May 2023 Council Highlights

  • Friday, May 19th, from 6-8:30 PM is also the annual Downtown Sumter Microbrew HippieFest to benefit the Sumter Senior Services. Tickets can be purchased by phone at 803-773-5508 and in person at Sumter Senior Services 119 South Sumter Street. Early Bird ticketing pricing is now closed. Regular admission tickets are now $35 and seniors 60+ and military are $25.
  • Join us this weekend for the 24th Annual Mary McLeod Bethune Legacy Festival in Mayesville, SC!
    • Friday, May 19 – Sunday, May 21
    • Vendors, Kids STEAM Zone, workshops, concerts, parade, car show, special appearances and more!
    • For more info visit the community calendar at LoveSumter.com.
  • Memorial Day Weekend is a big weekend in Sumter with the annual Iris Festival, kicking off on Thursday, May 25 with the Taste at the Gardens at 6 PM. Admission to The Taste is free this year and their theme for The Taste is “A Night Out in Rio”. Food and beverages are available for purchase. Then Friday, Saturday (10 AM – 6 PM) and Sunday (10 AM – 5 PM) is three days of music, art, crafts, gardening, classic cars, food, kids’ activities and so much more! It's fun for the whole family all weekend. For more info, visit irisfestival.org. There is a new layout this year, with all events on the Heath Side (south side of Liberty Street) and along Garden Street.
    • Additionally, that weekend, the Sumter County Veterans Association will be placing flags on the graves of Sumter County SC Veterans. Volunteers are needed to help place Flags on the graves of our veterans in all cemeteries in Sumter County. Also, if your church has a church cemetery with veterans, please send contact the SC Veterans Association with a contact name to handle picking up flags for your cemetery.
    • Monday, May 29th at 11 AM the Sumter County Veterans Association will host their annual Memorial Day event at the American Legion Post 15 facility, located at 28 Artillery Drive. This event is free to attend.
  • Downtown Sumter will host the Fourth Fridays Concerts again this year from May through September. Admission is Free. Concerts start at 6:30 PM and food and beverage will be available for purchase at local restaurants and some additional food trucks to help meet demand. There will be a few children’s activities each evening too. Bring your blankets and chairs, but no coolers, please.
    • The schedule for bands is:
      • May 26 - Level 10 Live Band & Show
      • June 23 - The Jebb Mac Band
      • July 28 - Elijah Bradford and the Coffee House Music Revue
      • August 25 - The Footnotes
      • September 22 - Terence Lonon and the Untouchables
  • In a new partnership with Shaw AFB and Santee-Wateree Regional Transportation Authority (RTA), the Sumter Visitors Center is hosting a free shuttle from Carolina Skies Club to Downtown Sumter for each of the Fourth Fridays, in May-September. This shuttle is open to all active-duty military and families that live on Shaw AFB. All riders must have a current ID with base access. For more info, please call our Visitors Center at 803-436-2640.
  • The Sumter Opera House has released its Summer 2023 family-friend Summer Cinema Series. Admission is $2/person and shows for each start at 10 AM, 1 PM and 7 PM. Concessions are available for sale, but no outside food or drink. The schedule is:
    • June 6 – Space Jam (1996)
    • June 13 – Hotel Transylvania 4
    • June 20 – Strange World
    • June 27 – Lightyear
    • July 11 – Superpets
    • July 18 – Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile
    • July 25 – Mummies
    • August 1 – Lion King (1994)
  • On a side note, the Beacon Theatre in Sumter is also hosting a Summer Kid Show Series. Their movies run every Tuesday and Thursday, starting June 6 and ending July 27 at 10 AM only. $2 Admission with $2 drinks and $2 popcorn. For their full list of movies check out their Facebook page “GTC Beacon Sumter”.
  • Sumter Opera House renovations are moving forward. Over the course of this year, you will see and hear about offices relocating and more. The renovations must be completed in the building beside the Opera House first, before any renovations to the historic structure.
  • The intersections on Washington Street, from Liberty to Calhoun Streets are moving forward with new streetscape plan; however, before the nicer finishes can be installed, at the three (3) intersections, we are replacing some water lines in hopes to alleviate some issues with older pipes in the future.
  • Team Sumter is a proud sponsor of a few Shaw AFB events coming up on July 4th.
    • First, the Salute from the Shore Event takes place along the South Carolina coast. The Shaw Weasels take flight starting at 1 PM in Cherry Grove, South Carolina and ending at 1:35 in Beaufort, SC. This event is in coordination with several military bases throughout South Carolina and most F-16s can be seen flying lower throughout the Midlands before and immediately after the event too! The role of this event salute and honor America’s Armed Forces on the Fourth of July by promoting a military flyover that stretches the entire length of South Carolina’s coast. 
  • End the day with at the Shaw Freedom Bash. This event is open to anyone with base access and their guests. The free event hosts a carnival, food trucks, rides, and music starting at 5 PM, and Fireworks at 10PM.
  • Sign up on our website sumtersc.gov/litter for our 2023 Community Clean-Up Days. Help us keep Sumter clean and beautiful. Dates to help this year:
    • June 17
    • August 19
    • October 21
    • December 16
  • Our April regularly scheduled Council meetings will be on Tuesday, June 6th at 1 PM and Tuesday, June 20th at 5:30 PM. If you can’t make a meeting public comments may also be submitted online anytime through our website at sumtersc.gov/council/meetings, or city residents can contact the Mayor or their Council Representative any time prior to any meeting to discuss a concern or idea.