Turning Timmonsville around: businesses, officials plan for better days

TIMMONSVILLE — The town of Timmonsville faces a dire financial crisis, but town officials and local business owners say they are committed to creating a brighter future.

Although the town has suffered in recent years and faces a nearly half-million dollar debt, change appears to be on the horizon.

And there are already a few success stories.

Take David Truluck’s Fish & BBQ Restaurant on East Smith Street. Visit this local hotspot on a Friday night, and chances are you’ll wait for a table.

“The line’s usually out the door,” Truluck said. “It’s so busy in here that we don’t even answer the phones on Friday night. We don’t have time to.”

Truluck, a native of Timmonsville, opened his restaurant after Floyd’s Seafood, another local staple, closed. Prior to that, he ran Lamar Seafood. His restaurant opens at 8 a.m. From 8 to 10 a.m., the fresh fish market is open. After that, employees begin to prepare for lunch. The menu features seafood, barbecue and an array of fresh vegetables every day.

Truluck employs about 25 people. He said despite the hard times the town has fallen on, his restaurant has remained a popular spot for residents of Timmonsville and surrounding areas.

“The very first day we opened, the line was out the door, and it really hasn’t slowed down since,” Truluck said. “I don’t care what corner you’re on or what town you’re located in: as long as you’re nice to people and serve a good product, you’re going to do well.”

Other local business owners have yet to reap the rewards Truluck has thus far, but they remain optimistic that one day, they will.

“We’ve survived because we work long hours, our profits go right back in the business and we do very little personal spending,” Mary Bowman, owner of Hair, Skin & Nails Salon and Supply, said. “We could be doing better if the town was flourishing and doing better. But I think we, as citizens and business owners, have to be a little more involved and not just leave it up to town officials.

“I think a lot of people are unaware and really need to be more involved, because the involvement will help the town improve,” she said. “The government has a responsibility to the people, but the people have a responsibility to be involved and work to make Timmonsville a better place, too.”

Bowman’s husband Karl, a native of Timmonsville, also owns and operates a printing business in Timmonsville, Foe-Toe-M-Prints. He said most of his printing business isn’t dependent upon the Timmonsville economy, but the rental properties he owns and hopes to rent certainly are.

“Timmonsville is a quaint little town,” he said. “We’ve got some problems. But in my opinion, Timmonsville’s a great place to live and work.”

Bowman’s wife agreed. She said Timmonsville has become home for her, and she doesn’t plan on leaving. Instead, she’d like to see the town grow and prosper.

“We encourage and want to continue to encourage people to come to Timmonsville,” she said. “We don’t want to leave. We want people to join us in Timmonsville.”

Timmonsville Town Councilman Clarence Joe agreed and said he remembers the days when Timmonsville was a booming little town.

“I remember coming downtown as a child. It was congested — so lively, so energetic. There was a lot going on over here,” Joe said.

Times grew tough for the town when what was once an agricultural society took an industrial turn, Joe said. As farmers went out of business, people left town to find work in bigger cities.

Still, Joe said he believes Timmonsville can be a thriving small town once again. And Joe said he and the rest of council, along with the town’s staff, are working to make that a reality.

“I love the town of Timmonsville, and I want it to be the best it can be,” Joe said. “Right now, we’re trying to bring about unity. We want to get people involved and let people know what’s going on. We don’t want to hide the town’s business.

“We can move forward from where we are now. It’s going to take unity and everybody working together, but I refuse to just accept that this is just the way things are. I know we can do better,” he said. “I want to see Main Street come back to life. I sincerely believe we can do it, but we’ve got to be unified. We can’t do it fighting and bickering. We’ve got to work together.”

Three new businesses now share a large industrial building on Smith Street: Struthers-Dunn, EPSI and Mar Mac Wire. Joe said having such companies locate in Timmonsville is good for the local economy.

Struthers-Dunn moved to the Timmonsville building earlier this year. The company manufactures electrical relays and employs about 50 people.

Product marketing manager Dave Mioduski said Timmonsvile town officials made the relocation easy, and he doesn’t think Struthers-Dunn is going anywhere anytime soon.

“It’s a great facility, a great location,” Mioduski said. “We’d love to see the town grow and become more self-sufficient. We want to help in any way we can.”

This week, officials will relocate town hall to a former bank building just down the street. The building has been renovated through grant funding and will house town hall, the town’s police department and the town’s court offices.

“We’re looking to bring Timmonsville back alive,” Town Administrator Mark Fountain said. “We are moving this town forward.”