For the first time since his death, Steve Brown’s face appeared at a Greenwood County Council meeting.
At Tuesday’s meeting, county Veterans Affairs Director Rosalind Burke presented to Brown’s family a display featuring a picture of Brown, his medals earned while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and other memorabilia commending his service to his country.
Sgt. Brown served for four years as a Marine, trained in radar-jamming technology and serving as a combat aircrewman in three combat missions.
“Sgt. Brown’s actions are a credit to the United States Marine Corps, and to the United States of America,” Burke said. “Mr. Brown was a very dedicated advocate to the veterans affairs in Greenwood, to the veteran Greenwood community and to his United States military, which he so proudly served.”
Brown’s wife, Beverly, and children, Gavin and Meagan, joined Burke in revealing the display. Council chairperson Chuck Moates thanked Burke and Brown’s family for attending the meeting and gave praise to those responsible for putting a tribute to Brown in the room council regularly meets.
“He served for decades as the Greenwood city manager and for, I believe, eight-plus years as a member and chairman of this Greenwood County Council,” Moates said. “His service to Greenwood County and his dedication to serving the citizens of Greenwood County was, without a doubt, exemplary and commendable.”
Council revisited their previous vote on amending the Wingert Road Planned Development District to allow for C&C Metal Recycling to have a pull-apart salvage yard on its property. A previous vote to approve the change failed because of a tied vote while two council members were absent, but council voted at its last meeting to re-visit their vote.
Council approved the change in a 4-2 vote, with Councilwoman Edith Childs and Moates voting against. The change allows C&C to move forward with its goals for a pull-apart operation. This is intended to salvage parts from cars intended for scrap, and to sell those parts at a reduced rate for people looking for used car components.
Council also approved a countywide change that will allow for accessory dwelling units, sometimes known as “granny flats.” The unanimous vote amended the county’s zoning ordinance to allow property owners with an existing dwelling to build one ADU on a property that’s at least five acres. These ADUs can only be up to 1,000 square feet.
Local internet company WCFiber entered a 20-year fee-in-lieu-of-tax agreement in exchange for a capital investment in Greenwood County of at least $19 million. Council unanimously approved the tax incentive agreement, with an amendment to count about $7 million of existing broadband infrastructure work the company has installed this year.
The agreement has WCFiber set to install broadband infrastructure in five areas, encompassing a total of about 2,530 addresses that can receive internet service. The company is set to install this infrastructure from 2022 to 2026, but if the “take rate” — the percent of subscribers relative to the parcels the service lines pass — for any of the five areas is less than 50%, the company is not obligated to continue building in subsequent areas, according to the agreement.
Capital Project Sales Tax Coordinator Josh Skinner gave council a quarterly update on the county’s projects. This quarter saw $2,929,724 in tax revenue for the CPST, with about $41 million collected to date. The county has spent less than it has taken in so far, but with several projects about to begin, he said expenditures will match revenues.
Bids went out Sept. 21 for one of the largest sets of projects, park improvements. Skinner said officials are working with the lowest bidder to reduce the over-budget cost of the projects, which will bring upgrades to the Grace Street, Foundry and Ninety Six parks next, along with bike trails and other improvements.
The county is finalizing a contract for the Dr. Benjamin E. Mays Historic Preservation Site’s auditorium, and bids went out Tuesday on a boating facility on Lake Greenwood’s shores.
Next quarter’s revenue check is going toward upgrading area law enforcement’s records management systems, along with the second phase of county park improvements. This will include the Wilbanks Sports Complex, the former site of the Greenwood Civic Center.
Council members asked whether CPST tax revenues are on pace to meet the income goal of about $89 million by the end of the tax’s lifespan. County Treasurer Steffanie Dorn said if it comes up short, it might be by about 5%.
“The way numbers were coming in during the first part of this tax collection, I wasn’t sure we were going to make it,” she said.
Income hasn’t grown much following a dip from the coronavirus pandemic, but Dorn said retail experts expect spending to grow in the next quarter.
“So many of the projects, the costs have expanded,” Moates said.
Where price tags have increased, Dorn said the county has found ways to scale projects back or find other sources of funding to pay for the overage. The county is not pulling funds intended for future projects to pay for ones underway today, she said.
In other news:
County unanimously approved two boundary line adjustments for lakeside properties on Grand Harbor Boulevard and Cape Charles Court. The former received 0.03 acres of county property, while the latter received 0.04 acres.
The Greenwood County Sheriff’s Office had delinquent invoices from Carolina Recording Systems, the company that provides recording services for 911 calls. Dorn said the state office of Revenue and Fiscal Affairs reimburses 80% of the cost for this service, and council approved spending $29,660.40 to pay Carolina Recording Systems.
The commissioners of the Magnolia Place Special Tax District requested to dissolve. Dorn said in asking residents their opinions, she learned many didn’t know they lived in a special tax district, or what that meant. The commissioners sought to dissolve over the $10 per lot fee the county introduced last year for special tax districts.
Originally Published by Index-Journal on:Nov 3, 2021
By DAMIAN DOMINGUEZ ddominguez@indexjournal.com
Article Link: https://www.indexjournal.com/news/greenwood-county-unveils-tribute-to-steve-brown-in-library/article_75c41f2c-6705-53aa-8898-0f65b2316383.html
Greenwood County Council sets yearly goals, gets CPST update
/in Index-JournalWith a look ahead to what 2022 might have in store, Greenwood County Council spent part of its Tuesday meeting talking about their goals for the year.
“Each of these suggested goals are important enough to warrant an in-depth discussion and development of well-thought-out strategies in order for us to adequately address them,” said council chairperson Chuck Moates.
Council member Edith Childs said she wants to see county staff cross-trained on other employees’ responsibilities. She also wants to explore the idea of hiring a mental health specialist trained to aid first responders in de-escalating situations with people who may be in crisis.
The county could do better at getting information to people seeking help, said council member Mark Allison. He wanted to see an information desk at the courthouse that would contain details on how people can start a new business, or go about putting a dock in at their lakeside property, along with information on specific contacts for additional information.
Council member Melissa Spencer wanted to see council have a retreat in order to focus on connecting with one another over training sessions. From his recent time campaigning, council member Dayne Pruitt shared concerns he heard from constituents, including worries over the Lake Conestee Dam holding toxic sediment back that could flow into the Saluda River. He also said he wanted to see the county explore transitioning into a paid fire service to recruit more firefighters.
“I believe the fire service is infrastructure, in my opinion. I think it’s important,” he said. “The problem is our volunteers, some are aging out at some point and we’re not getting new ones.”
Council member Robbie Templeton wanted to focus on existing projects instead of racking up a wish list of new ones. Agreeing with Pruitt’s concerns about Lake Conestee, council member Theo Lane proposed organizing a meeting to hear from experts on the dam’s status. He also said he wants to see new facility space for county staff to help thin out the crowding of the courthouse.
Moates shared his interest in getting the state Department of Transportation to repair and repave some of the roads in Greenwood County, but he also set his sights to 2025.
“I don’t think it’s too soon to start thinking about our next Capital Project Sales Tax initiative,” he said. “Our success the last time we did this was built on the fact that we got out in front of it, planned it and executed our plans. That’s all I’m asking us to do now.”
Moates said the current capital projects underway have provided examples of the good the penny tax can do for Greenwood County and said council would be foolish not to invest its efforts in this revenue source. Josh Skinner, CPST coordinator, gave council a quarterly update on how the tax, its income and the projects are going.
To date, the CPST fund has collected $44,349,034.51, and Skinner said he’s hopeful the collections from December will show an increase in sales tax revenue. This quarter’s income check is being split between the upgrades being done to Grace Street, Foundry and the Ninety Six town parks. It’s also being used to pay off the new record management system for law enforcement, but the majority of the quarter’s income is going to the Greenwood recreation center being built at the Wilbanks Sports Complex — the former civic center site.
Skinner gave updates on the work underway to clear the old water treatment plant that will become part of Grace Street Park, as well as the work that has started on the new boat ramp near the bridge across Lake Greenwood on Highway 221.
The Dr. Benjamin E. Mays Historical Site is being redesigned to meet the budget for the renovations there, and Skinner said Ware Shoals officials said they’re close to resolving a right-of-way issue to get their sewer line improvements underway. Waterline upgrades in Ninety Six should be done by mid-March, Skinner said, while work at the J.C. Fox Boozer complex in town has been going well.
Moates said these were all prime examples of why preparing for another capital projects tax campaign for 2025 is essential.
“Josh stood up here and gave us beautiful example after example after example of how that money has improved the quality of life and services in this county,” Moates said. “We are fools if we do not try to renew it and continue that kind of emphasis.”
Ware Shoals asks local company to rework water system
/in UncategorizedWARE SHOALS — One town is trying something new, using an old partner.
At its Jan. 24 meeting, Ware Shoals Town Council agreed to have L&L Environmental Labs take over the main duties for the town’s wastewater and water services.
“Our pipes and our lives have been old and dilapidated for years,” Town Council member George Leagans said. “We haven’t really had the resources to do what we needed to do.”
Much of the town’s water infrastructure was built to facilitate Riegel Mill, and part of the reason the town was incorporated was for federal funding for improving water lines and wastewater handling.
Much of the system was built in the late 1960s, said John Lake, of L&L Environmental.
“Our water system is in relatively good shape,” Lake said. “We’re hitting the life cycle on some of our sewer stuff that’s needing replacing, though.”
Ware Shoals’ wastewater system provides services for 2,500 customers, including dozens of industrial users across four counties and six utility companies, Lake said. The facilities can treat up to 8 million gallons of wastewater a day, though it’s only managing about 900,000 gallons a day, he said.
“This is how many people depend on this, and that is not just in Ware Shoals,” Lake said.
The wastewater system is also an attraction for industries coming to Highway 25. Lake said they rely on having a site to process their wastewater efficiently.
Prior to this latest agreement, L&L had already done some work replacing faulty water meters and taking stock of the resources and elements of Ware Shoals’ water system, as well as its condition.
“We’ve still got a lot of repair projects to be done in town — I think we’ve got about 30,” Lake said. “Those range from about $5,000 to $3.5 million.”
The most expensive work will be funded in part by the Greenwood County Capital Project Sales Tax, helping replace aged water lines with new ones. The bulk of the work the system needs, Lake said, is addressing right-of-way issues, making repairs at the town’s sewer plant and upgrading the Honea Path lift station, which transports sewage.
“Ware Shoals is fixing to grow, we’re already growing,” Lake said. “We’re beginning to see the benefit of people wanting to be within range of the Simpsonville area while being close to the industry here.”
L&L did water sampling and other work for the town for years, but about two years ago the town asked the company to take on more responsibility over the water systems. The goal, said Lake and his son-in-law, L&L Owner B.J. Pulley, is to create a modern water treatment system with a new organizational structure. New meters, read regularly via antennas, are part of that new infrastructure.
But it also comes with a new management model. Based on what leading utility companies are doing, Lake said they’re looking to develop a core staff of well-trained employees to handle critical matters. These would include regular, preventative maintenance, reading meters and coordinating with contractors — because rather than hiring additional hands to handle occasional work, he said they aim to outsource that labor through contracting. Officials are looking into whether L&L can contract with the town’s public works department for grounds maintenance, for instance.
“We’re hoping that when they finish, which we’re thinking will take about two years, we’ll have a state-of-the-art system,” Leagans said.
Randee Beasley, town clerk/treasurer, said she hasn’t been given final figures on what L&L’s services will cost, but an estimate put it at about $176,500 a year. She said that’s about $11,000 less than what was budgeted for the town managing its own water staff payroll.
Greenwood County Council approves policy changes
/in UncategorizedSmall tweaks can make a big difference, and Greenwood County hoped to shore up some of its internal rules Tuesday as county council approved changes to three policies.
Anita Baylor, county procurement officer and risk manager, laid out changes to vehicle collision review, workers’ compensation and procurement policies during Tuesday’s county council meeting. First up was a change that would create a vehicle collision review board, responsible for examining all wrecks involving county vehicles.
“The collisions that we have had in the past several years have really cost the county quite a bit of money, so we’re trying to actually bring back our review board so that everybody is held accountable and we have consequences,” Baylor said.
The board, made up of four county manager appointees and one person appointed by the sheriff, will investigate all wrecks involving county staff, vehicles or equipment. They’re tasked with ensuring best practices are in place and providing disciplinary recommendations in wrecks determined to have been preventable.
The policy creates four new categories for wrecks and lays out the penalties for wrecks determined to be because of disregard for defensive driving or disregard for state driving laws. An employee’s first offense comes with a verbal warning and a four-hour training, the second offense is a written discipline and eight-hour training. The third offense comes with a recommendation for suspension or termination.
“This policy will hold individuals more accountable,” Baylor said.
Council also considered a new workers’ compensation policy, which the county did not have prior to Tuesday. The policy outlines the state law’s 66 and two-thirds% rate for lost wages, as well as the number or days a doctor must approve an employee to be out before lost wage benefits start.
Baylor said the workers’ compensation policy was reviewed by the state Association of Counties.
The last policy change dealt with expanding some of the purchase amount ranges under the county’s procurement policy, which details how departments make purchases.
“Things have changed over the years and we do a lot more ordering online, and our threshold for using the procurement card is rather low,” Baylor said.
The changes would raise the minimum range from $1,000 to $5,000, meaning purchases costing less than $5,000 do not require a requisition or purchase order. They can be made with a county purchasing card, billed to the county under a credit account or invoiced to the county. Purchases at this level don’t need any bids, but receipts and invoices must be approved by the department head or someone they designate to approve them.
A second tier, requiring price quotes, raised from $1,000-$10,000 up to $5,000-$10,000. The third and fourth tier costs remain the same.
Council member Mark Allison, after asking a few questions about the oversight of the broader first tier of purchases, asked County Manager Toby Chappell if he was comfortable with this policy.
“I am,” Chappell said.
“Because the buck stops with you,” Allison said.
Council unanimously approved the three policy changes.
Council also unanimously approved an easement allowing Ninety Six Commission of Public Works to do work on a county section of Business Park Road. This will allow them to install a new water line that will serve a Global Supply Bonded WHSE and Mumford Industries.
County Economic Development Director James Bateman said the public utility easement was a condition of a state grant awarded to Ninety Six CPW, and that CPW would be responsible for putting in and maintaining the waterline. The easement was approved unanimously.
In her update to council, County Treasurer Steffanie Dorn shared that staff is gearing up for the 2023 budgeting process. She said hospitality tax collections were up about 9% from July to December of 2021 over the previous year, and building permits were up in December by about 26% over last year.
She gave an update on Capital Project Sales Tax collections, saying they were about 2.5% less than the previous quarter. January collections are usually lower than the previous quarter, she explained, and 2021’s fourth-quarter collections were 12.5% higher than the same period in 2020.
“I still feel like we’re going to get in that 97% or so range of what we originally intended,” Dorn said. “Hopefully we’ll make it to the 100% mark. As you know, it’s just a crapshoot really on where we end up.”
Nationwide, retail saw an 8.5% increase in December, and Dorn said she hopes to see that reflected in the next round of collections.
In other business:
Council approved third reading on rezoning two properties — one 1.95-acre property at 121 Cannon Road to allow the resident to build a modular home, and another of 0.38 acres at 3704 McCormick Highway to allow the owner of Promised Land Grocery to sell the store but retain part of the property adjacent to his home.
Council recognized the county employees of the fourth quarter. They included Josh Skinner, Jeffrey Young, Russell Booker, Wanda Walker, Joyce Kelley, Leisa Hotchkiss, Russell Patterson, Matthew Mills, Sandra Smith and Tammy Watts.
Greenwood County pitches new Wilbanks Sports Complex design drafts
/in UncategorizedGreenwood County was ready to play ball Tuesday, as designers unveiled three possible layouts for the new, $10 million renovations and upgrades to the Wilbanks Sports Complex.
In a meeting at the Wilbanks EMS-fire station on Highway 72/221, architect Kurt Ludwick and Bob Brookover from Clemson University’s parks, recreation and tourism management department showed three proposed conceptual drawings for the new park space. More than a dozen residents came out to ask questions and comment that will be used as feedback when finalizing the park’s design.
The park’s renovation and expansion is being funded by about $9 million in capital project sales tax funds, along with $1 million the county allocated for an ADA-compliant playground facility.
For these funds, the three designs shown would each provide fencing and signage to beautify the entrance to the park, two new soccer fields, a competition football field that could be configured for other sports, along with restrooms and concessions facilities. It also pays for four additional pickleball courts, extensions of three existing baseball fields and more than a mile of walking tracks.
Each plan takes out some bleacher space from the existing 3-4,000-seat Legion ball field to add lawn space, along with room to build a stage that could be used as an amphitheater or event space behind home plate. The existing farmers’ market building would be used to house maintenance, and the market would move to additional greenspace added beside the facility’s entrance, where paved parking spaces are now. The parking in front of the farmers’ market will remain as the main hub for all the new facilities.
At the center of the five existing baseball fields, each design builds a new concession stand and restroom hub, along with trees around it to provide shaded spaces for guests.
The differences in the three designs are in how these facilities are laid out. In option A, two soccer fields are aligned east to west, and are placed to the right of the entrance when driving into the Wilbanks complex. The new football field is further down the road on the same side, placed over what is currently one of the park’s multiple baseball fields.
Option B brings the football field up toward Highway 72/221, and it’s the first feature on the right when driving in. The two soccer fields are aligned north to south, and dropped below the football field. Options B and C keep the existing baseball diamond that would be replaced with the football field in option A.
Each option includes space for an indoor sporting facility intended to contain multiple basketball gyms, walking tracks and other amenities — but this facility is not included in the capital project sales tax budget. This is a proposed facility that could be designed and placed at the Wilbanks complex if it’s funded at a later date.
Options A and B put this proposed indoor facility beside the current parking spaces, in an area currently overgrown that will need to be cleared out. In option C, the indoor facility is moved toward Highway 72/221 and is the first thing guests see on their left when driving in from the highway. The pickleball courts are moved beside the parking lot in option C.
“This place has good bones, but it needs a facelift,” said Brad Cuttill, Greenwood County Parks and Recreation director. “Doing the multi-purpose fields is a great new option, and pickleball.”
Cuttill said he’s most excited about how the central concession and restroom facility, along with the shade on the infield of the five existing baseball fields will set Greenwood’s parks facilities apart from other counties. He also said the $1 million going toward ADA-accessible playground equipment is a must-have.
“We are not compliant at all in our ADA, and to have a nice, compliant playground for everyone will be really nice,” he said.
Residents asked questions and shared concerns about the facility, along with their praise of the proposed design elements. One tennis player said he liked how option C split the new pickleball courts apart from the existing tennis courts, which will help reduce the sound of these very active games.
Another resident asked why the indoor sports facility wasn’t being built first and why these outdoor fields were prioritized over an indoor complex that could bring in more revenue for the parks department. Cuttill and Brookover explained it was a matter of renovating existing facilities and fields that are nearing the end of their lifespan and are seeing wear and tear.
“Do we improve what we already have first, then build something new, or do we build something new and let what we have deteriorate,” asked Cuttill.
Others asked about pool facilities, which Brookover said have too high an up-front cost for the county to fund on its own. Another resident wanted to see more consideration for older residents, as many of the proposed features highlight sports targeted toward a younger crowd.
Capital Project Sales Tax Coordinator Josh Skinner attended the meeting and told residents he would relay his notes from their discussion to the parks committee helping decide the final design of the Wilbanks complex upgrades. These design concepts will be refined and brought before county council for a final vote on the design, before it starts getting engineered and bid out for construction.
Greenwood County Council approves boat ramp contract
/in Index-JournalWith his hand laid atop his father’s Bible, Dayne Pruitt was sworn in Tuesday evening as Greenwood County Council’s latest elected representative for District 5.
Pruitt’s wife, Traci, held the Bible ahead of the day’s County Council meeting as Greenwood County Chief Magistrate Judge Ryan Johnson swore him in.
“As you all know, Dayne follows one prince of a fellow, Mr. Steve Brown. We still miss him and we grieve over his passing,” Council Chairperson Chuck Moates said. “Dayne is here now to open a new chapter in this endeavor, and to serve the people of the fifth district. We all on council look forward to working with him and supporting him, as together we serve all the citizens of Greenwood County.”
On his first day as a sworn council member, Pruitt had the chance to vote in a matter directly affecting his district — approving the contract for a new boat ramp on U.S. Highway 221.
“It’s always humbling and it’s an honor for your constituents to elect you to any office, at any level,” Pruitt said. “I’ve been on the school board level and now county council, and it never gets old to acknowledge that.”
At its previous meeting, county council postponed voting on approving a contract with MAR Construction for a new boat ramp at the Highway 72/221 bridge. The new ramp, which will include a restroom facility, pavilion and additional recreation areas, was approved with the Capital Project Sales Tax.
The vote was postponed to Tuesday to allow the new council member from District 5 to vote on the matter.
“Two weeks ago we were about $112,000 short for the contract,” CPST Coordinator Josh Skinner told council. “Yesterday we got some good news from the legislative delegation, which funded that additional money plus a little bit for contingency.”
Those dollars came from a state Department of Natural Resources fund earmarked for Greenwood County. Skinner and other county officials met with the Greenwood County Legislative Delegation on Monday to request about $203,000 — the needed $112,000 plus enough funds for a 5% contingency on the project’s cost. The delegation awarded these funds from two funds provided by DNR to Greenwood County.
The Capital Project Sales Tax funded about $720,000 of this project, a DNR grant covered more than $682,000 and the state appropriated $300,000 for the boat ramp and facilities. Council unanimously approved the contract Tuesday, and Skinner said groundbreaking is expected later this month. Construction is expected to be complete in late July.
“I felt like this is a much-needed request, additional recreational space for the boat ramp and especially new restroom facilities,” Pruitt said.
Council also approved a resolution allowing the county to transfer the new funds coming in for the boat ramp project to the Capital Project Sales Tax Fund.
County council voted on two rezoning requests — one that will let a woman build a home and another allowing a longtime business owner to sell his convenience store.
Mattie Roberson, the owner of 121 Cannon Road, requested 1.95 acres of her property to be rezoned from single-family residential to agricultural zoning. She said she lives in a rental home, but had contacted Clayton Homes and set up to have a manufactured home put on the property.
“I bought that land to move here and live in Greenwood,” she told council.
She ran into an issue — R-1 zoning does not allow building manufactured homes. Roberson requested a rezoning to AG-1, but the Greenwood City/County Planning Commission recommended denying the request.
Planning Director Phil Lindler said AG-1 allows for manufactured homes on lots of 7,500 square feet, but clarified that AG-3 zoning would allow a manufactured home while prohibiting any use of that land for a mobile or manufactured home park. After amending the ordinance to adjust from AG-1 to AG-3, council unanimously approved second reading of Roberson’s request.
The other zoning change was of the 0.38 acres that Promised Land Grocery sits on. The request came from Thomas Hughes on behalf of the convenience store’s owner, Willie J. Thomas Jr.
Thomas wants to sell the store, which has been in operation for about 50 years. He wants to keep the back portion of his property to incorporate it into his home. He requested the land at 3704 McCormick Highway be rezoned from Rural Development District to Neighborhood Commercial. The rezoning ordinance passed unanimously.
Council also approved appointments of members to several commissions and boards. City Council member Betty Boles, County Council member Melissa Spencer and former Greenwood Mayor Welborn Adams were all re-appointed to the GLAMNS Commission. Tony Booth was reappointed to the Locksley Hall special tax district commission, and Kym Kirby was appointed to it for the first time.
Steve Coleman, director of Project Genesis at Piedmont Technical College and head of MODELS Academy, was appointed to the Joint Board of Zoning Appeals. The BZA has the final say in appeals over alleged errors in handling an order, requirement or decision, among other responsibilities.
Greenwood County gets clean audit report in time for Christmas
/in UncategorizedGreenwood County received an early Christmas present — a clean bill of financial health from its auditors.
At Tuesday’s county council meeting, Josh Garvin of Manley Garvin presented the county’s 2021 financial audit and gave an “unmodified” opinion.
“An unmodified opinion, for those who have not heard that, is a clean opinion,” he said. “That is the highest level of opinion that you can receive from your external auditors.”
Revenues exceeded spending in fiscal year 2021 by about $350,000, but the county transferred about $773,000, reducing the general fund overall about $425,000.
“You say gosh Josh, is that bad? Well, you actually budgeted to lose more money than that, so the county actually did a good job of managing and staying within budget,” he said. “That being said, it is a loss. This is the first loss that we’ve had in the five years that are presented on that report.”
But the fund balance at the end of the year contained about $10.9 million in unassigned funds. The Government Finance Officers Associations recommends having about two months of operating expenses unassigned, and Greenwood County has enough to cover six months.
“That is a strong position to be in — particularly because, as you know, this county doesn’t carry any general obligation debt or anything of that nature,” he said. “That frees you up to do things that you find it necessary to do.”
Council also voted on a package of funding requests. These funds were surplus from fiscal year 2020, which was budgeted for use in 2021. The county didn’t use all of those funds.
County Treasurer Steffanie Dorn walked council through the nine requests, which include $150,000 for airport improvements, $50,000 for work on the Larry Williams Jr. Memorial Park, $140,000 to aid with the Capital Project Sales Tax work on the Boozer Recreation Complex, $100,000 for renovations at Park Plaza along with funds to help buy a trash compactor, an ambulance and other miscellaneous projects.
One item — $5,000 to help rubberize the track of the Promised Land park — sparked some debate. Upgrades to the park are part of the Capital Project Sales Tax, and the community previously requested county funds to rubberize the track. Council denied the funding earlier in the year because the county did not own that park.
“I think it’s problematic that we, as council, add county funds to Capital Sales Tax initiatives and change output,” Council member Theo Lane said. “I feel that way not because I have any objection to that enhancement, but that those dollars are controlled by a legislative process and approved by the commissioners as presented at that time.”
Council member Mark Allison also shared concern, saying he didn’t think this package of projects advisable.
“To just take a pile of money because we got it and just start handing it out, I have a problem with that,” he said. “I think we need to put this money back because we don’t know what lies ahead. We may need this money in the days to come.”
Promised Land is in Council member Edith Childs’ district, and she asked about the funds going to other parks, but Council member Robbie Templeton pointed out that those other parks are county-owned. Council Chairperson Chuck Moates agreed with Lane and said he thought giving additional funds to the Promised Land park project sets a dangerous precedent.
After some discussion, Lane made a motion to modify the resolution to exclude the funds for Promised Land.
Council later voted on a pair of matters that will change how a few things work at the county level. They approved a preferred vendor for a new county internet and phone system. Procurement Officer Anita Baylor explained the current phone system was made in 1996 and includes 370 analog devices. The county’s phone switching equipment will no longer be supported next year, requiring a new phone system.
The new system proposed by Segra and WCTEL will provide phone service over the internet, and offer redundant internet service so that phone usage isn’t lost if the internet goes down. Council gave County Manager Toby Chappell and County Attorney Carson Penney authority to negotiate the contract.
Council also approved contracting with LaBella Associates for design and consulting work on the county landfill. Public Works Director Rob Russian said there’s need to redesign the landfill to reduce costs and increase capacity.
In other business:
Public meetings
/in Index-JournalMONDAY
GREENWOOD CITY COUNCIL
TIME: 5 p.m.
LOCATION: 520 Monument St., room 207
AGENDA: Executive session — 1. Consider executive session to discuss the performance review of city manager. Public hearings: 1. Consider ordinance number 21-032 to authorize the city manager to issue CPW revenue bond anticipation notes in 2022, second reading. 2. Consider ordinance number 21-033 to levy tax for the city of Greenwood for 2022, second reading. 3. Consider ordinance number 21-034 to adopt the budgets for 2022, second reading. 4. Consider ordinance number 21-035 to adopt hospitality budget line item for 2022, second reading. 5. Consider ordinance number 21-036 authorizing city manager and city clerk to execute an extension of the existing site lease agreement between the city of Greenwood and the Greenwood Torso Soccer Club, second reading. Public appearances: 1. Recognize Bishop Oliver McCray of Morris Chapel Baptist Church. 2. Recognize Fire Chief Terry Strange for life saving award presentation to Chad Israel and Kevin Smith and recognition of Chez Goznell and Elliott Layne for their completion of the Georgia Smoke Divers certification. 3. Recognize Mr. Dallas Rappley representing 2Spoonz Hurricanes 11U football team. 4. Recognize Dr. Benjamin E. Mays Historical Preservation site Director Christopher Thomas for presentation of the Mays Legacy Award to city council. New business: 1. Consider ordinance number 22-001 Amending the city of Greenwood’s official zoning map by rezoning five parcels of land encompassing approximately 1.5 acres located at 310, 314, 316 and 318 West Cambridge Ave. and 329 West Cambridge Ave. from GC-GW (general commercial/Greenwood Main Street corridor overlay) to OP-GW (office professional/Greenwood Main Street Corridor Overlay) and one parcel of land encompassing approximately 0.64 acres located at 356 West Cambridge Ave. from GC (General commercial) to OP (office professional), first reading.
DUE WEST TOWN COUNCIL
TIME: 6 p.m.
LOCATION: 103 Main St.
AGENDA: Legislation: A. Ordinance number 05-2021, Second reading, an ordinance to adopt the model business license ordinance in accordance with the business license standardization act. B. Ordinance number 06-2021, second reading, an ordinance to change the property at the corner of Gordon Street and Carver Street Extension, formerly Carver School, parcel ID 035-09-03-005 from residential R-3 to commercial C-1. Old business: 1. Intergovernmental agreement by and between the county of Abbeville and the town of Due West to provide ambulance services to the residents and property owners within the town of Due West. Announcements: 1. MASC’s on-demand online courses consist of six sessions. For more information and to gain access to the free training sessions, visit masc.sc. 2. The Due West Police Department will be addressing squirrel problems between the dates of Dec. 20-Dec. 30 between the hours of 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Any resident experiencing problems with squirrels may contact the police department or Due West Public Works. 3. Town offices will be closed for Christmas holiday on Dec. 24, 27 and 28 and for New Year’s Day on Jan. 3. 4. The January 2022 and February 2022 council meetings will be held on the second Monday due to holidays (Jan. 10 and Feb. 14).
TUESDAY
GREENWOOD COUNTY COUNCIL
TIME: 4 p.m.
LOCATION: Greenwood County Library
AGENDA: Executive session at 4 p.m. Regular public meeting at 5:30 p.m. Presentation and acceptance of Manley Garvin FY2021 final audit — Josh Garvin. New business: A. Consideration of awarding a contract for county internet and phone system — Anita Baylor, procurement officer. B. Consideration of construction contract for boat ramp — Josh Skinner, CPST coordinator. C. Consideration of contract award for the landfill design and consultant services — Rob Russian, public works director. D. Consideration of the appointment of special tax district commissioners for the following subdivisions — Steffanie Dorn, county treasurer: Spring Valley — Brad Scruggs (reappointment), District Three and Spring Valley — Joel Ridings (appointment), District Three. E. Update from the county treasurer’s office — Steffanie Dorn, county treasurer. F. Resolution 2021-44 to consider budget amendment using carryover surplus funds from fiscal year 2020 — Steffanie Dorn, county treasurer. G. Resolution 2021-45 to transfer and close EMS/fire station construction funds — Steffanie Dorn, county treasurer H. Resolution 2021-46 outlining principles governing redistricting process — Carson Penney, county attorney. I. Resolution 2021-47 to consider the approval of Greenwood School District 50 property sale — Carson Penney, county attorney. First readings: 1. Ordinance 2021-33 to amend the Greenwood County Zoning Ordinance, being ordinance 13-86, as and if amended, so that one parcel of land totaling approximately 1.95 acres, located at 121 Cannon Road in Greenwood, South Carolina which changes zoning classifications from R-1 (single family residential) to AG-1 (agricultural)(title only) — Phil Lindler, planning director. 2. Ordinance 2021-34 to amend the Greenwood County Zoning Ordinance, being ordinance 13-86, as and if amended, so that a portion of one parcel of land totaling approximately 0.38 acres, located at 3704 McCormick highway in Greenwood, South Carolina which changes zoning classifications from RDD (rural development district) to C-1 (neighborhood commercial)(title only) — Phil Lindler, planning director.
Greenwood County approves new fire station, PIO position
/in Index-JournalGreenwood County is looking for help telling its stories.
In a 4-2 vote Tuesday night, Greenwood County Council approved funding a public information officer position. The job description wasn’t laid out at the meeting, but Councilman Robbie Templeton said he was “thrilled” to cast his vote in favor of funding the role.
“I just think we have such a great story to tell in Greenwood, and we tend to be reactive rather than proactive with that,” he said. “We have so many great things to tell, and if we can find the right person to tell our story, it will help with workforce and economic development.”
Public information officers are typically responsible for handling public communication. Templeton said with County Manager Toby Chappell and attorney Carson Penney busy handling administrative and legal matters, a PIO would be free to pursue gathering and sharing the sides of Greenwood not always seen.
The position will be funded through a combination of $12,947 in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds, $2,158 from an Emergency Management Performance Grant and $43,155 from the Economic Development department in the county’s general fund. Councilwoman Edith Childs and Councilman Mark Allison voted against creating the job. Childs said she didn’t think it was necessary, and Allison said it was hard to justify creating a new role when costs seem to be rising.
Council also approved the contract to build its sixth and final fire station of the Capital Project Sales Tax. This station will be on Morgan Road in Hodges, across from Walt’s Shoals Junction Station. CPST Coordinator Josh Skinner said the station would add 103 new structures to the county fire service area.
The Gordon Group was the low bidder for the station’s construction contract at $403,266, Skinner said. The two-bay station will include a bathroom, office and a storage and training room. Despite being similar to the other stations built, Skinner said this one is the most expensive yet because of rising construction costs.
“We were kind of expecting it based on what we had heard,” Skinner said. “It’s the same exact station as the other two base stations.”
With this sixth station, Skinner said 99.6% of the homes in Greenwood County will be within five miles of a fire station.
In her update to council, County Treasurer Steffanie Dorn said the county’s auditors completed their field work after three weeks in her office. With no questions from the auditors so far, she said she hopes to present the audit at the Dec. 21 council meeting.
Dorn said so far this fiscal year Greenwood County has spent about 29% of its general fund budget, an improvement from its expected spending of about 33%. Local accommodations tax collections are still beneath pre-COVID-19 levels, but she said they’ve seen an increase over 2020.
So far, Greenwood County has collected 46.6% of its allowed CPST funds despite being about 53% through with the project period.
“We expect our collections will continue to grow,” Dorn said. “The difference is an expected difference.”
Dorn said she still thinks the county will collect 95% to 99% of its expected CPST revenues, barring any economic disaster.
During district reports, Councilman Theo Lane shared some news from his employer, Duke Energy. As district manager for government and community relations at Duke, Lane said he worked with staff at the company to secure $90,000 to donate to various efforts in Greenwood.
Lane said $25,000 is going to the county fire and EMS services and $10,000 to provide free travel vouchers as needed for Greenwood’s public transportation through McCormick Area Transit. Another $10,000 each is going to the Boys and Girls Club of the Lakelands, the Greenwood Chamber of Commerce, Lander University’s nursing program and Piedmont Technical College’s MODELS Academy. He said $5,000 each will go to the Food Bank of Greenwood, Pathway House and the Lander student food bank.
“Around Thanksgiving, we always focus on food insecurity,” Lane said. “I thank council, but it really got me thinking in this regard about three months ago.”
Council Chairman Chuck Moates thanked Lane for his work securing these donations.
“Christmas has come early,” he said.
In other news:
Council unanimously approved dissolving the Magnolia Place Special Tax District. One resident spoke in favor of dissolving the district and doing away with the special tax.
Council had first reading on an ordinance to continue the use of a fire support uniform service charge on parcels in the county’s unincorporated areas.
Pam Willis was appointed a commissioner of the Grace Court Townhomes special tax district.
New RMS streamlines local law enforcement’s info-sharing
/in UncategorizedGreenwood’s area law enforcement agencies are better connected than ever, with a new records management system giving every department access to each other’s records.
In the past week, the Ninety Six and Ware Shoals police departments, along with Greenwood police and the county sheriff’s office, have transitioned to a new records system run by Caliber Public Safety. The contract with Caliber was part of the Capital Project Sales Tax, and Greenwood County Council approved contracting with Caliber for a shared, countywide records system.
The biggest change comes with access — officers in each department will now have ready access to the reports filed by other agencies on the same system.
Ninety Six Police Chief Chris Porter said before Caliber, they’d have to call officers at other departments if they had questions about a mutual suspect or an investigation. Officers would also pass messages by using their radios to call in to dispatchers, but there’s room for error and confusion when passing messages along through multiple people, Porter said.
“A lot of times you can’t hear on those radios because you might be in a house or in a bad spot for signal,” he said. “But with this system, when someone sends out data on a call you can see it right away, exactly where they are.”
This system allows officers to pin locations to their reports, mapping out crimes they’re investigating. That data can be used later on to map trends in various types of crime, and officers from each department can cross-reference with information submitted by other agencies.
“Ware Shoals might get out with a person of interest we’ve been investigating,” Porter said. “We can immediately get in contact with them. I think it’s going to be a tremendous benefit, and I think it will help all of us make cases quicker and solve crimes a little bit better.”
It will take some getting used to, Ware Shoals Police Chief Bryan Louis said. His department is still transitioning away from their prior management software — the contract ends in December, and he said they might have to continue the contract if they can’t get data transferred over in time.
The town’s court system still uses the old software, and Louis said they need to find a court management system that will work with Caliber’s software.
“When we’re fully operational, we’ll be able to use our in-car computers along with scanners and printers provided by the sheriff’s office,” Louis said. “It will let us spend way more time in cars rather than having to come back to the station to file reports.”
There’s a learning curve, Greenwood Police Chief T.J. Chaudoin said, but once everyone is up to speed Caliber will allow them to easily see trends and clusters of crime that were hard to see before.
“Whereas with the last system you had to go through every report and piece it together through those,” he said.
The police department is ironing out a few issues with routing certain reports to the necessary supervisors to make sure they are reviewed and approved correctly. Otherwise, though, Chaudoin said the transition has been going smoothly.
Patrol officers seem to be loving the system, Ninety Six police Maj. Deidra Collier said. Caliber kept staff around for days last week to help train and educate officers on the new system.
“The biggest benefit to us absolutely is being connected to the county, Ware Shoals and Greenwood city,” she said. “We can help as needed now, and see their info just like they see it.”
Greenwood County unveils tribute to Steve Brown in library
/in Index-JournalFor the first time since his death, Steve Brown’s face appeared at a Greenwood County Council meeting.
At Tuesday’s meeting, county Veterans Affairs Director Rosalind Burke presented to Brown’s family a display featuring a picture of Brown, his medals earned while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and other memorabilia commending his service to his country.
Sgt. Brown served for four years as a Marine, trained in radar-jamming technology and serving as a combat aircrewman in three combat missions.
“Sgt. Brown’s actions are a credit to the United States Marine Corps, and to the United States of America,” Burke said. “Mr. Brown was a very dedicated advocate to the veterans affairs in Greenwood, to the veteran Greenwood community and to his United States military, which he so proudly served.”
Brown’s wife, Beverly, and children, Gavin and Meagan, joined Burke in revealing the display. Council chairperson Chuck Moates thanked Burke and Brown’s family for attending the meeting and gave praise to those responsible for putting a tribute to Brown in the room council regularly meets.
“He served for decades as the Greenwood city manager and for, I believe, eight-plus years as a member and chairman of this Greenwood County Council,” Moates said. “His service to Greenwood County and his dedication to serving the citizens of Greenwood County was, without a doubt, exemplary and commendable.”
Council revisited their previous vote on amending the Wingert Road Planned Development District to allow for C&C Metal Recycling to have a pull-apart salvage yard on its property. A previous vote to approve the change failed because of a tied vote while two council members were absent, but council voted at its last meeting to re-visit their vote.
Council approved the change in a 4-2 vote, with Councilwoman Edith Childs and Moates voting against. The change allows C&C to move forward with its goals for a pull-apart operation. This is intended to salvage parts from cars intended for scrap, and to sell those parts at a reduced rate for people looking for used car components.
Council also approved a countywide change that will allow for accessory dwelling units, sometimes known as “granny flats.” The unanimous vote amended the county’s zoning ordinance to allow property owners with an existing dwelling to build one ADU on a property that’s at least five acres. These ADUs can only be up to 1,000 square feet.
Local internet company WCFiber entered a 20-year fee-in-lieu-of-tax agreement in exchange for a capital investment in Greenwood County of at least $19 million. Council unanimously approved the tax incentive agreement, with an amendment to count about $7 million of existing broadband infrastructure work the company has installed this year.
The agreement has WCFiber set to install broadband infrastructure in five areas, encompassing a total of about 2,530 addresses that can receive internet service. The company is set to install this infrastructure from 2022 to 2026, but if the “take rate” — the percent of subscribers relative to the parcels the service lines pass — for any of the five areas is less than 50%, the company is not obligated to continue building in subsequent areas, according to the agreement.
Capital Project Sales Tax Coordinator Josh Skinner gave council a quarterly update on the county’s projects. This quarter saw $2,929,724 in tax revenue for the CPST, with about $41 million collected to date. The county has spent less than it has taken in so far, but with several projects about to begin, he said expenditures will match revenues.
Bids went out Sept. 21 for one of the largest sets of projects, park improvements. Skinner said officials are working with the lowest bidder to reduce the over-budget cost of the projects, which will bring upgrades to the Grace Street, Foundry and Ninety Six parks next, along with bike trails and other improvements.
The county is finalizing a contract for the Dr. Benjamin E. Mays Historic Preservation Site’s auditorium, and bids went out Tuesday on a boating facility on Lake Greenwood’s shores.
Next quarter’s revenue check is going toward upgrading area law enforcement’s records management systems, along with the second phase of county park improvements. This will include the Wilbanks Sports Complex, the former site of the Greenwood Civic Center.
Council members asked whether CPST tax revenues are on pace to meet the income goal of about $89 million by the end of the tax’s lifespan. County Treasurer Steffanie Dorn said if it comes up short, it might be by about 5%.
“The way numbers were coming in during the first part of this tax collection, I wasn’t sure we were going to make it,” she said.
Income hasn’t grown much following a dip from the coronavirus pandemic, but Dorn said retail experts expect spending to grow in the next quarter.
“So many of the projects, the costs have expanded,” Moates said.
Where price tags have increased, Dorn said the county has found ways to scale projects back or find other sources of funding to pay for the overage. The county is not pulling funds intended for future projects to pay for ones underway today, she said.
In other news:
County unanimously approved two boundary line adjustments for lakeside properties on Grand Harbor Boulevard and Cape Charles Court. The former received 0.03 acres of county property, while the latter received 0.04 acres.
The Greenwood County Sheriff’s Office had delinquent invoices from Carolina Recording Systems, the company that provides recording services for 911 calls. Dorn said the state office of Revenue and Fiscal Affairs reimburses 80% of the cost for this service, and council approved spending $29,660.40 to pay Carolina Recording Systems.
The commissioners of the Magnolia Place Special Tax District requested to dissolve. Dorn said in asking residents their opinions, she learned many didn’t know they lived in a special tax district, or what that meant. The commissioners sought to dissolve over the $10 per lot fee the county introduced last year for special tax districts.