Florence City Councilman Edward Robinson was arrested Tuesday evening.

Florence’s problems with abandoned and derelict homes, and the city’s plans to deal with them, are nothing new. What is new, though, is the will and determination city officials have expressed at dealing with the situation.

Florence City Council during a special meeting Friday approved expediting the hiring of a grant writer for stimulus monies and the appointment of an oversight committee to review the courts.

Florence Mayor Stephen J. Wukela signed off Monday on a $7.5 million loan that will go toward funding two major city projects: the Francis Marion University Performing Arts Center, already under construction, and a municipal tennis complex.

A special Florence City Council meeting concerning a referendum dealing with non-partisan elections lasted for 5½ hours Wednesday and ended with the controversial matter being deferred to Monday’s council meeting.

City lawmakers are leaving it up to Florence residents to decide how more than a quarter of a million dollars from a federal loan to the city will be spent concerning Levy Park.

The Florence Planning Commission voted down usage restrictions Tuesday for the Wilson Road overlay district based on legal advice.

A non-partisan voting issue was a hot potato before Florence City Council got cranked up Monday, but it became searing by the time it was thrown into the coals.

Florence City Council will receive public input on issues regarding Levy Park and the surrounding neighborhood during its first “Town Hall” Format meeting to be held Tuesday, February 10.

A City/County Conference Committee has been formed to address issues of mutual interest and concern to Florence City Council and Florence County Council.

Florence City Council made no progress Monday afternoon on a proposed ordinance to have a public referendum to let voters decide whether city elections should remain partisan or be non-partisan.

Florence is considering options — including property registries, neighborhood cleanups and a livability court — to solve the problems caused by abandoned and vacant buildings in the city.

Florence City Council has allocated more than $205,000 in expected accommodations tax revenue for this fiscal year despite two councilmen’s protests because the local Juneteenth festival isn’t included in the funding.

“Historic” was the adjective of the evening, and hope for a better Florence was the key message as the city’s new mayor and council members took the oath of office.

Florence’s audit for the past fiscal year shows general fund revenues exceeded expenditures by $241,148, but the news came with the caveat that the economy’s slowdown could affect the city’s sales-oriented revenues.