Category: Government

BLYTHEWOOD – At its regular meeting on June 29 Town Council passed first reading to sets the height limit of overgrown weeds in the town at 12 inches.

“In July of 2011, the Council adopted by reference the entire International Property Maintenance Code,” Town Administrator Gary Parker told Council members.

Section 302.4 of that Code, which addresses weeds and other overgrown plants, states that the local jurisdiction should insert the number of inches in height that the locality wants to set as the height threshold for such overgrowth.

Parker said the Town Hall staff proposed that the limit be set at 12 inches, which, Parker said, is the typical height found in municipal code sections that address the height of overgrown grass and weeds. After some discussion, Council voted unanimously to amend the code. The second and final reading will take place at the July 27 Council meeting.

Reverse 911

Council has discussed at its last two meetings the possibility of implementing a reverse 911 system for the town that would notify residents and businesses in case of emergencies. Parker suggested that such a system would be more appropriate for larger municipalities such as Columbia that have fire and police departments that respond to emergency situations. He said he felt Blythewood would be better served using another system such as email blasts.

“We would mainly be interested in sharing with the public the fact that there is an emergency or some other matter like a boil water alert,” Parker said. “Then, in the case of an emergency, it would be up to the public safety organization or public utility to advise its public information office of the incident so that information could be relayed to citizens.”

Councilman Eddie Baughman, who is a former firefighter, said that in case of an emergency in Blythewood, Columbia or Richland County is authorized to send out alerts at no cost to the Town. Council is expected to further discuss the issue at the July 27 meeting.

 

WINNSBORO – The search for a new firm to provide engineering services for County Transportation Committee (CTC) projects will have to start anew, Interim County Administrator Milton Pope told The Voice Tuesday, because of a flawed selection process.

Dan Dennis, owner of Dennis Corp., an engineering firm that was in the running for the contract, brought his concerns over the process to the County during Council’s June 22 meeting. One of six firms to submit proposals in response to the County’s March 30 Request for Qualifications (RFQ), Dennis Corp. ultimately lost out to I.C.E. (Infrastructure Consulting & Engineering, formerly Coleman-Snow Consulting), whom a three-member selection committee recommended to Administration.

Also submitting qualifications were Davis & Floyd, Inc.; HDR ICA Engineering; Vaughn & Melton Consulting Engineers; and Weston & Sampson. I.C.E. is also the current holder of the two-year contract.

“I’m not here because I’m a sore loser and Dennis Corp. was not selected as your County CTC engineer,” Dennis told Council during the second public comment portion of the June 22 meeting. “To my knowledge, I don’t believe proper procurement was followed.”

Dennis later told The Voice that the County’s selection committee had failed to interview candidates, as stipulated by the RFQ as advertised, prior to making its recommendation. Dennis said the S.C. Department of Transportation (DOT), which administers the funds for CTC projects, also requires that candidates be interviewed, in accordance with the state’s Consolidated Procurement Code.

Section 11-35-3220 (4) of the Code states, in part, that “. . . the agency selection committee shall hold interviews with at least three persons or firms who respond to the committee’s advertisement and who are considered most qualified . . .”

Pope said the contract, which is re-advertised every two years, had not yet been officially awarded and that all Administration had to date was the recommendation from the committee. The selection committee, Pope said, consisted of two members of the CTC and one member of the County’s Public Works Department. The committee met last month to review the RFQs and scored each based on five criteria.

Those criteria were: Past Performance/Related Experience on Similar Projects (25 points); Ability of Professional Personnel (25 points); Demonstrated Ability to Meet Time and Budget Requirements (20 points); Location of Firm (15 points); and Recent, Current and Project Work Load (15 points).

Although interviews with the top candidates were to follow, the CTC component of the committee “said ‘we don’t need to interview’,” Pope said, even though the County’s Procurement staff brought the necessity of the interviews to the committee’s attention.

Pope said Procurement staff then brought the matter to his attention. Dennis, who received his rejection from the County in a letter dated June 2, also brought the matter to the attention of Pope and Council.

“Unless I am provided with additional information,” Dennis’s June 16 letter to Pope, copies of which also went to Council, states, “I will have no choice but to file a formal protest of this selection . . .” The letter then noted the County’s failure to conduct the interviewing process.

Pope said Tuesday that the County was going to re-advertise the RFQ as quickly as possible.

“That’s good news,” Dennis said this week after learning of the County’s reversal. “It needs to be done right. Of course, my name is probably going to the bottom of the list now, but you’ve got to stand up for what is right.”

 

RIDGEWAY – After passing a water rate increase more than 10 times higher than necessary to keep up with their supplier, Town Council will revisit the matter during their July 9 meeting to either correct what the Town said was an error or to let the rates stand.

The across the board $1 per 1,000 gallons increase passed final reading during Council’s June 11 meeting and was intended to coincide with what Council perceived as a 98 cents per 1,000 gallons hike by Ridgeway’s primary supplier, the Town of Winnsboro. However, according to a March 31 letter to Ridgeway from Winnsboro Mayor Roger Gaddy and Town Manager Don Wood, Winnsboro’s rates, effective July 1, are going up only .098 cents – less than a dime – per 1,000 gallons.

“I don’t mind admitting there was a mistake made,” Councilman Russ Brown told The Voice this week, “and I’m for Council coming together to make that right. It was an honest mistake, and I’m not past trying to fix it. It’s only fair to be consistent with what Winnsboro does.”

Mayor Charlene Herring said she has had discussions with individual Council members, some of whom agree with Brown and other who are leaning toward leaving the rates in place with the understanding that those rates would not have to be raised again next year. With opinions veering in different directions, Herring said she thought the matter should be aired out in public.

“Some say leave it and some say change it,” Herring said, “so I thought it should be discussed in a meeting.”

Should Council elect to revise the rates, Herring said, an amendment to the budget would be necessary, which would take two readings before taking effect. A change in the rates would likely alter the Town’s $364,636 water and sewer fund budget, which also passed final reading on June 11 along with a $222,840 general fund budget.

The rates as passed last month were scheduled to take effect July 1. Should those rates stand, Residential water customers inside the Town limits will see their rate for the first 1,000 gallons go up to $16, and will pay $6.07 for each additional 1,000 gallons. Residential customers outside the Town limits will be paying $21 for the first 1,000 gallons and $7.32 for each additional 1,000 gallons.

Commercial water rates inside the Town limits are going up to $19 for the first 1,000 gallons and $6.07 for each additional 1,000. Those rates outside the Town limits will be $24 for the first 1,000 gallons and $7.32 for each additional 1,000 gallons.

Residential sewer rates for customers inside the Town limits will increase to $13 for the first 1,000 gallons and $5.42 for each additional 1,000 gallons. Outside the Town limits, those rates are going up to $14 for the first 1,000 gallons and $6.57 for each additional 1,000 gallons. The flat rate for residential sewer customers will now be $26.

Commercial sewer rates inside the Town limits are increasing to $17 for the first 1,000 gallons and $5.57 for each additional 1,000 gallons. Outside the Town limits, those rates are going to $20 and $6.57, respectively.

 

WINNSBORO – Following up on discussions at their March 25 meeting, representatives from Fairfield County’s various governing bodies were briefed during their June 15 intergovernmental meeting by TruVista Communications on the status of internet coverage in the county.

At the March meeting, Dr. J.R. Green, Superintendent of Fairfield County Schools, updated the group on the District’s plan to partner with local churches, installing Wi-Fi internet in churches that agree to open their doors to students and allow them to access the internet there.

Green said then that the partnership was a “good short-term solution, but I think long-term we would love to see a partnership between County Council and Jenkinsville, all of the entities, to see if we can have broadband access throughout our entire county.”

At the June 15 meeting, held at the Midlands Tech QuickJobs Center, TruVista representatives Randy Adams and Patricia Joyner detailed the company’s current range of internet service, as well as proposed future projects. A list of four future projects entailed improving and expanding somewhat existing areas already served, leaving a huge swath of central and western Fairfield County without service.

According to the map accompanying the presentation, east of I-77 and the northern lid of Fairfield County enjoy coverage, as does a small island area near Jenkinsville. Central Fairfield, from Adger south to the County line is covered, to include Winnsboro and several tentacles of coverage branching to the west and east from downtown. A gap exists between Winnsboro and I-77, to the north and the south of Highway 34, while from White Oak to Blair and the vast majority of western Fairfield, no coverage is yet available.

The map also included the location of all County owned buildings in the empty western and southwestern areas, to which TruVista said access points could be attached, but these would only provide limited coverage for Wi-Fi service.

“I see where we are,” District 4 County Councilman Kamau Marcharia said, “but where do we go from here? What do we have to do to move ahead and get the Wi-Fi?”

The answer, illustrated from various representatives in attendance by the rubbing together of fingers, is money.

“We’re investigating what the cost would be for us to build out to those locations,” Adams answered. “We’re also working on the pricing for the Wi-Fi hotspots at each of the locations and we’ll be getting that information back to the appropriate folks.”

The Town of Ridgeway earlier this month tabled a similar proposal by TruVista to turn their downtown into a Wi-Fi hotspot until the company could offer some improvements to its existing internet service (see the June 19 edition of The Voice, page 4).

Government Updates:

Fairfield County School District

Green reported that progress on the new Career and Technology Center had been slowed somewhat by foul weather earlier in the year. Slated for completion on Aug. 1, Green said the opening of the facility has been pushed back to Aug. 10.

In addition to traditional programs like auto mechanics, carpentry, welding and masonry, Green said the Center will offer as new programs environmental science (and extension of the nursing program), Project Lead the Way (an engineering program), firefighting/EMT training and barbering.

Ridgeway

Mayor Charlene Herring reported on the passage of the Town’s new hospitality tax (2 percent on prepared meals and beverages), and the recently executed $300 a year lease from Norfolk Southern of the Cotton Yard. Herring also reported that upgrades to the town’s wastewater treatment plant were under way. Last month, Council approved a $201,700 bid from J.L. Construction of Piedmont for the project. Ridgeway received a $220,000 grant several months ago from the Rural Infrastructure Authority for the project.

Winnsboro

Mayor Roger Gaddy reported that the town had received its permit from the Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) to begin a $13+ million project to draw up to 8 million gallons of water a day from the Broad River. Land has been identified, he said, for future locations of pump stations to deliver the water to the reservoir. Gaddy also said the town was in the process of engineering on Syrup Mill Road to bring additional water to the Fairfield Commerce Park on Peach Road.

“We’re getting closer to having the water available for the industrial park,” Gaddy said, “and we’re on schedule – a little ahead of schedule – with pulling water out of the Broad River to increase our capacity and minimize our dependence on Columbia to supply the Blythewood area and also have enough water available for future economic growth in Fairfield County.”

Marcharia pointed out that the Jenkinsville Water Company, which buys a small portion of its supply from Winnsboro via Mid County Water, is seeking a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to build its own treatment facility and draw water from Lake Monticello.

“They think it’s kind of absurd for Winnsboro to come all the way to the Jenkinsville area, draw water and bring it back and treat it and sell it over there, when they can get the water out of there,” Marcharia said. “That’s kind of how they see that.”

Marcharia said the town of Jenkinsville has already begun to annex vigorously, and within the next five years, he said, could have close to 500 people inside its town limits.

“One of my concerns would be if I were a Jenkinsville Water customer,” Gaddy said, “and they had to put a lot of money in infrastructure, new pump stations, etc., and even if there’s 500 people there, that’s not a whole lot of people to spread the costs over. They may find it cheaper to buy it from us than it is to put in a system, I don’t know. That’s their bailiwick. Whatever works for them is certainly fine.”

County Council

Chairwoman Carolyn Robinson (District 2) reported that the County had just passed its 2015-2016 budget, to include a road maintenance fee of $5 a year on private vehicles and $10 a year on commercial vehicles. The money will be set aside to improve and maintain county roads, she said. Robinson also said work has begun on Phase 2 of Commerce Park.

When School Board member Paula Hartman (District 2) asked for a recreation plan update, Robinson said the $3.5 million project was ready to be put out for bid. Robinson said the project was being bid out all at once, as one massive project, in an effort to secure a more competitive price.

 

Denials Conflict with Previous Statements

WINNSBORO – After passing during their June 8 meeting a 2015-2016 budget that included a road maintenance fee of $5 annually for private vehicles and $10 annually for commercial vehicles, County Council Monday night backed away from statements made during their budget work session process that pinned the necessity of the fee on the County Transportation Committee (CTC).

“The CTC did not ask the County to implement a road maintenance fee. And based on that, no one should conclude that the CTC is to blame,” Milton Pope, Interim County Administrator, told Council Monday night during his report.

Pope said there had been “some suggestions that Council had mentioned that it went through its process of approval by the insistence of the CTC, or because they required us to do that.” Quoting from a June 5 article in The Voice (“Road Fee Stays in Budget”), Pope read, “Talk of the fee first surfaced at the May 7 budget work session and came at a suggestion of the County Transportation Committee.”

Instead, Pope said, the CTC asked the County last winter to set aside a fund to provide maintenance for County improved roads.

“I took the information from that particular meeting to our retreat, which was in February,” Pope said, “and it appeared as though there was consensus that that fee should be included in the recommended budget.”

Chairwoman Carolyn Robinson (District 2) drove the point home during her County Council Time comments near the close of the meeting.

“I want it to be heard that never once did I say that the CTC told us how to put a fee together,” Robinson said. “I did say that the CTC told us that we needed to have something sitting aside, which will equate to like $123,000. . . . Never once did I say that they told us how to do this.”

Monday’s comments back away from statements made during budget work sessions, during which Pope and Robinson make it abundantly clear that were it not for the CTC there would be no road maintenance fee.

At a May 7 work session, when the fee was first discussed in public, Pope said, “When we met with the CTC, they mentioned to us we needed to look at providing maintenance dollars for County improved roads.” And during a May 26 work session, Pope said, “The fee was something that came about primarily after the CTC meeting we had and we were asked to invest and create some kind of fund.”

During a June 1 work session, Robinson placed the blame for the fee squarely at the feet of the CTC and the State Legislature. Road maintenance falling on counties, she said, was another example of “unfunded mandates” passed down from the state. The CTC, she said, is appointed by the local Legislative Delegation and receives its funding through the state’s gasoline tax.

“We’ve been told there was no more money to go back and resurface any of the roads that have already had surfacing on them in seven years,” Robinson said on June 1. “Guess who’s the closets person who’s going to hear the complaints about these resurfaced roads: County Council. And our hands are tied, there’s nothing with which to do those roads.”

Removing all doubt about whom she felt, at least on June 1, was responsible for the necessity of the road maintenance fee, Robinson said, “Ultimately this is a state mandate to us through the CTC Director.”