Sumter, SC (Cherryvale, Dalzell, Oakland: middle-class, sale, 2010)

[CarolinaBredChicagoan]

Originally Posted by painterdude

Well, we're pretty well settled in. Still lots of boxes and things to move but actually we've eaten at home the last 4 nights. Locating the stores and window shopping the tree places for fall planting. Made several trips to the recycle which conveniently is only 5 or 6 miles away. All in all things going well. The painterdude is for home and business painting...in fact I placed an add under Pence The Painter in the Item which started yesterday...

Best of luck. It's not a great time to be in home improvement anywhere... least of all Sumter.

[painterdude]

Thanks for the good wishes. It's been my experience after 35 years in the painting trade that people who do good work for fair prices seem to keep busy even in down economic situations. The problem many folks have is that they keep prices the same when things go bad. I've always believed that some work is better than no work. Luckily for me my wife has a decent paying job with the school district. It'll take me a while to get established but I've always managed to find work. Sumter is booming next to where I came from. With the Airforce people coming and going there should be a need for competant work. pd

[painterdude]

Got a call this morning and start a small job tomorrow for a retired Air Force man, going to college. Hope this is a start.

[CarolinaBredChicagoan]

The work exists, but I've got family in the area in the same trade as you, and they've definitely noticed a drop-off. You're not speaking to the uninitiated.

Glad you're finding work. It's out there. It's just not as robust as it was just a year or two ago.

[painterdude]

Thanks for the reply. Knowing tradespeople like you do you know it's an up and down kind of thing.. When a boom is on there's too much work and the quality overall gets watered down. When things get tough those with talent, and reputations for quality work and professionalism hang in there. As you know referalls is what it's all about. Anyone can get a few jobs but the self employed worker is all about making new contacts given by satisfied customers. I hope your family members keep on doing well. Perhaps one day I'll get the chance to meet them. As a one man gang(maybe someday getting a helper) I have given leads to others over the years when jobs were too large or too far away for me...it's all part of the fraternity. Too many times people take jobs beyond their scope. It's great to strive to expand but it's also smart to keep an eye on what got you there in the first place. Happy 4th pd

[painterdude]

Went to Sumter @ six last nite. Nice crowd, beautiful evening. Went over to Yucatan for dinner afterward. Got award for best Mex. in Sumter. Don't think so. Angels was way better. Big crowd at Mariachi's when we went by. Never saw many cars there before. Must have been cheap margarita nite. Anyone ever try Pablo's down by Food Lion south of town? Specials on windows every night. Any how, got another job for this week and had a bid on 75 doors at the high school 2 coats both sides and trim, but they spec'd oil paint. Not gonna have my nose over oil paint and thinner for 2 weeks at this age. Years ago it was all I used, but I've got to give in to age on this one. Let the young lungs have it.

[Woodlands]

How is Sumter @ Six in terms of attendance? I have not been to one in some time but as downtown continues to improve, I can only imagine that it will get better. I wish sumter had a true "urban plaza" or a "town square" where these types of activities could happen as both formal and informal gathering places.

There was an ambitious plan some years back to tear down Maxway and the central portion of the block opposite the Operal House to create a Town Square. Of course to acquire that block and to tear down Maxway would have been a huge expense not to mention driving a major sales tax generator, downtown retail employer a tax payer possibly out of town.. was not necessarily popular. There was talk then of relocating them to the old "peoples market" on South Main... which has now become the CCTC Allied Sciences Center.

I have often thought that they should still pursue the square but build in the rear of the Opera House on the City owned parking lot. The rear facade of the 'water dept" would be improved or a second story added to match the Opera Houses' Main Street side.. and new retail buildings could be built along East Liberty Street side of the block that could over look the plaza.. similiar to what the Clark Law Firm had done across Liberty Street. Parking could be added on W. Hampton Street by removing SCETV building (which could move in with CCTC on S. Main and contribute to the 'technology' capabilities of the facility..teleconferencing etc) This would allow the square to serve as over flow for events and activities that occur at the Opera House and neighboring restaurants.

Oh well.. I am sure they will figure something out

[painterdude]

the turnout had several hundred people I 'd guess. All ages, all races all fun. Nothing I've ever experieced in my years in Central NY and 20 years in Fl. Looking forward to friday at the Tavern(?) Entertainment this friday between the Tavern and Angels downtown. If the weather's nice, I'm there.

[danheit]

Sounds like you are settling in well PD. I am still trying to find a place in Sumter myself, and not doing too well. I am still up here in Columbia in the police academy until August 7th in which I need to be living within the city limits of Sumter.....
Can't find a cheap place to rent, and can't find a reasonable place to purchase. What's a poor civil servant to do?!
Glad to hear everyone's food reviews as well. I am looking forward to not being afraid to get food poisoning when trying new places in town.
Also, to reply to an earlier post from someone, although Sumter is number 5 for violent crimes in the US, you must also keep in mind that the figure is per capita, not total. We have had 5 murders this year. PG county MD had 8 murders just this week, and that is a slow week. What hurts us is that we are a city of about 41K people. Don't let the numbers and media magic fool you. Although I wouldn't like for my wife to be out alone after dark in many areas, Sumter is not nearly as bad as a place to live as many think. Also, a lot of times the city gets grouped in with the crap from the county. More crime happens out in the county than in the city, but people just call it all Sumter. Now, off my soap box and back to our regularly scheduled program.....

[Woodlands]

Originally Posted by danheit

Sounds like you are settling in well PD. I am still trying to find a place in Sumter myself, and not doing too well. I am still up here in Columbia in the police academy until August 7th in which I need to be living within the city limits of Sumter.....
Can't find a cheap place to rent, and can't find a reasonable place to purchase. What's a poor civil servant to do?!
Glad to hear everyone's food reviews as well. I am looking forward to not being afraid to get food poisoning when trying new places in town.
Also, to reply to an earlier post from someone, although Sumter is number 5 for violent crimes in the US, you must also keep in mind that the figure is per capita, not total. We have had 5 murders this year. PG county MD had 8 murders just this week, and that is a slow week. What hurts us is that we are a city of about 41K people. Don't let the numbers and media magic fool you. Although I wouldn't like for my wife to be out alone after dark in many areas, Sumter is not nearly as bad as a place to live as many think. Also, a lot of times the city gets grouped in with the crap from the county. More crime happens out in the county than in the city, but people just call it all Sumter. Now, off my soap box and back to our regularly scheduled program.....

Good points danheit.. I agree that the county probably has way more issues than the city limits "proper". The county has pockets in both the rural and urban sections that have issues not to mention that their deputies have to cover such vast areas.. that response times could be limited.. further empowering the criminals. At one time the City was agressively annexing many of the lower income areas that border the city mostly in south sumter. They pushed the line almost all the way down Manning Ave to Lafayette and down to east Red Bay Rd. I believe the goal was to take these areas in and clean them up because criminals were just going back in forth over the line and the sheriffs dept was stretched thin and basically ignoring the urban sections of the County next to the city line. I think they stopped annexing in part because the "cost benefit" began to become a negative...meaning the taxes generated by these areas was WAY under the cost for the city to provide services. If you consider garbage collection(providing the cans), reducing water rates for the newly annexed, street lights, and often times the city has to provide new water in sewer lines in some areas. It got way expensive. I do believe that the city and the county should work closer together on the crime pockets that ring the city.. since they ultimately affect both areas