By Betsy Finklea
At the December meeting of the Dillon County Council, outgoing council members, T.F. “Buzzy” Finklea and Jamal Campbell reflected on their time in office.
Finklea has served 12 years, and Campbell has served four years. Both were presented plaques for their service at the meeting.
Prior to the end of the meeting, Councilman Stevie Grice addressed Jamal Campbell and said it has been a pleasure and he wished him nothing but the best. He then addressed Buzzy Finklea and said that he had served with him for 10 years and he had enjoyed it and that he had done a lot of good things for Dillon County, and he was going to miss them.
Finklea thanked Grice and said that really 12 years ago, he didn’t realize until he started looking back. “It wasn’t me, it was the council because I’m just one vote, but we turned things around. We got the first spec building this county has ever had. The council before was scared and said if we build a spec building, we won’t get anybody, and we’ll be stuck with a building. But Bill Fleming, William Fleming’s daddy, came over here and said if Marlboro Electric would build us a spec building and we’d pay for it when it was completed. We got somebody in it before it was complete, and everything kind of turned around. And two years before the inland port came, Clay Young, Harold Moody, and Bobby Moody and myself met with the people from the inland port, and we were working on it for two years and then they announced. Then everything just blew up. We got a plant in Latta. We got QuikTrip, Harbor Freight has been added on several times. (Someone chimed in Wyman-Gordon.) The last 12 years we had a good council to work with who wanted to see the county improve. We got the votes, and we did it. The county is moving the right way, and there is a lot in the future. I’m going to come to some of the meetings. I want to see what’s going on. I know a lot’s going on,” Finklea said.
Grice said that he feels like the last two years have been really good up here. Council Chairwoman Detrice Dawkins said “yes.” Finklea said, “everybody working together.”
Other council members thanked both of them for their service.
Councilman Jamal Campbell said we thank you all and we appreciate you all. “Everything up here hasn’t been the best, but I think in the end we did all we could to serve the citizens. Citizens, thank you all for allowing us the opportunity to let us serve.”
He said there were a lot of firsts in his four years. He said he is the youngest councilman to ever serve on Dillon County Council. He said there was over $600,000 in investment in the four years he was on council. He said he hopes the council will strive to make Dillon County a better place for all of us. He encouraged the public to still come to the meetings. He said he will attend some meetings to stay aware of what is going on in the community.
During Finklea’s 12 years on Dillon County Council, some of the things that have been accomplished include:
–Over $1 million for Latta infrastructure (including $600,000 for water and sewer projects related to Highway 38 infrastructure)
–Over $190,000 for Latta Recreation and teams
–Holiday Inn Express in the Oak Grove area
–Dollar General in the Oak Grove area
–Had various fire hydrants put in throughout District Four to lower the insurance rates of residents
–Got access for the Town of Latta residents for the county convenience site
–Completed a fire station in the Bingham area that serves District Four residents
–Announcement of the expansion of Expert Machine and Fabrication, LLC, a $2.6 million investment
–Announcement of Spectrum Quartz in Latta, a $22.6 million capital investment
–Got a controller to activate a stop on the traffic lights in the Oak Grove area so that the Station Nine (Oak Grove) Fire Department can respond safely to calls
–Got sidewalks and street lights for Oak Grove from Wilco to the caution light
–Got a walking track to the Oak Grove ballfield; Oak Grove ballfield upgraded with new stands and repairs
–Had a new picnic shelter constructed at the Oak Grove Fire Department after the other was destroyed in a storm
–Updated the park beside the Oak Grove Fire Department with help from The Schafer Foundation
–Voted to start the gravel project with the Dillon County Transportation Committee to address some of the county’s worst roads as determined by the Transportation Committee
–Secured a fire engine, rescue vehicle, and tanker and helped to bring the new fire truck that is on the way for the Latta Fire Department
–Got three apparatus for the Oak Grove Fire Department and a tanker, addressed some equipment needs including upgrades to support fire operations at the hotels, an emergency generator, and an ice machine
–New trash convenience site for Oak Grove; worked the Latta Library expansion, which is currently underway
-Secured 95 percent Broadband internet coverage for District Four.
Also during his time on council, some of the things that have benefited Dillon County that have been accomplished included:
–the spec building that brought Wyman-Gordon
–Inland Port Dillon
–Opening of Quik Trips
–Lane expansion to Highway 34 near Harbor Freight Tools, and much more.
Finklea has cast several positive votes for economic development and projects for the betterment of Dillon County.
Finklea has also served as both chairman and vice-chairman of the Dillon County Council in various years.
He is currently one of the longest serving member on the Pee Dee Regional Council of Government’s board and will have 50 years of service in July 2025.
During Campbell’s tenure, some of the things that were accomplished include:
—$375,000 from the state for improvements to Gordon Park and the completion of the Councilman Macio Williamson Facility
–Secured $273,000 for Man2Man to locate and serve Dillon County
–Investment coming to the county totaling $648,000.
–Phase One completion on a $16 million investment for 40 multi-family units for the citizens of Dillon County and a $16 million investment for 40 multi-family units in Marlboro County, a total $32 million investment.
Campbell also served as vice-chairman of council in 2024.
In recognition of his advocacy and leadership, Campbell was also honored with an invitation to the White House, where he had the opportunity to represent Dillon County and advocate for the district’s needs at the national level.
Prior to the meeting, a reception was held to honor the outgoing councilmen and clerk of court, and all received plaques at the beginning of the council meeting. The video of this meeting can be found on The Dillon County News, LLC channel on YouTube.
