Bennettsville: Time for a Change

The downtown area in my hometown of Bennettsville S.C. is very prevalent and is the center of activity in the area.
I left the small town back in 1996 and I haven't lived there since. I only come back to visit my parents.

Here's why. You see Bennettsville is a small place that's hindered in my opinion by traditionalist. The traditionalist want the town to remain a town where farming is the top industry.

Unfortunately, there are many in the town that get left behind because of this mentality. There aren't a lot of resources and opportunities for youth and many of them suffer for this later on in life.

Consider this, there is no movie theater close by, nor is there a skating rink or any place that the family can go for entertainment. People have to travel out of town for a lot of their recreational needs, and dollars that could be put back into the community go into nearby towns like Florence or Laurinburg.

The lack of things to do doesn't make Bennettsville very attractive to young professionals. That's why you see so many people, leave the area.

Here's what needs to be done. City officials need to get away from the old mindset of doing things and need to make more concessions to bring new businesses in.

A couple of upscale restaurants, coupled with a huge retail store would do a lot to boost the town's economy and also capture some of those lost dollars that are going into other municipalities with greater resources. This will then begin to shape the way young professionals view the area.

The next thing the town can do is develop the "Bypass" area a bit better. Let me explain. For anyone that has ever been to Bennettsville, particularly this area, then they would know that it often gets a great deal of traffic. Mostly you have people that stop into the McDonald's for breakfast while they're on their way to Myrtle Beach.

The problem is, there aren't really that many other businesses that can capture those tourists dollars and bring in new revenue to the town. If that area was developed - say with more restaurants and perhaps a retail store of some sort - maybe even a strip mall - there would be a tremendous difference in the town. That area could become a local hub.

But I digress. These are all dreams, ideas that I have had for years, and they aren't uncommon. Many are asking for growth in Bennettsville. Many are asking for change. It's up to the leadership to answer the call and make this change happen.