Blythewood Online 691

Category: News

  • Council, Developer No Closer to Terms

    BLYTHEWOOD (Nov. 26, 2015) – Town Council members and Town attorney Jim Meggs continued, after a year of wrangling with DR Horton, to wring their collective hands and retreat into executive session to discuss what they say is the failure of Horton, a Cobblestone property owner and builder, to acknowledge a section of an ordinance amending Cobblestone Park’s Planned Development District (PDD) that was passed by Council last April.

    That section requires Horton to acknowledge the terms of the amendment that require the builder to make traffic related improvements that may be prescribed or recommended by a Traffic Impact Study/Signal Warrant Analysis on sections of Syrup Mill and Blythewood roads.

    But according to information provided to Town Hall by the S.C. Department of Transportation (S.C. DOT), no traffic related improvements were required after Horton commissioned both a preliminary traffic study and a Traffic Signal Warrant Analysis in July for the specified locations, Town Administrator Gary Parker told The Voice.

    “S.C. DOT has confirmed that they are satisfied that at this time that nothing needs to be done about either a traffic signal or road improvements on Syrup Mill and Blythewood roads in connection with traffic impact on Cobblestone Park due to Horton’s development of the Primrose neighborhood,” Parker said. “However S.C. DOT has asked DR Horton to commission a second TIS (Traffic Impact Study) and Traffic Signal Warrant Analysis after the builder has completed 200 homes, built from mid-2015 forward in the new Primrose section of single-family homes.”

    The homes Horton is currently building in older sections of Cobblestone Park are not affected by this traffic study requirement.

    Even though the ‘acknowledgement’ required of DR Horton in the amended ordinance may now be moot, since no traffic related improvements are required, Council still wants Horton to acknowledge in writing that the company will follow through with S.C. DOT’s requirement that Horton commission the second studies after building 200 homes in Primrose, Mangone told The Voice.

    Three of the Town’s five Councilmen – Bob Mangone, Mayor J. Michael Ross and Tom Utroska – live in Cobblestone. Over the past year, heated conversations have broken out in Council chambers with DR Horton representatives as negotiations were hammered out regarding Horton’s development of the property which has generally not been welcomed by the neighborhood.

    Residents in Cobblestone have complained that the homes built by Horton could lower their home values and suggested that the additional homes might cause traffic congestion at the neighborhood’s egress and ingress on Syrup Mill and Blythewood roads. Council approved the PDD zoning only after Horton agreed to commission the TIS/Signal Warrant Analysis and make any required improvements.

    When the matter came up at last week’s Council work session, Meggs told Ross, Utroska and Mangone – the only council members in attendance – that he was going to discuss that information with them in executive session.

    “(There are) two positions,” Meggs said. “We don’t have any acknowledgement (from Horton) and there’s been some dialog between the attorneys for DR Horton and myself. That would be the subject of the executive session.”

    Utroska asked Meggs if there had been any more discussions with Horton.

    Speaking in muffled tones that were not entirely picked up by the recorder, Meggs told the three Council members, “That’s right. There are some developments.”

    Asked by The Voice before the executive session how the state’s Freedom of Information Act provided for Council to discuss the PDD acknowledgment issue in private, Meggs replied that he would be giving legal advice.

    Asked if there was a pending legal matter, Meggs replied, “No.”

    Pressed further, Meggs said the executive session was a matter of attorney/client privilege. He said there was a disagreement with DR Horton.

    When councilmen Utroska and Mangone were asked to comment about the legality of the executive session, Mangone replied that he follows the Town attorney’s advice. Because he lives in proximity to the Primrose section of Cobblestone Park, Ross recused himself from the discussion, voting and from the executive session as required by law.

    Council’s next regularly scheduled meeting is Monday at 7 p.m. at The Manor. After conducting old business, the three newly elected councilmen will be sworn in. The public is invited to attend.

     

  • BHS Student Hit Crossing Road Dies

    BLYTHEWOOD (Nov. 24, 2015) – A Blythewood High School student who was struck by a Jeep while crossing Wilson Blvd. on Nov. 10 died from his injuries last week.

    According to the S.C. Highway Patrol, Jeffrey Hunter, 17, was crossing Wilson Blvd. from west to east near Blythewood High School at 6:08 p.m. on Nov. 10 when he was struck by a 1998 Jeep traveling north. The Highway Patrol said Hunter was crossing the street and the driver of the Jeep did not see Hunter. Hunter sustained serious injuries from the collision and was transported to Palmetto Health Richland Hospital where he died on Nov. 19.

    At press time, the Highway Patrol still had the accident under investigation. The Highway Patrol told The Voice last week that no charges were pending against the driver of the Jeep. According to the accident report, the driver did not contribute to the collision and was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the accident. The driver’s estimated speed at the time of the collision, according to the report, was 40 MPH, under the posted speed limit for the area of 45 MPH.

     

  • Board Members Loses Battle With Cancer

    Andrea Harrison copyRIDGEWAY (Nov. 24, 2015) – Fairfield County School Board member Andrea Harrison lost her long-running battle with breast cancer last week, passing away on Nov. 18.

    “We are deeply saddened by the passing of Ms. Harrison,” Dr. J. R. Green, Superintendent of Fairfield County Schools, said. “She worked meticulously to achieve the goals of the district. Ms. Harrison placed service above self and was a true steward of education. She served the district with dedication and devotion. Ms. Harrison brought great value and warmth to our district and will be greatly missed.”

    Harrison, 45, was first elected to the School Board in 2010, and won her second term just last year. A memorial service was held Sunday at Fairfield Central High School.

    A special election to fill Harrison’s District 1 seat will be held Feb. 16. Filing opens at noon on Dec. 4.

     

  • Repairs Raise Money Questions

    RIDGEWAY (Nov. 20, 2015) – Town Council during their Nov. 12 meeting approved just under $4,000 from the water and sewer fund for repairs to the town’s water tank, sparking a brief discussion about how the cash-strapped town could inject more life into its budget.

    The $3,884 will go toward replacing leaking rivets on the tank, as well as cables on top of the tank. Currently, the leaks in the tank limit it to 50 percent capacity. Once the rivets are replaced, the tank can be filled to its standard 80 percent capacity.

    “We keep spending money and spending money,” Councilman Donald Prioleau said. “We keep cutting and cutting, starting with the trash. I’ve been here 16 years in April and we’ve never raised taxes, which is good. We cut the Police Department. Somewhere down the line we have to find some revenue.”

    Were it not for the large insurance settlement the town received after the roof on the old Ridgeway School collapsed years ago, Prioleau said, the town might very well be in the red today. Part of the answer, he said, might be to expand the size of the small town.

    “I brought this up once before: we’re going to have to move our town limit signs and annex,” Prioleau said. “We’re 1-mile long by a half-mile short, and the funds are running out. If we’re going to stay a small town like this, in order to make the budget, we’re going to have to raise taxes, and I don’t want to do that. I don’t really want to annex. But it’s something for us to think about. We’ve got to find ways of trying to generate some funds coming into our budget.”

    Mayor Charlene Herring said annexation and other budget-boosting ideas might be a good topic for a future work session.

    Police Station

    With no interest from the Sheriff’s Office in utilizing the Palmer Street police station as a substation, Council is one step closer to relocating the department into the Century House. But with the back room reserved for event rentals and the three other first-floor rooms occupied, the question is where?

    “I’d like to move the Council room into the back room,” Councilman Heath Cookendorfer said. “If Charlene (Herring) would like, move the Mayor’s office to this front room, and move the police station into the existing Mayor’s office.”

    The back room has only rented one time this year, Cookendorfer said, for $250. Herring said she would consider the move.

    Audit

    Herring reported that the Town had received a clean audit report, with no instances of non-compliance and no deficiencies in internal controls.

    Rent

    Council also reduced the rent for the vacant building at 128 Palmer St. from $300 to $250 a month.

    Vacancy

    Council’s Nov. 12 meeting marked the first meeting since the resignation of Russ Brown, who has moved from the town limits. Herring said there would not be a special election to fill Brown’s seat. The seat will instead be up for grabs during the town’s April 5, 2016 election, where Prioleau’s and Doug Porter’s seats are also up for re-election. Filing opens in January.

     

  • Results Vary on EOC Exams

    BLYTHEWOOD/FAIRFIELD (Nov. 20, 2015) – Scores from the 2014-2015 End of Course exams were up statewide, according to data released this month by the S.C. Department of Education, while locally numbers were mixed.

    Average scores across the state in Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 (AMT) inched up to 82.6 from last year’s 82.1. In Biology 1/Applied Biology 2 (BAB), scores increased to 82.3 from last year’s 81.8. English 1 (E1) and U.S. History and the Constitution (HC) saw the biggest increases, with E1 average scores up to 79.4 from last year’s 78.4, while HC scores were up to 76.1 from 74.9 a year ago.

    As a district, Fairfield County Schools experienced increases all but one subject. In AMT, average scores were up to 82.2 from 77.7 last year; in BAB, scores increased to 74.5 from last year’s 74.1; and E1 scores were up to 76 from 73.2 a year ago. HC scores fell to 67.5 from last year’s 69.

    At Fairfield Central High School, AMT scores were up to 81.8 from 76.6 a year ago; BAB scores up to 74.5 from last year’s 74.1; and E1 scores rose to 74.6 from 71 a year ago. HC scores dropped a point and a half, from 69 to 67.5.

    The percentage of students earning an A in AMT jumped to 15.1 percent over last year’s 2.7, while the percentage earning a B rose to 22.3 over last year’s 14.7. Scores of F fell from 17.9 percent last year to 11.2 percent.

    In BAB, the percentage of students scoring an A fell to 12.2 from 13.2 a year ago, while scores of B rose to 15.6 percent from 8.3 percent last year. Scores of F fell slightly from 38.7 percent last year to 37.4.

    In E1, scores of A rose to 5.6 percent from 1.1 percent a year ago, while scores of B were up to 14.5 percent over last year’s 6.1. Scores of F dropped from 39.4 percent last year to 37.4.

    HC scores of A fell from 1.1 percent last year to 0 this year, while scores of B also fell from 7.9 percent to 6.2. Scores of F were up from 56.6 last year to 61.2 percent this year.

    At Fairfield Middle School, AMT scores rose to 83.7 from 81.9 a year ago, while E1 scores fell to 82.1 from 83.4 last year.

    The percentage of students earning an A in AMT rose from 10 percent last year to 14.3 percent this year, while scores of B were also up from 22 percent last year to 37.5 percent this year. Scores of F also ticked upward, from 4 percent last year to 7.1 percent.

    In E1, scores of A were up from 10.3 percent last year to 15 percent this year, while scores of B fell from 43.6 percent a year ago to 22.5 percent. Scores of F increased dramatically, from 2.6 percent last year to 15 percent this year.

    In Richland 2, average scores in AMT were up to 83.4 from 82.6 a year ago, while scores in BAB fell to 80.4 from last year’s 82.4. E1 scores remained flat at 78.2, while HC scores were up to 76 from 74.4 a year ago.

    The percentage of students scoring A fell in AMT to 21 percent from 22.4 a year ago, while the percent scoring B rose to 23.9 from 17.5 percent. The percent scoring F fell to 9.4 from 11.1 percent last year.

    In BAB, the percent of students scoring A dropped to 28.4 from 31 percent last year, while scores of B fell from 16.3 percent to 14.7 percent. The percentage of scores of F rose from 19.7 last year to 26.4 in 2014-2015.

    In E1, the percentage of students scoring A rose to 17.2 from last year’s 14.9, while scores of B fell to 15.1 from 17.4. Scores of F were up to 28.4 percent over last year’s 24.3.

    In HC, scores of A rose to 9.5 percent over last year’s 6.2, while scores of B rose to 13.5 percent from last year’s 12.5. Scores of F fell from 34.5 a year ago to 31.1.

    Westwood High School experienced the most consistent improvement, with scores up across the board.

    Average scores at WHS in AMT were up to 80.7 from 76.4 last year, while in BAB scores went up to 76.5 from 75.8 a year ago. E1 scores were up to 73.9 from last year’s 72.9, and in HC scores were up to 72.6 from 72.1.

    The percentage of students scoring A in AMT rose to 13.5 from just 8.1 a year ago, while scores of B rose to 22.9 percent from 11.1 last year. Scores of F dropped to 14.3 percent from 22.1 a year ago.

    In BAB, the percent of scores of A rose to 15.4 from 13.8 a year ago, while scores of B also rose to 15.4 from 13.5 last year. Scores of F were down to 32.6 percent over last year’s 32.2.

    The percentage of scores of A rose to 9.2 in E1, up from 4.8 last year, although scores of B fell to 10 percent from 13.7 a year ago. Scores of F were up from 37.9 last year to 39.5 in 2014-2015.

    The percentage of scores of A fell to 4 percent in HC this year from 4.7 last year, while scores of B rose to 9.2 percent from last year’s 6.3. The percent of scores of F fell to 38.8 from 40.9 a year ago.

    Blythewood High School was a roller coaster ride, with average scores up in AMT to 81.3 from 79.9 a year ago, but down in BAB to 83.7 from 87.5 last year. Scores also fell in E1 to 81.9 from 82.8 last year, but rose in HC to 80.7 from 78.5 a year ago.

    The percentage of students scoring A in AMT rose to 11.4 from 10.7 a year ago, while scores of B were up to 23.8 from 17.7 percent last year. Scores of F fell to 10 percent from last year’s 13.3.

    In BAB, scores of A were down to 35.2 percent from last year’s 44.1, while scores of B fell to 16.2 from 17.2 percent a year ago. Scores of F nearly doubled, from 9.3 percent last year to 18 percent in 2014-2015.

    In E1, the percentage of scores of A edged down to 22.1 from 22.8 percent, while scores of B fell to 20.3 from 23.7 percent. Scores of F were up to 17.6 from 10.1 percent.

    The percentage of scores of A in HC were up to 17.3 from 10.3 percent, and scores of B rose to 18.3 from 17.5 percent. Scores of F dropped to 16.4 from 20.1 percent.

    At Blythewood Middle School, average AMT scores fell to 92 from last year’s 96.3. No data was available for E1 scores. The percentage of students scoring A dropped to 50 from last year’s 79.6, while scores of B rose to 29.2 from 13.3 percent. No students scored an F.

    Kelly Mill Middle School saw average AMT scores rise to 93.1 over last year’s 90.2, with no data available for E1. The percentage of students scoring A rose to 57 from last year’s 50.4 percent, while scores of B were up to 30.2 from 20.3 percent.

    Muller Road Middle School also experienced an increase in average AMT scores, to 92.5 this year over last year’s 87.5, again with no data available for E1. The percentage of students scoring A jumped to 54.2 from last year’s 32.9, while scores of B fell to 27.8 from 31.6 percent a year ago. The percentage of students scoring F fell to zero from last year’s 2.6.

     

  • Ridgeway Man Killed in Upstate

    Campus Cops Gun Down Former Griffin

    Delvin Simmons
    Delvin Simmons

    SPARTANBURG (Nov. 20, 2015) – The State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) is investigating after a Ridgeway man was shot and killed last week by a campus police officer in Spartanburg.

    Delvin Tyrell Simmons, 20, a 2014 graduate of Fairfield Central High School and a student at Limestone College in Gaffney, was shot on the night of Nov. 9 on the campus of Spartanburg Methodist College by a campus police officer.

    SMC police officers Andrew Tomlinson and Justin Yarborough were reportedly investigating vehicle break-ins near Sparrow Residence Hall and found Simmons and another man, later identified as Oliver Mylik Chandler, 20, of Darlington, at the scene of a break-in in progress at approximately 8:45 p.m.

    Campus police said Simmons tried to flee the scene behind the wheel of an automobile and allegedly struck Tomlinson while driving away. Tomlinson opened fire on the car, striking and killing Simmons. Simmons was pronounced dead at the scene. Tomlinson reportedly received minor injuries and was treated at the scene. Both officers have been placed on paid administrative leave, pending the investigation.

    Chandler, a former Limestone student, fled on foot, but was later captured on campus. He has been charged with car-breaking and larceny.

    SLED spokesperson Thom Berry said there was no dash cam or body cam footage of the incident.

    According to Spartanburg County Coroner Rusty Clevenger, an autopsy performed last week showed the cause of death to be a gunshot to the head. Hemphill Pride II, a Columbia attorney retained by the Simmons family, told media outlets Friday that Simmons, who was unarmed, had been hit “at least five times” by gunfire.

    Pride also said the car Simmons was allegedly breaking into belonged to his grandmother and that Simmons had permission to use it.

    Simmons, a sophomore at Limestone, was a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and was part of the Call Me MISTER teacher mentor program. During his years as a Griffin, he was part of Fairfield Central’s football state championship bids in 2012 and 2013. His former head coach, Demetrius Davis, remembered him fondly and was shocked by his sudden death.

    “He was a great kid,” Davis said after Friday’s first-round playoff win over Powdersville. “Nobody’s perfect, but this cat was in school, he was in the Call Me MISTER program, he wanted to be a teacher. He was doing all the right things. But sometimes you get caught with the wrong crowd, sometimes – I don’t know. I really don’t know what happened.”

    Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright said Friday that evidence found in the car Simmons was driving connects Simmons and Chandler to auto break-ins on the campus of Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, N.C., about 40 minutes from the SMC campus. Wright said Gardner-Webb police confirmed that clothing they spotted on men breaking into vehicles through surveillance video was the same clothing found inside the car of Simmons.

    Investigators allege that Simmons and Chandler broke into several cars on the campus of Gardner-Webb University on Nov. 2 and then used a debit card stolen from one of the vehicles multiple times in Gaffney the next day, running up charges of more than $308.

     

  • Council Continues Support for Shell Building

    BLYTHEWOOD (Nov. 19, 2015) – A shell building that Town Council hopes to construct and sell for a profit is picking up steam with three members of Council, Mayor J. Michael Ross, Tom Utroska and Bob Mangone, nodding in support of the project at a Town Council workshop on Tuesday. The project does not have to be voted on until the building is sold. Councilman Eddie Baughman was absent and the fifth seat remains empty until the newly elected Council members are sworn in Nov. 30.

    Since last summer, Ed Parler, the Town’s Economic Development consultant, has urged Council to construct the shell building on the Town Park grounds with what’s left of two grants totaling $456,881 awarded to the Town five years ago by Fairfield Electric Cooperative to construct a high end restaurant in the same location. Parler said if the Town doesn’t spend the grant on an economic development project in a designated business park owned by the Town, the money will have to be refunded with interest to the Cooperative. The spec building would occupy about an acre of the 2 acres across from the front of Town Hall that were designated for the business park when John Perry was Town Administrator.

    “If we turn the grant money back to Fairfield Electric,” Utroska pointed out, “then we’re going to be on the hook for the interest and penalties, which could come to more than $100,000.”

    Of the original $456,881 grant, only $342,490 remains, Parler said. He estimated the proposed shell will cost $429,581 to construct. To make up the difference, Parler said the Town will have to kick in $105,991 – $18,900 for architectural and engineering fees and a shortfall of $87,091.

    “It is my belief that we will not only recover the $105,991, but that we will be looking at a surplus from the sale of $100,000 plus,” Parler said.

    Council has contracted with E. Ralph Walden and Associates for architectural plans which, Parler said, should be completed in early December.

    “At that point we will have the plans reviewed by the Board of Architectural Review and bids will be solicited by mid-January,” Parler said.

    Last summer he told Council he anticipated awarding the construction contract at the November Town Council meeting, but those plans are running behind by a couple of months pushing the expected award of the construction bid back to Feb. 1. Parler said he also expects to issue a Request for Proposals for sale of the building by early February as well. He said he expects the Town will be awarding a purchase contract on the building by the end of February and, thus, closing out the grant.

    “We should have occupancy of the building by mid-May 2016,” Parler told Council.

    “I think we still need to have a conversation about whether we’re going to sell or lease the property,” Utroska said. “The premise is that we’re going to sell it, but we need to come to some agreement about this.”

    Instead of selling the building through traditional real estate advertising, Parler said the Town will issue an RFP.

    “This will give us some latitude in being able to choosing the purchaser we think is right for the location, Parler said. But he said the Town would not enjoy such protection with subsequent purchasers of the property when the Town was not involved in the sale.

    Parler emphasized that the shell building will not be of the quality that the previously proposed restaurant would have been.

    “We will use an exterior HardiePlank system and common wood framing,” he said. “Decks and railings will be No. 1 treated lumber, with limited outdoor seating. Windows and doors will be standard design and quality.”

    The walk-in cooler/freezer, if provided by an end user, will sit outside the building alongside the rear. The ‘box,’ Parler told the Council last summer, will be painted to match the building color.

    Parler said that because the building will be built on a raised floor system instead of a slab as was planned for the restaurant, the stockpile of dirt that was dumped on the premises two years ago will no longer be needed and he invited anyone who would like to pick up all or part of it at no charge to contact the Town Hall at 754-0501.

     

  • Rimer Pond Road Faces 5th Challenge

    BLYTHEWOOD (Nov. 19, 2015) – For the fifth time in seven months, residents of Rimer Pond Road, Long Creek Plantation and other nearby large-acre properties will try to convince Richland County to spare them from a rezoning request for commercial use on Rimer Pond Road that they say will change the character of their rural area. If passed by County Council, it would be the first commercial zoning on Rimer Pond Road. The target of the request is a 5.23- acre parcel at the intersection of Rimer Pond Road and Longtown Road East.

    “If this rezoning on Rimer Pond Road is approved, it will open the flood gates for commercial zoning on the rest of the road,” resident Trey Hair told the County Planning Commission earlier this month.

    The rezoning is being requested by Hugh Palmer whose family owns the property. Palmer is also the father of Patrick Palmer, the longtime Chairman of the Richland County Planning Commission, which is the recommending body to Council for zoning changes. But the Commission, which has twice heard the rezoning request, has not approved it either time. With Palmer recusing himself, as required by law, the first vote was 4-1 against recommending the rezoning and the second was 4-4, with no recommendation going forward to Council.

    In a meeting with residents in the area, Patrick Palmer said he wanted to rezone the property out of a desire to bring commercial conveniences closer to the residents. He said he had in mind such businesses as a Papa John’s, a dry cleaners and a dance studio. But the commercial zoning his father is requesting would allow Palmers or any future owners to also locate more intense commercial uses on the property such as service stations and a grocery without seeking further approval.

    Patrick Palmer, a commercial realtor with NAI Avant, had the property listed for $350,000 per acre last summer. But that sale is dependent on the property being zoned commercial. This week, Palmer notified The Voice that he no longer has a specific price on the property.

    Hugh Palmer told the Planning Commission on Nov. 5 that he wanted the parcel rezoned for commercial use because a cell tower and an access road on the property made it unsuitable for residential use.

    “This piece of property really has no residential value,” Hugh Palmer said. “No one will want to live there with these limitations.”

    Rimer Pond resident Ken Queen said the Palmers, in 2008, asked for residential zoning on the 5.23-acre parcel, which then included 26 adjoining acres as well as the cell tower. The zoning was granted.

    “They have now sold the 26 acres for residential use,” Queen said. “They asked for residential zoning on this (5.23-acre property) and now they need to live with it.”

    Commissioner Heather Cairns agreed that while the cell tower may impact the parcel’s usefulness, “that does not mean the whole area should have commercial zoning put upon it because of that limitation.”

    After failing to garner enough support from the Planning Commission and Council last summer for commercial zoning, the Palmers withdrew their application in September just hours before it was to be voted on by Council. Had Council voted against the application, it could not, by statute, have come back before them for another year.

    The public hearing for the rezoning is scheduled for 7 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 24 in the County Council Chambers at Hampton and Harding streets in Columbia. It will be the first of three votes Council will take on the issue and the only one of the three meetings where the public is allowed to speak.

    To speak for or against the rezoning, the public must arrive early to place their names on the sign-in sheet. To receive an agenda and a complete packet of information on the rezoning request by email, contact Suzie Haynes at haynessu@rcgov.us or at 803-576-2176.

     

  • Dickerson Will OK 375 Homes for Heins & Langford Roads

    BLYTHEWOOD (Nov. 19, 2015) – Residents along Heins and Langford roads in Blythewood say they do not feel they have the support of their County Council representative as they prepare to attend a public hearing at Richland County Council chambers on Tuesday to protest a rezoning request. The request, made by the Drapac Group, an Australian real estate developer with offices in Atlanta, Ga., could allow as many as 529 homes to be constructed on 202 acres in the middle of their farms and rural large acre residential properties.

    In a recent exchange of emails, the County Council representative for the area, Joyce Dickerson, explained to residents that she had a responsibility to the developer as well as to the residents, and that she had decided against a promised second community meeting before the  Nov. 24 public hearing to be held by County Council on the issue.  When residents asked Dickerson in a subsequent email to explain her responsibility to a developer who did not live in her district or in Richland County, Dickerson replied via email, “I do not have a responsibility to the developer. It’s about having the rights and privileges to do business in the county based on the comprehensive plan.”

    According to the Comprehensive Plan on the County’s website, the Plan serves as a guide for future zoning but does not require a particular zoning. Zoning decisions are made by the County Council.

    At a community meeting on Oct. 1, Councilwoman Dickerson, said she would not approve more than 500 homes in the proposed Drapac development.Residents asked the developer’s representative, Joel Tew, if Drapac would hold the number of homes at 250.  Tew said he was looking at between 223 and 500 to make the project financially feasible. Other than that, Tew was vague.

    “We don’t have that silver number yet,” Tew said. “(The developer’s) philosophy is that everyone in business has to have a reasonable return on their investment. “

    Drapac representative Robert Fuller told the audience, “We are here tonight to tell you that, at the end of the day, we will tell you what we do intend to do.”

    He did not at the end of that day.

    Before adjourning the meeting, Dickerson told the developer’s team that she wanted them to get back to her with a final number of homes very soon so she could schedule another meeting with the residents and relay that information to them before the rescheduled Oct. 27 meeting. Due to severe flooding that meeting was subsequently postponed until Nov. 24.
    Residents now say that after waiting for more than a month for Dickerson to schedule that second meeting between them and the developer for the purpose of learning how many homes the developer plans to build and to have input on that decision, they received an email from Dickerson dated Nov. 13 with news that set them back.

    In that email Dickerson said she supported the developer’s rezoning request and would approve up to 375 homes on the 202 acres, concluding that she felt that would be in the best interest of all parties.

    “Even if the developer asks for 375 homes,” resident Carol Ward told The Voice, “if he is given the rezoning, he can change the number of homes to over 500 without getting any further approval from Council.”

    “After careful consideration regarding the proposed Heins Road development,” Dickerson wrote in the Nov. 13 email, “I have concluded that given the facts according to the statistical data in regards to the proposed development that it is advantageous that all the surrounding communities work with the developer to ensure that the quality of the community is protected.

    “I recently met with the developer to find a comprehensible balance,” Dickerson continued. “It is my belief that if the developer decides to develop the property under its current (Rural) zoning, the community would have very little input on the quality of the development.”

    Dickerson went on to say that while she was concerned about the anticipated traffic, a traffic study is required for this development and it will identify any specific traffic concerns that may arise.

    After receiving Dickerson’s email in support of the rezoning and 375 homes, several residents responded, saying they were disappointed in her support of the rezoning, and that they felt misled.

    “You said, repeatedly, at the Oct. 1 meeting at Doko Manor that a second community meeting would be scheduled with residents before Council voted,” Carol Ward wrote in an email to Dickerson, an email that echoed similar sentiments from the community. “That meeting did not occur. Instead, we received notice of a compromise (you) worked out with the developer less than seven business days before (County Council’s) scheduled vote.”

    Dickerson responded on Nov. 16, “As I stated in my letter, the property is going to be developed with or without my vote. As for the traffic, SCDOT is the one to make that call. The traffic study depends on the discrepancy of SCDOT. As for the timing of my letter and your feeling that I misled you comes as a surprise to me. I informed you that I would not support 500 homes (I am not). I also informed you that I would keep you informed of my decision. I do not recall providing you with a definite date and time.”

    The public hearing for the rezoning is scheduled for 7 p.m., Tuesday in the County Council chambers in the County building at Hampton and Harden streets in Columbia. It will be the first of three votes Council will take on the issue and the only one of the three meetings when the public is allowed to have input.
    To speak for or against the rezoning, arrive a few minutes early to sign in.

    Those who want to speak for or against the rezoning must arrive a few minutes early to place their names on the sign-in sheet. An agenda and a complete information packet explaining the rezoning can be obtained by email from Suzie Haynes at haynessu@rcgov.us or call her at 803-576-2176.

     

  • Driver Sentenced in 2011 Murder

    WINNSBORO (Nov. 13, 2015) – A Newberry man was sentenced in the Sixth Circuit Court on Oct. 27 for his role in the 2011 murder of Leon Wright, 64, of Dave Cole Road, Blair.

    Judge Brian Gibbons sentenced Theory P. Maybin II, 21, to 11 years in prison after Maybin pled guilty to charges of attempted armed robbery, second-degree burglary and criminal conspiracy, according to Deputy Solicitor Riley Maxwell.

    Maybin was one of eight charged in the July 23, 2011 shooting death.

    On June 15, Randevious Hikeem Sims pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter, first-degree burglary and attempted armed robbery. He received a 30-year sentence. Sims was just 16-years old at the time of the shooting. He was tried as an adult.

    Christopher Williams also received 30 years after pleading guilty on Aug. 9, 2012 to murder, first-degree burglary, attempted armed robbery and conspiracy to commit armed robbery.

    Charges are still pending against Fairfield County residents Chris Martin, Leonard O’Neal, Kadeem Johnson and Xavier Wadlington. Martin was charged with accessory to murder and criminal conspiracy. O’Neal, Johnson and Wadlington face charges of murder, criminal conspiracy and attempted armed robbery.

    Demonta Ruff of Newberry still faces charges of murder, attempted robbery and conspiracy.

    Wright’s body was discovered by a family member inside his home on July 24, 2011, the victim of a gunshot wound to the chest.

    Investigators with the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office said shortly after the incident that the suspects, all gang members, had intended to rob a drug dealer in the vicinity of Wright’s Store on Dave Cole Road. The drug dealer failed to show up, but the suspects noticed Wright closing down his store for the evening and heading to his nearby home around 9:15 p.m.

    The suspects changed their initial plans, following Wright to his home instead in a Ford Expedition driven by Maybin. Maybin parked the Expedition a short distance from the home, then he, Williams and Sims got out and knocked on Wright’s door. Before Wright could answer, the suspects kicked in the door. Williams was armed with a 7.62 MM assault rifle, Sims with a handgun.

    Wright, meanwhile, had picked up a shotgun and pointed it at the suspects as they forced their way into the home. The shotgun, however, was not loaded, and both Williams and Sims opened fire, striking Wright fatally in the chest. The suspects then fled the scene.

    Arrests began just days after the shooting with the final suspect, Ruff, rounded up on July 28, 2011.