL OF RAILS Florence takes its name from the daughter of William Harlee, one of the city’s founders and the man who brought the railway to town.

Florence flourished as a rail center throughout the mid-1800s and was a major center for the transport of soldiers and supplies during the Civil War. Florence’s link to the railroad is captured in the eye-catching Locomotive Murals, painted by local artist Elvis Hatchell and on display at the corner of Irby and Evans streets. Just two blocks away is the Florence Railroad Museum, housed in a refurbished boxcar and caboose and operated by the Florence Museum of Art, Science and History.

CHECKERED (FLAG) HISTORY Darlington Raceway is a Pee Dee staple, and in 2009, the track that Harold Brasington started in an old cotton field celebrated its 60th year of racing. Darlington is a heritage stop for NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series and hosts several racing events and driving schools.

Major features of the track include the Darlington Legends Walk, made up of 1.5-ton granite and marble monuments reminiscent of a Goodyear racing tire and old-style pit board.

The Darlington Raceway Museum and National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame chronicle the history of the sport and the legends who made it grow from its nascent days to modern times. For more, go to www.darlingtonraceway.com.

FOOTBALL UNDER A ROOF For those who like their football experience indoors, the Florence Phantoms of the 14-team American Indoor oor FFootball Association play their home games in Convention Center in a season that n the Florence Flor April through July. runs from Ap The league, which is adding three teams in 2010, plays a 14-game regular-season schedule on indoor fields that are 85 feet wide and fie 50 yards long. Each team puts ya eight pla players on the floor. Go to www.aifaprofootball.com for www.aifapr more on the le league.

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FARMING LIKE IT USED TO BE A collection of historic farm buildings preserves a by-gone way of life in the Pee Dee. The Browntown Museum in Lake City is a classic old farmstead that includes the Brown-Burrows house built circa 1835. Furnishings are original early 19th-century pieces.

The site features an old cotton gin, old farm equipment and primitive machinery that were relocated from other sites, and a corn crib, smokehouse and outhouse built in the early 19th century.

The Browntown Museum is operated by the Three Rivers Historical Society. Go to threerivershistoricalsociety.org for more.

NO JET LAG Florence Regional Airport has been in service for more than 80 years and today provides a hassle-free way to travel.

The airport, with two 6,000-foot runways, offers daily service to airline hubs in Charlotte and Atlanta via US Airways Express and a Delta Airlines affiliate, Atlantic Southeast Airlines.

The airport includes a secure, 500-vehicle parking lot and wireless Internet service, and an upgrade of the passenger concourse is in the works.

In 2008, the airport had the best on-time performance among airports in South Carolina.

Go to www.florencescairport.com for more.

IF GOLF IS YOUR BAG Florence’s abundance of world-class courses and ideal climate allow golfers the chance to get out on the links year round.

A number of golf packages that include accommodations, meals and greens fees are available.

For more information on golf packages, contact the Florence Convention & Visitors Bureau at (800) 325-9005.

IMAGESFLORENCE.COM

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(OSPITALITY "LVD s &LORENCE 3# s FAX www.marriott.com/flosh

2660 Hospitality Blvd.

Florence, SC 29501 (843) 468-2800 (843) 468-2900 fax www.marriott.com/flori

2680 Hospitality Blvd.

Florence, SC 29501 (843) 662-7066 (843) 662-6949 fax www.marriott.com/flocy

FILE THIS AWAY S&W Manufacturing has been around since 1903, when it was founded as Shaw-Walker Co. The company changed its name and ownership in 1990 when assets of Shaw-Walker Information System Division were acquired by management.

Pee Dee State Farmers Market has been a fixture on the FlorenceDarlington county line since 1983.

S&W has one of the most complete lines of filing folders, filing systems and office products in the industry, offering everything from hanging files and end tabs to file jackets and folders.

The market includes a 45,000-square-foot drive-through farmer shed where vendors sell produce and horticultural products. Also on site is a log-cabin gift shop complete with gardens and greenhouses, a large selection of statuary products and a 100-year-old barn that houses a pecan kitchen. A potter’s shop and a cafe are also a part of the market.

For more information, go to www.pdfarmersmarket.sc.gov.

Now part of Smead Manufacturing, the company operates from a 140,000-squarefoot facility in Florence that employs around 100. For more, go to www.swmfg.com.

A BIG PRODUCER

REMEMBERING A HOMETOWN HERO The Ronald McNair Memorial in Lake City honors one of the region’s most famous sons.

The Lake City native, who died aboard the space shuttle Challenger in 1986, was a renowned physicist and leader in the field of laser physics technology.

The memorial on East Main Street includes McNair’s burial site, a statue of McNair, a reflecting pool and an eternal flame.

IMAGESFLORENCE.COM

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Business Climate

No Slowing Down Nonstop efforts lead to new investment, jobs in Florence Story by Pamela Coyle • Photography by Brian McCord

low costs

strategic location skilled workforce

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T

o weather a downturn, Joe W. King has a simple philosophy.

“When times are tough, that is when you fly your flag higher,” says King, executive director of the Florence Economic Development Partnership. “If you wait until companies are ready to do something, you are too late.”

Cooperative economic development, strategic location, ample land, low taxes and a skilled workforce make Florence a serious contender for relocating and expanding businesses.

In 2008, Site Selection magazine ranked Florence fifth in its size category among top areas for new and expanding facilities. The ranking covers metro areas with populations of 50,000 to 200,000 residents. The Milken Institute 2008 Best Performing Cities Index showed the Florence MSA as the fifth-highest gainer in its evaluation of the top 124 small U.S. metropolitan areas.

The region has received other accolades, but results are a moretelling bottom line: Announced projects are bringing at least 1,500 jobs and $161 million in direct capital investment to the region.

In 2009, Johnson Controls Inc. announced plans to build a battery recycling facility in Florence, a $100 million, state-of-the-art project that will create 250 jobs. A new frozen-food operation for H.J. Heinz Co. is in the works, with a $105 million facility for production of the Weight Watchers Smart Ones and Boston Market lines.

Although the timeline has been stretched because of the national economy, the project will mean Joe W. King leads the Florence Economic Development Partnership.

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$161 million

1,500

5

New investment announced in Florence in 2008

Jobs created from announced projects in 2008

Florence’s ranking by Site Selection magazine for metros with a 50,000 to 200,000 population

FLORENCE

an additional 350 jobs.

Monster.com is scheduled to open a 75,000-square-foot call center by the end of 2009. About 300 workers have been taking calls in temporary quarters; the end goal is about 750 total new hires over five years, says spokesman Steve Sylven.

Heinz and Monster picked Pee Dee Touchstone Energy Commerce City, a premier Class A business/industrial park. The park is shovel-ready and state certified. Monster, an international leader in online job recruitment, is consolidating its North American customer service functions in Florence. The company considered literally thousands of locations, but settled on the Pee Dee region, citing a rapidly developing labor market with the talent needed to bring “best-inclass” service to its customers.

Atlanta-based Assurant Specialty Property selected the region several years ago to better serve a big mortgage client; the company is expanding in Florence in part because it is closing down two California offices and consolidating.

Recent new projects and expansions also have included Wellman Plastics Recycling, McCall Farms, GE

Healthcare, International Knife and Saw, and J.P. Morgan Chase.

Commerce City is home to Pepsi Cola of Florence’s new distribution center, Johnson Controls, Angus-Palm, FedEx and Institution Food House.

“We don’t have the additional cost of organized labor, we have a favorable

150000

tax structure, and the location is within a day’s drive of 68 percent of the country’s population,” says Tom Kinard, manager of business development for Pee Dee Energy.

“I-20 actually starts, or ends, nine miles from Commerce City and we have two ports within two hours.”

Florence County Population Trends

120000

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1990

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2007 IMAGESFLORENCE.COM

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Forging Strong Ties The Pee Dee builds a diverse and innovative manufacturing sector

Story by Joe Morris

O

ver the years, the world’s businesses have come to the Pee Dee to set up shop. And after finding a skilled workforce, generous incentives and an outstanding quality of life, they’ve put down deep roots.

Efforts to lure national and international companies have hit pay dirt, generating investment in industries from ATV manufacturing to biomedical research and development. That broad appeal has created a diverse and sound manufacturing sector, one that continues to swell its ranks even as other regions of the country

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see a drop-off in activity.

Pharmaceutical companies have a strong presence in Florence County and continue to invest heavily in their operations.

Roche Carolina has pumped $60 million into a plant expansion, doubling its manufacturing capacity.

The decision to do so at its 310-employee plant is a coup for the area, says Pete Mazzaroni, public affairs manager.

“This represents the largest investment that Roche has made in any of its chemical plants since breaking ground here in 1992,” Mazzaroni says. “This reflects positively on our workforce here,

but also on the company’s confidence in South Carolina as a good place to invest.”

IRIX Pharmaceuticals Inc. added a 1,500-square-foot quality control laboratory in spring 2009, as well as two warehouses with 4,000 square feet of space. The two projects combined cost about $2 million, says Miriam Swiler, vice president of human resources and public relations.

“We started here in 1997 with two employees, and now have 100 on this site and have added a site in Greenville with 50 employees,” Swiler says. “The success factors are here: good business climate, excellent educational and

IMAGESFLORENCE.COM

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BRIAN McCORD

HOURLY WAGES FOR SELECT MANUFACTURING JOBS IN FLORENCE First-line supervisors/managers of production

$20.71

Structural metal fabricators and fitters

$17.08

Machinists

$16.43

Cutting, punching and press machine operators

$11.09

Welders and cutters

$12.95

Woodworking machine setters and operators

$12.82

Team assemblers

$12.77

Inspectors, testers and sorters

$12.46

Packaging and filling machine operators

$10.82

Sewing machine operators

$6.33

Source: Employment Security Commission of South Carolina MORE AT IMAGESFLORENCE.COM

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training facilities with a well-educated and trained workforce, great quality of life and a wonderfully mild climate.

We have proven that it is easy to recruit high-level scientists to this area, and the business climate is excellent.”

It’s been less about expansion and more about retooling at Honda of South Carolina Manufacturing’s Timmonsville plant, but reorganizing into a leaner operation is paying dividends for that outfit as well, says Jeff Helton, assistant vice president of administration. Honda produces nine different models of ATVs in the region, and has about 600 employees.

“We’ve rebalanced the line and are ramping back up,” Helton says. “We’re moving in the right direction and are

Tools Sharpener

S TA F F P H O T O

SiMT SHOWCASES AREA’S TRAINING STRENGTHS

ready to handle additional production requirements. We’ve streamlined and become very efficient, and had the chance to refocus as well.”

All those scientists and assembly line workers have to eat, so it’s a good thing McCall Farms continues to grow its local presence. The Effingham producer of canned fruits and vegetables has been expanding its frozen-food operation, and undertook a $3.9 million plant expansion for vegetable freezing that should add around 40 jobs, bringing McCall’s workforce up to around 180 people.

“We expanded our initial

investment into freezing and it’s doing really well,” says Woody Swink, sales manager. “Now we’re looking at expanding our dry-goods warehousing due to the growth in our canning operation.”

Echoing his manufacturing counterparts, Swink says his company’s success is deeply woven into the area itself.

“From getting our raw products to recruiting good people and finding our end users, it’s a great place to be,” he says. “Ultimately, our people are why we are where we are; they’re the ones that got us here.”

Above left: IRIX Pharmaceuticals has grown its Florence operations to 100 employees.

Above right: McCall Farms has invested nearly $4 million to add frozen food production to its canning operations in Florence County.

The Southeastern Institute of Manufacturing and Technology provides leading-edge technology training for prospective and existing businesses.

The first phase of the institute is now operational, a 177,000square-foot state-of-the-art training center on a 146-acre tract adjacent to FlorenceDarlington Technical College.

The SiMT features a $34 million advanced manufacturing center, home base for a range of customized training programs that use cutting-edge equipment such as a high-speed milling center and CAD/CAM systems. The facilities include an 800-seat auditorium, conference center, rapid prototyping lab, 3D/virtual reality center and the National Robotics Training Center of Excellence.

“We’re a multiuse facility and clients can use our conference center and auditorium for their specific needs,” says Jack Roach, director. “We also use our virtual reality technology to do content development for companies that use it for marketing and sales, or operation-simulation training environments.”

The SiMT also works with companies to build prototypes, and its manufacturing incubator center will assist small entrepreneurs who need help getting from sketches on a napkin to CAD-based engineering and design that they can use to show customers or secure funding.

“We’re a service that companies can take advantage of to grow their business,” Roach says “But we think we’re an asset to our economic development agencies, because when prospects come here to see what we can do, we can connect all those people so they can take a look at all the area has to offer.”

– Joe Morris IMAGESFLORENCE.COM

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Stretch Your Legs Growing parks, trail system offer plenty of ways to enjoy outdoors

Story by Joe Morris Photography by Brian McCord

T

he trail walking, hiking, fishing, canoeing and other activities at Florence County’s many parks and recreation sites offer no excuses for staying inside.

Lynches River County Park, a 676-acre site, includes everything from a splash pad to a 1,200-foot riverwalk, as well as canoeing and other water-based options. And with a nature center and seasonal festivals, the park also doubles as a learning and cultural facility for area residents.

“One popular activity is a nature walk led by local naturalists, which proves that one does not need to go very far to see nature in the heart of Florence County,” says Terasa Young, supervisor of the park’s Environmental Discovery Center, which provides programs that highlight the importance of “being a good steward of our Earth.”

The center’s meeting space

accommodates groups of 20 to 400 people and offers a rotating roster of educational, informative and entertaining exhibits. As a measure of its popularity, consider that the center has seen more than 30,000 visitors from 32 states and six countries since opening in February 2008. It now is anchoring the park’s conceptual master plan for landscaping, which will provide more opportunities to learn about natural history and sustainable living, Young says.

The 1,590-acre Woods Bay State Natural Area in Olanta includes Carolina bays, elliptical depressions that fill with water and become shallow wetlands. Woods Bay has a 500-foot boardwalk and a one-mile canoe trail.

Parks are also a big part of the picture within the Florence city limits, where some 18 facilities with various amenities as well as a 21-mile

The 100-acre Freedom Florence Recreation Park includes a gymnastics center, nine softball/baseball fields, three lighted football fields and batting cages.

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“Manufacturing industries are aware of the benefits of parks and land preservation.”

greenway system are heavily used. A new, $5.5 million tennis complex is planned, with 24 to 30 courts, a clubhouse and an activities center.

“It is designed for regional tournament play, so we are anticipating bringing in tournaments from around the Southeast and elsewhere,” says Drew Griffin, director of public works and utilities. “It is part of a 25-acre tract that also will have a fitness trail.”

The tennis complex, set for a spring 2010 opening, is modeled on the Freedom Florence Recreation Complex, a 100-acre multipurpose site and frequent home of major softball tournaments. The complex includes nine softball/baseball fields, three lighted football fields, batting cages and a gymnastics center.

Connecting these and other sites is the city’s greenway system, a combination of bike paths and boardwalks, where recently

completed work has brought the east and west sides of town together via its pathways. (www.cityofflorence.com/parks) Not all the city’s parks deal with huffing and puffing. Take the new Florence Veterans Park, for example. Built to honor veterans of wars from World War I to the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, the $4 million park was dedicated in November 2008. Its popularity highlights how parks serve as a draw to both tourists and relocating businesses, says Holly Young Beaumier, director of the Florence Convention & Visitors Bureau.

“Manufacturing industries, in particular, are aware of the benefits of parks and land preservation,” Beaumier says. “As businesses choose a site, they are aware of the level of integration of the community, and well-run parks systems facilitate this integration.”

More Insight Among its many recreation options, the Pee Dee region includes an abundance of quality golf courses, several of them with state and national reputations.

Many courses in the region offer or are included in golf vacation packages. For a listing of area courses and information, go to www.florencesccvb.com/ Golf.htm.

The Discovery Center at the 676-acre Lynches River County Park provides a treetop learning experience.

Center of the Action FLORENCE CONVENTION FACILITY IS AT THE CROSSROADS OF ENTERTAINMENT Florence is alive with entertainment, shows and events, and the Florence Civic Center is the crossroads for much of that activity.

The award-winning center includes more than 50,000 square feet of multipurpose space.

The venue, with its 10,000seat arena, 15,000-square-foot exhibit hall and several individual meeting rooms, is home to the Florence Symphony Orchestra, Florence Phantoms indoor football team and the Pee Dee Cyclones hockey team.

The exhibit hall was extensively refurbished in 2007 and can serve as a formal banquet hall with seating

for 1,000 people, meeting space for up to 1,400 people or exhibitor space for up to 84 eight-foot by 10-foot booths. High speed Internet access is available throughout the center.

The center hosts a range of events, from concerts, bull riding, wrestling and motorcycle racing to family shows such as Disney on Ice, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus and Sesame Street Live.

Located at the junction of Interstate 95 and Interstate 20, just a few miles from Florence Regional Airport, the center is the hub of a regional hospitality industry that includes 3,700 hotel rooms and

abundant shopping and restaurant options that are close by.

Among the major selling points to promoters and event organizers is the overall affordability of the venue, which includes a staff of professional meeting planners and full catering services.

The center, which opened in 1993, has won multiple Prime Site Awards, given annually by Facilities Media Group in New York.

The awards, which only a small group of venues receive each year, are based on voting from booking agents, promoters and talent buyers.

For more on the center, go to www.florenceciviccenter.com.

IMAGESFLORENCE.COM

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Livability

Playing Up Downtown Campaign touts the district’s many attributes

Story by Kevin Litwin • Photography by Brian McCord

I

t is right to the point: Experience Downtown Florence.

A multi-pronged branding initiative to market the downtown district and bring consistency to the message is paying dividends, with new attractions, new housing opportunities and a renewed vibrancy.

Before the campaign, individual entities such as the Florence Civic Center, Florence Little Theatre, Florence Economic Development Partnership and Florence Downtown Development Corp. were marketing downtown Florence, but not doing it in a cohesive manner, says Jennifer Wilcox, downtown development coordinator for Florence Downtown Development.

“Now there is a specific message that we can focus upon together,” she says.

And the momentum that downtown has gained goes well

beyond a new slogan.

The $17.5 million Drs. Bruce and Lee Foundation Library opened in 2004 in a striking 83,000-square-foot building, and a new $10 million Florence Little Theatre opened in 2008, both on South Dargan Street.

Those cultural touchstones will be joined in fall 2010 by the $32.8 million Francis Marion University Performing Arts Center, now under construction at Dargan and West Palmetto streets.

And the Florence County Museum of Art, Science and History is exploring a move from its site near Timrod Park to a downtown parcel near the performing arts center, adding to the mix of downtown attractions that include a series of outdoor locomotive murals by local artist Elvis Hatchell, the Florence Railroad Museum and the War Between the States Museum.

“We realized that the arts and culture community is strong here,

The lobby is one of the striking features of the new, $10 million Florence Little Theatre, one of the centerpieces of downtown Florence’s revitalization.

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By the Numbers

19.8 Average commuting time in minutes in Florence

63.2 Average annual day-time temperature

37 Median age

109,483 Households in a 30-mile radius

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so we concentrated on revitalizing that part of the district first,” Wilcox says.

Once the Dargan Street corridor is completed, revitalization for the remainder of the 70-square-block downtown area will be addressed.

“This is a huge undertaking,” she says.

Wilcox says the revitalization emphasis is alive and well in Florence, with $70 million in capital investment for new downtown development occurring from 2006-2009. An entire area of downtown encompassing the 100 blocks of West Evans, North Dargan and South Dargan has also been placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

“We are putting together a facade master plan for individual owners to

upgrade their historic buildings, making them more presentable to heritage tourists.”

As for residential development, Coit Village is a new apartment complex at Darlington and Coit streets, and a number of building owners have expressed interest in adding upstairs loft apartments to their properties.

“Re-energizing downtown Florence is a slow but sure process, with many details being addressed,” Wilcox says.

That includes renaming the annual downtown Florence Pecan Festival as the South Carolina Pecan Festival to expand the scope of the event.

“Whatever we can do to get people to ‘Experience Downtown Florence,’ we’re going to do it,” Wilcox says.

The opening of the $17.5 million Drs. Bruce & Lee Foundation Library in 2004 kickstarted a renaissance in downtown Florence.

Getting To Know Florence Culture THE PEE DEE’S MANY ATTRACTIONS COVER A RANGE OF INTERESTS Florence is home to an array of cultural and educational attractions.

Here is just a small sample:

FLORENCE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA www.florencesymphony.com The Florence Symphony Orchestra has been hitting a high note in the Pee Dee since 1949.

The 60-member orchestra puts on four performances every year, often with guest musicians, and is the only volunteer orchestra in South Carolina and one of the few remaining in the country.

suspended from the ceiling by 14 chains. Special-effect projectors and a stereo sound system in the 73-seat auditorium create a realistic illusion of celestial objects and their motion in the night sky.

SCIENCESOUTH www.sciencesouth.org ScienceSouth is a nonprofit education initiative founded in

2000 to advance scientific understanding at all ages and inspire youngsters to choose scientific careers. In 2008, it opened a new headquarters and hands-on lab in a 5,000-squarefoot pavilion in the Freedom Florence Recreational Complex.

Events such as summer camps and family activities allow science to be experienced up close.

FLORENCE MUSEUM www.florencemuseum.org The Florence Museum is housed in a 5,000-square-foot 1939 Art Moderne-style home near Timrod Park. The museum has an extensive collection of works from European and American artists from the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, including several South Carolinians.

Its African American collection includes artifacts of ceremonial significance, weaponry, tools and vessels from tribal cultures.

THE NATIONAL BEAN MARKET MUSEUM www.lakecitysc.org This single-story masonry structure in Lake City was built in 1936 and became the largest truck-auction bean market in the world. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The renovated building has been converted to a museum that includes exhibits depicting early farm life in the Pee Dee.

DOOLEY PLANETARIUM AT FRANCIS MARION UNIVERSITY astro.fmarion.edu The planetarium’s Spitz-512 Star Projector is capable of producing 2,354 stars, several prominent galaxies and star clusters onto a 33-foot dome

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Education

Precision Skills Florence-Darlington Technical College teaches tomorrow’s jobs to today’s students

Story by Joe Morris Photography by Brian McCord

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ith enrollment topping 5,200 students for the fall 2009 semester, Florence-Darlington Technical College has gone from fairly humble beginnings to a major player in the region’s economic development arena.

The college has grown steadily since its opening in 1963. Today, it offers more than 75 fields of study, with degree and certificate programs ranging from business and health career training to criminal justice to civil engineering to nursing and welding. In addition to the Florence-Darlington campus it also has a nearby cosmetology center and satellite locations in Hartsville, Lake City and Mullins, and a health sciences campus in downtown Florence. The college also now is home to the first phase of the Southeastern Institute of Manufacturing and Technology, an advanced manufacturing training center housed in a state-of-the-art facility.

While the growth has been substantial, it hasn’t come as a surprise for business leaders

in the community who have long relied on the college as a source of highly trained workers.

Keeping that reputation by offering new courses as well as its current roster is key to that success, says Dr. Charles Gould, president.

“We continue to see a tremendous response from people seeking the skills for new positions,” Gould says. “Right now, we have a lot of students getting involved in nuclear construction. We’ve gotten several big grants from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to develop a curriculum as well as install new programs that will beef up that workforce in advance of the facilities being planned.”

High-speed telecommunications lines link the college’s multiple campuses, allowing courses to be attended and taught at any location. That’s come in handy when FDTC has been asked to tackle a major project, such as training a workforce for Monster.com when the Internet employment giant opened its customer-service facility in Florence in

More Insight Florence-Darlington Technical College www.fdtc.edu Enrollment: 5,200 Campus: Main campus, with eight buildings totaling 350,000 square feet, is on 240 acres on the Florence-Darlington county line and includes the Southeastern Institute of Manufacturing and Technology; also has a health sciences facility in downtown Florence and satellite locations in Hartsville, Lake City and Mullins

Florence-Darlington Technical College had record enrollment of more than 5,200 students in fall 2009.

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2008. The five-year, $28 million effort, which will create 750 jobs, required some serious advance groundwork, Gould says.

“They were on our campus for almost nine months for the first 300 jobs, and the company has been extremely pleased,” he says. “Their turnover is nothing like what they thought it would be, and so they have changed their focus to hire more people from our area. They are ecstatic about the quality of the workforce that we have.”

The college has long been involved with the Pee Dee Workforce Investment Board, with at least 750 students in 2009 going through its programs for training and retraining workers. It also continues to strengthen its dualcredit offerings so that high school students in the surrounding region can take both vocational courses and those that will count toward a college degree. Its programs appeal to all age ranges, from traditional students to those already in the workforce. Nearly 25 percent of students enrolled in fall 2008 were more than 30 years old.

When the college works with its economic development partners, it is always asked about training programs, and when Gould describes the depth and breadth of what FDTC offers, he’s always pleased with the response he receives.

“Workforce is always a company’s first or second question, because they don’t want to limit themselves by not being able to get people who can produce what they need,” he says.

“The presence of the college says that you can get employees here and that we are willing to put our resources into technical educations to support that employer’s endeavors.”

Florence Darlington Technical College Enrollment Trends 2005

2006 2007

2008

2009 0

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Florence-Darlington Technical College’s health sciences program provides training for a variety of medical careers.

Small but Mighty SUPPORT, DEVELOPMENT ARE TWIN GOALS OF FRANCIS MARION’S ENTREPRENEUR CENTER The corporations of the future are the one-person operations of today, and nowhere is that better illustrated than at the Francis Marion University Center for Entrepreneurship.

The center, which opened in January 2009, has long been a dream of business leaders and officials of the 4,000-student university in Florence. It already is making a difference in keeping innovative companies in the area, and its three-part mission of outreach, applied research and promotion of entrepreneurial ventures by FMU students and community members will broaden its impact even more, says Susan Peters, director.

“Entrepreneurship education is in all the majors at FMU, but we’re going out to teach classes to elementary and secondary students, as well as start some adult continuing education so that we have a ‘cradle to grave’ approach to entrepreneurship,” Peters says. “We want to make sure everybody knows what it is to be an entrepreneur, and how to take an idea and continue to make it grow.”

Francis Marion’s academic programs include a college of liberal arts and schools of education and business. The business school offers seven different majors - accounting, economics, finance, general business, management, management information systems and marketing.

The center’s other major focus will be on infant companies – putting together business plans, securing financing, finding office space and all the other nuts-andbolts activities an entrepreneur will need to learn in a hurry. Once those fledgling enterprises are operational, the goal is to tie them

to much larger concerns.

“We want to work with economic development people so that when they bring in a large manufacturer that needs a machine shop, we’ve got someone who has that business already up and running,” Peters says.

“We want to provide the workers for these large employers that will be coming in and to create those niche, support companies.”

Go to www.fmarion.edu/academics/ centerforentrepreneurship for more on the center.

– Joe Morris

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Health

Positive Prognosis Hospitals provide vital services, help drive local economy Story by Joe Morris • Photography by Brian McCord

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lorence County’s health providers do more than deliver quality care to area residents.

They also provide a dose of good medicine to the the Pee Dee region’s economy.

McLeod Health and Carolinas Hospital System have significant presences in the community, operating hospitals and outreach facilities throughout the area.

McLeod, founded in 1906, has more than 4,700 total employees and 30 medical practices. Its facilities include the 453-bed McLeod Regional Medical Center, as well as a hospice program, children’s health facility and acute-care facilities in Darlington and Dillon. Specialized services include cancer treatment and heart care, including a heart surgical

affiliation with the Cleveland Clinic. McLeod also operates McLeod Health and Fitness Center, the region’s largest and only medically based health and wellness center.

McLeod’s recent improvements include a third digital mammography unit at its breast-imaging center and the addition of a dedicated breast MRI biopsy table. It also has invested in the inReach System for lung-cancer detection and built two urgent-care centers in the community.

Carolinas Hospital System moved to its current facility in 1998, and provides an array of services that include a Level II trauma center, specialized rehabilitation programs and physicians in all major specialties.

As each system expands its coverage area, it brings its leading-edge care to

Carolinas Hospital System remains on the cutting edge of technology with the addition of a state-of-the-art endovascular suite. The hospital provides an array of treatments and services, including a Level II trauma center and specialized rehabilitation programs.

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More Insight McLeod Health 555 E. Cheves St. Florence, SC 29506 (843) 777-2000 www.mcleodhealth.org Number of beds: 453 Total employees: 4,700 Admissions: 22,886 Emergency room visits: 57,813 Carolinas Hospital System 805 Pamplico Hwy. Florence, SC 29505 (843) 674-5000 www.carolinashospital.com Number of beds: 434 Employees: 1,700 Admissions: 13,312 Emergency room visits: 36,163

McLeod Health System offers such specialized services as cancer treatment and cardiac care.

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a broader range of the region’s population. Combined, the hospitals contribute an estimated $500 million in economic impact to the region each year, playing a major role in efforts to recruit and retain top-quality businesses.

“We have around 1,700 employees with an annual payroll of more than $100 million, so obviously that drives a lot of disposable income into the community,” says Jim O’Loughlin, chief executive officer of Carolinas Hospital System. “Our average hourly rate is about $23, so those people are well compensated. Plus, we are the second- or third-largest property-tax payer in the community, paying several million.”

The presence of care providers investing in the latest technologies and treatments — the more options, the better — drives successful recruiting, O’Loughlin says.

“Studies have shown that when individuals or companies are looking for a location, or deciding whether or not to stay in an area, a key factor is workforce,” he says. “And for those people, health care is very important.

Having facilities like ours available in Florence makes it a little easier to attract companies because they know that health care is not going to be an issue, that their relocating employees will be impressed with the facilities here.”

Conversely, he adds, “When communities lose hospitals it’s very difficult for them to thrive economically, because businesses have a very difficult time attracting and retaining good employees.”

The Carolinas Hospital System invests between $8 million and $10 million annually into its facilities, which include two campuses and more than 400 beds. A new, $1.5 million cardiac cath lab and $25 million tower addition are among its recent major efforts, and an ongoing technologyupgrade program ensures that its equipment is first-rate as well.

“You have to make those investments, because that’s the nature of the health-care business,” O’Loughlin says.

“Sometimes we spend more because it’s a construction project, but usually that’s just routine capital expenditures.

It keeps us up to date, and is good for the Florence area as well.”

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Transportation

Easy In, Easy Out Transportation grid makes Florence a place to move the goods

Story by Pamela Coyle • Photography by Brian McCord

S

outh Carolina is not a big state, ranking 40th in the nation in terms of square miles, but it does not come up short on transportation assets. Interstate 95, a major north-south artery, alone spans 207 miles. I-20, I-26 and I-85 also traverse the state.

Florence County has direct access to I-20 and I-95. Combine that with four major U.S. highways, rail service, a commercial service airport, nearly 20 trucking and freight firms and easy access to ports in Charleston and Georgetown, and Florence County is a distributor’s dream.

QVC Inc., a giant multimedia global retailer, opened a 1.4 million-squarefoot distribution center in Florence in 2007. An estimated 1.8 million packages leave its warehouses each year at a rate of 1,000 an hour.

The Florence facility was the company’s fifth U.S. distribution center, and it specializes in storing and shipping exercise equipment, small appliances, electronics and apparel.

Pepsi Cola Bottling Co. of Florence opened a 155,000-squarefoot distribution center in the Pee Dee Touchstone Commerce City Industrial

DRIVING DISTANCES TO SELECT MARKETS ATLANTA, 267 CHARLESTON, 98 CHARLOTTE, 93

JACKSONVILLE, 287 KNOXVILLE, 266 RALEIGH, 149

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Park. Pepsi has been in the community since the 1930s; the new facility allowed it to consolidate workers at one location and expand distribution operations.

“All the infrastructure was here and there is really good access in and out,” says Frank Avent, president and CEO. The Pepsi distributorship has 32 trucks of its own. Pee Dee Food Service, a company also operated by Avent that does full-line vending, has another 25 for the 31 routes it operates

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in the Carolinas. The companies didn’t need frontage on I-95 with visibility as much as they needed space to keep the trucks moving in and products moving out.

“This fits us well,” says Avent, adding that Pepsi has room to expand when it needs to.

The central location fits the needs of other big players, too. Institutional Food House Inc., a large food distributor, employs 200 at its Florence facility.

Johnson Controls Inc. is building a

$100 million car battery recycling facility that will create 250 new jobs.

Located off U.S. Highway 76 on Paper Mill Road, the facility and parking will take up about 36 acres.

“The proposed Florence facility will be the most innovative battery recycling operation in the world,” says Alex Molinaroli, president of Johnson Controls Power Solutions. “Our closedloop system is state of the art.”

Johnson already has a huge presence in the region, with more than 1,000

Power Properties

Somersett Acres employees at an existing distribution center in Florence and a manufacturing facility in Oconee.

The battery facility will recycle 10 million units a year, says Tom Kinard, manager of business development at Pee Dee Electric Cooperative.

Chances are, some of those same batteries came from vehicles not too far away.

“Sixty-eight percent of the U.S. population is within a day’s drive,” Kinard says.

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Energy/Technology

High-Voltage Partners Energy companies amp up investment in the Pee Dee region

Story by Pamela Coyle

PHOTOS BY BRIAN McCORD

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he Class A industrial park at Interstate 95 and State Highway 327 is aptly named.

Commerce City encompasses more than 700 acres, with more than a mile of frontage on the East Coast’s main transportation route. With manufacturing, distribution centers, call center operations, restaurants and a hotel, Commerce City is a busy hub.

It is much like other big industrial parks with one significant difference – the developer is a utility company.

Pee Dee Touchstone Energy Commerce City came about after regional leaders realized expanding the economy one parcel at a time not only was inefficient, but costly for companies wanting to relocate.

Since it opened in 2001, Commerce City has created 2,000 jobs and $450 million in direct construction spending, says Tom Kinard, manager of business development at Pee Dee Electric Cooperative.

“It’s been a great investment,” he says.

By law, though, co-ops are not allowed to make profits, so a subsidiary that had been in the satellite dish business sold its assets and in turn bought the land.

Pee Dee Touchstone installed the infrastructure, including electricity, roads, water, sewer, fiber-optic lines and natural gas, and took care of early environmental studies. The “shovelready” development is now almost

Toy Nettles is CEO of Pee Dee Electric Co-Op, which has invested heavily in the Pee Dee.

What’s Onlinee Read more about economic development efforts by the Pee Dee’s utilities at imagesflorence.com.

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“We are serious about energy efficiency and serious about helping our customers save money for the long term.”

full, and Pee Dee Touchstone may be looking to develop a second park, Kinard says.

The site also is home to a volunteer fire department, space that Commerce City gave the organization; its proximity helps reduce insurance costs for businesses in the park and homeowners in nearby residential areas.

Utility companies are active partners in economic development.

Progress Energy has an economic development team, with county representatives who help steer prospects to available land. The

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company’s grant program covers economic development initiatives.

Progress Energy’s many economic development initiatives included partnering with Florence County and the private sector to develop the 194-acre Godley Morris Commerce Center in Lake City and construct a speculative building within the park.

Economic development can be as big as an industrial park or as modest as a light bulb, and utility companies in the Pee Dee region have the spectrum covered.

Santee Cooper, South Carolina’s

state-owned electric and water utility, in September 2009 announced a $113 million campaign to educate customers on ways to reduce their energy costs. The first four pieces of “Reduce the Use” involve cash rebates for more efficient refrigerators and free compact fluorescent lights for residential and commercial customers.

“We are serious about energy efficiency and serious about helping our customers save money for the long term,” says Marc Tye, vice president of conservation and renewable energy for the utility.

Cultivating New Fuels PEE DEE CENTER DEVELOPS SWITCHGRASS AS BIOFUEL SOURCE The Clemson University Pee Dee Research & Education Center wants to help create local markets for a global idea – using warmseason grasses as a source of biomass for fuel.

Switchgrass, which flourishes in soil too marginal for corn, already has markets in Europe that import compressed switchgrass from South Carolina ports for direct combustion as a coal alternative, says Bruce Fortnum, director of the center, which sits on 2,300 acres in Florence and Darlington counties.

Some end users either combine the briquettes with wood or coal or they use only compressed switchgrass, but the approach simplifies processing because it doesn’t require enzymes to break the plant cellulose into material that is then processed into ethanol.

The Research & Education Center has about 40 acres under cultivation for switchgrass study, says James Frederick, a professor of crop physiology and small grains research.

“We are working with how to best produce quantity and quality.

If the end use is for ethanol, you’ll need more specific factors and quality control,” he says.

Research, which includes collaborators from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Savannah River National Laboratory, among other agencies, is looking at production systems, conversion factors, environmental impacts and pest control.

Because transportation costs can be substantial, switchgrass cultivation and processing has the potential to boost rural economies. “One thing I like about biofuels is that it almost has to be a local industry,” Fortnum says.

“You need smaller plants scattered about. It spreads the jobs around. In places where you have farming and nothing else, if

you could have some processing, fuel is high value.”

Outreach and public education efforts are helping, too. In Clio, S.C., a few farmers have 300 acres under cultivation for seed production because demand is

expected to increase significantly, Frederick says.

“Two or three years ago, we talked about it and no one understood what it was,” he says.

“Today we have a lot of farmers interested.”

– Pamela Coyle

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Florence Christian School 2308 S. Irby St. Florence, SC 29504 (843) 662-0453 www.fcseagles.org A Ministry of the Florence Baptist Temple

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Photo Essay

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Fast History

The Darlington Raceway Stock Car Museum is an excursion from memory lane to victory lane. The museum, part of the legendary Darlington Raceway complex just outside Florence, captures the history that built NASCAR from a regional attraction to a sport known around the world. The museum features exhibits, memorabilia and, most of all, the cars that made NASCAR great. Adjoining the museum is the National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame, filled with photos and interactive exhibits that showcase the legends that powered the sport and fueled its growth.

PHOTO BY BRIAN McCORD

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Left: A jacket and helmet worn by Buck Baker, a 46-time winner on the NASCAR circuit

PHOTOS BY BRIAN McCORD

Above: The 1991 Chevrolet Lumina that Darrell Waltrip rolled eight times during the Pepsi 400 at Dayton International Speedway

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Right: The Spirit Award is presented by the National Motorsports Press Association to individuals or groups that perform charitable acts or display courage under adverse circumstances.

BRIAN M C CORD

TODD BENNET T

Left: A 1967 Plymouth driven by Richard Petty, whose 200 victories are the most in NASCAR history

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Right: A Southern 500 trophy on display at the Darlington Raceway Stock Car Museum

PHOTOS BY BRIAN McCORD

Left: A 1950 Plymouth driven by Johnny Mantz, whose lone victory came in the 1950 Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway

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Above: The cars are the stars at the Darlington Raceway Stock Car Museum.

Left: Jerry Cook won six championships in seven years on NASCAR’s Featherlite Modified Tour circuit.

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Flexibility Helping Florence Employers Hire Great People Quality

Career

Transition Opportunity www.accustaff.com

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AccuStaff – Florence, SC 519 W. Evans St. Florence, SC 29501 (843) 664-0050

ECONOMIC PROFILE BUSINESS SNAPSHOT

POPULATION Florence County 2007: 132,047 2000: 125,761 Change: 4.9% Regional Population 657,010 Median age, 37.0 Households in a 30-mile radius 109,483 Median Household Income (2007) Florence MSA, $40,371 Per-Capita Income (2006) Florence County, $30,334

LABOR FORCE STATISTICS Florence MSA labor force, 65,380 Regional labor force, 234,156 Average wage, $34,840

HOUSING MARKET Median value of home or condo (2007), $128,711 Median monthly gross rent (2007), $571

Florence County offers a diverse economic base, location to major markets, fully developed infrastructure, skilled workforce and strong business climate that position it firmly among the most competitive counties in the nation.

INDUSTRIAL EMPLOYERS

JP Morgan Chase, 1,150 Florence County, 898 The Assurant Group, 675

Nan Ya Plastics Corporation America, 860 ESAB Welding and Cutting Products, 650 Honda of South Carolina, 600 Smurfit-Stone Container, 550 Nucor Corp. Vulcraft Division, 400 QVC, 400 GE Medical Systems, 372 Roche Carolina, 308 ACS Technologies, 270 Pepsi Cola Bottling Co., 221 McCall Farms, 215 IFH Foodservice Distribution, 210 Johnson Controls, 200

South Carolina DHEC, 600 Walmart, 620 ADP Tax Credit Services, 480 Francis Marion University, 440 City of Florence, 433

KEY INDUSTRY SECTORS Manufacturing, 20.3% Retail, 16.9% Health Care, 15.5% Hospitality, 10.3% Wholesale Trade, 5.8%

MAJOR EMPLOYERS

Administrative & Support, 5.5%

McLeod Regional Medical Center, 4,700 Florence School District 1, 1,718 Carolinas Hospital System, 1,700 Palmetto Government Benefits Administrators/TRICAR, 1,600

Construction, 5.2%

Finance & Insurance, 5.4% Professional & Technical Services, 3.5% Transportation & Warehousing, 3.2%

COST OF LIVING

What’s Onlinee

(Composite index=100 percent of U.S. average)

For more in-depth demographic, statistical and community information on Florence, go to imagesflorence.com and click on Economic Profile.

Florence MSA Composite, 94%

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visit our

advertisers AccuStaff www.accustaff.com Bistro Holdings Inc. DBA – Victor’s Bistro www.victorsbistro.com Burt Jordan Realtors www.burtjordan.com Carolinas Hospital System www.carolinashospital.com Clemson Engineering www.clemsonengineering.net ERA Leatherman Realty Inc. www.eraleatherman.com ESAB www.esab.com Florence Christian School www.fcseagles.org Florence Convention & Visitors Bureau www.florenceccvb.com Florence County Economic Development Partnership www.fcedp.com Florence Regional Airport www.florencescairport.com Florence-Darlington Tech www.fdtc.edu Francis Marion University www.fmarion.edu

College preparatory academics in a nurturing environment

We love to learn!

A pre-K to grade 12 coed day school

Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce www.flochamber.com Honda of South Carolina Manufacturing Inc. www.honda.com Magnolia Mall www.shopmagnoliamall.com New Generations Home Care www.newgenerationshc.com Pee Dee Regional Transportation Authority www.pdtra.org Powers Properties www.powersproperties.com Progress Energy www.progress-energy.com/economic Roche Carolina Inc. www.rochecarolina.com Santee Cooper www.santeecooper.com Springhill Suites by Marriott www.marriott.com/flosh

1201 E. Ashby Rd. Florence, SC 29506 (843) 662-0131 Fax: (843) 669-2466 www.byrnesschools.org

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The Byrnes School www.byrnesschools.org Turner, Padget Graham & Laney PA www.tpgl.com Webster Rogers LLP www.websterrogers.com

Ad Index 5 4 ACC U S TA FF 6 B I S T RO H O L D I N G S I N C .

D BA – V I C TO R ’ S B I S T R O

3 5 FLO R E N C E R EG I O N A L A I R P O RT 2 6 FLO R E N C EDA R LI N GTO N T EC H

1 B U RT J O R DA N R E A LTO R S C 2 C A RO LI N A S H OS P ITA L SYS T E M 54 CLEMSON ENGINEERING 2 E R A L E AT H E R M A N R E A LT Y I N C .

6 E SA B 47 FLO R E N C E C H R I S TI A N S C H O O L C 4 F LO R E N C E CO N V E N T I O N & V I S ITO R S B U R E AU C 3 FLO R E N C E CO U N T Y ECO N O M I C D E V E LO P M E N T PA RT N E R S H I P

39 FR A N C I S M A R I O N U N I V E R S IT Y 7 G R E ATER FLO R EN C E C H A M B E R O F CO M M E RC E 4 H O N DA O F SOUTH CAROLINA M A N U FAC T U R I N G I N C .

3 1 M AG N O LI A M A L L 5 5 N E W G E N E R ATI O N S HOME CARE 4 3 P E E D E E R EG I O N A L T R A N S P O RTATI O N AU T H O R IT Y 4 3 P OW E R S P RO P E RTI E S

Ad Index (cont.)

8 P R O G R E S S E N E R GY 5 6 RO C H E C A RO LI N A I N C .

4 SA NTEE CO O P ER 1 2 S P R I N G H I L L S U IT E S

BY M A R R I OT T 5 6 T H E BY R N E S S C H O O L 8 T U R N E R , PA D G E T G R A H A M & L A N E Y PA 55 WEBSTER ROGERS LLP

If you are thinking about locating a facility in South Carolina, come see what’s growing in Florence County.

From manufacturing and distribution to financial services and health care, we’re home to business of all types.

Why? Because we provide a winning combination of a diverse workforce, superior logistics, a business-friendly community and a quality of life second to none.

We invite you to come to Florence County and enjoy what many worldclass businesses have already found: a fertile, proven and successful location for business and industry.

Come to a place where you can live happily and your business can prosper.

From certified building sites to large developable tracts, Florence offers a variety of land options with excellent access to utilities and transportation.

We offer a comprehensive set of economic development incentives and planning tools to assist you, and we’re ready to work with you to identify and secure the location that best suits the needs of your project.

Joe W. King, Executive Director • Kyle Edney, Assistant Director If you are interested in expanding or relocating to a proven successful place for business and industry, please contact:

Florence County Economic Development Partnership

1951 Pisgah Rd. • Florence, SC 29501 On the campus of Southeastern Institute of Manufacturing and Technology (843) 676-8796 • Fax: (843) 676-8799 • www.fcedp.com