Looking back at a year in the Lakelands

Meth busts, new jobs, John de la Howe School, two Orders of the Palmetto, a golf tournament, a world record and a troubled town made for just some of 2014’s highlights in the Lakelands.

The inaugural Self Regional Healthcare Foundation Women’s Health Classic took over The Links at Stoney Point the first week of May and put Greenwood on the professional women’s golf map.

Taiwanese golfer Wei-Ling Hsu was crowned the champion of the 72-hole, Symetra Tour tournament. Tournament Chairman Jim Medford said the economic impact of the tournament exceeded $2 million and that several local women’s charities were given a total of $250,000. Medford promised the 2015 version of the tournament, the second of a 10-year contract, will be bigger and better.

Also, on a day in which the Lakelands was grappling with its first cluster of snow flurries in years, fire raged at an iconic Greenwood watering hole Jan. 28. Sports Break, 909 Montague Ave., suffered extensive damage during a blaze that ravaged main portions of the longtime sports bar. On Aug. 23, however, the bar and grill re-opened just down the street to rave reviews.

Some other highlights:

ORDER OF THE PALMETTO

— Two individuals in Greenwood received the state’s highest civilian honor. They are Ben Davis, who along with wife Polly served Connie Maxwell Children’s Home for 21 years, and GLEAMNS Human Resources Commission chief executive officer Joseph Duran Patton III, who has served more than 40 years in the leadership and executive management field.

METH BUSTS

— Narcotics agents had a banner start to the new year, making 34 arrests in a week’s time as part of a two-county drug roundup the first week and a half of January. Later on, Greenwood County Drug Enforcement Unit officials ended the month of July with a flurry, making eight methamphetamine-related busts in July, nabbing 19 suspects. Agents also hit a flurry toward the end of the year.

JOHN DE LA HOWE SCHOOL

— The school in McCormick County for wayward youth in grades 6-10 had its share of problems in 2014. In early January, the school was put on what amounts to double-secret probation by state Inspector General Patrick J. Maley after a review of the school’s finances and management. On Jan. 24, de la Howe president Thomas Mayer went on medical leave for undisclosed reasons effective through Feb. 24. In the interim, Chief Financial Officer Viola Faust, who had been with the school for nine months, was named acting president by Mayer. That same day, Maley published his review, which stated the average per-student cost to be a staggering $87,000 a year. The report also stated the high cost per student was a result of mismanagement and underutilization.

— Then came a Feb. 4 meeting for the school with state Rep. Kenny Bingham while appearing before the state House of Representatives’ public education and special schools subcommittee in Columbia. Bingham, chairman of the subcommittee, said he was fed up with the school’s failure to comply with the subcommittee’s explicit directives during the past three years, even though the school received the funding to do so. Bingham said the subcommittee’s concerns were substantiated by the Inspector General’s report.

— On Feb. 7, after being given a week to come up with a decisive plan to address the findings of the inspector general’s report or lose its funding, the board of trustees voted unanimously to oust Mayer as school president. When reached by phone by the Index-Journal, Mayer was caught off guard by the news. Sources at the school said Mayer had 45 days to resign and that Mayer would receive a substantial payout. Also that day, Herman Thompson, who had come out of retirement to work as principal of the L.S. Brice School at John de la Howe, resigned after a little more than a year and a half.

— A week later, JDLH’s board of trustees — in a move that flouted South Carolina’s Freedom of Information Act — named Danny Webb interim president, replacing acting president Faust. Chairwoman Jan Duncan said the board came to the consensus through individual phone calls to board members. Board members were polled on the issue, but did not vote in an open forum. When asked why the board did not call a formal meeting to vote on the change, Duncan said a meeting was unnecessary. South Carolina Press Association attorney Jay Bender said it is illegal for the board of a public entity to act outside of a meeting for which (24-hour advance) notification was given to the public. “That was an illegal action,” Bender said. “Polling is specifically prohibited by the law.”

— The fallout from that saw board of trustees chairwoman Jan Duncan and vice chairwoman Rosalind Neal on Feb. 18 each send resignation letters to Gov. Nikki Haley. Four days later, in a special-called meeting, the remaining members of the board of trustees voted unanimously to institute Barbara Devinney as board chairwoman and Donna Wesby as vice chairwoman until June.

— On March 5, Gov. Nikki Haley emphasized the necessity of placing the John de la Howe School under the purview of the Department of Juvenile Justice in a letter to Bingham. Haley wrote she, too, was concerned about John de la Howe’s excessive costs and mismanagement enumerated in the Jan. 24 report by the Office of the Inspector General. A week later, the state House of Representatives voted to approve the recommendation.

— However, on March 13, the JDLH board responded: “It is rare that we have a student who has had charges with the juvenile justice system, and when we do we have ascertained that John de la Howe is the best placement option for that particular youth given the totality of the circumstances. To place John de la Howe under the Department of Juvenile Justice would send the wrong message to children and families served by the agency.”

— A week later, John de la Howe officially named Jonathan Rose as principal of L.S. Brice School. In June, the board, after a special-called, closed-meeting, Webb was named school president and superintendent, and on July 9, the state Board of Education approved the appointment of Meka Childs as chief operating officer.

— To make matters more complicated, de la Howe came under investigation again, this time by the South Carolina Occupational Health and Safety Administration. SCOSHA received an anonymous complaint from a school employee stating various grievances with the safety of infrastructure. The complaint includes allegations of mold, asbestos, lead paint and hazardous chemicals in various locations across the campus, and describes the administrative building and cafeteria to be in a state of wanton disrepair. On Nov. 24, de la Howe School received an extension from SCOSHA to do repairs and has until Jan. 4 to make them.

COURTS AND CRIME

— Terrance Thomas, 28 of Greenwood, was convicted Aug. 26 of last year’s fatal shooting of two women at the Extended Stay Motel. Circuit Court Judge Eugene Griffith in Abbeville issued Thomas a 35-year prison term, to which attorneys on both sides had agreed prior to the proceedings.

— Tony Vernon Jordan was sentenced to 40 years in the South Carolina prison system on Nov. 15 for the murder of his son, 25-year-old Jeremy Ray Jordan. Jordan, 53, of Abbeville was found guilty on charges of murder and weapons/possession of a weapon during a violent crime.

— Darius K. Andrews, 18, was sentenced to a maximum of six years in prison on Dec. 5 for his involvement in a Sept. 27, 2013, car wreck that left 21-year-old Alisha Martin Boyter and her unborn child dead. Andrews was sentenced by Circuit Court Judge Frank R. Addy Jr. in Abbeville after pleading guilty to two counts of reckless homicide stemming from the wreck.

HEALTH CARE

— Self Regional Healthcare said July 25 it mailed out nearly 40,000 letters to patients possibly affected by a data breach that occurred when thieves broke into an administrative building and stole a hospital-owned laptop with thousands of patient files on them.

— Executives at five of the state’s largest hospital systems announced on April 12 the formation of the Initiant Healthcare Collaborative, which is aimed at driving down health care costs among the member groups. The new limited liability firm links Self Regional Healthcare with Greenville Health System, McLeod Health, Medical University South Carolina and Palmetto Health in a first-of-its-kind medical conglomerate expected to shave costs for the five networks primarily through joint purchasing.

— Several Lakelands health care providers united to form the MyHealth First Network aimed at bettering people’s medical experiences. The health network, announced on Dec. 2, will work under the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s Triple Aim initiative to improve patient quality and satisfaction, reduce the per capita costs of health care and create healthier groups of people.

EDUCATION

— Erskine College and Theological Seminary President Paul Kooistra, hired as the school’s 16th president on July 18, announced several program and personnel reductions in a letter addressed to students, faculty and staff on Dec. 2. The reductions, scheduled to take effect in the 2015-16 fiscal year beginning July 1, 2015, are part of a plan aimed at getting the institution back on a firm and sustainable financial footing. Approved by the Erskine board of trustees on Aug. 15, the new reductions are expected to save the institution about $875,000. At the seminary, three of the 12 full-time faculty positions will be eliminated, with the remaining faculty taking a 25-percent reduction in salary. This reduction comes on top of a 5-percent institution-wide reduction that took effect after the Aug. 15 decision. In his letter, Kooistra stated the seminary expects an increase in revenue next year through expanded programs and tuition.

— Dan Ball, Lander University’s 12th president, will leave the institution’s helm in June 2015 and take time for travel with his wife, Marge, and visit with their grandchildren. When he leaves, he will have served Lander a little more than 15 years. He made his plans known to Lander’s board of trustees March 3 and to the campus at large March 6. He said he announced his retirement plans early in an effort to afford the board sufficient time to search for and name its 13th president.

CALHOUN FALLS

— What was the “game-changer” that turned an internal accounting of missing reports into a request from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division for a full-blown investigation– According to Calhoun Falls Mayor Johnnie Waller and Town Administrator Paul Gilbert, it was a bag of cash dropped off by the husband of a former clerk. Waller and Gilbert said previously that the town’s investigation into missing funds and accounting practices related to court fine reports had uncovered “nothing that rises to the level of needing an investigation as of yet.” But on Sept. 22, a duffel bag with about $18,000 in primarily cash, but also checks, money orders, and credit card payments was dropped off at the town hall. Of the funds in the bag, about $7,800 was in cash, a source with knowledge of the situation told the Index-Journal. According to Gilbert, the duffel bag was dropped off by the husband of former utility and courts clerk Brenda Scott. The bag was left for clerk/treasurer Peggy Lee Waters. Upon discovering the cash as well as the tickets, receipts and court fine reports in the bag, Waters took the bag to Waller. “This is why we contacted SLED,” Waller said. “We had asked, numerous times, if there was any more tickets. (Scott) had told us there wasn’t any more tickets.” When asked whether or not any money was missing from the court fine reports, Gilbert and Waller said there had been insufficient time to cross-check the receipts, deposit slips and the money in the bag. Even more than one month into the investigation state funds are locked up because of an incomplete audit for fiscal year 2013. With the fiscal year 2014 audit already due, the town is ready to move forward from the headache that is “the black bag.”

— Calhoun Falls County Councilman Charlie Tillman rejected a plea offer from state attorneys during a short hearing on Feb. 10 inside the Abbeville County Courthouse. Tillman was arrested outside his home during a much-publicized encounter with Calhoun Falls police early the morning of April 16, 2012. During the arrest, he famously threatened to “burn this (expletive) town down ?” He was indicted by an Abbeville County grand jury last May and faces four indictments, including driving under the influence and threatening the life of a public official, in connection with the incident. However, on June 25, Tillman submitted Alford pleas to two charges — driving under the influence and threatening the life of a public official. Circuit Court Judge Frank Addy accepted the pleas and sentenced Tillman to five years in prison, suspended to one year of probation, 48 hours of community service and revoked Tillman’s driver’s license. The unapologetic first-term council member showed remorse when he met with reporters on the steps of the Abbeville County Courthouse following the proceedings.

GOVERNMENT

— Bobby Gladden’s position as Abbeville County Tax Assessor was terminated Jan. 2 for repeated and ongoing disputes with Abbeville County Director Bruce Cooley about budget cuts, personality clashes and taking pictures of roof leaks at the Abbeville County Administrative Complex. Documents obtained by the Index-Journal through a South Carolina Freedom of Information Act request chronicle no less than three separate instances of clashes about issues between Cooley and Gladden.

— Longtime Greenwood County Councilman Gonza Bryant signed a consent order with the South Carolina Ethics Commission acknowledging he “inadvertently” and “unintentionally” committed ethics violations in connection with various statements of economic interests. The Index-Journal obtained a copy of the consent order. The document is signed by Bryant and was stamped by the Ethics Commission on Dec. 11, 2013. With the order, the Ethics Commission issued a “written warning” to Bryant. The councilman also paid an administrative fee of $200.

— County Council passed third and final reading April 1 on an ordinance that would authorize the use of capital project sales tax funds collected several years ago to pay off all of the county’s bonded indebtedness and leases. The vote was unanimous. With the move, the county will use about $10.5 million in penny tax funds to pay off its debt. County manager Toby Chappell said Greenwood will be the only county in South Carolina that is debt-free.

— The Saluda County Water and Sewer Authority in August acquired more than $20 million in funding to create a new super pulsator water treatment plant on Lake Murray.

— Diners and imbibers will see an additional 2 percent on their tabs. Greenwood County Council unanimously approved at its Oct. 21 meeting the third reading of a 2-percent hospitality tax for food and beverage in restaurants, bars and other food service establishments located in the county. Originally, council had called for a 1-percent hospitality tax, but was amended in its second reading to match the city’s 2-percent hospitality tax.

— Demolition nears as Greenwood County Council on Dec. 16 unanimously approved a bid and appropriation of funds to tear down the 42,000-square-foot Greenwood Civic Center. Council awarded the bid to Northstar Demolition, a national company with offices in Charlotte. The total bid includes demolition of the building and removal of the concrete foundation with Northstar keeping salvageable materials, which helps bring down costs to $121,200.

— Abbeville County Council had a rare Saturday meeting to unanimously accept the resignation of Bruce Cooley as county director Dec. 20. The resignation was effective immediately and dated Dec. 19.

GENETIC CENTER

— It was a day in which researchers from across the state drew together for a landmark effort. Self Regional Healthcare on Feb. 21 announced it was partnering with the Greenwood Genetic Center and Clemson University as part of a historic alliance poised to create a bridge toward genetic advances in the Emerald City. During the event, Self Regional announced it would be gifting $5.6 million during the next three years to support the development of a 17,000-square-foot genetic research and education center here. The Genetic Center, which celebrated its 40th year in August, also in March announced a $2.75 million donation from the Duke Endowment. The three-year, multi-million dollar grant will help fund the Greenwood-based research center’s upcoming expansion of treatment initiatives.

BUSINESS

— Greenwood County Council formally cleared the way on Jan. 21 for Fujifilm to make $50 million in capital investments in the next 10 years at its Greenwood facility. Council unanimously passed third reading on an ordinance authorizing a fee-in-lieu of tax agreement, known as Project Rooster.

— Prysmian Cable & Systems USA in Abbeville is in the process of adding a three-story production facility to its operations. The expansion is estimated at a $4.5 million investment.

— Heather Simmons Jones became full-time CEO of Greenwood Partnership Alliance, Greenwood’s public/private economic development firm, effective April 15.

— Gov. Nikki Haley announced Saluda County received Work Ready certification at Roya Foods plant in Saluda on Sept. 31. The certification comes, in part, from having a certain percentage, different for each county, of workers, unemployed persons, college and high school students take and pass the WorkKeys assessment. Haley said the achievement will attract employers to the county.

— A $42.9 billion deal will see Dublin, Ireland-based Covidien fall under the Medtronic name, headquartered in suburban Minneapolis. Covidien is a global health care technology and medical supplies provider with a manufacturing facility in Greenwood.

— SPF North America Inc. announced on Nov. 20 it will be expanding its Hodges plant. SPF is part of the pet food division of Diana Group. The Greenwood County plant, at 5300 Highway 25 North in Hodges, produces pet food flavor enhancers with the $12 million expansion allowing the company to meet growing customer demand.

— Abbeville County developed and built a new business incubator at Lakelands Commerce Center to help local and aspiring entrepreneurs. The 22,000-square-foot facility was funded by a $1 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration.

— Portucel S.A. announced on Dec. 15 it will be establishing operations in Greenwood County via a new manufacturing facility in the Emerald Road Industrial Corridor to convert forest matter into wood pellets with a $110 million investment that will result in 70 new jobs.

— The Greenwood Chamber of Commerce celebrated its 100th year in 2014, with a Centennial Celebration Birthday Bash on May 22.

OTHER

— Officials announced on March 25 that $1.2 million was raised for the 2013-14 fundraising campaign for the United Way of Greenwood and Abbeville Counties, with a record number 50 companies donating this year.

— Steve Halstead, 62, and Bobby McGovern, 56, of Greenwood became the first same-sex couple in the Lakelands to be married on Nov. 22, two days after a ban on same-sex marriages in South Carolina was lifted.

— According to the U.S. Geologic Survey website, an earthquake measuring 4.1 on the Richter scale centered in Edgefield County rocked the area on Feb. 14. On Facebook, people in Atlanta, as far east as Charleston and as far north as North Carolina reported they felt the quake. Two days later, officials confirmed aftershocks, but no damage was reported in Greenwood County.

— The City of Greenwood announced on Feb. 23 that it was one of five recipients of the 2014 Elizabeth O’Neill Verner Governor’s Award for the Arts — the highest honor the state gives in the arts.

— Waterloo’s Cameron Dorn, 25, also made history on the weekend of May 16-17 by setting the Guinness Book of World Records standard for the most “burpees,” also known as squat-thrusts, in a 24-hour span. Dorn completed 10,105 burpees to become the first South Carolinian to break a Guinness world record in an athletic category. He shattered the old record of 7,684.

— About 100 people gathered on June 22 to watch the unveiling of a sign that proclaims a portion of U.S. Highway 178 as Dr. Benjamin E. Mays Highway. Mays is regarded by many as one of the most influential figures of the 20th century, especially of the Civil Rights Era.

— Dogs and their owners joined local clergy on Oct. 4 to dedicate a new dog part at Grace Street Park with a blessing of the animals.

— Attendance and the economic impact were down from 2013, but the 2014 South Carolina Festival of Flowers still brought in more than 81,200 people and more than $3.1 million. On the flip side, 14th annual South Carolina Festival of Discovery and Blues Cruise topped $2 million in economic impact, a 13-percent increase from 2013.

— Lakelands voters went to the polls for mid-term elections on Nov. 4. Most incumbents retained their seats, and referendums to allow the sale of alcohol on Sunday in restaurants and bars in Greenwood County and legalizing raffles conducted by nonprofits statewide were passed.

Originally Published by Index-Journal on:Dec 31, 2014

By GREGG HAMPTON ghampton@indexjournal.com

Article Link: https://www.indexjournal.com/news/looking-back-at-a-year-in-the-lakelands/article_d02f606c-8fb8-58f6-932e-dd2649445177.html