Blythewood Online 691

Category: Government

  • Penny Tax on the Menu at The Manor

    BLYTHEWOOD (Feb. 18, 2016) – The public is invited to a Lunch & Learn event on Feb. 23, intended to fill in the blanks about Blythewood’s proposed road improvements under Richland County’s penny tax road improvement program.

    Sponsored by the Blythewood Chamber of Commerce, the information session will be presented by officials from Richland County, SCDOT and Blythewood Town Council who will discuss traffic circles, bike lanes, sidewalks, new roads and streetscapes that are planned for the town and the outlying areas in 29016 and that are to be paid for with Richland County’s penny tax.

    The program will be held from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. at The Manor. While the event is free to Blythewood Chamber members and their guests, a $5 fee is charged for non-members. A free Chick-Fil-A lunch will be available to those who register in advance at blythewoodchamber.com.

     

  • Deadline Looms for Mt. Zion

    Developer May Come to the Rescue

    Next week may be FOMZI's last stand.
    Next week may be FOMZI’s last stand.

    WINNSBORO (Feb. 12, 2016) – Next week could be the end of the line for a local citizen’s group battling to save the Mt. Zion Institute from the demolition man, unless Town Council is willing to wait a little longer for a proposed developer to get into the game.

    The 18-month deadline for the Friends of Mt. Zion Institute (FOMZI) to stabilize the buildings elapsed last Sept. 4. While faux windows were installed on the front of the school building last summer, FOMZI learned from Council during their Jan. 5 meeting that the building had failed to pass a Town inspection.

    Vickie Dodds, FOMZI Chairwoman, said the inspection was skewed to fit Council’s agenda to demolish the buildings.

    “They have stretched the inspection report to suit their purposes,” Dodds said. “They have stretched the wording of the ordinance to suit their purposes. And when I say ‘They,’ I mean Roger (Gaddy, mayor).”

    Gaddy said he disagreed with Dodd’s assessment of the inspection and said the Town hired an outside inspector to perform the work specifically to avoid any perception of bias. But the Mayor has never concealed his feelings toward the former school site.

    “When I became mayor, I said Mt. Zion would be torn down in 90 days,” Gaddy told The Voice after a Sept. 1 Council meeting, adding that he had made that pledge 10 years ago.

    Dodds said Gaddy has also expressed to FOMZI the Town’s concern for liability, should anyone be injured by loose bricks falling from the school building. However, she said, the Town has no such liability.

    “We own the building,” she said. “We carry the insurance on it. They are disseminating erroneous information.”

    And although the building failed its inspection, she said there were no bricks loose enough to fall.

    But Gaddy said the Town had been advised by legal counsel that should someone be injured because of an unstable building, the Town could be on the hook.

    “The Town’s liability is knowing it’s an unstable building and not doing anything about it,” Gaddy said, “not requiring the owners to do anything. Our legal advice was that we were vulnerable.”

    Council officially approved the transfer of the property, located at 205 N. Walnut St., on March 4, 2014. FOMZI purchased the site and its four buildings (the Mt. Zion School, the auditorium and gymnasium, the cafeteria and the Teacherage) for $5, with the caveat that the buildings had to be stabilized within 18 months to meet Winnsboro’s Dangerous Building Code or be torn down. The contract also gave FOMZI 30 months in which to hire a contractor or developer for the historic rehabilitation of the buildings.

    But, Dodds said, this Tuesday’s Council meeting might be the end of the road.

    “Tuesday would be the deadline to do everything they think we should already have done,” Dodds said. “And that’s not going to happen. I’m not sure what we can do to please them.”

    A developer willing to stabilize the building, Gaddy said, would go a long way toward pleasing them.

    Dodds said after the Jan. 5 meeting that FOMZI had received significant interest from a developer, who had made two visits to the site. That developer, Rob Coats, was introduced to Mt. Zion by Boyd Brown.

    “I was approached by a developer independently of FOMZI,” Brown said. “I’m not getting a fee for it. He has developed several old school buildings, and he was looking for one around here. He made two visits to Mt. Zion and said it was a better fit than any project he has yet done.”

    Brown said Coats is interested in converting the school building into market-rate apartments for seniors.

    “We’ve got an aging population here, and we have to cater to them at some point,” Brown said. “It would be a good deal. And this is someone who actually has some experience in restoring school buildings in rural areas.”

    Brown said he plans to have a letter of intent from Coats delivered to the Town late this week. But even then, he said, the project would be 180 days out from launch while Coats performed his due diligence. Hopefully, he said, that would not be a deal killer.

    “Those buildings have sat there empty for 25 years,” Brown said. “It can wait another 180 days.”

    While Gaddy said the Town would not be willing to wait another eight or nine months, whether or not they will sit tight for six months remains to be seen.

    “That would be a Council decision,” Gaddy said.

     

  • Closing Threatens Property Tax Relief

    Walmart was Top Contributor to LOST

    Without revenues from Walmart sales, property tax relief may suffer. (Photo/Barbara Ball)
    Without revenues from Walmart sales, property tax relief may suffer. (Photo/Barbara Ball)

    WINNSBORO (Feb. 12, 2016) – When Walmart closed its doors for the last time in Winnsboro on Jan. 28, it shut off the spigot for more than just major retail in Fairfield County. As the county’s single largest contributor to the Local Option Sales Tax – the pot of money by which Fairfield County property owners are afforded property tax relief – taxpayers may see the amount of credit they receive on future tax notices diminish.

    “With the loss of that revenue (from Walmart), I don’t see how County Council is going to be able to continue to provide that relief,” said Robert Martin, who serves on the Board of Economic Advisors governing the S.C. Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office. “I don’t see how County Council is going to get around increasing property taxes somewhat next year.”

    While the S.C. Department of Revenue would not divulge exactly how much money Walmart contributed to the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST), the big-box retailer was Fairfield County’s largest contributor.

    In spite of Martin’s grim forecast, Interim County Administrator Milton Pope said Fairfield County’s losses would be offset somewhat by the fact that Fairfield is a “receiver” county among the counties participating in the property tax relief formula. A portion of the penny sales tax collected by more prosperous counties – “donor” counties – is redistributed among the “receiver” counties annually.

    But while funds coming back to Fairfield from donor counties might mitigate some of the fiscal damage, Martin said it would only be a fraction of what Fairfield is losing with the absence of Walmart.

    “Some of it would be offset by the donor counties,” Martin said, “but I wouldn’t think it would be that much.”

    Fairfield County’s municipalities are also credited with LOST funds that offset their local property taxes. According to the Department of Revenue, 33 percent of the penny tax is distributed to municipalities, based on their population. The remaining 67 percent goes to property tax relief in the unincorporated areas of the county. With the LOST funds diminished, Town council’s may have to rethink their annual budgets.

    Ridgeway’s millage rate for the 2015-2016 fiscal year, for example, brought in $44,350 to their meagre general fund budget of $222,840. While Ridgeway is still bolstered by rental properties and an insurance tax, every penny counts.

    Don Wood, Winnsboro’s Town Manager, said the loss of Walmart’s contribution would be “significant;” however, how significant remains to be seen. As of last week, Wood was still seeking exact figures from the Department of Revenue.

    Walmart also contributed to Winnsboro’s bottom line with utility bills. According to Kathy Belton, Director of Winnsboro’s Finance Department, Walmart paid an approximate average of $23,000 a month in electricity bills, $190-$200 a month in water bills and $1,100 a month in gas bills.

    All of that, too, has now dried up.

    “That will certainly be a concern,” Winnsboro Mayor Roger Gaddy said. “That’s more than a quarter of a million dollars a year.”

    Of course, Gaddy added, Winnsboro purchases electricity from SCE&G before reselling it to customers. So Winnsboro will only be losing its profit margin, not the entire $23,000 a month bundle.

    “It will have some impact,” Gaddy said, “but I don’t think it will kill us.”

    The ultimate impact of the loss of Walmart won’t be known until August, Pope said, when the final LOST figures come in. As Council begins its budgeting process in the coming months, Pope said the County will have to bear in mind the potential reduction in LOST funds when estimating property tax credits.

    And while Pope was reluctant to discuss the potential for a millage increase, he did say that taxpayers would feel some impact.

    “The Local Option Sales Tax is a credit on your tax bill that helps to lower taxes on property,” Pope said. “There may not necessarily be an increase, but yes, there is a possibility that folks may not see as much of a credit.”

     

  • Town OK’s Hospital Payment Plan

    Pointe Gets Green Light for Water Construction

    WINNSBORO (Feb. 5, 2016) – Town Council Tuesday night accepted a payment plan agreement with Fairfield memorial Hospital, which was in arrears to the tune of $188,699.99 on its utility bill as of last Dec. 8.

    According to the agreement, failure by the hospital to make good on its debt will result in termination of service, 15 days after the due date of any future payments. The arrangement allows Fairfield Memorial to make the payments in 36 installments of $5,241.67 each, with the first installment due on Feb. 20. The bill should be paid in full by Feb. 20, 2019.

    In consideration for 18 timely payments, the Town agrees to return the sum of $2,865.07 – the hospital’s current balance as of Jan. 19 – in the form of a credit applied to the 36 installments.

    The Pointe

    Council also gave the OK to a resolution approving the request to proceed with construction of water facilities at a future 56-unit apartment complex slated for 425 Main St. in Blythewood.

    During their Jan. 19 meeting, Council agreed to transfer their capacity and willingness to serve agreement for 19,200 gallons of water capacity from Sarah K. Niemann of Niemann Consulting, Inc. to The Point at Blythewood, LP, the apartment complex known as “Just the Pointe.”

    As part of Tuesday night’s approval, Winnsboro agrees to send a letter of support to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) on behalf of the developer’s application for a construction permit.

    John Fantry, Winnsboro’s utilities attorney, told The Voice Tuesday night that the Town’s engineers had reviewed and accepted plans for the construction of the water facilities. The construction is being performed by Site Design, Inc.

    The Point at Blythewood, LP, will also have to enter into a Subdivision Water System Development Agreement with Winnsboro within 18 months of March 19, 2015. Once the infrastructure has been completed, inspected and licensed, Winnsboro will accept ownership of the water lines.

    Last month, Blythewood’s Board of Architectural Review gave the project its Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) and granted the project’s developer, Prestwick Development LLC, 16 variances, including a request to omit the Town’s requirement that principal building facades provide a stoop or porch with a minimum height of 24-inches for all first-floor residential units. The Board did not omit the height requirement, but amended it to allow Prestwick to lower the height of the stoops on the principal building to 12 inches. The Board also allowed Prestwick to lower the required 48-inch elevation height on the building.

     

  • Council Sets Target Date for Police Station Move

    RIDGEWAY (Jan. 29, 2016) – Town Council set a target date during their Jan. 14 meeting for the relocation of the police station from Palmer Street to the Century House on Dogwood Avenue. Council hopes to have the move completed by Feb. 28.

    Before Officer Christopher Culp can make the move, however, Council is going to have to invest in some upgrades to the current Council chambers, the room they intend to dedicate to public safety. The primary upgrade will be more secure door locks, Council said, which will have to be in place before Culp can transfer sensitive files from the current police station.

    During Council’s Jan. 7 work session, Culp cautioned Council that a move into the Century House could put innocent bystanders at risk in the event that a violent criminal was ever brought in during normal working hours or during a Council meeting.

    “See how we’re having this meeting tonight? The police department would be here and it would be active,” Culp said during the Jan. 7 work session. “Let’s say (someone) walks in, battling mental illness, with a gun. All of our lives are in danger here, versus over there at the police department, there’s only one person and I’m trained to handle a situation like that.”

    But during the Jan. 14 meeting, Councilman Donald Prioleau told Council that Culp was on board with the move.

    “He had concerns from a police standpoint,” Prioleau said. Speaking with him this morning, he’s very comfortable moving in this office.”

    Prioleau suggested that Council use the money generated through budgetary savings as a result of the move and from the rental of the former police station to upgrade the police department.

    “You’re talking about a $17,000 savings in the budget,” Councilman Heath Cookendorfer said. “That’s money that we’re spending in the budget now, plus additional money we would get from revenue.”

    Council had previously considered renting out the former police station for $500 a month, but during the work session, Cookendorfer suggested the Town could possibly get as much as $600 a month. Regardless of the price, half of it would go to Norfolk Southern Railway, according to the lease agreement the Town signed with them last year. The police station sits on Norfolk Southern property.

    Cookendorfer asked that Culp present a list of the department’s needs at Council’s Feb. 11 meeting for Council to prioritize.

     

    Clarification:

    In many of our recent stories on Ridgeway Town Council’s proposed move of their police station from Palmer Street to the Century House on Dogwood Ave., the amount of money the Town expects to save has fluctuated as Council has debated the matter.

    While each of our reported figures have been quoted directly from Council’s discussion, the Town clarified last week that they will actually save $5,700 a year in utility expenses for the Police Department and, if rented, the former police station would generate another $7,200, which would be a total savings of almost $13,000.

     

     

  • Work Session Feedback Critical of Ordinances

    WINNSBORO (Jan. 29, 2016) – Interim County Administrator Milton Pope reviewed for Council Monday night the results of Council’s Jan. 20 work session, during which Council hashed out an animal control and a noise ordinance, while also agreeing to restructure their community enhancement grants process. Following Pope’s review, Council received some less than positive feedback on how they had handled all three.

    Animal Control Ordinance

    Pope said Council had agreed to “restructure language” in the animal control ordinance “regarding (the) restraint of animals.” Using York County’s ordinance as a guideline, Pope said Council would also be “redefining the shelter of animals; adding an appropriate definition for that.”

    But District 3 resident Kerry Matthews, who attended the Jan. 20 work session, said Council may be overreaching.

    “It just seemed to me, particularly with the depth and the length of discussions going on that evening, you so easily get bogged down in the minutiae about what kind of shelter is OK for a dog to live in,” Matthews, speaking during Monday’s second public comment segment. “I’m sorry but that was a little bit outrageous.”

    Matthews urged Council to make the ordinance as simple as possible.

    “Be considering the fact that the more detail you try to get into something, the harder it’s going to be to make it reasonable and sensible,” she said.

    Noise Ordinance

    The County’s revised noise ordinance, in the works since last April, was sidelined before its second reading on Oct. 26. Council’s Public Affairs and Policies Committee held no fewer than four meetings last year, during which they received input from the public as they worked over the details of the law.

    Nevertheless, following protests from Council members Marion Robinson (District 5) and Dan Ruff (District 1), Chairwoman Carolyn Robinson (District 2) moved the ordinance out of committee and into the Jan. 20 work session.

    The primary sticking point on Oct. 26 was, for Marion Robinson, the operation of firearms. Robinson said he was concerned that the revised ordinance would hinder private skeet shooting and other sport shooting on private property. District 7 Councilman Billy Smith said during the Oct. 26 discussion that the revised law contained numerous exemptions for sport shooting, but Marion Robinson said the exemptions were not clear enough.

    Monday night, Pope reported that, during the Jan. 20 work session, Council had agreed to loosen the firearm restrictions.

    “In the exemption section, number 10, which used to read ‘Noise associated with the legal operation of any firearm while hunting,’ we ended that sentence with ‘firearm’ and deleted the ‘while hunting’,” Pope said.

    Pope said Council also agreed to remove restrictions on noise from “the normal operations of any animal shelter, animal adoption center, boarding facility, professional kennel (or) pet shop.”

    Lake Wateree resident Jeff Morris, who has been involved with the revision process from the public standpoint since the beginning and who also attended the Jan. 20 work session, said during the second public comment session that it was clear to him that some Council members were not familiar with the existing ordinance, nor did they understand how noise ordinances operate.

    “For example, there were a couple of issues raised that if you have a bunch of hunting dogs, that under this new ordinance, you could be cited by the Sheriff for excessive noise,” Morris said. “And in fact that’s true. Of course that’s true in the existing ordinance. The existing ordinance doesn’t have any exceptions for hunting dogs and I don’t think you should. I’m not a fan of changing our ordinance.”

    The reason the noise ordinance was brought up for revision, Morris said, was at the suggestion of Sheriff Will Montgomery. District 6 Councilwoman Mary Lynn Kinley, who chairs the Public Affairs and Policies Committee, told Council the same thing back on Oct. 26.

    “The Sheriff said he had to have something that the magistrates could charge,” Kinley said on Oct. 26. “Before now, they had nothing really concrete they could charge a fine for.”

    The Committee last April tacked on measurable decibel (dBA) levels to the previous ordinance, and extended the period of time covered under the ordinance to include 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. The previous ordinance covered the 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. time period, but with no dBA levels, Montgomery said the law was difficult to enforce and convictions were all but impossible.

    Monday night, Morris told Council that most noise conflicts can be worked out between parties without the need of a deputy to mediate or issue citations. But in cases where those disputes cannot be peacefully resolved, a noise ordinance with teeth becomes necessary.

    “I think the worse thing to do is have those two neighbors escalate that dispute,” Morris said. “That’s why you have a noise ordinance. If the person creating the noise refuses to change their way and they’re not acting reasonably, then the Sheriff can take the action of actually issuing a citation. I think you need to keep those things in mind and think carefully about how this ought to be amended.”

    Community Enhancement Grants

    Council followed their Dec. 15 approval of community enhancement grants with a vote to terminate those grants, as awarded in their present form. Kinley, who moved to end the grants, suggested replacing them in the 2016-2017 budget with “specific funding that goes toward the support of community based programs or agencies that either develop or promote the improvement of quality of life activities for youth, adults and seniors.”

    Monday night, Pope reported that Council will continue to earmark $2,500 per district ($17,500 total) for similar purposes. Council will still require an application process, he said; however, during the work session Council agreed to review those applications themselves, instead of having them reviewed by staff, as had been the process for the last two cycles. Council members will recommend funding for applicants in their specific districts, but the funding would have to be approved by a majority vote of the full Council.

    The grants would be in the form of reimbursements, Pope said, with the recipient required to provide documentation of the expenditure to the County before receiving the funds. A hardship waiver would be required for applicants who cannot spend the money up front. The grants will be awarded in $500 increments and would be part of the 2016-2017 budget.

    “It seems like to me that this is just calling it something different or working it a little bit differently, but still basically the same thing,” Matthews said during her public comment, “and I’m bothered by people getting to petition for money from the County Council like this.”

    Matthews said numerous entities dedicated to many of the same things for which the grants are intended already exist in Fairfield County.

    “As far as I know, our schools feed probably free meals to a lot of our students,” Matthews said. “I know the Council on Aging does Meals on Wheels. There’s a food bank. My church is a regular donor to the food bank. There’s a local Red Cross. There (are) a lot of groups out there that are already designed to do these things and that ya’ll are talking about doing in little drips and drabs here and there and it just doesn’t seem logical to me to do it that way.”

    Changes to the ordinances, Pope said, will be brought back to Council for a vote at a future meeting. The enhancement grants, he said, would be placed on a parallel track with the budgeting process. Information on how to apply would be ready by the next meeting, and on July 1 the grants would be awarded when the next fiscal year begins.

    Council’s next regularly scheduled meeting is Feb. 15. It will be the only meeting scheduled for the month.

     

  • Board OK’s Architect for Classroom Construction

    Projects Not in District’s Budget

    WINNSBORO (Jan. 29, 2016) – During the Fairfield County School Board’s Jan. 19 regular meeting, Dr. J.R. Green, Superintendent, asked the Board to award a contract to the architectural firm, FW Architects of Florence, for engineering and design work for an expansion of Kelly Miller Elementary and Fairfield Middle schools so the portable classrooms can be removed.

    While the projects had not been budgeted, Green told the Board he planned to pay for them with the $2.5 million transfer of funds from the general fund to capital projects fund that he asked the Board to approve in October.

    “We have portables in the Middle School . . . and Kelly Miller Elementary School that I would like to see replaced,” Green told the Board. “Before we can go forward in terms of assessing what the ultimate cost of these projects would be, we need to bring an architect on board.”

    Green said he appointed a committee to bid out the project. That committee, he said, recommended FW Architects of Florence.

    “Is there any reason why this wasn’t brought up ahead of time, that you were pursuing these bids?” Board member Paula Hartman (District 2) asked.

    Green replied that he wasn’t sure what he had told the board, but that he “thought it was clear that we would have to bring in some architects and establish some designs in order to determine what the costs would be.”

    However, in a recording of the Oct. 20 meeting, Green made no mention to the Board that he planned to begin the bid process for an architect for the renovations. He only mentioned the need for renovations of the two schools in order to replace the portable classrooms, “a couple of new activity buses . . . we need to refresh some Chromebooks . . .and we have an issue with the cooling tower at the high school and I think we’ll eventually have to replace it.”

    Green’s committee has, in fact, been pursuing an architectural firm for the school renovation project for at least the past two months. An invitation for bids was published Nov. 24 in South Carolina Business Opportunities (SCBO), seeking an architect and engineering services for “classroom additions for elementary and middle schools.” The deadline for submission of resumes to the School District was Dec. 17, 2015.

    “What we are talking about today is getting designs for what you are looking at doing at Kelly Miller and the Middle School,” Board member William Frick (District 6) said. “To avoid any further confusion, are there any other projects you are anticipating?”

    “Maybe a field house addition at the football field,” Green answered. “Other than that, no other renovations to facilities are anticipated.”

    Board member Annie McDaniel (District 4) asked Green if the issues at the high school had been taken care of.

    “I did identify the cooling tower at the high school. I did identify technology enhancement,” Green responded. “But before we are in a position where I can bring a comprehensive list before the Board, I have to get an idea on what the cost of these major projects would be. That doesn’t preclude us from pursuing anything else.”
    If the costs are too high, Green continued, the District may not move forward with the school renovations.

    “The issue is that you did not bring back before the Board a list of projects you were going to do. It’s not about whether they are needed. The issue is following protocol,” McDaniel said.

    Hartman clarified that previously, when major projects such as the Career and Technology Center were initiated, the Board was much more involved in the selection process for the architects.

    Green said this project (classroom construction) was much more limited, so the Board was not involved.

    “Once we get these designs and you are able to prioritize, will you provide us a list of the capital projects you are looking to do?” Frick asked. Green said he would.

    The Board voted 5-2 to award the contract to FW Architects of Florence, with Hartman voting against and McDaniel abstaining. Other than Frick, none of the Board members who voted to award the contract had any questions or comments about the process or the architectural firm.

  • JWC Opens 2016 with FOIA Violation

    JENKINSVILLE (Jan. 29, 2016) – At the end of a raucous annual meeting of the Jenkinsville Water Company on Jan. 13, in which three new Board members were openly elected by the membership, the company’s president, Gregrey Ginyard, called for an executive session of the Board of Directors for the purpose of electing new officers for the Board.

    Following that executive session, Ginyard told The Voice that electing Board officers in closed session is a tradition, and that since the company is a non-profit and takes no public money, it is not subject to the S.C. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

    Bill Rogers, Executive Director of the S.C. Press Association disagrees, saying Ginyard violated the state’s FOIA.

    “Voting for officers in executive session is clearly illegal. They must vote in public. Tradition doesn’t trump the law,” Rogers said.

    Rogers’ opinion is backed by an Attorney General’s opinion issued Aug. 8, 2011, in which Deputy Attorney General Robert D. Cook stated, “It is our opinion that the (Jenkinsville) Water Company is a Public Body and must meet the FOIA’s requirements.”

    The company’s annual financial report presented at the January meeting further identifies the company as a public body subject to the FOIA, showing that it receives public money. According to the report, the company received an $89,365 public grant in 2011 and Ginyard told The Voice that it received a $175,000 loan/grant from Rural Infrastructure in August 2014 for a new filtration system for the Clowney Road well. According to the minutes of the June 27, 2015 regular monthly meeting, the company has applied for a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to build a water treatment plant for water it hopes to pull from the Broad River. That grant is yet to materialize.

    Ginyard opened the meeting with a review of the Clowney Road well failure, explaining that it was taken off line in September due to radium contamination in the water. He said the company spent $107,092.04 with Mid County Water Company for water to serve the Clowney Road customers while the well was off line.

    “We have a new filtering system on that well now, and it should be back on line the week of Jan. 25,” Ginyard said. “But, through it all, we didn’t pass the Mid County water costs on to our customers. Their water bills did not go up.”

    Throughout the meeting, Ginyard had his hands full with a roundup of questions from members that set up shouting matches between himself and members.

    When Jeff Schaffer asked to speak during the question and answer period, Ginyard called on a sheriff’s deputy to eject Schaffer, saying he was not allowed to ask questions because he is not a member.

    “I am a member,” Schaffer countered. “I get water at my house and I pay a water bill. And I have a right to ask a question.”

    After a five-minute standoff, Schaeffer was allowed to identify his name on the membership list and ask his question.

    When asked by member Dee Melton whether the Board had changed the company’s bylaws in an executive session in a meeting that was not announced to the public, Ginyard denied that the minutes had been changed.

    “We only reviewed the bylaws in executive session,” Ginyard said.

    Melton held up two copies of the bylaws, one of which he said had been amended and read passages from the two versions. In each case, the passages were different.

    “Here, a whole sentence was added to the bylaws,” Melton said, referring to one passage.

    Asked why the Board had recently changed the bylaws in an executive session of an unannounced meeting, Ginyard again denied that the Board had made changes.

    “They were only reviewed, sir,” Ginyard answered.

    “Were they amended?” Melton asked again.

    “That line was added to clear up a misunderstanding,” Ginyard said.

    “Are these bylaws legal?” Melton pressed.

    “Yes sir,” Ginyard answered in frustration.

    According to the minutes of the Dec. 14 meeting, “Mr. McBride made a motion to enter executive session to make final revisions to the bylaws.” After returning to open session, the Board voted unanimously to accept the revisions.

    “The bylaws say that if they are to be amended, a 10-day written notice must be given to all members denoting the recommended changes before they can be amended,” Melton said. “Was a notice given?”

    “No sir,” Ginyard answered. “We’ve got to move on, Mr. Melton.”

    Regular monthly meetings of the Water Board of Trustees are held the second Monday evening of each month.

     

  • Blythewood to Host War Memorial

    The Wall that Heals, a half-scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., will be featured at Doko Park in Blythewood Memorial Day weekend.
    The Wall that Heals, a half-scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., will be featured at Doko Park in Blythewood Memorial Day weekend.

    BLYTHEWOOD (Jan. 28, 2016) – Before signing a contract for $7,500 to bring The Wall that Heals to Doko Park in Blythewood this Memorial Day, Town Council put out a call for a large number of volunteers from the community that will be required to make the mega event possible.

    “It’s a big undertaking, but it’s a big deal for our town,” Councilman Eddie Baughman said.

    The contract calls for the exhibit to be open 24 hours a day from May 26 – 30, with approximately 140 volunteers to work 4- or 6-hour shifts. The Town is required by the contract to also provide round-the-clock security and emergency medical service during the event.

    Baughman, a Vietnam War veteran, suggested last fall that Council bring The Wall to Blythewood. The exhibit features a half-scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. The chevron-shaped Wall is made up of 24 panels that will stretch across approximately 250 feet of lawn in the park next to Town Hall. The Wall is accompanied by a mobile Education Center that tells the story of the Vietnam War and the era surrounding the conflict and includes displays of photos of service members whose names are found on The Wall, along with letters and memorabilia left at The Wall in Washington, D.C. The Center also includes a map of Vietnam and a chronological overview of the conflict.

    Hazel Kelly, a Town Hall employee, will receive training to serve as the Town’s representative to organize and oversee the event which will be paid for out of the Town’s Hospitality Tax fund. As many as 20,000 people could visit The Wall while it is in Blythewood, Baughman told Council last month.

    Council voted unanimously to accept the contract. Those who would like to volunteer to help with the event should contact Kelly at 754-0501.

    In other business, Council unanimously adopted amendments to the Landscape, Buffer Yard and Tree Preservation Ordinance that would ease previous requirements for tree studies and replanting. It also adopted the 2015 Comprehensive Plan and an Ordinance annexing property located at 355 Langford Road.

    Council members also decided to discuss at a future meeting whether to continue to sponsor a New Year’s Eve fireworks event since the weather has not cooperated the last two years. They also postponed finalizing a policy regarding presentation of Keys to the Town.

    Town Council will hold their annual retreat on Saturday, March 5 at the Langford Nord House at McNulty and Main streets in downtown Blythewood. The public is invited.

     

  • Pointe Gets Variances

    Now known as ‘Just the Pointe,’ the housing development planned for Main Street Blythewood was granted 16 variances by the BAR this week.
    Now known as ‘Just the Pointe,’ the housing development planned for Main Street Blythewood was granted 16 variances by the BAR this week.

    BLYTHEWOOD (Jan. 28, 2016) – After the Board of Architecture Review unanimously approved a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) last week for The Pointe, a 56-unit apartment complex proposed for Main Street in downtown Blythewood, the Richland County 9-1-1 addressing system required that the project’s official name to be changed to Just the Pointe since a nearby street is named Blythewood Pointe.

    Prior to granting the COA to the project, the BAR unanimously granted the developer, Prestwick Development LLC, 16 variances, including a request to omit the Town’s requirement that principal building facades provide a stoop or porch with a minimum height of 24-inches for all first-floor residential units. The Board did not omit the height requirement, but amended it to allow Prestwick to lower the height of the stoops on the principal building to 12 inches. The Board also allowed Prestwick to lower the required 48-inch elevation height on the building.

    The developers of the project told the Board last November they planned to install a chain-link fence on two sides and back of the property. At the December meeting the Board asked that the fence be changed to a wrought iron or similar decorative material. But at the January meeting, the project’s architect, Robert Byington, told the Board the owner had decided not to install a fence at all since one was not required by code.

    There was, however, some give and take between the Board and Prestwick in the finished design.

    “We wanted the developer to upgrade the building to be more than what was proposed,” Board chairman Michael Langston told The Voice following the December meeting. “I’ve been on the phone to them the last couple of weeks to get them (Prestwick) to come up to our codes instead of us giving them variances. They have met us about half way.”

    At that meeting, the Board negotiated for Prestwick to add several design changes to the window and entrance openings on the principal building to provide for a more upscale appearance on the street side.

    No one signed up to address the architectural requirements during public comment time on Tuesday evening. A representative of the company said he expected that the project is on track for completion by the end of the year.