WINNSBORO – Fairfield County officials are joining forces with the Midlands Fatherhood Coalition’s Winnsboro office to provide transportation to a Kraft Foods job fair on Sept. 22 in Newberry, according to Fairfield County Deputy Administrator Davis Anderson.
“If enough applicants get jobs at the plant on the same shift and need transportation between Winnsboro and the plant every day, we’re looking at trying to arrange that, too,” Anderson said.
Anderson said there might be a nominal fee to use the service on a long term, regular basis.
“Failure to be able to just get to the job site every day is a big part of the problem we face with employment in Fairfield County,” Fatherhood Coalition Site Manager Rudolph Walker said. “I really see this as a win-win situation.”
Walker said putting fathers back to work is a large part of what the Fatherhood Coalition office in Winnsboro is about.
“Many of these men face multiple problems in finding and retaining employment. Besides the problems of getting to work, many also need job training and help with background problems such as expungement of criminal records,” Walker said.
The program also provides a week-long employment boot camp.
“At the same time, we work to help these men understand what it is to be a father, to build relationships with their children, co-parents and community,” Walker said. “We understand what happens in negative situations, with no economic stability.”
The Coalition recently opened a new location at the Ridgeway fire station at 350 S. Palmer Street, and will open another one on Sept. 6 at the Monticello Community Center, 7104 State Hwy 215 S., in Jenkinsville. The Winnsboro office is located at 201 W Moultrie St.
For more information about the Kraft job fair or about the Midlands Fatherhood Coalition, call Walker at 803-815-044.
BLYTHEWOOD – Second time was the charm for representatives of Palmetto Pediatric & Adolescent Clinic when they appeared before the Blythewood Board of Architectural Review (BAR) on Monday evening to request approval for a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA). This time, the board approved the request, but with contingencies.
Applicant Harris Cohn of Cohn Construction Services, LLC, represented the clinic owners in his request to the BAR for approval to construct an approximately 5,408 square foot clinic on a vacant .76-acre site located at 121 Blythewood Road (across from the Companion Animal Hospital).
Town Administrator Brian Cook reviewed for the board the problems with the plans as submitted at the July meeting – the locations of the parking on the lot and the building façade.
Cohn distributed new drawings for a new design for the facade and landscaping.
Project Architect Matt Davis pointed out on the new elevation drawing that the front arched wall that was an issue during the prior meeting was now reduced in height by two feet making it 14 feet high.
“Instead of the simple four-sided hip roof, we have added detailing with metal roofed gables and gable vents on the sides and a light to medium-colored bronze metal eyebrow,” Davis said.
The Town’s architectural advisor Ralph Walden said he was personally pleased with the end result presented Monday night.
”It is consistent in bringing forth a distinctive character, not as plain,” Walden said.
Davis said he and Cohn have worked together on five prior Palmetto clinics.
In discussing the Board’s prior concern about placing parking in front of the building, Cohn said the parking is landlocked on the site with only 35 parking places for the proposed 5,408 square foot building. He said the site size would not al low for moving the four parking spaces in front of the building to the rear as the board suggested at the previous meeting.
According to Cohn, the Lexington clinic has 67 parking spots and is only 1000 sq foot bigger. The downtown location has 58 spaces, Clemson has 57 and Broad River has 60.
“It takes 8 to 12 spots just for staff for the 8 to 10 exam rooms,” Cohn said. “These patients are families with sick children and they frequently drive vans and SUVs. They tend to come in waves like back to school, the beginning of the school year, end of summer, flu season. The worst thing is for a parent to bring a sick child and there is no parking for them,” he said.
Cohn said the client would be open to building modifications and landscaping changes but that the 35 parking spaces are the challenge.
“This is the main area where they need concessions,” Cohn said. “If we lose the four front spots it would be a challenge to make this work functionally. They need parking to make this a viable business.”
The new design submitted Monday evening includes a berm across the front of the property along Blythewood Road. Board Chairwoman Pam Dukes questioned the measurements.
“The berm is two feet tall and will have two- to four-foot tall plantings in addition to the trees,” Davis said. “It will cover 40 feet to the right (of the driveway) and 50 feet to the left. The berm is 10 feet wide, front to back.”
“How far is it from the road to the parking,” Dukes asked?
“Thirty-feet,” Harris said.
“I think the berm is a great idea,” board member Debra Humphries said. “It will satisfy not wanting to see the asphalt from Blythewood Road.”
“We’re trying to avoid the Two Notch Road look,” said Co-Chairman Jim McLean. “It (the clinic) would be an asset for the town, but we’re trying to look at it for the long term.”
Board member Cindy Nord suggested it might be a “Pandora’s Box.”
“I can see it both ways,” Dukes said. “As a parent I can see how great it would be to have a pediatric clinic here.”
Cohn said he worked on this same site six years ago for Providence but it was pulled for the parking issue.
“That’s where they (Palmetto Pediatric) are at now. We can do landscaping and building changes but parking is the issue” Cohn said.
Walden suggested the plants on the berm could be set with a minimum size and that they could make a special request to sculpturally bring some of the façade materials into the berm plantings and have them interwoven into the design of the trees and berm.
“Not necessarily a wall,” he explained, “and not just a hedge, but pulling features into the hedge using some of the material and creating a serpentine structure distinctive to this particular site. That could save a later issue.”
“I personally liked the idea,” Dukes said.
“It does block the view and sets a precedent for having a berm instead of a view of asphalt,” Humphries said.
McLean said he appreciated the group working with the board on the berm and made a motion to approve a COA contingent on architectural elements of the front berm being acceptable. Acceptance of those revisions was deferred to the staff and BAR Chair for approval.
The motion was seconded by Nord and unanimously approved.
Board member Alan George, commercial banker with First Community Bank in Blythewood recused himself from participation in the discussion and vote since the bank is working with Palmetto Pediatrics on a construction loan.
BLYTHEWOOD – The South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce (SCDEW) will be hiring ‘on the spot’ for 70 positions during a job fair it is sponsoring for Trane at Doko Manor, from 1 – 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept 12.
Wendy Hamilton, Midlands Business Consultant for SCDEW, said the hiring will be the first phase of 700 new hires over the next six months for Trane’s newly expanded plant in Blythewood.
“They will be hiring for multiple positions, primarily maintenance techs,” Hamilton said.
While Hamilton said she did not have the final range of pay for the positions, she said the jobs are all well-paying jobs.
“All of Trane’s corporate Human Resources Department staff will be on site to interview, make offers and hire right then and there,” Hamilton said. “It’s very important for applicants to bring an updated resume with them.”
The first phase of 70 hires will be followed by hiring the bulk of the 700 open positions. Then another 70 will be hired in the final phase. All three phases are expected to be completed within six months Hamilton said.
“The company recently completed a 1,000,000 square foot expansion, the largest expansion it has ever made,” Hamilton said. “It’s a great opportunity for both Fairfield and Blythewood.”
WINNSBORO – A grand opening was held on Friday, Aug. 17 for the new Fairfield Behavioral Health Services facility at 178 Highway 321 Bypass N. in Winnsboro.
The event was hosted by the BHS Director Vernon Kennedy, Sr., and included tours of the facility, refreshments a ribbon cutting and comments from Sen. Mike Fanning, Rep. MaryGail Douglas and County Council Chairman Billy Smith. Kennedy told those who attended that the new facility would enhance the department’s service to the community.
Rep. MaryGail Douglas talked about the importance of having good behavioral health services in the community.
WINNSBORO – With Fairfield County stung by massive job losses and another 120 positions expected to vanish, development of a new $11.4 million county administration building aims to ease some of that pain.
Supporters also note tax credits would finance the majority of costs of renovating the Mt. Zion Institute site in Winnsboro, lowering the county’s costs to about $5M.
But a large number some residents opposing the plans fear it will threaten the property’s historical character and turn the area into a traffic nightmare.
“I applaud council finding alternative ways to funding this county council building. However this project is wrought with controversy,” said Ridgeway resident Shirley Green. “Let’s not court controversy. It’s the kind of controversy that pits our citizens against each other. An administrative building is not an economic driver.”
Winnsboro resident Bill Haslett, however, said revitalizing the Mt. Zion property would unite the county, not divide it.
“Fairfield County is not going to grow unless we take down the dividing line between Zion Hill and Mount Zion. Mt. Zion needs to be redeveloped,” he said. “We’ve had nothing but negative news in this county for the past six months and I’m tired of it. We need some positive news instead of people bickering back and forth.”
On Monday, Fairfield County Council voted 4-1 for first reading of an ordinance authorizing development of a new administration building, as well as a lease agreement associated with the project.
Councilman Mikel Trapp cast the lone dissenting vote. Council members Dan Ruff and Douglas Pauley abstained.
Trapp didn’t specifically why he voted against the ordinance, though during discussion of the proposed measure, he raised concerns about revenue sources and costs, which are not finite.
“Once that number changes, we’ll have to revote,” Trapp said.
Council Chairman Billy Smith said the county is “in the driver’s seat,” noting that the builder faces the most risk.
“I think the best way to structure it is to put the contractor at risk, not the county,” Smith said. “We’ve got two more readings to flush this out. We all know the first reading is procedural.”
Both Ruff and Pauley said they wanted more information before casting a vote.
“I just need a little more time to get information and feedback,” Ruff said.
Pauley asked for a lot more.
“The vote concerning the project is a very important vote and a vote I would not take lightly,” he said. “My reason for abstaining tonight, there are a few questions I’ll present to the county administrator before I make my decision.”
Pauley requested detailed information about the county’s outstanding debts, as well as alternative sites for the administration building.
“We can get that information together for you,” County Administrator Jason Taylor said.
Two more readings are required before the deal becomes official.
Rory Dowling with 1st & Main, a Durham, North Carolina firm working with the county, hopes that will be soon.
Dowling said he hopes an agreement can be finalized within 30 days, and to apply for a building permit by early 2019. The goal, he said, is to begin construction within 10 months, with a grand opening by April 2020.
As for spurring economic development, Dowling noted that the building would bring about 120 employees daily to downtown Winnsboro.
“When you have 120 people within walking distance, it helps keep the lights on at some of these establishments,” he said.
If constructed, the four-story structure would include 45,000 square feet of space, more than doubling the existing 21,000-square-foot administration building at 350 Columbia Road.
The new structure would house administrative offices, the sheriff’s office, a daycare center, and parks and recreation with a new gym. County council chambers would also move to the new building, making use of the old auditorium.
About half of the $11.5 project would come from a series of state and federal historic tax credits totaling $5.4 million.
Another $4.5 million would come in the form of a construction loan, as well as $1.1 million in equity from money 1st and Main would raise itself.
Dowling said he felt confident the tax credits would be awarded, but acknowledged there aren’t any guarantees.
“This is a tax credit program that’s geared toward a low income tax tract, which this is,” he said. “We hope to know more in October when some of these [organizations] receive some feedback on a federal level on whether they can expect some level of credits.”
This article was updated 8/20/18 at 3:06 p.m. to correct the county’s cost from $5K to $5M.
Roy Hoshall, Bobbie Dove and Kerry England make their choices early during the 2016 silent auction.
BLYTHEWOOD – Four Lions Clubs will host their annual Night for Sight and Hearing on Sunday, Aug 19. at Doko Manor in Blythewood. The event includes an afternoon of Gospel music by three acts: God’s Tool Box, Free By Grace and Doug Hudson.
Clubs from Blythewood, Winnsboro, Columbia Northeast and Greater Irmo are hosting the event as their annual fundraiser for sight and hearing services in their respective communities. Tickets are $6 per person and can be purchased from club members or at the door during the event which starts at 4 p.m. and ends at 8 p.m. There will be a silent auction as well as a snack kitchen with foods and desserts for purchase. For more information, call Barbara Pemberton at 803-315-9346.
If you are like us, you flipped the calendar to August and felt a slight shift in the air. The days are slowly getting shorter and soon, maybe…hopefully, the weather will get a little cooler.
For us, the spectators, seasons are just getting started. But for athletes and coaches, preparation started months ago. While others’ summer days were filled with sleeping in and relaxing by the pool, these coaches and athletes spent their days designing schemes, running sprints, lifting weights, swimming laps. Getting stronger. Getting faster. Getting better. Because that’s what makes the difference come October and November. That’s what gives one team an edge.
We don’t see the countless hours of blood, sweat and tears poured into these teams in the offseason. But we cheer for a return on those investments for athletes and coaches.
Westwood athletics saw some returns last year. Volleyball and football made it to round three of the playoffs. Cross Country runners made a showing at State. Many of the athletes from these teams return this year, looking to avenge their season-ending losses.
Eagle football was bumped in the first round last year, but looks to push farther this year. To do so, they’ll have to get past newly realigned region foe Wardlaw. Cross Country enters its second season in school history with a new coach – Kristen Chaisson. Volleyball will have to overcome last season’s leadership struggles to find success on the court, especially against a tough Laurens team.
The Griffin tennis program returns strong players and a settled coaching staff. The sky could be the limit for Syreeta Thompson’s squad. Football had a bumpy start last season, but had a strong run until Emerald dashed their playoff hopes in the third round. The region realignment places Keenan into the region, but they expect the toughest opponents continue to be Chester, Camden and Indian Land.
Blythewood’s region shifted with the loss of White Knoll and addition of Lugoff-Elgin. Bengal volleyball, tennis and golf look to build on the foundations established last year. Will Epps returns for a second year as head of boys’ cross country and Aleshia Hawkins takes over the girls’ squad. Perhaps the biggest change comes with the new face of the football program, Jason Seidel. Seidel, looking to change the culture of the program after its dismal 2017 season, is ‘all in.’
Soon the stadiums, courts and gyms will be filled with our cheers (or silent golf claps). Exciting, isn’t it. A blank slate – a new season on the horizon. Where will we end up in October and November? Only time will tell.
Honor Roll
We thank the many talented people who helped make the 2018 Fall Sports Preview happen. First, our sports writers.
They report weekly from the trenches, day and night, near and far – Ross Burton, Worthy Evans, Martha Ladd and Blake Wooten.
And our photographers who contribute vivid images of our athletes in action: Ross Burton, Leroy Howard, DeAnna Robinson, Joe Seibles, Martha Ladd and Kristy Kimball Massey, Carolina Sports Photography and especially our designers Ashley Ghere and Callie Ladd Sims.
We also thank the following for their time and contributions: Paul Brigman, Ross Burton, Kristen Chaisson, Dustin Curtis, Demetrius Davis, Kelly Edrington, Will Epps, Robin Gaithers, Mary Hall, Aleshia Hawkins, Mary Hunter, Ciji Kuhlmann, Brice Mann, Jason Minkel, Rachel Peake, Jason Powell, Terrell Roach, Jason Seidel, Syreeta Thompson
Pick up a copy of the Fall Sports Preview (28 pages) today!
BLYTHEWOOD – Plans for a Taco Bell with a drive-thru to come to Blythewood Road were doused Monday evening when the Blythewood Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) denied the company a variance request to enlarge the usable area of the property the fast food restaurant proposed to build on.
The applicant, BWL Holdings, LLC, represented by Cason Development Group, requested a variance to reduce the necessary buffer transition yard on each side of a lot located at 209 Blythewood Road in the Town Center across from the Waffle House.
Because the 130 foot x 220 foot property is not wide enough to accommodate the building and a drive thru lane, the variance was requested to reduce the buffer transition yard on the western side of the lot to 3.4 feet and on the eastern side to four feet.
The Town requires a buffer between adjoining commercially zoned lots in the Town Center District to be a minimum of 10 feet in width, or 7 feet if a wall, fence or berm is used between adjoining properties on both sides and to the rear.
For a variance to be granted, according to Town ordinance all of the following findings and conclusions in a written order:
(a) There are extraordinary and exceptional conditions pertaining to a particular piece of property;
(b) These conditions do not generally apply to other property in the vicinity;
(c) Because of these conditions, the application of the chapter to a particular piece of property would effectively prohibit or unreasonably restrict utilization of the property;
(d) The authorization of the variance will not be a substantial detriment to adjacent property or to public good, and the character of the district will not be harmed by the granting of the variance; and
(e) The effect of the variance would not allow the establishment of a use not otherwise permitted in the zoning district; would not extend physically a nonconforming use of the land; would not change the zoning district boundaries shown on the official zoning map.
Cason spoke on behalf of granting the variance indicating they had to “skinny up the site plan” due to the dimensions of the site. One of his suggestions to enhance the narrow buffer zone was a ‘living fence.’ He had some examples to share of hedge plantings used to create borders.
“This will most likely come back up again,” Darren Rhodes, with Coldwell Banker and the realtor for the sale of the property, said. “It is a unique challenge to fit something on that site,” he told the BZA members.
Marie Berry said she is a co-owner of the property and represents the other three owners, all of whom she said were longtime residents of Blythewood.
“It would be an attractive addition to the community and economic development for the community,” Berry said.
Shelia Finkel, who along with her husband own the dental practice located on the property adjoining the east side of the site, reminded the Board that any decision they make now will come up again.
“Whatever decision you make will be for all of the town,” she said.
Stan Harpe, who said he owned the parcel to the west of the property, said the site was too small for the use.
“I went through the zoning process before trying to get Walgreens,” Harpe said.
After closing the public hearing, BZA Chair Pat Littlejohn read each of the five findings required to be met for a variance to be granted.
“There are lots of narrow lots, and shoehorning in this sets a precedent. This would be over-reach,” Board member Ray Fantone said. He asked Cason if the variance requester had tried to purchase land from the properties on either side.
“Yes, they have not been able to get land from either side,” Cason said.
Board member Derreck Pugh commented “that the variance brought up the same issues and they should keep in mind what the Town did before.”
“What if the live fence dies? What will we be looking at?” Board member Sharron Pickle asked.
Board member Marlon Hinds also had some concern about the fence and questioned what if it would change down the line.
“I don’t feel this is a special case. Not unique,” Hinds said.
Hinds made a motion to deny the request for a variance to reduce the buffer transition yards between adjoining commercially zoned lots at 209 Blythewood Road for a proposed commercial use. The motion was seconded by Fantone and the Board voted unanimously to deny the request.
RIDGEWAY – Pig on the Ridge committee representatives Tom Connor and Henry Dixon present a check for $1,000 to the Barclay School to help fund its fledgling program for students who learn differently. Below, they also donated $300 to Geiger Elementary Principal Myra Bramlett for the school’s “Look For The Good Project” that the school implemented for the coming school year.
Committee members not shown are Don Prioleau and Rufus Jones.
BLAIR – More than a hundred people gathered on Friday in the McCrorey-Liston Cafeteria to honor Eugenia G. Wilson for her years of service in the school’s cafeteria.
School Principal Chandra Bell said Wilson “was the matriarch of the school.” She also recalled Wilson’s oft-repeated mantra – “It’s all about the children.”
Many of those children, now adults, returned on Friday to witness the naming of the cafeteria for Wilson who began her career as a Food Service worker at the school in 1966 and retired forty years later as the cafeteria’s supervisor. By all accounts, she was beloved beyond measure by the children she fed and by those she worked with at the school.
Eugenia Wilson accepts a plaque from Superintendent Dr. J.R. Green, recognizing the naming of the cafeteria after her. | Barbara Ball
In 1979, Wilson received a certification of completion from the National Institute for the Food Service Industry. She also received continuing education credits through Midlands Technical College, Johnson and Wales University and the University of South Carolina. In 1995, she was named Fairfield County Food Service Manager of the Year.
Bell said Wilson was known for making sure that the students had wholesome, balanced meals, and the students loved the delicious meals she prepared for them.
“But the students were not the only ones who loved her meals,” Bell said. “About noon, people from all over Fairfield County would start coming through the front door headed to the cafeteria – from VC Summer, from the doctors’ office down the road, our maintenance crew, lined up!”
Former student Rodney Gibson, like other speakers, recalled “the wonderful food Mrs. Wilson prepared for us – nice warm, creamy grits and fried chicken. But what I remember even more,” he said turning to Wilson, “was your beautiful, kind smile and humble behavior that you showed us and instilled in us,” Gibson said.
“The pride she took in her cafeteria work was truly inspiring,” Sandra Conyers, a longtime teacher at the school, said. “I was constantly impressed with her work ethic. Her output was one of a kind. My room was right across the hall from the cafeteria, so you can imagine the wonderful aromas that seeped into my classroom about 10:30 or 11 every morning. No matter what Ms. Wilson and her staff prepared, it was always tasty, especially at holidays – fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, peach cobbler,” Conyers said. “She never disappointed.”
Wilson’s nephew, Brandon Henderson, now a college sophomore, recalled his first day of kindergarten at McCrorey-Liston.
“I knew that my Auntie ran that cafeteria back there,” Henderson said, smiling. “During Martin Luther King month in February, she would set up a table for everybody to sit at who had a birthday that month. She made sure I was at the front of the table…and that I had four chicken wings.”
The audience laughed.
Wilson’s daughter, Leslie, recalled her mother’s dedication to her work in the cafeteria, her co-workers and to the children she cooked for.
“She left the house at 5 in the morning, left us still in bed to be at work on time,” Leslie Wilson said. She said her mother and the other cafeteria ladies, also dedicated, arrived at the school before dark and didn’t leave until the end of the school day. It was a time when school meals were prepared from scratch.
“I have always been proud that my mom was a cafeteria worker,” Wilson said.
“Mom began cooking at the age of eight. She was the youngest girl of nine children. The others were working in the cotton fields, so as soon as Mom was old enough she was put in the kitchen cooking meals for the family,” Leslie Wilson said.
Wilson grew up in Blair and, as a teenager, boarded with families in Winnsboro so she could attend Fairfield High School. After high school, she met Aaron Wilson. They were married for 30 years until his death in 1980.
“Mom always cooked for the love of it. She didn’t want you messin’ with her pots and pans. And if she tells you this is the way she wants it done, then that’s the way she wants it done,” Leslie Wilson said, laughing. “My sister and I were not allowed to cook anything growing up except cornbread and biscuits because Mom said she didn’t have enough food to waste. I guess she didn’t think we could mess up cornbread and biscuits,” she said.
Leslie Wilson said her mother’s contribution was one of the things that made the school special and recalled her own glory days at McCrory-Liston.
“Later in life when I’d say there were only 60 students in my graduating class. They’d say, ‘Great!’ and I’d say, ‘Yeah, it was a small, private school,’” she said as the audience laughed and applauded. “Because that’s what it seemed like.”
After family members took turns speaking and presenting flowers to Wilson, Superintendent Dr. J. R. Green announced that a special plaque emblazoned with ‘The Eugenia G. Wilson Cafeteria’ would be attached to the wall next to a door into the cafeteria. He also presented Wilson with a scrapbook with messages from former students and memorabilia from Wilson’s years at the school.
Wilson then thanked the audience for their attendance and shared several stories from her years at the school – some poignant, others funny and all heartwarming.
“I loved the time I worked here at McCrorey-Liston. I loved cooking. I loved my work in the cafeteria, and I loved the children. Everything I did was for them,” Wilson said. “It was all about the children.”
