Town News
Press Release - September 25, 2025​
OFFICE OF THE MAYOR OF SIX MIILE
To ensure the ability of staff to carry on town business without distractions, as well as due to my own personal fatigue, hurt, and disappointment over false allegations and attacks, my time at town hall has been purposefully limited this week.
I issue this statement to provide clarification about misstatements and confusion arising from actions taken by our Town Council initially in its Event Policy last year and some other matters. Many people mistakenly believe that our valued firefighters working in the Six Mile area are employees of our town. They are not. They are employees of Pickens County. In fact, neither I, nor the Town of Six Mile, has legal authority related to these or any employees of Pickens County at all. Both the town and county have issued press releases, which I encourage everyone to review.
Our small-town values of Godliness, neighborliness, kindness, and community spirit are being challenged by a physical and social media storm (in large part from outside town limits). Unfortunately, the spread of inaccurate or incomplete information has stirred even well-meaning citizens into making statements in social media or taking actions against this office and the town. The manner and tone of these actions tarnish the core of what is so special about Six Mile.
Public officials have a duty to act in the best interests of the well-being of the town, as well as the safety of our residents. Last year, the Town Council voted to ban the throwing of candy at the annual Christmas parade - a practice not permitted by any other city or town in the county. Nothing is as important as the safety of a child. Further, the throwing of candy invalidates all event insurance coverage. If a child were to be injured or killed, any insurance coverage could be nullified. A single lawsuit could bankrupt our wonderful town.
My hope and prayers are that our community, our fire service personnel, and all government entities can come together to solve the various issues we face for the mutual good of all through respectful discussion. I hope this task can be achieved shortly, so the healing process can begin. I encourage everyone to pause and reflect on how we can best relate to each other as neighbors, and how our residents want our town to be viewed by others.
Our Council and I will continue to carry on or fiduciary responsibilities to perform to the best of our abilities for the residents of Six Mile. We look forward to working with everyone to obtain the most beneficial solutions for everyone involved.
Mayor James Atkinson
Press Release - September 18, 2025​
Injuries at parades have increased across the country and here in South Carolina. The combination of moving vehicles, noise, crowds of people, and excited children is made even more dangerous when candy thrown and children rush to grab it. For example, in 2022 in Utah, an 8-year-old girl was run over and killed when trying to grab candy off the tire of a float.
Nothing is more important than the safety of our children. Think about the fact that, years ago, children often rode in the back of pickup trucks. However, following numerous accidents, our state made this practice illegal for children under 15, for their safety.
The Town of Six Mile has a policy that was put in place last year, and updated this year, permitting candy to be handed out, but not thrown at the Christmas parade - for the safety of our children. Furthermore, if the Town allows candy to be thrown at our parade, the Town cannot obtain special event insurance for that parade. This means that, should a child or an adult be injured at the parade, whether as the result of candy throwing or any other incident, there would be no insurance coverage.
Members of the County fire department came to the September 9, 2025, Town Council meeting, and expressed their intent that candy continue to be thrown, as reported in a local news article covering that meeting. In discussing their concerns afterwards with legal counsel, a potential alternative solution was raised. Since fire department members are County employees and would be operating County equipment in the parade, our attorney suggested that the Town determine whether the County’s insurance might cover their throwing of candy. The County Administrator advised that the County’s insurance has the same exclusion regarding the throwing of candy as the Town's insurance.
At no time did anyone from the Town demand or request that anyone from the County fire department be disciplined in any way, nor could anyone from the Town influence the exercise of the County’s supervisory authority over County employees in any way. In fact, no one from the Town had knowledge of or discussion about any actions by the County with respect to its employees, until reading various assertions on social media. The Town has fully supported and continues to support the work of all emergency service personnel, both currently and historically.
The safety of our children, residents, and visitors is of paramount importance. If the risk posed by throwing candy during a parade is so great that the Town insurance company will not provide a quote for special event insurance for our parade, then we as citizens of Six Mile can continue the tradition of giving out candy to our children, but we must work together to do it in a safer way in accordance with the existing Town policy.
Six Mile Unveils Park Plan at Annual Banquet
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Photography by Sean Smith
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Published by The Journal on August 23, 2025
SIX MILE — For the second year in a row, Six Mile used its annual banquet to announce an exciting revelation.
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The town, in conjunction with the Clemson Area Chamber of Commerce, hosted its second annual “State of Six Mile” event earlier this week.
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During festivities, Mayor James Atkinson unveiled plans for the town’s new downtown community park and community park annex.
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The plans for the park, which is set to be built behind Stoddard Pavillion on Main Street, will include more parking, an amphitheater, pickleball courts, basketball courts and an update to the existing walking trail. It will also include picnic and lawn game areas.
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The community park annex is slated to be built behind Town Hall and will include signage from the Six Mile Academy, which previously stood on the property, as well as additional picnic and grilling areas.
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“We had an extensive effort to actually get input from people in terms of what they wanted there,” Atkinson said. “We tried to deliver what they wanted.”
Atkinson also delivered his “State of Six Mile” address Thursday.
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“It’s great to be mayor here,” he said. “You have so many people doing so much and helping you so much. Our goal is to control the destiny of Six Mile and keep Six Mile — Six Mile. We want to control change and plan ahead, not fail to plan and let change overtake us…Our small town should be a community where we support each other, treat each other with respect, exemplify civility, courtesy and unity, mold our children to grow in good systems, maintain fiscal responsibility and retain our unique town character, green space and history.”
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He also recognized two winners during the event.
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The town chose The Stillwater Group LLC as its “emerging business of the year” and Pickens County Meals on Wheels as the town’s “nonprofit of the year.”
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Both received certificates for their achievements and Meals on Wheels received an undisclosed amount of money.
‘Spirit of the people here’
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The event featured two keynote speakers, the first being Allie Sloan, executive director of the Community Foundation of Greater Clemson.
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She used her time to focus on the importance of the town’s Bryson Children’s Nature Walk.
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“Six Mile is a town that has always been defined, not just by the geography here, but by the spirit of the people here,” Sloan said. “I’m here today representing the Community Foundation of Greater Clemson, and one of my favorite things about my job is getting to be a bridge between community dreams and resources that help make them possible.” ​
Sloan used her background to explain what this project means to her.
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“I grew up in a very small town that mimics Six Mile in a lot of ways,” she said. “Some memories just can’t be made indoors — some of them have to be made outside in nature.”
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Sloan also said that CFGC is the financial sponsor of the Bryson project.
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“Through our fiscal sponsorship, the project operates under the community foundation’s charitable umbrella,” she said. “That means donations can be made to the project as if it were a 501c, giving donors their full charitable deduction. The funds are managed by the foundation ensuring transparency, proper accounting and stewardship. One of my favorite parts of it, the project leaders can focus on building and bringing this to life while we handle the administrative and compliance work behind the scenes.”
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The project is currently underway with signage recently being installed and more trees to be planted in November.
‘Maybe because we didn’t know’
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The second keynote speaker was Dennis Chastain, a local historian who educated attendees on the history of the town prior to its settlement.
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Famously, the Cherokee Path, a major roadway used by Native Americans and Colonists alike, ran right through what is now the town.
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Chastain told a story during his presentation about informing the now-Mayor of this fact.
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“I said, ‘James, it really surprises me that you all don’t make a big deal about the fact that Main Street in Six Mile is the old Cherokee path’ and he said, ‘Maybe it’s because we didn’t know.’”
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Chastain went on to say he was later invited to speak to Town Council and the same night of his presentation to it, council approved signage recognizing this historical fact.
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“(The Cherokee Path) is a part of the legacy and the history of Six Mile,” Chastain said.
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He also spoke about its importance.
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“It’s an ancient Indian path, centuries old, and ran all the way from Fort Loudon in Tennessee to King Street in Charleston,” Chastain said. “Thousands of British troops were marching up and down this thing over the centuries and for about 150 years, anything to happen in the interior of colonial South Carolina, happened along the Cherokee Path. It was a big deal.”
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He also touched on the challenges the town will face in the future.
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“The next chapter in Six Mile history is going to be dominated by one issue, balancing inevitable growth while maintaining the area’s rural character,” Chastain said.
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He said despite the rural description of Pickens County, 92 percent of all parcels in the county are 10 acres or less.
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“That makes preserving open space of paramount importance,” Chastain said. “That’s the only way to have growth and to accommodate growth that maintains the rural character.”
Bryson Children's Nature Walk
CLICK HERE to watch the Your Carolina 7News WSPA news report about the current progress on the Bryson Children's Nature Walk, which aired on July 15, 2025.