NEWBERRY COUNTY COUNCIL
MINUTES
NOVEMBER 16, 2005
The Newberry County Council met on Wednesday, November 16, 2005, at 7:00
p.m. in Council Chambers for a regular meeting.
PRESENT: Mike Hawkins, Chairman
William D. Waldrop, Vice Chairman
John E. Caldwell, Councilman
Henry B. Summer, Councilman
John David Dawkins, Councilman
Andy Morris, Councilman
Edgar Baker, Councilman
Leonard
B. Sossamon, Jr.,
Gary
T. Pope,
Susan C. Fellers, Clerk to Council
MEDIA: Cindy Pitts, Newberry Observer
Heather Hawkins, WKDK
Cassie Fowler, Whitmire
Mike Hawkins, Chairman, called the meeting to order and determined a quorum to be present.
Notice of the meeting was duly advertised as required by law.
Councilman Henry B. Summer had the invocation followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
Adoption of Consent Agenda:
Mr. Baker moved to adopt the consent agenda; second by Mr. Morris. Vote was unanimous.
Additions, Deletions and Adoption of Agenda:
There being no additions or deletions to the agenda, Mr. Waldrop moved to adopt the agenda; second by Mr. Baker. Vote was unanimous.
Public Comments:
Heather Hawkins,
Mr. Morris moved
to authorize the
George Burke,
1. An
Ordinance to amend the Official Zoning Map established pursuant to Zoning
Ordinance No. 12-24-01 so as to rezone 79.15 acres of TMS Parcel No. 577-11
from Basic Industrial (BI) to General Commercial (GC).
Mr. Hawkins called for the public hearing. There being no comments from the public, Mr. Hawkins declared the public hearing closed.
Mr. Morris moved for third reading; second by Mr. Dawkins. Vote was unanimous.
2. An
Ordinance adopting and approving, and authorizing the Chairman to execute and
deliver, the attached Joint County Business and Industrial Park Agreement
entered into between Greenwood County, Laurens County and Newberry County, in
order to create a Joint County Industrial and Business Park, pursuant to
Article VIII, Section 13, of the South Carolina Constitution and Sections
4-1-170, et. seq., Code of Laws of
Mr. Pope advised this was an
agreement for a park around the
Mr. Hawkins called for the public hearing.
Harry J. Griesser,
Mr. Pope
explained that this was the equivalent of a special tax district without being
a special tax district. It is a way of
using the increase in value to pay for some of the infrastructure improvements
in that particular area. It does not
affect the amount of taxes paid but affects the distribution of it. It does not set aside a specific area for
industry. The funding will come from a
redistribution of the property tax dollars.
By state law a multi-county industrial park has to be with contiguous
counties.
There being no further comments from the public, Mr. Hawkins declared the public hearing closed.
Mr. Caldwell moved for third reading; second by Mr. Dawkins. Vote was unanimous.
3. An
Ordinance granting a franchise to Time Warner Entertainment-Advance/Newhouse
Partnership, d/b/a Time Warner Cable, to construct, operate, and maintain a
cable system in the County of Newberry, South Carolina setting forth conditions
accompanying the grant of the franchise; providing for regulation and use of
the system and the public rights-of-way and prescribing penalties for the
violation of the provisions herein.
Negotiations are still in progress with Time Warner, and it would not be in order to give this second reading; however, because the public hearing was advertised, Mr. Hawkins called for the public hearing. There being no comments from the public, Mr. Hawkins declared the public hearing closed.
Mr. Morris moved to postpone second reading; second by Mr. Baker. Vote was unanimous.
4. An
Ordinance establishing mobile home regulations and licensing requirements in
Mr. Hawkins called for the public hearing.
Curt Baker,
There being no further comments from the public, Mr. Hawkins declared the public hearing closed.
Mr. Summer moved for second reading; second by Mr. Baker.
Mr. Pope pointed out the following amendments:
1. Section 2(A) has been changed to read “A Mobile home manufactured before July 15, 1976. . ..”
2. Section 3, add (D)
“Zoning permit issued by the Newberry County Zoning Administrator’s office
showing that the site where the mobile home will be located in
3. Section 7, reduce fee down to $50.00 for a moving permit.
Mr. Summer moved for second reading as amended; second by Mr. Baker. Vote was unanimous.
5. An
Ordinance repealing Ordinance No. 15, as amended, relating to the regulation of
construction of septic tanks.
Mr. Baker moved for second reading; second by Mr. Dawkins. Vote was unanimous.
6. An
Ordinance abolishing the Fairgrounds Commission and transferring the duties
thereof to the
Mr. Baker moved for second reading; second by Mr. Dawkins.
Mr. Summer received a letter from J. Harold Ruff addressed to County Council Members and County Administrator advising that none of the Commission members were notified ahead of time of the County’s trying to abolish the Commission. His letter says:
“The Newberry
Agricultural Fair Commission is requesting your consideration of reappointment
of the members now serving. They are Iris
Rodelsperger, Harvey Kinard, Clifford Gill and J. Harold Ruff, Jr. We would like to continue our progress to see
the fairgrounds made more beneficial to the county and the community. We are proud of what we have accomplished and
continue to strive to represent the county and the community for tomorrow’s
growth. We are appointed volunteers
working with the county guidance to make available the fairgrounds to the
various civic and community groups. We
would like to meet with the County Council and the
It is signed J. Harold Ruff, one of the Commissioners.
Mr. Summer requested that Council consider postponing this matter until after the work session on December 14.
Mr. Caldwell moved to postpone second reading until after the work session on December 14, 2005 to allow Council to meet with the existing members; second by Mr. Waldrop. Vote was unanimous.
7. An Ordinance to regulate the possession and disposal of household waste litter, abandoned and derelict vehicles, mobile homes and abandoned and derelict structures and other property, and to provide penalties for violations thereof, and to provide for other remedies, including civil fines, assessments and injunctive relief.
Mr. Hawkins advised that Council had decided to include this in the work session on December 14, but since the public hearing was advertised, he called for the public hearing.
Ruth Boozer,
Stella Hancock,
There being no further comments, Mr. Hawkins declared the public hearing closed.
Mr. Morris moved to postpone first reading until after the December 14 work session; second by Mr. Baker. Vote was unanimous.
8. An
Ordinance authorizing the issuance and sale of Newberry County, SC, Special
Source Revenue Bonds (Industrial Park Project), in one or more series, in an
amount not exceeding $9,000,000; the mortgaging of property of Newberry County
to secure the same; the issuance of one or more notes in anticipation of such
bonds; the application of the proceeds of said bonds or notes to defray the
costs of the acquisition of certain industrial park property and improvements
in Newberry County; and other matters relating thereto.
Mr. Dawkins moved for first reading; second by Mr. Baker. Vote was unanimous.
9. A
Resolution making application to the State Budget and Control Board of South
Carolina for approval of the issuance by Newberry County, South Carolina, of
Special Source Revenue Bonds (Industrial Park Project) in one or more series of
bonds, pursuant to the provisions of Title 4, Chapter 29 of the Code of Laws of
South Carolina, 1976, as amended, in the principal amount of not exceeding
$9,000,000.
Mr. Baker moved to adopt the Resolution; second by Mr. Dawkins. Vote was unanimous.
10. A
Resolution recognizing and approving policies for the use of inmate labor for
public purposes in
Mr. Waldrop reported that the Inmate Labor Committee met and their recommendation was that County Council adopt the following policy:
“Any County
office or department, or any outside agency funded in whole or in part by
County funds, which wishes to utilize inmate labor, will be required to have
its employees undergo training in how to handle and interact with inmate
laborers, and in how to recognize and report potential problems with those
inmates. This training will be conducted
by the Sheriff or his representatives in an effort to educate employees on the
laws, policies and procedures associated with inmate labor forces utilized by
Mr. Morris moved to adopt the Resolution approving the policies; second by Mr. Baker. Vote was unanimous.
11. Committee
Reports:
Mr. Morris advised that the paving
contracts with dirt roads being paved have been completed with the exception of
Mr. Baker stated the fuel system at the Airport should start construction the first of December and fuel will be available the first of next year.
12. Appointments:
No appointments.
13. Acceptance
of bid for
Mr. Sossamon advised that MAR
Construction had the low bid, which was still slightly above the funds
allocated.
Mr. Sossamon recommended that Council award the bid to MAR Construction in the amount of $718,907.50 (which includes the $100,000 from the hospital) with any savings being applied. He has asked Tommy Whitehead, Public Works Director, to look at the possibility of providing the paving through some future county endeavor. This project is primarily being paid for from the One Cents Sales Tax authorized by the citizens of the County in November 2004.
Mr. Waldrop questioned the need for engineering/architectural services. Mr. Hawkins advised that the International Building Code requires architects and engineers. Public buildings require that we comply with federal regulations.
John Culbreath, B.P. Barber &
Associates, stated the building was initially designed with all features
requested. The low bid was
$877,252.50. He proposed to remove some
items, which the county has the right to do, due to the price situation. There is already a fire hydrant at the corner
of
Mr. Morris asked if there were change orders that would increase the amount, where were the funds coming from. Mr. Sossamon stated they would have to come from the fund balance if authorized by County Council or by another contribution from the hospital.
Mr. Dawkins said the prices were sent to the One Cents Sales Tax Committee two years ago, and prices have escalated. Nobody figured engineering and architectural services in their bids, and everybody is going to come in short. By approving this, we have done what we committed to do. The taxpayers voted to pay a certain amount of money for this project.
Not taking into consideration the Board of Rural Fire Control’s money and the hospital’s money, Mr. Baker moved that the County go ahead and sign a contract on our part not to exceed $570,000; second by Mr. Waldrop.
Mr. Pope advised that if the economic boom continues in Newberry County there will be additional monies available to help pay for overruns. It will not be there for two or three years, but there will be money at the end if the first bond issue is any indication.
Mr. Hawkins called for the question. Vote was unanimous.
Mr. Culbreath asked for clarification as to whether or not Council voted to accept the low bid.
Mr. Baker amended his motion to accept the low bid negotiated by Mr. Culbreath; second by Mr. Caldwell. Vote was unanimous.
14. Acceptance
of bid for
Mr. Pope advised that McMillan Smith agreed that if the project came in over budget, they would redesign it at no additional cost. On page 14 of the Contract, Item 12.2, they do not do construction management, per se, but they will have a representative from their firm at the site a minimum of once a week during the construction period to observe the work. They will hold regularly scheduled meetings with the general contractor, the subs and the county on a minimum of once a month during the construction period. They will also have a pre-bid conference and pre-construction conference. Any known deviations from the contract discovered during site visits will be reported to us. Should the lowest bid exceed the established budget, they will make the necessary design adjustments at no additional cost. It is not true construction management but they will have a representative of firm on site once a week during construction and is more than they committed to before.
Mr. Waldrop moved to accept the bid of McMillan Smith; second by Mr. Baker. Vote was unanimous.
15. Susie
Berry, Assessor.
Ms.
16. Memorandum
of Agreement between
Mr. Baker moved to authorize the
17. Acceptance
of
Mr. Morris moved to accept
18. Approval
of Agreement between The Mercer Group, Inc. and the County of Newberry to hire
a consultant to assist in conducting a management and organizational study of
county emergency services.
Mr. Morris moved to enter into an Agreement with The Mercer Group so that a contract cost does not exceed $30,000; second by Mr. Baker.
Mr. Dawkins stated the majority of
the information this consultant will get for us is readily available from the
hospital or from Lewis Lee, Emergency Services Coordinator for
Mr. Morris advised part of the total study they would be doing would be gathering information. We can gather the information and provide it to them. We have asked for information from the emergency services and have gotten nothing. This will give us a road map as to where we should be going with emergency services in the future and give us the ground work and a plan to get there. It is much more than just gathering the information.
Mr. Waldrop asked what would happen if we don’t do anything with the information they give us. Mr. Morris said that would be a mistake on our part. If we have confidence in a consultant, and they give us a road map to get there, we should give them the consideration for what they told us to do. If we don’t, we have wasted our money.
Mr. Waldrop said we had someone hired to do that. Mr. Morris didn’t feel Lewis Lee was in a position to do it because he came out of the fire service organization, and there are ties to the past, and he is not really in a position to give us the answers that we want. His background is fire services, and we are talking also about emergency services and rescue squad.
Mr. Caldwell felt we would be pouring money down the drain that could be used some other place and that it would be a waste of taxpayers’ money to hire somebody to tell us what we already know.
Mr. Hawkins called for the
question. Voting for the motion: Councilmen Morris, Baker and Hawkins. Voting against the motion: Councilmen Waldrop, Summer,
19. NACo
Prescription Drug Discount Program.
Mr. Morris made a motion that
Future Meetings:
Mr. Hawkins announced the meeting of December 7, 2005 at 7:00 p.m., a work session on December 14 beginning at 1:00 p.m., and the regular Council meeting at 5:00 p.m. on December 14.
Mr. Hawkins announced that Tommy Whitehead was no longer the Interim Public Works Director but is now the Public Works Director.
There being no further business, Mr. Morris moved to adjourn; second by Mr. Baker. Vote was unanimous.
Meeting adjourned at 8:33 p.m.
NEWBERRY COUNTY COUNCIL
___________________________________
Mike Hawkins, Chairman
___________________________________
Susan C. Fellers, Clerk to Council