Newly elected town councilman Sloan Griffin, III, left, is congratulated by opponent former councilman Malcolm Gordge, right, and Mayor Bryan Franklin. | Barbara Ball
BLYTHEWOOD – Blythewood voters gave the nod to Sloan
Griffin, III in Tuesday night’s special election to fill the two remaining
years on the town council seat vacated by Bryan Franklin in November when he
was elected mayor.
With only a 7.06 percent turnout, possibly the lowest in the
town’s history, Griffin, with 118 votes squeaked past former town councilman
Malcolm Gordge with 103 votes.
Only 222 of the town’s 3,100 registered voters turned out on
an unseasonably warm day. There were 9 absentee votes and one write-in.
Griffin told The Voice that he is excited to become the
voice of the people.
“People can come to me for anything,” Griffin said. “I just
want to serve the people.”
Griffin said he wanted to commend Gordge on his campaign and
said he would welcome Gordge’s advice.
Gordge served four years on Council and was previously
appointed to the town planning commission where he later was elected Chairman.
Gordge’s council term was up in November when he decided to run for mayor
instead of running for another term on council. Gordge lost to Franklin in the
mayoral race.
Here’s how the precincts voted:
Blythewood 1 (Cobblestone area) – Griffin, 53 and Gordge, 25
BLYTHEWOOD – The annual town council retreat held Saturday
at The Manor focused on annexation, zoning, the farmers market, security for
council meetings, the budget and more, including a presentation by Jay Bender,
media attorney who represents the S. C. Press Association. Bender discussed
ways governments can be more open and achieve transparency by complying with
the S.C. Freedom of Information Act.
Zoning and Land Use
S.C. media attorney Jay Bender discussed the state’s Freedom of Information Act. | Barbara Ball
Town administrator Brian Cook opened saying the planning
commission will soon begin review the town’s comprehensive land use plan as
well as the master plan. He specifically discussed zoning categories – the
number of the town’s commercial zoning categories (six) and the number of
zoning categories in general which he feels may be excessive for a town
Blythewood’s size.
“While larger municipalities have a need for more zoning categories,
I’m not sure a small town like Blythewood needs as many as we have,” Cook told
The Voice.
He said much of the comprehensive plan is outdated and that
the planning commission needs to be looking it over as they prepare to work
with the Midlands Council of Government or another organization to develop a
new comp plan next year for Blythewood.
“The comp plan is a guide for future zoning,” Cook reminded
council members. “We need to know how we want to grow and where we want to grow
or not grow. We can be wide open for development; we can be a little more
cautious with development or we can put the brakes on development altogether,”
Cook said.
Cook also suggested that the town’s master plan, which was
created in March, 2019, be reviewed.
“It’s a fluid document and we need to update our priorities
on a regular basis,” he said.
Annexation
Annexation was high on Mayor Bryan Franklin’s campaign list
when he ran for office last fall. His goal, he said at a recent town council
workshop, is to annex the entire 29016 Blythewood zip code.
To that end, town attorney Jim Meggs explained to council
the three kinds of annexation methods available to the town besides volunteer
agreements to annex into the town.
“Freeholders (any person owning at least 1/10th interest in
a parcel) can voluntarily sign a petition to annex into a town,” Meggs said. “A
town can aggregate several tracts if those freeholders sign the petition. This
can, however, leave holes of unannexed parcels circled by the town.”
Meggs said legislation is in committee now to allow towns to
annex those holes by force if they are less than 25 acres and have been circled
by the town for more than five years. This is referred to as the enclave method
of annexation.
“Before annexation of any property can take place, it must
be contiguous with the town and it cannot be part of another town,” Meggs said.
Water Covenant Annexation
“If the town cannot convince freeholders to annex
voluntarily, the town can, if it offers water, use water covenants to bind the
freeholder to sign an annexation petition, if present, when that property
becomes contiguous with the town,” Meggs said. “That’s not to say, however,
that the utility wouldn’t cut your water off [if you didn’t comply],” he added.
Meggs said Fort Mill once used that tactic successfully to force annexation of
a large swath of properties.
75 Percent Annexation
A second annexation method is the 75 percent petition
method. If the town wants to annex an area, it must get signatures of
freeholders who own at least 75 percent of the total assessed value of the
subject properties the town is seeking to annex. With this method, the town is required
to specify what services the town will provide the properties when they are
annexed. The 75 percent can force the unwilling 25 percent of the properties in
the subject area to annex.
25 Percent Annexation
If 25 percent of registered electors [not property owners]
in a subject area outside of town sign an annexation petition and get
certified, there would be an election conducted on the question of whether to
be annexed or not, Meggs said. But if a majority of the electors vote in favor
of annexing into the town, then the town can annex the territory.
Under this method, owners of large parcels over 25 acres can
opt out. This method was used unsuccessfully last year by the Fairfield County
town of Jenkinsville.
A technical feature of the 25 percent annexation method is
that if the election is successful, then 5 percent of the electors of the town
can present a petition denying or confirming the annexation.
Security
Councilman Donald Brock raised the question of whether council
should have security present at all council meetings. He suggested that while
there is not a hostile environment at council, he said it was the consensus of
those attending a recent municipal institute session that government meetings
should hire security to be present during all town meetings. It was suggested
that security cover planning commission, board of zoning appeals meetings as
well as other meetings.
“So the question I propose is, does the Town of Blythewood
need security at town meetings?” Brock said. “No one would have thought years
ago that someone would walk into an elementary school and do what they did. But
I’m not trying to instill any sort of fear or angst or nervousness.”
“I don’t want it to look intimidatng. I don’t want it to
look like a Richland County meeting where you try to speak and the police come
and get you. That’s not what we do in Blythewood,” Franklin said.
Franklin said council would further discuss the issue at the
next meeting.
Other issues
Council also discussed the following:
whether to build a farmer’s market building in the park to accommodate not only the market but other events, such as the artist guild’s spring and winter events that required indoor settings.
whether to incorporate the use of filming/video, streaming and uploading council meetings to various online platforms,
what parameters should be set for determining who should receive A-tax and H-tax funds and how those awarded the funds should handle profits.
These subjects will be discussed in more detail at future
council meetings.
WINNSBORO – The County Administration and Finance Committee recommended to council the allocation of $130,000 Monday evening for two capital building projects intended to contribute to the overall health of Fairfield County residents – a fitness center and the Farmer’s Market building.
The the recommended funds come from the existing $500,000 capital building projects budget.
“We’re using $30,000 of that money to renovate part of the
old Everett School building [located in Drawdy Park behind the county
administration building] for use as a recreation center facility,” County
Administrator Jason Taylor said. “About a third of the $30,000 will be spent on
the fitness area, a third on the office area and a third on storage.”
“The remaining $100,000 will be used toward the farmer’s
market building, to take it from just a farmer’s market to an event facility
that will bring in revenue,” Taylor explained. About $20,000 will be used to
finish out the restrooms, $10,000 to bring a water line to the building,
$30,000 for sprinklers and $40,000 for kitchen equipment.
The county is receiving additional funding from grants from
Parks and Recreation Development (PARD) , Dominion Energy and from a Healthy
People Healthy Carolinas (HPHC) grant awarded through a 3-year, $450,000 Duke
Endowment grant that was awarded in 2016 to Fairfield Forward (previously
Fairfield Community Coordinating Council), a 501 (c) (3) non-profit that is
dedicated to identifying and addressing the health needs of Fairfield County
residents.
“This grant money is to be spent for evidence-based
interventions,” the county’s Community Development Director Chris Clausen told
the committee, “on ways to make people healthier, giving them better
opportunities to eat better or to have a more active lifestyle. So these two
projects, in particular, were of interest to Fairfield Forward. They were
already looking to do something for the farmers’ market. However, given the
other constraints that we currently have, we have to complete the building,
essentially, prior to July 1,” Clausen said. “With this funding Fairfield
Forward is trying to spend, the Drawdy Park project also came up so they wanted
to help with that as well.”
Since the first cycle of the $450,000 ($150,000/year for
three years) from the Duke Endowment is almost over and the remaining funds
need to be spent prior to July 1, the Fairfield Forward board voted to spend
$75,000 on the fitness area equipment and $10,000 for temporary market manager
positions at the farmer’s market to assist with processing SNAP payments.
“The board wanted to expend some funding on the purchase of
kitchen equipment at the farmers’ market,” Taylor said, “but given the
timelines with the grant, they opted to revisit this in the next funding cycle.
A $60,000 PARD grant will go toward a new HVAC system for
the fitness area and office space. With the $75,000 being donated by Fairfield
Forward and $60,000 from PARD, the fitness center project comes in at $165,000.
The request for the $130 funding from the county’s existing
capital building project funds will next go before full council for
consideration.
Celebrating their combined efforts to pass an ordinance to outlaw tethering dogs in Fairfield County are, from left, kneeling: Fairfield County Animal Control Director Bob Innes and his staff, Leah Oswald, Nikki Jones and Samira Yaghi; Hoof & Paw board members Kathy Faulk, Paula Spinale, Minge Wiseman and Linda Moore. Back row, from left: County Administrator Jason Taylor, H & P member Mary Lynn Kinley, county council members Moses Bell, Clarence Gilbert, Mikel Trapp, Bertha Goins, Douglas Pauley, Jimmy Ray Douglas and Hoof & Paw president Deborah Richelle who is holding a photo of one of the group’s longtime leaders, the late Shirley Locklair. | Barbara Ball
WINNSBORO – Fairfield County voted unanimously Monday night
to unleash a ban on animal tethering, an important protection animal advocates
say will help reduce animal injuries and abuse cases. Members of the Hoof and
Paw Benevolent Society as well as staff from the county animal shelter were on
hand to celebrate the ordinance.
“It’s been a longtime coming,” Hoof and Paw board member
Kathy Faulk, a Fairfield County resident, said. “It’s a positive move forward
for our county.”
The ordinance also includes provisions curtailing animal
hoarding. The vote followed a workshop a week earlier where the county sought
input from the community about the proposed law.
A key component of the Fairfield ordinance is a set of
guidelines for replacing tethering with a trolley system, which resembles a zip
line. With a trolley, leashes are attached to an overhead cable that gives dogs
greater freedom.
Trolley lines must measure at least 20 feet between
endpoints, and dogs attached to trolleys must wear a harness. The ordinance
prohibits attaching the trolley leash to a collar. Harnesses are considered
safer because they wrap around a dog’s chest instead of having a collar around
a dog’s neck.
Councilman Moses Bell asked whether the county animal
shelter might keep in stock a selection of harnesses in various sizes for
residents to purchase. County Administrator Jason Taylor said that would be a
good idea and he would look into the possibility.
The ordinance also calls for dogs to have access to adequate
food, water and shelter.
An earlier version of the ordinance allowed limited
tethering for short durations, but the final ordinance bans tethering
altogether.
“[This ordinance] takes the tethering concept away,” said
Tommy Morgan, the county’s attorney.
“This [revision] is needed on so many levels,” Faulk said.
At an earlier meeting, she thanked council for their promotion of animal
welfare in Fairfield County and also called for an end to overbreeding and
hoarding in the county.
Chain, Collar Injuries
To illustrate the problem of animal abuse caused by tether ing,
Faulk distributed to council members a stack of graphic photos of dogs with
deep neck wounds that resulted from tethering.
“We were mortified, very sad and angry as we looked at these
photographs,” Faulk said.
“We seem to be picking up more and more animals that are
injured by chains and collars,” Bob Innes, the director of the county’s animal
control and adoption center, added.
While the ordinance also cracks down on animal hoarding,
Morgan said the ordinance isn’t directed at legally operated kennels or
livestock.
In regard to multiple animals living in a home, Taylor said
owners of multiple indoor animals must first have a license, and it must be
determined that the location is suitable for this type of operation.
“More rules will need to be put in place to state what will
qualify as a kennel,” Taylor said. “The state rules for a kennel are that you
must have a concrete floor with a drain to be able to be washed out each day
and have a place for the drain water to go,” Taylor said.
“Once the ordinance is in effect, will there be a window
with proper notification before citizens are held accountable to the new rules,
such as the new trolley/harness system?” Council Douglas Pauley asked.
“It should be up to the officers who respond to the calls to
let the citizens know of the new rules and that should take care of a large
part of this concern,” Councilman Jimmy Ray Douglas said.
“Once the ordinance is in place, it would be hard to swing
the pendulum to the other side immediately and think everyone will immediately
know the new rules and be on board,” Taylor said. “There will be an education
period, which will include working with the Sheriff’s Department. In extreme
cases, the new ordinance will be followed. However, within reason, we will work
with the citizens,” Taylor said at the earlier workshop.
Bob Innes, Director of the Fairfield County Animal Shelter
said the ordinance was desperately needed, and suggested it should be phased
in, possibly beginning with the new fiscal year.
Animals Trapped in Vehicles
The ordinance also addresses animals left in vehicles.
“Any regular citizen can break a window if the owner of an
animal [trapped in a vehicle] cannot be found,” Innes said.
At the workshop, Ridgeway resident Randy Bright called all
kinds of animal abuse a “stain on our entire county.”
Bright repeated his previous calls for the solicitor’s
office to more aggressively prosecute animal abuse and neglect cases. He also
noted some cases could be prosecuted under the new federal animal cruelty law,
which carries penalties of up to seven years in prison for the most serious
offenses.
“How can we leverage that? Federal laws have the highest
penalties it seems,” he said.
This is Fairfield County’s second revision in as many years
to its animal control ordinance.
In 2018, council revised the ordinance to include a $500
civil fine for violations. The updated law also includes more detailed
definitions of nuisance animals and requires all pets to be fed once a day and
provided potable water. It also requires mandatory reporting of pets struck by
a vehicle.
The Fairfield County’s anti-tethering ordinance mirrors a
similar ordinance that Aiken County adopted in 2017. Aiken County Administrator
Clay Killian told The Voice that the ordinance has not faced any legal
challenges.
Taxpayers Pay for Abuse
Innes said all types of animal abuse cases, including over
breeding and hoarding, burden taxpayers in the long run.
“There’s a lot of people in this county that are just
chaining a dog and just breeding it and breeding it,” Innes said. “They dump
puppies on animal control, which means taxpayers are picking up the bill.”
The newly approved animal cruelty ordinance is available on the county’s website: fairfieldsc.com.
BLYTHEWOOD – What promised to be an informative though less than riveting review Monday evening of the purposes, responsibilities and processes of the town’s boards and commissions by Town Administrator Brian Cook, ended with a disgruntled former coffee vendor verbally holding the council and planning commission hostage for close to half an hour.
The evening began with boxed meals brought in for
councilmen, commissioners and town hall staff prior to a 6 p.m. joint meeting
of council members and planning commissioners.
Beyer
It was not until the public comment segment at the end of
the public meeting that the fireworks began. That’s when Matt Beyer, owner of
Grace Coffee, a former coffee vendor in the town, stepped up to the podium.
While assuring the panel right off that what he was about to
say was not a threat, some at the dias and in the audience, said afterward it
appeared to be so.
“As my dad often said, we can do this the easy way or the
hard way – and this is not a threat – but there’s a short version and a long
version. I’m prepared to do both,” Beyer told council firmly.
In an almost 25-minute soliloquy, Beyer tried to convince
the panel to reinstate his coffee trailer’s previous grandfathered status in
the town. He explained that he is leaving his Lexington location, and the new
owners of the former Bits and Pieces business at 208 Main Street would like to
have Grace Coffee come back to that location. The owners, according to Town
Hall, are Theresa McKenrick and her husband Rich McKenrick who is also a member
of the town’s planning commission.
Beyer initially launched into what he described as the short version of his request, detailing his side of a complex story that was reported in The Voice off and on over two and a half years. The last story printed in February, 2019 after Beyer moved from the grandfathered location in the parking lot of Bits and Pieces at 208 Main Street to a new location on Wilson Blvd. (See Grace Coffee FB post stirs up community and Grace Coffee opens outside town from Nov. 2018. )
In telling his version of the story, Beyer quoted the town
administrator, the Voice, the former and current mayors, planning
commissioners, town council members and others to make his case that while he
left his grandfathered location, he should be allowed by the town to return to
it and continue doing business there.
But, according to Town Hall, Beyer’s move from the location
nullified the grandfather clause. Beyer, however, said his status still stands
and he only needs confirmation of that from council.
“I’m not here today to debate what has already been debated
for two years. I’m here seeking affirmation of what has already been determined
by the planning commission, the board of architectural review and the former
mayor himself,” Beyer said. “I’ve got written documentation of this that I am
willing to share if we need to, but for the sake of time – again, easy way,
hard way – if council would like to make a motion, a simple memo or a motion to
affirm the decision already made to allow us to operate as we once did for two
years, we can move on, get home much earlier tonight.”
Jumping in at one point as Beyer caught his breath, Mayor
Brian Franklin tried unsuccessfully to end Beyer’s presentation.
“You make a good point, but we cannot take action tonight.
It’s not on the agenda,” Franklin said. “But we heard what you said.”
Beyer was undaunted in his quest and continued.
“Okay, well if there’s no action, then I’m just going to
continue,” Beyer said as he proceeded.
“Uh, you’re pretty much…” Franklin broke in. “We get the
point. Is there anything…” Beyer interrupted and forged on.
“Yes, yes, absolutely, absolutely, and I’ll be brief,” Beyer
said as he continued for another 15 minutes to recount events from two years
ago as well as his multiple unsuccessful attempts to convince town hall to
confirm his side of the issue.
Eighteen minutes into his speech, Beyer insisted that he was
not trying to be difficult.
“I’ve chosen to keep this issue private for a week, ‘cause I
don’t want to do this.” He added after he got no response, “If you want to go
to town council we can do this and then all of a sudden, the whole community
will know. So I’m here tonight to try to resolve this one last time before it
goes public. And I’m just saying there’s a lot of people around here that love
our coffee.”
Asked by The Voice if he is considering a lawsuit against
the town on the issue, Beyer said, “no comment.”
After more than 24 minutes, Beyers ended his plea with, “I’m
asking one time that you just affirm. I just need a memo.”
WINNSBORO – The commission of the Fairfield Joint Water and
Sewer Authority will conduct a public hearing to receive public comment regarding
the construction of a wastewater treatment plant with a planned discharge of
treated effluent into Big Cedar Creek located in southern Fairfield County.
The Fairfield Joint Authority will provide an update to the
public on the status of the plant and its proposed location.
All interested persons will be given an opportunity to be
heard and express their views at the hearing. The hearing will be held on
Tuesday, Feb. 25 at 6 p.m., in county council chambers at 350 Columbia Road in
Winnsboro.
For additional information, email Clerk to Council Patti
Davis at patti.davis@fairfield.sc.gov
CEDAR CREEK – About a hundred residents of the northeast
section of Blythewood 29016 and the southern part of Fairfield County, many of
whom live along Cedar Creek, met in the Cedar Creek Community Center Sunday
afternoon to discuss a wastewater treatment plant Fairfield County Council has
proposed to locate on a 50-acre property on Syrup Mill and Broom Mill
Roads. The wastewater from that plant is
proposed to be discharged into Cedar Creek.
Fairfield County officials, Administrator Jason Taylor,
Planning Director Chris Clausen and Economic Development Director Ty Davenport
fielded questions.
Fairfield County officials answer questions from Cedar Creek Community residents. | Barbara Ball
The first sore spot brought up by meeting organizers as well
as some in the audience was the feeling that information about the proposed
site had been kept secret by the county and not made public.
“I didn’t know about this until about a week ago.” Shawn
Goff, one of the organizers, told the audience on Jan. 19. “I had no idea this
is coming,” Goff said.
“You understand why we feel blindsided about this,” Cedar
Creek resident Jim Young added. “I didn’t hear about it until a week ago.”
An unidentified woman spoke up to say Fairfield County
residents also didn’t know about the proposed site.
The information about the site location was made public
during a council committee meeting two months earlier on Nov. 11, 2019.
The Voice reported the proposed location on Syrup Mill Road in a front page story on Dec. 5, titled ‘Water Authority Moving Forward.’ The story read, in part, “At an Administrative and Finance committee meeting, also held Nov. 11, county officials said the property being targeted is located off Syrup Mill Road near Big Cedar Creek.”
“We rarely disclose these things until we’re well into the
process with an economic development project,” Taylor said. “We usually give a
code name [until a contract is signed].”
“We found a property, but we weren’t going to announce, ‘Hey
we’re looking at property along Cedar Creek’, because if we do that, the costs
will go up,” Fairfield County Economic Director Ty Davenport said. “Once we put
the property under contract, it was announced at a public meeting.”
Another concern of many at the meeting was whether the
wastewater that would be discharged into the creek would contaminate it.
Both Goff and the county officials disclosed that the creek
is already receiving wastewater from the Ridgeway wastewater plant that is
currently in violation for discharging contaminants into the creek.
Taylor said the Ridgeway plant cannot be modernized. He said
if the county builds a wastewater plant, it could take on the Ridgeway
discharge, effectively cleaning up the creek instead of contaminating it.
John Culbreth, with Thomas and Hutton engineering
consultants, said at the Jan. 13 council meeting that the wastewater discharged
from the Syrup Mill Road facility would be processed by a state-of-the-art
treatment system – a membrane bioreactor (MBR) system – that would not
contaminate the creek. He said it is an advanced level of treatment that would
discharge water of near drinking water quality. He said that discharge is used
to irrigate golf courses and crops and for other uses.
Taylor reiterated Sunday that the discharge would not
pollute the creek. Asked if he would let his children swim in it, he said he
would.
Goff, who lives on Cedar Creek and opposes the discharge
into the creek, agreed that the MBR technology, from his research, is the best
of the best.
“If you have to have one, this is the one you want,” Goff
said. “I can’t tell you that it’s the devil, because it’s the most advanced
wastewater treatment facility that’s available. There are no open pools. It’s
all contained and it has a small footprint, about seven acres. Anyone can
Google and do the research. I was trying my darndest to find some piece of bad
press or something that has happened at one of these plants, and I can’t,” Goff
said. “They say the creek will be cleaner than it is now.”
“Membrane technology is a very clean technology, but it is
highly intensive from a maintenance standpoint,” an unidentified man from the
audience said. “And you’re turning over a very complex treatment facility to
who? To Fairfield County?”
The audience laughed.
Taylor said the county would manage the treatment facility.
Asked if the county had anyone who had experience managing wastewater treatment
plants, Taylor said it does, that he had successfully operated one in Jasper
County for 13 years.
Center Creek resident David Valentine, a civil engineer,
asked why the county is rushing the wastewater treatment facility through and
would the county be willing to put the project on hold for a period of time so
citizens could do the due diligence.
“We are open to looking at other options without question,”
Taylor said. “But I will say it’s not been rushed from our side. I’ve been
working on it for three years and the county’s been working on it since 1997,”
he said. “We have been losing population and jobs. We need to plan for jobs and
to reverse population.”
Taylor said hooking into Columbia is too costly and that
Columbia would then control Fairfield’s future. “Columbia could control whether
we get an industry or not by not making sewer available,” he said. “And going
with Columbia would pull a whole huge amount of money out of Fairfield County and
send it to Columbia to develop their infrastructure. We can build our own
infrastructure in house and control it much cheaper and then keep all the
revenue here.”
Retired Blythewood attorney Stuart Andrews explained to the
residents their legal options to stop Fairfield County from discharging
wastewater into Cedar Creek. He said it could cost millions to mount a legal
campaign against the county but offered that it would be possible to slow the
process down to the point of effectively dismantling the county’s efforts.
Someone in the audience suggested bringing pressure on the
county by boycotting the merchants in Fairfield County.
By the end of the hour and a half meeting, many in the
audience remained convinced that the system would or could, somehow,
contaminate the creek and ruin their water wells.
According to South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) there is no conclusive evidence that water wells have been contaminated by treated wastewater discharges. Still, members of the audience insisted they want options for the discharged water other than Cedar Creek. Those other options, however, for one reason or another, are not a fit for the county (see ‘What Are The Options?’ below).
Longtime Cedar Creek resident Lynn Robertson is not
convinced. She said that while she wishes Fairfield well in its endeavor to
bring infrastructure and jobs to the county, she is not convinced that the
proposed wastewater treatment plant would not contaminate Cedar Creek.
“There are some other options and I just feel like, I hope and pray that they will look at other options for this rather than dumping it in Cedar Creek,” Robertson said. “I do not want Cedar Creek to be the wastewater pipeline through Richland County to the Broad River. No matter what they say, errors can occur.”
What are the Options?
contributed by the Richland County Conservation Committee
Fairfield County is setting up a new service area to provide
wastewater treatment to Winnsboro, Ridgeway, the Fairfield County Industrial
megasite and for existing and future development along the 1-77 corridor inside
Fairfield County.
This service area would be managed through a joint use
partnership agreement (the new Joint Water Authority) and a management entity
which is currently under development for the new area. This new service area
would require an amendment of the existing 208 (Wastewater) Water Quality
Management Plan for the area as well as a new National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System (NPDES) Permit which has not been applied for at this point.
More public meetings and informational sessions are being
planned by the County for the proposed site.
The Site
The final site for the wastewater treatment plant has not
been selected, although Fairfield County Council has approved the purchase of a
certain size and price of property. The County has an option agreement on a
50-acre site on Syrup Mill Road at Broom Mill Road.
If this site is selected the new discharge point will be
into Big Cedar Creek.
The plant will need approximately 7 to 10 acres, and will be
designed for an initial capacity of 2 million gallons per day (mgd) and a
maximum with additions of 4 mgd. Twenty-five percent of the waste to be treated
at the new site is projected to come from the megasite with the rest coming
from the Winnsboro and Ridgeway facilities as well as existing and future
development along the 1-77 corridor.
The Winnsboro and Ridgeway treatment facilities have been in
service for a very long time and are very near their flow capacities. The
Winnsboro facility currently discharges to Jackson Creek, and the Ridgeway
facility discharges to Big Cedar Creek upstream of where the new discharge is
currently proposed. Big Cedar Creek flows from Fairfield County into Richland
County and eventually into the Broad River.
The Options
Other alternatives to the proposed plant were discussed at
the Jan. 15 Environmental Planning Advisory Committee (EPAC) meeting. Those
options included revamping the existing Ridgeway or Winnsboro discharge,
providing onsite treatment at the megasite, piping to the Broad River, or land
application.
Revamping the Ridgeway site would be cost prohibitive and
undesirable because of the additional piping needed to cover the new areas
which would be serviced by the new site.
The Wateree is currently unable to accept more Ultimate
Oxygen Demanding (UOD) substances which are present in treated effluents.
Providing onsite treatment at the megasite would also negate
coverage of the new areas and again, treated effluent would end up in the
Wateree after flowing through Dutchman Creek.
Piping to the Broad River would be much more expensive than
the proposed new plant and would be cost prohibitive.
Land application would require an estimated 1,200 acres and
would also be cost prohibitive.
Cedar Creek Option
The plant proposed on Syrup Mill Road would provide tertiary
quality treatment to a re-use level discharging into Big Cedar Creek downstream
of the current Ridgeway discharge. This tertiary treatment discharge would be
of higher quality treated effluent than the existing Ridgeway discharge. In
addition, the megasite would be required to provide pretreatment of any
industrial type effluents to meet discharge standards from industrial sites
before the pre-treated effluent would go to the new plant. The county officials
are also working to find users in the area who could re-use the wastewater for
irrigation, industrial or other purposes. A preliminary engineering report is
projected to be completed for this project within 3 to 6 months.
John Culbreth of Thomas & Hutton engineering presents information about the proposed wastewater treatment plant to packed chamber during council’s meeting Monday night. | Barbara Ball
WINNSBORO – Over a hundred residents from lower Fairfield
County, Cedar Creek and the northwestern section of Blythewood, including the
mayor of Blythewood, filled Fairfield county council chambers and an overflow
room Monday evening during a three hour council meeting over concerns about a
wastewater treatment plant that council has proposed on a site near the
intersection of Syrup Mill and Broom Mill Roads.
While the county has only optioned the site at this point,
residents expressed concerns about the proximity of the site to their homes.
Their urgency was to stop or delay the third and final reading of Ordinance 738
which many thought would finalize the purchase of the Syrup Mill Road site.
County officials said, however, that the ordinance is not
for a particular parcel of land but authorizes the county to purchase at least
50 acres of land not to exceed a cost of $300,000 that would be suitable for
construction of a wastewater treatment facility.
After several false starts, council approved the ordinance
with a 4 – 3 vote with councilmen Moses Bell, Mikel Trapp and Douglas Pauley
voting against. Pauley represents the Syrup Mill Road area.
Residents voiced their concerns during public comment time
at the beginning of the meeting. But as the meeting wore on, tempers flared
with frequent interruptions and outbursts from the audience. At one point
chairman Neil Robinson threatened to eject those who continued to interrupt.
Addressing council, Don Quick, a resident of the Center
Creek community in Ridgeway, said the big issue is the stigma attached to a
wastewater plant and the effect it would have on home values in the area.
David Valentine, who also lives on Center Creek Road, said
the county’s proposal would be using antiquated processes. He addressed the
wastewater treatment plant as being located on an industrial site.
“Modern technology drives for a zero discharge proposal with
on-site holding ponds,” Valentine said.
While many of those attending the meeting live in proximity
to the plant, others who live downstream on Cedar Creek west of Blythewood in
Richland County expressed concern that the plan calls for the wastewater plant
to discharge treated wastewater into the creek.
“It’s bad enough that council would consider building an
industrial wastewater treatment plant in the midst of this bucolic residential
setting, but you would propose to flush the large toilet down Cedar Creek,”
George Walker, Jr., who owns a farm in Blythewood, said.
“What guarantees do we have that this discharge water will
not pollute the aquafers around and under the creek that so many families
depend on?” asked Sean Goff who owns a farm on Cedar Creek. “Data shows
elevated bacteria levels downstream of similar facilities. How can we let our
kids play in this creek with this in place?”
Other residents addressed odors, contamination, traffic and
the eyesore of the plant itself.
John Culbreth, principal/regional director of engineering
firm Thomas Hutton addressed those questions as well as another 100 or so
council had invited residents to send in.
With a power point presentation, Culbreth displayed what he
said the facility would look like – a state-of- the-art water treatment plant
recently constructed in the town of Isle of Palms.
“The type of system we’re proposing is what is being done in
coastal communities where you’re dealing with property next door worth upwards
of $2 million,” he said. “The one shown here is right next to a golf course.”
Culbreth said the golf course uses some of the discharged water for irrigation.
“It’s nice and clean. The system is all enclosed. There are
not big open aeration basins that you’re looking at. It’s not the old school
stuff you see driving down I-77. That’s not what’s being built. This,” he said,
pointing to the screen, “is what’s going to be built.”
“An odor scrub system will be in place, and as far as noise,
sound attenuation walls on the structure will minimize pump sounds. You
probably wouldn’t hear anything unless you’re on the property, and it would
sound more like office type activity, nothing more than that.”
Culbreth said there will be at least 100 feet of buffer
around the property and could be more if that particular sight is eventually
settled on. He also said a membrane
bioreactor (MBR) system, the latest technology, was chosen for its advanced
level of treatment of the wastewater that will come out and because it has a
small footprint.
“The system can be put inside of a facility that will look
like a golf club house. It’s all inside and covered,” he said. “This is the
state-of-the-art that we can do right now. It’s not your typical wastewater
treatment plant. ”
Pauley asked if there was a reason the plant could not be
built on the megasite.
“The issue is that the megasite is not the best site
countywide,” Culbreth said. “If you’re going to try to serve just the megasite,
then put it there. But the goal here is to have larger investment to the
overall regional community, to benefit the overall area, and the best location
for that is closer to where the site is that it benefits. And it’s the area
that’s going to grow first. If the state’s going to help provide $40 million to
pay for a wastewater treatment plant, it has to benefit the entire region, not
just the megasite.”
While County Administrator Jason Taylor said the county has
looked at other properties and that a couple of others are still in play, all
of them are going to discharge into Cedar Creek.
As far as the possibility of water well contamination along
the creek, Culbreth said with this type of system that will be used, he didn’t
see any concerns with discharging into the creek.
“It’s septic tanks that are about five to 20 percent of the
causes of any kind of well contamination,” he said. “That’s on DHEC’s website.
I’ve never been asked to fix a well that was impacted.”
“Are you saying it [water discharged from the plant] won’t
affect their wells?” Pauley asked.
“Yes sir, I am saying that,” Culbreth said.
“The level of treatment we’re talking about is near drinking water standards. [This discharged water] will be about as clean as the water in the creek.”
WINNSBORO – Fairfield County is one vote away from
unleashing a ban on animal tethering, an important protection animal advocates
say will help reduce animal injuries and abuse cases.
On Dec. 9, council members unanimously passed second reading
of the ordinance, which also includes provisions curtailing animal hoarding.
Third and final reading will likely occur in January.
A key component of the Fairfield ordinance is a set of
guidelines for a trolley system, which resembles a zip line. With a trolley,
leashes are attached to an overhead cable that gives dogs greater freedom.
Trolley lines must measure at least 20 feet between
endpoints, and dogs attached to trolleys must wear a harness. The ordinance
prohibits attaching the trolley leash to a collar. Harnesses are considered
safer because they wrap around a dog’s chest instead of having a collar around
a dog’s neck.
Dogs must also have access to adequate food, water and
shelter, according to the draft ordinance.
An earlier version of the ordinance allowed limited
tethering for short durations, but the latest ordinance bans tethering
altogether.
“[This ordinance] takes the tethering concept away,” said
Tommy Morgan, the county’s attorney.
“This [revision] is needed on so many levels,” said Kathy
Faulk, a Fairfield County resident with the Hoof and Paw Benevolent Society,
who spoke during the public comment session. She thanked council for their
promotion of animal welfare in Fairfield County and also called for an end to
overbreeding and hoarding in the county.
Chain, Collar Injuries
To illustrate the problem of animal abuse, Faulk distributed
to council members a stack of graphic photos of dogs with deep neck wounds that
resulted from tethering.
“We were mortified, very sad and angry as we looked at these
photographs,” Faulk said.
“We seem to be picking up more and more animals that are
injured by chains and collars,” Bob Innes, the director of the county’s animal
control and adoption center, added.
While the ordinance also cracks down on animal hoarding, Morgan
said the ordinance isn’t directed at legally operated kennels or livestock.
Ridgeway resident Randy Bright called all kinds of animal
abuse a “stain on our entire county.”
Bright repeated his previous calls for the solicitor’s
office to more aggressively prosecute animal abuse and neglect cases. He also
noted some cases could be prosecuted under the new federal animal cruelty law,
which carries penalties of up to seven years in prison for the most serious
offenses.
“How can we leverage that? Federal laws have the highest
penalties it seems,” he said.
Winnsboro resident Randy Sisk cautioned council members
against adding more restrictions.
“While you’re doing this, think very carefully,” Sisk said.
“This could cost the county significantly with lawsuits.”
In July 2018, Sisk was charged with ill treatment of animals
after, according to an incident report, his two dogs were discovered in a back
yard, chained to a tree and tangled in the chain so that one of the dogs couldn’t
reach shade.
The dogs also didn’t have access to food, water or shelter
and were subsequently taken into protective custody, the report said. However,
a Fairfield County magistrate dismissed the case in October 2018.
At the Dec. 9 council meeting, Sisk said one of his dogs had
died while in the county’s custody.
But veterinary documents previously obtained by The Voice
state the dog was already suffering from severe dirofilariasis, commonly known
as canine heartworms, when it was taken into protective custody. A necropsy
report stated that there were “large numbers of nematodes within the heart, the
pulmonary artery and its branches.”
This is Fairfield County’s second revision in as many years
to its animal control ordinance.
In 2018, council revised the ordinance to include a $500
civil fine for violations. The updated law also includes more detailed
definitions of nuisance animals and requires all pets to be fed once a day and
provided potable water. It also requires mandatory reporting of pets struck by
a vehicle.
As proposed, the Fairfield County’s anti-tethering ordinance
mirrors a similar ordinance that Aiken County adopted in 2017. Aiken County
Administrator Clay
Killian told The Voice that the ordinance has not faced any
legal challenges.
Taxpayers Pay for Abuse
Innes said all types of animal abuse cases, including over
breeding and hoarding, burden taxpayers in the long run.
“There’s a lot of people in this county that are just
chaining a dog and just breeding it and breeding it,” Innes said. “They dump
puppies on animal control, which means taxpayers are picking up the bill.”
2019 In Review: New Industries Brought Jobs, Investment to Fairfield County
WINNSBORO – A year
and a half ago, a Lowcountry newspaper lamented Fairfield County’s double digit
unemployment. What a difference a couple of years has made.
Today, the county’s unemployment rate has shrunk to 3.1
percent and, according to County Administrator Jason Taylor, industrial
prospects over the last couple of years have accounted for the creation of more
than 700 new jobs and a $70 million impact.
In fact, Fairfield County has completed one of its busiest
years on record, with county leaders tackling a flotilla of projects and inking
a number of important deals. The new year saw the opening of the Providence ER,
complete with additional outpatient services. The transformation saves the
county some $600,000 annually over the previous funding of the former Fairfield
Memorial Hospital.
Economic development, infrastructure improvements and
revitalization highlight a laundry list of accomplishments that followed in
2019, and county officials say they plan to continue growing that list in 2020.
County Council Chairman Neil Robinson said while much was
accomplished in 2019, he predicted that 2020 could be a breakout year. He
credited Taylor, who was hired a little over two years ago, for guiding the
council’s directives to fruition.
“His vision and knowledge of where we should be and how we
get there surprises me every day,” Robinson said. “If Fairfield’s 2019 could be
summed up in one word, it’s jobs.”
Taylor agreed.
“Between the various projects, it’s been a very good year
for us,” Taylor said. “One of our responsibilities in local government is to
improve the quality of people’s lives. A job is critical to someone having a
good quality of life.”
Taylor, council and county employees have taken that
responsibility seriously and the results are popping up in various ways, not
the least of which is a new, cooperative relationship between the county and
the Town of Winnsboro – a far cry from the rancor that had for years stymied
progress for the two governments.
Bringing employment to the county is a trend county leaders
hope to continue in 2020 as the result of groundwork laid the past couple of
years in revitalization, water and sewer infrastructure and the acquisition of
new industry.
To that end, the county is working to expand its newly
created Fairfield County Water Authority as well as construct a major
wastewater treatment facility to serve the I-77 corridor and megasite,
something Robinson says is vital in landing major industry on the order of
Boeing, BMW or Mazda.
Here’s a summary of the major projects Fairfield County
tackled in 2019, as well as the forecast for 2020.
Economic Development
MLILY, Pharmacy Lite Packaging and Sea Pro Boats are the
latest industries to have commenced or announced operations in Fairfield County
in 2019. More job announcements are anticipated in coming weeks, according to
Robinson.
Mattresses at MLILY move along a conveyor belt where they are inserted into mattress covers, then rolled up by another piece of equipment and packaged for shipping.
“Landing MLILY was a major accomplishment,” Robinson said.
“You’re talking about a $48 million investment into the county. That’s a lot of
tax money coming to us.”
Ty Davenport, Director of Fairfield County Economic
Development, said Pharmacy Lite Packaging, which is launching operations in the
former Wal-Mart building, represents a $2.9 million investment, though he
thinks that figure will grow to $3.5 million in time.
“It’s expected to create 33 new jobs, which we think in
coming years will get up closer to around 100,” he said.
Just before Christmas, the county authorized an agreement
with Victory Boats, LLC, which is expanding to Fairfield County. Located in the
former Fazio building on Hwy 34 near the Highway 321 bypass, the company brings
with it a $3 million investment and 135 new jobs.
“We also did a lot of work to save and help expand both Element
and MEKRA Lang,” Taylor said.
“If we continue to target industrial growth opportunities,
commercial and residential growth should follow,” he said. “We were at 14
percent (unemployment) not too terribly long ago,” Taylor said. “The problem is
a lot of people are driving outside the county to work. We have to have
opportunities for people to work here at home. When people stay at home, they
invest and shop here.”
Water and Sewer Infrastructure
Heavily linked to economic development is the improvement of
the county’s infrastructure. Water and sewer are a top priority.
In March, the county formed the Fairfield County Joint Water
and Sewer Authority Commission. So far, the membership is made up of the county
and the Town of Winnsboro.
The authority is vital to the funding and construction of
the wastewater treatment plant, which is seen as needed infrastructure by
industry looking to relocate to Fairfield County.
In 2020, the county hopes to place a sales tax referendum on
the November ballot to help generate additional funds for the plant.
“We’ve been working hard in conjunction with the Town of
Winnsboro and the State of South Carolina to secure funds for the plant,”
Taylor said. “Water and sewer are critical to our future development.”
Over the past two years, the state has provided about $3.8
million to Fairfield County to cover costs associated with engineering and
studies for the new plant.
Robinson said council looked all across the county before
securing a site off Syrup Mill Road for the plant. Piping would funnel
wastewater from the megasite to the plant. It would then be discharged into Big
Cedar Creek.
Once we complete the wastewater treatment facility, that’s
when we’re going to land that big deal,” Robinson said. “Those (deals) could
mean hiring 1,500 to 2,000 employees.
Accommodations, hospitality taxes
The proposed local option sales tax referendum is separate
from the county accommodations and hospitality taxes enacted in 2019.
Expected annual revenue of about $250,000 from these taxes
will be paid primarily by tourists. The revenue can be spent in a number of
ways to benefit the town and county and their businesses. It can also be used
to construct public meeting facilities, other enhancements and tourism services
as well as entertainment events and capital projects that will attract tourist
dollars to the town and county.
The accommodation and hospitality tax revenue can also be
used to pay indebtedness issued by the County for public purposes.
In December, the Town of Winnsboro adopted a resolution
allowing the two taxes to be collected (by the county) from businesses in the
town as well.
“We’ve overcome the last obstacle to implementing the
accommodations and hospitality tax, and that will move forward shortly,” Taylor
added.
Airport upgrades
The Fairfield County Airport is seeing more large corporate jets like this one that arrived for the grand opening of MLILY last month. | Denise Bryan
An especially valuable commodity in the county’s economic
development toolbox is the Fairfield County Airport, located off Hinnants Store
Road in Winnsboro. But it was not always so before Taylor hired pilot Denise
Bryant as director of the airport in 2017. Until then, the airport was
deficient in many areas. The previous fuel farm technically didn’t comply with
regulations set by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC).
“We found that our fuel farm and our tanks were not what
they should be,” Taylor said. “They weren’t even licensed by DHEC. We have
taken measures to remediate all of that.”
During the last two years, Bryant has overseen the
construction of a new state-of-the-art fuel farm that was completed in
December.
“The fuel farm is very attractive, well-done. It’s something
to be proud of now,” Taylor said.
Two, 12,000-gallon fuel tanks were installed. With the extra
capacity, the airport can take in more fuel deliveries, which translates into
lower costs.
In addition, the pumps feature a card reader display and a
second screen display large enough for pilots to view, even when they’re
fueling their planes from the opposite side of their craft.
“You can actually go to the other side of your plane to fuel
and you can see the dollar amount of what’s going into your plane,” Bryant
said.
Bryant has also overseen other major upgrades including
lighting and signage. The facility boasts a 5,000-foot runway and parallel
taxiway, a modern terminal building with upgraded furnishings, a laser grade
testing center, a pilot’s shop, flight instruction and new T-Hangars.
In 2020, the county plans to resurface all of the airport’s
ramps, taxiways and runways. The work is expected to start sometime in March or
April, and take about a month to complete.
Bryant said the federal government is covering 90 percent,
or about $320,000 of the project. The county and state are each picking up 5
percent, or about $16,800 for their respective portions.
“Upgrang and modernizing the airport is important because
the facility is often the first impression CEOs of prospective industries have
when they fly into Fairfield County,” Bryant said.
“There’s a lot of general aviation traffic that comes into a
community first, especially in the corporate world,” she said. “The general
aviation airport in Fairfield is extremely important in putting down the
welcome carpet.”
Mt. Zion renovation
Fairfield County spent much of 2018 putting together a plan
to revitalize the former Mt. Zion Institute building to serve as a new
Fairfield County government center in downtown Winnsboro.
In 2019, the county devoted considerable efforts to working
with the developer, 1st and Main, a North Carolina firm, to secure the financing
for the renovation.
More than half of the funding of the $11.5 million project
would come from state and federal tax credits associated with the property.
Fairfield County plans to buy the building via interest free
annual lease payments of approximately $4.9 million over seven years. At the
end of those seven years, the county will make a final payment to purchase and
take ownership of the property from 1st and Main.
“We got all the
financing we were hoping we would get and a little more, actually. And all the
design work is done,” Taylor said.
The actual construction is slated to start in January 2020
and is expected to last 16 months, with a projected opening sometime in Spring,
2021.
Market Building
More than 100 people attended the Ag + Art Farm to Table dinner at the new Market building in downtown Winnsboro last June.
The launching of the Fairfield County Market building has
helped increase foot traffic in downtown Winnsboro, which county officials hope
will spill over to existing shops and restaurants.
Opened in May, the Market is located in a renovated former
county building located on East Washington behind the Town Clock. With a
kitchen, classroom, restrooms and a large, open market room, the building can
be used not only by the farmer’s market on Saturdays but for weddings,
receptions and other large community or family gatherings.
Zion Hill Revitalization
During 2019, the county and Town of Winnsboro cooperatively
undertook the revitalization of the Zion Hill and Fortune Springs Park
neighborhoods, with input from the residents of the area. It is a major step
forward in bringing this area back to its Glory days, county officials say.
In November, the county landed the first of several planned
grants to help pay for the project. The initial $488,000 Community Development
Block Grant (CDBG) will be augmented by a 10 percent ($48,900) local government
match, giving the county more than $536,000 at its disposal to begin Phase I of
the revitalization effort.
This dilapidated home on West College Street is one of the eyesores county and town officials are aiming to clean up in the Zion Hill neighborhood with CDBG grant funding. | Barbara Ball
That work will include the demolition and clearance of
approximately 40 dilapidated and vacant structures, according to the Central
Midlands Council of Governments’ (CMCOG) planners who are working with the
county and town to guide and supervise the revitalization.
The demolition work made possible by the bond will begin
this spring and must be finished in two years. Both the town and the county are
eligible to apply for two $500,000 bonds each year.
At a community meeting in July, Gregory Sprouse, a planner
with the CMCOG, said he hopes the Zion Hill project represents the beginning of
more broad revitalization work in Winnsboro neighborhoods.
“We want this [Zion Hill] to be a starting point for how we
can move similar types of projects into other areas of the town that need the
same type of commitment,” Sprouse said. “CDBG funds must be spent to benefit
low to moderate income populations based on census data, and Zion Hill and the
Fortune Springs Park area fit that criteria.”
Broadband
County officials ended the year in new pursuit of broadband
expansion in the county – a pursuit that, in the past, has been futile.
“On broadband, I will just say we are exploring potential
opportunities that may be available that could assist us in working with our
existing local providers to expand the service,” Taylor said. “Like other
infrastructure that we are working on, we realize that for the county to grow,
improving our broadband service is critical. In today’s world, people expect
service to be widely available and fast.”
