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Category: News

  • Ridgeway water tower comes in at $669,258

    RIDGEWAY – It came as a surprise to the Ridgeway Town Council earlier this year when they learned that the town’s new water tower would cost a total of $669,258.13 – about $45,000 more than they were expecting.

    Armed with a $500,000 Rural Infrastructure Authority grant in November 2016, the previous Town of Ridgeway administration contracted with Civil Engineering of Columbia (CEC), for $39,800, to prepare a drawing and bid package for construction of the tower. CEC estimated that cost at $510,000.

    Phoenix Construction won the construction contract with the low bid of $549,153.

    Earlier this year the current administration learned that several required items had not been included in CEC’s bid package – $16,400 for necessary piping, $11,610.13 for grounding, $7,985 for communication equipment and $7,500 for three power poles for a total additional cost of $43,495.13. This did not include the $39,800 for engineering and $10,000 for attorney fees, bringing total cost for the project to $669,258.13.The Town’s portion of the cost, $169,258.13, was paid for out of the capital expenditures fund.

    During the regular meeting last week, Council voted unanimously to approve the additional $7,500 for the poles from SCE&G, $7,985 to Hobgood Electric for grounding and $11,610.13 to Collins Pumps & Controls for communication equipment.

    The bid was also short on fencing costs. CEC’s bid estimate called for only 360 linear feet of fencing for the one-acre parcel. Phoenix agreed to credit the Town for the $8,640 included in the original bid for 360 linear feet of fencing and gate. At a special called meeting last Saturday, Council approved Gamecock Fencing to fence the entire one acre with that credit for the lower cost, $8,320.

    “This completes the May 7 deadline to close the project,” Mayor Heath Cookendorfer said.

    Funding was also approved for the lease of a folding and inserting machine for town hall to facilitate the monthly billling for the water service. Town Clerk Vivian Case asked that she be able to demo the equipment in operation before making the decision as to which lease to accept.  Both leases are under $4000 for 48 months.

    Volunteers from the Church of Latter Day Saints will be visiting Ridgeway to clear pine straw from around the Century House/Town Hall, plant flowers and pick up litter on April 27, 2019.

    Brad Hoffman and Valerie Clowney were on hand to solicit sponsorship participation by the Town of Ridgeway in the upcoming Fairfield County Ag & Art Farm and Art Tour on June 15 and 16, 2019.  No decision was made.

  • Element celebrates 5th anniversary

    The Fairfield Central cheerleaders and band welcome Governor McMaster and Congressman Norman to Element.
    Gov. McMaster, Congressman Norman Praise Company’s Success

    WINNSBORO – “Last summer we were wondering how we were going to stay open. This year we’re wondering how we’re going to produce all the orders that are coming in like a tsunami,” Michael O’Shaughnessy, CEO and owner of Element, said during a barbecue luncheon at the facility in Winnsboro on Friday.

    Gov. Henry McMaster addresses the lunch crowd at Element on Friday. Element owner and CEO Michael O’Shaughnessy and Congressman Ralph Norman, seated, also spoke, honoring Element’s fifth anniversary. | Barbara Ball

    The event, which featured Gov. Henry McMaster and U. S. Representative Ralph Norman as speakers, was a triple celebration of the company’s survival of last summer’s tariff crisis, it’s now booming business and the fifth anniversary of the opening of Element.

    In referring to what he called the trade war last year that threatened to raise the tariff on televisions assembled by Element, O’Shaughnessy said, “while it [trade war] is a good thing in the long term, Element found itself in a unique situation in which the tariffs could have materially hurt us or put us out of business.

    “But we all went to work to solve the crisis,” he said, crediting McMaster, Norman, county and company officials. “We have now solved the tariff issue that has been holding us back,” O’Shaughnessy said.

    Introducing McMaster and praising him for his support of the company in its darkest hour, O’Shaughnessy said there is not a better advocate for South Carolina than Gov. McMaster.

    “It was because of Gov. Haley that Element came to South Carolina,” O’Shaughnessy said. “But it’s because of Gov. McMaster that we stayed in South Carolina. He went to bat for us and he never stopped.”

    The luncheon was also an opportunity for Carl Kennedy, Vice President of Human Resources, to announce that the company has hired 100 new employees since the first of the year. He also acknowledged the 99 employees who have been with the company since it opened.

    Those employees were joined by McMaster and Norman as well as county, Town of Winnsboro and school officials under two large white tents in front of the building on Highway 321 Bypass.

    Speaking to Element’s success, McMaster said the people, “like the people here,” he said, gesturing to those sitting before him, have contributed to that success.

    “You’ve got to have the people, you’ve got to have the businesses and you’ve got to have the education – the three legs of the stool. If you have two of these and not the third, it won’t work,” McMaster said, addressing the state’s success in bringing in new companies.

    “New businesses are coming to South Carolina and we’re going straight to the top,” he said. “The best is yet to come.”

    Quoting Winston Churchill, Norman said, “’There’ll be a time when doing your best is not good enough, when we must do what’s required,’ You have done what’s required,” Norman said, praising the company, its employees, county and state officials for pulling Element through last summer’s crisis.

  • HVAC heists on the rise at churches

    WINNSBORO – Thefts of HVAC units from area churches are on the rise, according to Major Brad Douglas of the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office.

    Many of these thefts have occurred at churches in rural areas of the county. The Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office is supplementing patrol shifts to increase security checks of the county’s 140 churches throughout the day and night, Douglas said in a statement released Friday.

    “We are asking the public to be very vigilant of church facilities,” Douglas said. “If you see any suspicious persons and/or vehicles at any time at churches, contact the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office at 803-635-5511 or call 911 if there is reason to think a crime is in progress.

    “We consider our churches to be very important community partners, and we want to prevent any more of these thefts from occurring,” Sheriff Will Montgomery said.

    “Additionally, we want to identify any suspects in these crimes. We ask that everyone pay careful attention to churches when they travel past them. If any suspicious activity is observed, call 803-635-4141.”

  • Improvements slated for Blythewood intersections

    BLYTHEWOOD – Blythewood area residents got a look last week at a new plan to improve traffic flow around and through the increasingly congested downtown streets as well as outlying busy intersections as far out as Blythewood Road and Hwy 321.

    The occasion was a public information and comment meeting hosted by the town government and the Central Midlands Council of Governments (CMCOG) at Doko Manor to review renderings of proposed traffic flow improvements.

    Those improvements are the result of a study done by AECOM, a firm contracted by Central Midlands COG, that began last August and included collecting traffic data and input from local businesspeople, developers and insurance companies.

    “The purpose of the study is to assess the current traffic volumes for the Blythewood area and predict future ones expected over the next 20 years or so,” Town Council member Malcolm Gordge said. “AECOM is examining the areas that are most congested and/or accident prone and recommending improvements such as additional turn lanes, traffic signals, junction realignment and traffic circles.”

    The dozen-plus projects are divided into short-term, mid-term and long-term recommendations. They range from adding turning lanes and signal lights at the U.S. 321-Blythewood Road and Langford Road-Trading Post Road intersections, to rerouting a portion of Langford Road to connect directly to Blythewood Road and creating a roundabout at McNulty Road and Blythewood Road, just beyond the I-77 signal light.

    Gordge said there is no plan of implementation yet. He said that will follow after the study is completed, comments are assessed and a funding program investigated and developed.

    The traffic study is a key element of the town’s comprehensive plan for future development.

    “Blythewood has experienced unprecedented growth in population since the early 2000s and this has brought about a considerable increase in traffic through the town, particularly during morning and evening rush-hour,” Gordge said. “The rate of growth is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.”

    Two of the biggest generators of traffic in Blythewood are Blythewood High School and the grocery stores, according to Roland Bart, Chief Transportation Planner with Central Midlands Council of Governments.

    Gordge said the full traffic plan has not yet been costed out, and discussion on funding sources has not yet taken place.

    While traffic problems increase by the day, Roland Bart, Chief Transportation Planner with Central Midlands Council of Governments, said the improvements are not just around the corner.

    “We went for 30 years with no increase in the gas tax and now we have an increase of two cents.  People will have to be patient as we use this increase to deal with the maintenance issues,” Bart said.

    While the AECOM worked closely with the Richland Penny sales tax committee in determining the necessary intersection improvements, the projects planned by the Penny Tax committee and AECOM are separate.

    “Projects that can be addressed through the Richland Penny Tax are the main priority for Blythewood,” Gordge said. “But each of these is important to the town to reduce congestion, improve safety and facilitate growth.

    “The input and feedback from area residents is welcomed, Transportation Director, Reginald Simmons said. “The things people tell us that are relevant to their needs we can share with the engineers and make the proper adjustments in the planning stage.”

    Send suggestions concerning planned improvements by April 23. 2019, to AECOM – Attn: Patrick Tyndall, 101 Research Drive, Columbia, SC 29203-9389.

  • Golf course zoning up for vote

    Council Meeting Set for April 23

    BLYTHEWOOD – Crickentree residents who oppose the proposed rezoning of the former Golf Course of South Carolina may have their toughest battle yet on April 23 when the issue goes before Richland County Council for first reading.

    Last month, the County’s Planning Commission voted 7-1 in the resident’s favor – to recommend that Council not change the zoning of the golf course, which shares a border with Crickentree, from its current Traditional Residential Open Spaces (TROS) to Medium Density Residential (RD-MS) use.

    But that win was only the first step in the residents’ effort to defeat the rezoning bid. The request for rezoning will now have three readings (votes) by County Council. The first, on April 23, will be the only opportunity that residents will have to address council about the issue. If Council votes is in favor of the rezoning at that meeting, it will hold two more readings without residents being allowed to speak. If council votes against the rezoning, the issue will be dead for another year or until a different zoning classification is requested.

    Crickentree residents have been reaching out to residents of other golf course communities to attend as well, since those golf courses could be affected next if the Golf Course of South Carolina is rezoned.

    The County planning staff has recommended approval of the rezoning, saying it complies with the county’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan which recommends for that area to be zoned RS-MD in the future. That zoning designation would allow up to 600 or so homes to be built on 8,500 square foot lots.

    But while the planning staff makes that recommendation, it also concludes that approval of the request may promote a density which is not consistent with that of the established and proposed developments of the adjacent and proximate subdivisions (Hunters Run, The Park at Crickentree, and Crickentree).

    Attorney for E-Capital, Robert Fuller, laid out a plan for the property to be developed under medium density zoning, but promised that no more than 237 homes would be built, not the 600 or so allowed under the requested zoning classification.

    Commissioner Heather Cairns interrupted Fuller’s presentation to point out that the Commission’s responsibility was not to consider the plan he was presenting, but to consider whether 186 acres should be rezoned to allow 8,500 square foot lots over its entire existence.

    Resident Russell St. Marie also challenged Fuller’s plan for development of the property.

    “E-Capital is on record that they have no intention of developing this property,” St. Louis said. “They merely want to get the zoning changed and sell the property to a developer.”

    Under questioning by the Planning Commission Chair, Stephen Gilchrist, Richland County Zoning Director Geonard Price said that, according to the purpose statement of the TROS ordinance, it was to insure preservation of conservation, recreation and open space.

    The public hearing is scheduled for 7 p.m., Tuesday, April 23 at the County Council Chambers, 2020 Hampton Building. Those wishing to sign up to speak for or against the rezoning will need to arrive early to sign up.

    For more information call the County Ombudsman at 939-6000 to direct your call to the planning staff or call Concerned Citizens of Crickentree at 803-719-1242 or visit SaveGolfCourses.com.

  • Looking Ahead

    WINNSBORO – County Administrator Jason Taylor and staff outlined for council members a list of plans and proposals for the county during a Council retreat last weekend at Lake Wateree. From left, front row: Economic Development Director Ty Davenport, Taylor, Clerk to Council Patti Davis, Council Chair Neil Robinson, attendees Rev. Quincy Pringle and Jackie Workman and Dep. County Administrator Davis Anderson. Back row: Attendees Randy Bright and Jeff Schaffer, Councilman Clarence Gilbert, County Planner Chris Clauson, Councilmen Moses Bell and Mikel Trapp. The Voice’s report on the meeting will appear in the April 28 edition.

  • Diamond Invitational underway

    Let The Games Begin – Blythewood Town Councilman Larry Griffin threw out the ceremonial first pitch of the South Carolina Diamond Invitational at BHS on Wednesday. | Martha Ladd

    BLYTHEWOOD – The Blythewood baseball team finished the Region 4-5A slate of games in strong fashion, with series sweeps over Irmo, Sumter, and Spring Valley, and taking two out of three games against Lugoff-Elgin.

    Now the Bengals set their sights on the South Carolina Diamond Invitational, which opened Wednesday.

    “We’re going to have some really good competition that’ll prepare us for what we see in the playoffs,” Blythewood head coach Banks Faulkner said. “We’ve got four games to keep figuring some things out, but we like our team. We’ve got some depth.”

    Blythewood (17-5, 11-1) is ranked third among the state’s 5A teams by the South Carolina Baseball Coaches Association. The Bengals will meet No.1 Dorman,  Wren, and  Spartanburg, along with T.L. Hanna, along with area teams No.5 Chapin , No.9 Dutch Fork, , and Lexington.

    Landon Lucas leads the way for the Bengals at the plate with a .439 batting average, four home runs, seven doubles and 24 runs batted in.

    “It’s gonna be a good chance for us to see some new people, see some new competition,” Lucas said about the spring break tournament. “We’re looking forward to it.”

    John Lanier leads the team in homers with six, also has 24RBI, and has a team-high .570 on-base percentage. Zach Bailes is batting .419 with three doubles. Nate Hinson is batting .410 with seven doubles and 18 RBI.

    Lanier also is tops on the mound in wins with six, on top of a 0.36 earned-run average and 47 strikeouts. Lucas and Davis Wright have four wins apiece as pitchers.

    First pitch in the tournament comes at 11:30 a.m., when T.L. Hanna takes on Lexington Wednesday. Blythewood opens the invitational against Wren at 4 p.m. that day and will play Dorman at 8:30 that night.

    SC Diamond Invitational

    (Game times have been adjusted noting the possibility of inclement weather Friday.)

    Wednesday

    11:30 a.m.  – T.L. Hanna vs. LHS

    1:45 p.m. – Dutch Fork vs. Wren

    4:00 p.m. – Blythewood vs. Wren

    6:15 p.m.– Spartanburg vs. Chapin

    8:30 p.m. – Dorman vs. BHS

    10:45 p.m. – Dorman vs. Dutch Fork

    Thursday

    9:00 a.m. – LHS vs. Spartanburg

    11:15 a.m. – Lexington vs. Chapin

    1:30 p.m. – Chapin vs. T.L. Hanna,

    3:45 p.m. – Spartanburg vs. T.L. Hanna

    6:00 p.m. – Wren vs. Dorman

    8:15 p.m. – Dutch Fork vs. BHS

    Saturday

    10:00 a.m.– Fourth-place game (five innings)

    12:00 p.m.– Third-place game (five innings)

    2:00 p.m. – Consolation game (five innings)

    4:00 p.m. – Championship game

  • Bengals retire Sydney Burnsed’s Jersey

    BLYTHEWOOD – Sydney Burnsed’s softball sisters, friends and family came together at Blythewood High School on Friday to retire the former Bengal’s #6 softball jersey.

    The 2016 graduate of Blythewod High School died in a car accident in March 2018. As her parents unveiled a memorial sign to be hung on the fence of the softball field, there were hugs, tears and smiles of remembrance.

    Sydney was a four-year member of Blythewood’s softball team.

  • Goins fights back

    WINNSBORO – Bertha Goins is fighting back.

    A week after a Jenkinsville Water Company attorney issued a cease and desist letter and threatened to sue Goins over comments she’s made critical of water quality, she’s hired her own attorney to safeguard her First Amendment rights.

    Working in a private capacity, Goins’ attorney Tommy Morgan said his client categorically denies making any false and defamatory statements.

    Last Thursday, he wrote back to the JWC’s attorney, demanding that the water company cease infringing upon Goins’ right to free speech.

    “Ms. Goins will not be silenced by Jenkinsville Water Company’s threats of legal action and damages to be sought against her for merely speaking out about the water she receives from Jenkinsville Water Company,” the letter states.

    “Despite your meritless legal demand, Ms. Goins will continue to shed light on the matter that Jenkinsville Water Company seems so intent on keeping in the dark,” the letter continues.

    In a telephone interview with The Voice, Morgan said Goins has no desire to engage in a protracted legal battle. But Morgan noted Goins is committed to speaking freely about water quality issues.

    “We would be happy to have a meeting with the Jenkinsville Water Company over their water quality,” he said. “She was just trying to express her thoughts and concerns.”

    Morgan also questioned why Goins appears to have been singled out.

    “Other individuals spoke to the media about water quality,” he said. “It would be interesting to see if anyone else received a cease and desist letter. This threat of legal action is not going to stop Ms. Goins.”

    Goins has been a frequent critic of not only the Jenkinsville Water Company, but also the Town of Jenkinsville and Greg Ginyard, president of the JWC and the town’s mayor.

    In June 2018, Goins lobbied heavily against a massive annexation effort by the town, which was voted down. Morgan said he couldn’t say whether Goins’ past clashes with the town contributed to the letter.

    “Obviously the water company is distinct and separate from the Town of Jenkinsville,” Morgan said. “Ms. Goins is not focusing on the annexation vote.”

    When asked by The Voice for a comment about Morgan’s response, an attorney representing the water company emailed that, “JWC does plan on making a full response to Mr. Morgan’s letter next week, but we do not see this as a First Amendment issue as defamatory statements are not protected by the First Amendment.”

    On March 28, a Goodwyn Law Firm attorney sent a cease and desist letter to Goins, which disputed remarks she made to various local media organizations stating that Jenkinsville water quality is poor and contains sediments.

    “These false and misleading statements are defamatory and illegal,” the letter stated. “Legal demand is hereby made that you immediately stop such illegal activities.

    “If you continue to make such false and defamatory statements, I have been instructed to take all legal steps to enforce my client’s rights, including filing suit against you, for injunctive relief, slander and defamation seeking all damages allowed by law,” the letter continues.

    Also on March 28, in tandem with the cease and desist letter, the Jenkinsville Water Company sent a separate letter to its members.

    That letter contested of what the JWC calls “erroneous reporting,” and makes several innuendos about being absorbed by larger water companies.

    Both The Voice and The State newspapers, citing public records, have reported that the JWC has been cited by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.

    Documents obtained by The Voice show the JWC has been cited three times in the past five years, most recently in 2016.

    As for the suggestion that the JWC is facing absorption, the newly formed Fairfield Joint Water and Sewer Authority, which consists of Fairfield County and Town of Winnsboro representatives, has been discussing ways to beef up infrastructure at the I-77 megasite.

    The authority’s chief objective, however, is to attract new industry to Fairfield County, and not to consolidate other water companies. Absorbing the JWC or any other water company has never been discussed.

    Goins has independently called for the JWC to join the authority, but no other council members have made that suggestion.

    Still, the JWC letter takes several jabs at water authorities.

    “When smaller companies are taken over by a larger water system, this historically results in rate increases between 100% and 150%,” the letter states. “We are committed to not letting this happen to JWC members.”

    Morgan questioned the JWC’s statistics.

    “I have no idea where they got that data from,” he said.

  • Good news for Brelynn

    Breelyn Seeger cuddles with her mom, Mandy Seeger, during the Family Fun Day fundraiser at Doko Park on Sunday. | Photos: Barbara Ball

    BLYTHEWOOD – Last week, Mandy Seeger received the best news she’s had in a long time. Doctors at Duke University Hospital notified her family that a donor has been found and approved whose bone marrow is a match for her daughter, Brelynn.

    Brelynn, 5, has suffered from a debilitating immune deficiency called Combined Variable Immune Deficiency (IKAROS) for most of her life.

    She and her family – mom, Mandy; dad, Scotty and her brother Bryson, 16 – left Wednesday for Durham, N.C. where they will remain for up to a year as Brelynn undergoes treatment that, hopefully, will cure her illness.

    But the road to wellness will be long and difficult for the five-year-old and her family.

    “For the first week or so, she’ll have several doctor visits. Then on April 29 she will be admitted to Duke, where a tube will be inserted into her arm and through the main artery in her heart where it will remain for six months. Three lines will run off that tube for pain medication, nutrition and blood sampling.”

    And that’s just the beginning.

    “To prepare her for the bone marrow transplant, she will undergo chemotherapy for 8 – 11 days,” Seeger said, “and will remain in the hospital for up to 45 days.” Then the family will have to remain in the Durham area near the hospital for up to a year.

    “We will all stay at the Ronald McDonald House for the first two months, then we hope we will be able to move into a small apartment near the hospital for the remainder of our stay,” Seeger said. “But it’s first come, first served, so we hope one will be available when the time comes.”

    During that time Brelynn will continue to remain isolated until her immune system becomes strong enough to ward off germs that, in the past, could have proven fatal.

    Both Mandy and Scotty are taking year-long, unpaid leaves from their jobs – she works from home for Amazon and he is a business technician for Spectrum.

    “My grandmother will also be going with us to help look after Brelynn. While she’s in the hospital, at least one of us is required to stay with her every moment. We’ll be responsible for much of her daily care – mouth washes four times a day, taking her on short walks every day, even when she doesn’t feel like it, bathing her and other things,” Seeger said. “We’ll take shifts in her hospital room around the clock.”

    Bryson will also move with the family and attend school online.

    “He didn’t want us to go off and leave him here,” Seeger said. “We’ll all be together through this.”

    Seeger said there are many risks for her daughter during and after the transplant.

    “But it’s our best hope for her to have a normal life,” Seeger said. “It will be very difficult and sometimes scary for her. We are trying to prepare her as best we can. The doctors have told us to tell her what will be happening, to explain everything before it happens.”

    Because of Brelynn’s susceptibility to infections, she has had serious bouts with pneumonia, flu and other illnesses since birth. For that reason, she has spent her young life in near isolation – from friends, from playing with other children, from going shopping and eating out with her family.

    The trials have been many for the family during Brelynn’s illness, Seeger said. Two years ago, Brelynn was hospitalized with pneumonia. She was so ill that she was on life support for a while, her mother said.

    “After that,” Seeger said, “the doctors suggested we take Bryson out of school for a year and a half. The germs he brought home from school were too dangerous for Brelynn.”

    During a benefit in Doko Park last weekend, the family’s church, Pineview Baptist, organized a family festival to raise funds for the myriad of expenses the Seegers will have during the next year.

    It was a rare outing for Brelynn.

    “She just loved it and had so much fun. She ran and played with the other kids from church, ate hot dogs and just had a good time,” Seeger said.

    The event raised about $10,000, something Seeger said her family greatly appreciates.

    “I can’t say how much we appreciate our church members who put this together and worked so hard on it,” Seeger said. “And we are thankful for everyone who came out to wish us well and donate their time, money and effort for us. It meant so much.”

    “After we got home, I asked Brelynn what she enjoyed the most about the park and she said, “’Playing with Amy [the church pastor’s daughter].’ It’s such a little thing that most kids take for granted, but it’s something she almost never gets to do. Hopefully, after this year, she’ll be able to play with other children and do other things that children her age enjoy,” Seeger said.

    The church’s fundraising efforts are continuing with the hope of raising at least $20,000 more. To donate, contact Carla Hawkes at 843-408-3944 or the church’s pastor D. T. Kirkland at 803-381-3898.

    Well-wishers joined the Seeger family on Saturday for a Family Fun Day fundraiser organized by Pineview Baptist Church.