Georgetown County Economic Development

Agencies coordinate to assist those impacted by IP closure; Businesses that are hiring asked to participate in job fair

Georgetown County, SC Works and a coalition of local, regional and state partners have united to assist those impacted by the upcoming closure of the International Paper mill. To aid the hundreds of employees who will lose their jobs, the agencies are coordinating resources, including a job fair and skill development workshops this month.
IP, which has operated its Georgetown mill since 1937, announced on Oct. 31 that it would cease operations by the end of the year. The box plant will remain open, employing about 125. The mill was one of the county’s largest employers and will leave 526 hourly employees and 148 salaried employees without jobs. Additionally, the closure will have a ripple effect, impacting some 200 contractors, as well as local businesses.
In response, Georgetown County and partner organizations began formulating a coordinated assistance plan to mitigate the economic and social impact of the closure. The initial response efforts include Georgetown County Economic Development, SC Works Waccamaw, the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce, the City of Georgetown, Waccamaw Regional Council of Governments, and the Georgetown County, SC Chamber of Commerce, among others. This group met with IP officials to get a better understanding of shutdown plans and the benefits terminated employees will receive. Then they built a multi-phase support strategy.
A key priority is to help those who will be left unemployed find new positions locally so those families can remain in Georgetown County.
“That is vital to us,” said Angela Christian, Georgetown County Administrator. “Helping these families find good jobs right here so they can continue to call this community home and thrive here is our top priority.”
Following the closure announcement, Christian said she started receiving calls from employers who want to help by hiring. Efforts need to be coordinated, getting all partners on the same page, for the maximum effect.
“There are opportunities here,” Christian said. “As a community, we just have to identify them and be ready to grab them.”
Many mill employees have worked there long-term and haven’t had to job seek for years or even decades, said Kimberly Burke, regional manager for SC Works. The agency will set up at IP Nov. 6, 7 and 8 to assist IP employees with resume writing and other important skills for job seekers. Contractors impacted by the shutdown will be invited to participate also. SC Works staff will work with small groups in one-hour blocks and IP has agreed to provide flexibility to workers to help ensure they can take advantage of the resources. One-on-one coaching sessions will also be available for those interested. Workers can also learn about opportunities for retraining through Horry-Georgetown Technical College.
This will lead up to a two-day job fair that will take place all day at the county’s Howard Center on Hawkins Street Nov. 21-22. Employers are invited to sign up to participate by contacting Maya Morant with Georgetown County Economic Development at [email protected] or (843) 545-3161. About 160 new jobs were created this year by new or expanding industries in Georgetown County. All of those industries are currently hiring and have asked to be included in the upcoming job fair, Morant said.
The job fair marks just the beginning of the community’s response to the closure.
“It’s not going to be a short process,” Christian said. “The impacts felt here are going to be far-reaching.”
IP, which once trucked in 400 pulp loads per day received its last delivery Nov. 1, so impacts will begin being felt immediately for many. The company has promised to make good on commitments to nonprofits for the remainder of this year, but those agencies will also be feeling the impacts of the mill’s closure in 2025.
“This was a shock for our community, and it’s not going to be easy to recover from. But our community is committed to working together to get through this. We’re going to support each other and come through the other side stronger. Team Georgetown is resilient.”

The latest prediction from the National Weather Service is for 15-20 inches of rain through the end of this week. We may see similar impacts as we had in 2015 with Hurricane Joaquin, BUT we may see those impacts in different areas than we did in 2015 because this is a different situation. We're expecting flooding in low-lying areas and moderate flooding along the Santee and P*e Dee rivers. We should start seeing tropical storm force winds tomorrow afternoon into the evening.

As a reminder, Georgetown County offices and facilities will be closed tomorrow in observance of Independence Day. We hope you have a safe and happy holiday!

Grant will help county begin process of rehabilitating contaminated sites:

Georgetown County has been awarded $500,000 in federal funds to begin a cleanup effort that would transform properties marred by environmental issues into usable community spaces.
The funds come in the form of a Brownfields Assessment grant from the Environmental Protection Agency. These grants can be used by communities for the purpose of inventorying and assessing brownfield sites, as well as conducting planning activities, developing site-specific cleanup plans and engaging community members in the process. The county received the maximum award amount and plans to begin seeking public input this autumn on sites that should be considered for rehabilitation.
Sites that could qualify include those contaminated with asbestos, old fuel tanks or other pollutants and hazardous substances. Those could include abandoned schools, factories and a range of other sites.
“The idea is to have community participation in deciding where we might want to focus some cleanup efforts and get input on places people are aware of that could be repurposed and refurbished for the overall benefit and wellbeing of the community,” said Maureen Mulligan, an environmentalist and training coordinator in the county’s Environmental Services Division.
Plans are to host community information and input meetings throughout the county, so residents in all reaches of Georgetown County can be involved. This inclusive approach will help ensure the voices of those who have lived and worked around neglected sites are heard.
The contractor for the project, Terracon, has already been selected and Mulligan is eager to get started.
“The cool thing about the assessment grant is it’s the first step toward potentially getting multiple millions in federal dollars for cleanups and improvements,” Mulligan said. “They especially are wanting to focus on historically ignored communities. And it really encourages community buy-in, so it’s not just us coming and telling people what we want to do; it’s finding out what the interests and priorities are for the community.”
Mulligan said she hopes to have a kickoff meeting with Terracon and the EPA set up within the next month so she can begin the process of scheduling public information meetings.

Georgetown County Seeking Public Input on Natural Hazard and Disaster Concerns:

Georgetown County and the communities within it are in the process of updating the Georgetown County Hazard Mitigation Plan. Per the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requires that local communities have and regularly update their All-Hazards Mitigation Plan in order to be eligible to receive federal disaster mitigation funding. This plan will identify local risks to natural hazards and help the County and area municipalities identify ways to reduce local impacts and vulnerabilities to natural disasters.
Your input is needed to help shape this plan. Public participation in this planning effort will help ensure the public’s concerns are addressed in the plan and ensure that the communities within it are eligible for federal mitigation dollars. The public is invited to complete the Resident Survey, which is available at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GC-Hazards. The survey will be available through June 15, 2024.

TAKING THE SURVEY
1) Online: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GC-Hazards
2) Paper – A printed copy of the survey is available for pick up at the Georgetown County Administrator’s Office, located at 716 Prince Street, Georgetown, SC 29440. Surveys are also available at the county’s library branches and municipal town halls. Please return completed paper surveys to: Public Information Officer, 716 Prince Street, Georgetown, SC 29440.

For more information about this planning effort, please contact Brandon Ellis, Georgetown County Emergency Services Director at [email protected] or 843-545-3545. Questions may also be directed to Leigh Kane, Local Planning Services Director with the Waccamaw Regional Council of Governments at 843-436-6125 or [email protected] as their agency is assisting with this planning effort.