Creek to get cleaning; Court to get new system

By: | SCNOW
Published: December 19, 2008

On Dec. 8, County Administrator Tim Harper told Marion County Council members during their meeting this past week, he got word from the USDA Natural Resources and Conservation program that it has authorized more than a half a million dollars to clean out the county’s Catfish Creek.

From Sellers Road to State Road 576 and into Smith Swamp, he said, the creek, which most recently flooded from the rains of Tropical Storm Hannah, will be cleaned. Surveying for the dredging and clearing of the creek, for a “little over $600,000,” is a 75-25 percent grant match.

The City of Marion and County of Marion will use manpower to match the grant, Harper said, so there will be no other cost to the county. We have some naturally beautiful spots, Council member Elista Smith said, adding that she is glad to see the creek get cleared of debris.

In another issue, Harper updated council members on a new case management system for the county’s courts. “Ýou may have seen, in Sunday’s Florence Morning News,” Harper said, a story about the new case management system for courts.

The state will begin setting up the same system in Marion County during the summer, around August 2009, he said. Cost will be about $315,000, with most of that “put in by the state … in 2010, the county will have to begin paying $40,000 a year for maintenance and upkeep … We already put in $10,000 …,” he said.

The system allows “inter-communication between judges, magistrates, clerks of courts, Harper explained, and won’t cost the county as much as it could have because in recent years, “some infrastructure in hardware has already been put in …We are fairly up-to-date,” he said.

Additionally, “I just wanted to make you aware that we have executed the management agreement with Paws to the Rescue … I’ve received no e-mails, no complaints … Things seem to be running fine with the animal shelter.”

Marion County Council meets twice a month: on the second Tuesday at 9 a.m. and the forth Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Marion City Hall.