Sorry for the delay but I had an Advance Budgeting class and other business in Columbia this week. I really learned a lot at the budgeting class and hope I can get what I learned into practice eventually.
Now for the council meeting…
Voted: YES - Ordinance 2025-10: 2nd reading. Authorizing the conveyance of a right of way maintenance agreement with Doodle Trail Properties 2, LLC. DTP wants to maintain and improve the area where the city’s right of way is located. More power to DTP. Landscaping will be a great improvement there.
Voted NO – Ordinance 2025-11: 2nd reading. To repeal the Zoning Ordinance and Land Development Regulations and replace with the UDO. I will admit there was some improvements since the first reading due to the new Planner. I agree with Justin Alexander’s concerns as this was not the same document that was approved in the 1st reading and the city attorney did not review this document as per ordinance. There was no public hearing on the changes either and no 15-day notice. I said in the council meeting that although the document was better than it was, I could not contribute to the nonadherence to the ordinance requiring the attorney to review all ordinances and was going to vote No. (I found it quite puzzling that Councilmember Davidson said in the Chamber of Commerce campaign candidate forum –(paraphrased) Why have ordinances if they are not being followed and then she votes yes on this ordinance when an ordinance was not followed!)
Voted NO – Ordinance 2025: 2nd reading. To amend the FY25/26 Operating Budget to authorize the purchase of IT equipment for the police department. I voted no due to this is already in place on the county level and feel this is an expense the city should not take on at this time. I spoke with numerous people in the county to get a better understanding of the server that contains the 911 data for the police department. It is not only the cost of the service but the recurring year charges that will come with this. The city and the county need to come together and work as a team and I hope they can work things out in the very near future. My gut said no on this and that is why I voted as I did.
Voted YES – Ordinance 2025-13: 1st reading. This was an acceptance of a grant award to the police department from the SC Opioid Recovery Fund. This will enable the city to hire 2 police officers, purchase 2 vehicles, and cover additional expenses for this public safety program.
Voted YES-Verbal Resolution: no number. Approval of the A-TAX Committee’s recommendation for the disbursement of the accommodation taxes. I think this should have been a written resolution, especially for transparency. A resolution would be numbered and could easily be referenced. I was told the Easley Foothills Playhouse missed the deadline but the application was accepted by the committee. They were awarded the most money. Why have a deadline if it is not followed. May we need a new committee that will follow rules.
Voted YES-Verbal Resolution: no number. This is a re-allocation of leftover money from a capital purchase of a new side loader trash truck to purchase a used side loader trash truck.
OOPS: I left out the site for the Legislative Tracking at the Municipal Association of South Carolina. Click the link to check the status of bills pertaining to cities and towns.