Full meeting transcript - December 12, 2023

» And how are you? In Cushel County, citizens that are here in person and online, thank you for coming tonight. This is the regularly scheduled meeting for December 12th, 2023, and I call this meeting to order. Our invocation tonight will be brought by Pastor Craig Thompson of Malvern Hill Baptist Church. Craig, thank you for being here. Let us pray. Dear Lord, thank you for the opportunity to come before you in prayer. As we look toward Christmas, we are reminded that you loved us enough to send your son to die for our sins. And for that, we praise you. This evening, as I pray for this council of leaders in our community, I pray that they would be filled with humility and wisdom. I pray that they would be humble enough to bow before you and seek advice and counsel.

» I pray that they would be wise enough to lead and govern well. God, we ask that you would not only raise up good leadership, but that citizens of Kershaw County would prove to be a governable sort. God, grant that we as citizens would seek the welfare of others and the welfare of our county. God, give us unity of purpose and love toward one another. Because you are a good God who has commanded that we should govern and be governable, I trust that good government is for our good and for your glory. I pray that all of those who serve would always see their role as one under the authority of a greater government. May we be reminded regularly that all power and authority has been granted to Jesus for the primary purpose of expanding his kingdom.

» Finally, we celebrate that the government ultimately rests upon Christ's shoulders, and we call his name Emmanuel, Prince of Peace and Mighty God. We pray this in Jesus' holy name. Amen. Amen. Please stand for the pledge of the leader. Thank you, and thank you, Pastor Thompson. All right, up first tonight, we're going to pause to do a recognition of Kershaw County Sheriff's Office law enforcement accreditation. And, Mr. Shoemake, you put this on the agenda, so I'll give the floor to you. Sure. So, before I was going to bring Sheriff Bone up to sort of introduce his folks and kind of talk a little bit about this, but as you see here on the slide, South Carolina law enforcement accreditation is a really big deal.

» This is the first time that the Kershaw County Sheriff's Office has been accredited. Only 12.5% of South Carolina law enforcement agencies are accredited, so this is a pretty rare honor, particularly for a county of our size. We're obviously a growing county, but comparable to counties of our size, that 12.5% number drops down a lot. And so, to do that, it required them to complete over 300 different standards. And so, what I just wanted to do is see if, Sheriff, if you wanted to come up and sort of bring up whatever gentlemen or women you wanted to recognize, and then maybe we could do a picture. But, again, I can't stress enough, this is a huge deal for any law enforcement agency to be accredited. It matters in terms of grant funding, which is huge for us.

» It matters in terms of, you know, sort of credibility on the both statewide stage and national stage. And so, again, congratulations, Sheriff, and I know you want to kind of recognize some of your people. Yeah, absolutely. It's something we're very proud of. And we've done it as a department, but there are some that really stepped forward and was there when we really needed them to that got us where we needed to be. And basically, we've got Captain Kevin Lynch back here in the back and his wife, Whitty. And we've got Sergeant Drew Monroe, helped out a lot with them. And we actually have somebody from the accreditation board, Chris Radcliffe, at the rear of the room also. Definitely wanted to point out these guys, and this has been a long road.

» It's taken more than three years to accomplish it. A lot of times I know when most people would get depressed, upset, and want to walk away from it, and a lot of agencies have. They've quit midstream, but Kevin Lynch and his crew stuck with them. A lot of times I would go into Kevin's office and ask him, hey, how are things going? And I can tell by the volume of the growl he gave me as to where he was at on the project, but he stuck with it. He never gave up, and I definitely appreciate what they've done, and we're proud to be where we're at. When I remember, there was some discussion during budget season last year about some IT issues that were part of the issue for accreditation.

» Obviously, I know there were several roadblocks you guys had to kind of master to get this, so congratulations. Yeah, and the county's been supportive. Back when Vic Carpenter, when it first started off, and then Danny Templer, anything that we've needed to accomplish this. Power DMS program was huge, and that's pretty much mandatory. And our next step when we start for our national accreditation, the county's been real supportive, and I'm sure y'all stick with us. Yes, well, thank you, and I think, can we maybe get a picture with that? It looks like you've got your accreditation there with you. Okay. Oh, hello, Dan. Ready? One, two, three. Inside, keep smiling. We're good. Congratulations. Good. Good job, Kevin. Madam Chair, can I say something? Yes, Mr. Jones. Mr. Lynch, Captain Lynch.

» Where are you at? Where did you start your law enforcement career? Who was it with? Thank you. Thank you so much. One of the best hires we ever had in Carshaw County. No, no, I'm sorry. All right, I'm going to be quiet. Thank you. Congratulations to our Sheriff's Department. Very proud of each and every one of you. And who weren't with your daddy, David? That's right. Thank you. All right. Thank you, Mr. Jones. Congratulations again. Yes. And thank you, Mr. Shoemake, for putting that on the agenda. All right. Item number five, adoption of tonight's agenda. Is there a motion pertaining to tonight's agenda? Make a motion that we adopt the agenda for tonight's meeting. Okay. Motion to adopt by Mr. Tucker. Is there a second? Second. Second by Mr. Cato. Any discussion? Okay.

» All those in favor of adopting tonight's agenda, indicate by raising your hand. And the vote is unanimous. This is our adopted agenda. All right. Moving on to item number six, public comments. Thank you, Mr. DuBose. All right. The first speaker tonight is Vanessa Sweeney. Madam Chair, how many do we have? Four. Thank you. Yes, ma'am. It looks like the first person removed themselves. That's all right. I can handle it. First of all, good evening. Thank you for letting me speak tonight. My name is Vanessa Sweeney. I am not the Clemson Sweeney. Spelled to me. Moved here from Maryland about four years ago. Son went to USC, never came home, so my husband and I came to him. Husband loves to bass fish, so does my son. Chose to retire in this area. We came from the state of Maryland.

» Very expensive state, so it was a little bit different for me to adjust to this area. But I have. And what I wanted to talk about tonight was the Kershaw County Humane Society. I didn't realize that Camden was steeped in history. It was the oldest inland town. The Revolutionary War battle was fought here. The steeplechase horse races, husband fishes, son fishes. But for me, I found a jewel of my own, and that's the Kershaw County Humane Society. Camden should be very proud of their no-kill animal shelter. If an animal has to be in jail, so to speak, this is the place to be until they find their forever home or go to rescues. I have volunteered here for four years. The shelter staff welcomed me from day one. I currently have three dogs. Two came from the Kershaw County Humane Society.

» I've fostered four times for the shelter, and currently I have a seven-year-old terrier named Reba who's looking for her permanent home. If anybody's interested, talk to me later. There are many good volunteers there as well. I wanted to share with you, and I'm sure you probably know about the shelter, but it cares for approximately 170 dogs, 100 cats, lots of animals there. But the staff should be called the walking angels on earth because they have to do many heroic things that people would not or could not do. They have to deal with life and death issues every day. Shelter work is like no other job that I've had in my lifetime. I've never made friends before with a yellow mop bucket and scooped so much poop, and I do that honestly. I am kind of like a staff member there.

» The job is not like stocking a grocery shelf with canned goods. They are not product to move. The job is caring for sentient creatures, many who have suffered from the hands of humans, many who are scared, overbred, beaten, neglected, or used as property by someone who does not care about their physical or mental well-being. Yes, there are many, many good people here too because we see them every day when they come in to foster or adopt. Many of the animals also go up north because they have stricter laws, or their laws are enforced anyway, about spaying and neutering, so they have less animals. So we ship many up north, and they find homes. But I wanted to talk about the real heroes, and that's the staff. They work tirelessly for these broken animals. They feed.

» They get the required vet care needed. They love them. They rehabilitate them, and they do so much more for the animals. There's a lot of psychology behind raising stable pets. College courses are taught on animal behavior. I felt like I did one today, actually, preparing for this meeting because I gave you a folder with pictures that I have taken myself. Animals are very similar to children, except they don't talk back. In fact, their brains have been compared to an 18 to 24-month-old, which is pretty impressive if you think about it. I brought photos. I've made folders for you, y'all. I should say. I'm learning that jive. So that you can look at it at your own leisure because I have probably thousands of pictures that I personally have taken. I take dogs out on what I call field trips.

» I take them to Lowe's, Harbor Freight, Tractor Supply. Nobody has given me any kind of money or a kickback for mentioning their names, but everybody has been very, very welcoming of the shelter pets and myself. I think it's important to see faces and not only the numbers, which is why I gave you photographs, because numbers really don't tell the whole story. From the most abused dog I've ever seen, which is the pit bull, which I had literally no experience with until I came to this county, to hound dogs, rottweilers, shepherds, labs, mutts, and many more. You'll see in the picture staff who put their hearts and souls in this job for the dogs, staff who in reality could make more money working for Chick-fil-A.

» My purpose tonight is to share some of the faces of the dogs that have been unseen by previous owners. I've also added a couple cat pictures for cat people. Since you can't look at all my photos now, take them, look at them during this week or whatever. I got 20 seconds. All right. I can't stop. I talk a lot. Anyway, look at the pictures. I'll come back and pick them up because I want to hand them out to the staff. Thank you for letting me talk. Merry Christmas. Thank you, Ms. Sweeney. The next speaker is Lauren Cook. Hi, Lauren. Good evening, everyone. I know you haven't seen me in the building in a while, but I have been tuning in online. I have a rather time-consuming job right now. But first of all, I'll start by saying that I'm not particularly happy with the outcome of the vote.

» I thought it was going to be later, which was why I was not here when that vote was taken. But I'm sure you know that I'm not happy with that vote. But we'll talk about that later. What I'm here tonight is to follow up on the invitation that I sent the council about the Larry Doby 100th birthday celebration on Saturday. One to four on Saturday at the Art Center. We have a couple of speakers online. We'd love to see you there. And that's going to be the first of a number of activities that we have planned to bring more attention to not just Larry Doby, but some more of the history of Camden that maybe has not gotten the amount of publicity and attention that it deserves. So I won't belabor the point. I thank you very much. And I hope to see you all on Saturday and tell your friends.

» Thank you, Ms. Cook. The next speaker tonight is Vanessa Adams. Hi, Vanessa. Good evening, everyone. I'm Vanessa Adams. And I'm here just to share some news, some awareness, and then to invite you all to an event that I'm excited about and others are as well. I'm a member of the Camden alumni chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. And I'm excited to say that we are bringing an advanced screening of The Color Purple, the new movie, The Color Purple, to the little theater. It's going to be on Saturday. It's a matinee, December 23rd at 1 p.m. And so we're selling tickets in advance. It's $20. The $20 will get you admission, a medium popcorn and soda, and then we'll have door prizes.

» It's a fundraiser for the organization to help us do our public service work that we do in our service area, which is Kershaw County, and a little bit of Ridgeway. Okay, so I want to invite the council to come with their families. It's open to the community, and we're selling tickets in advance. So if anyone is interested, they can reach out to me or, you know, anyone else in the Camden alumni chapter. And I will be at the Larry Dobie 100 celebration on Saturday at the Douglas Reed House at the Fine Arts Center. And so if anybody is interested and wants to pick up tickets, I will have tickets to the premiere there. So thank you very much. Thank you, Ms. Adams. The next speaker tonight is Gary Philpott. Hi, Gary. I first landed at Woodward Field in August of 1978.

» I lived in Alaska, but I was engaged to a Camden girl, and I had not met my in-laws. So I flew my airplane from Anchorage, Alaska to Woodward Field, and I landed at this beautiful airport among many that I'd landed on the way. And it's amazing that this airport is almost 100 years old. I have the privilege of being a county employee, even though I'm a retired financial advisor. I was vice chairman of the airport commission, and a job came open, and I was hired as a part-time retired guy to back up a fine gentleman, Dale Thompson, who's been at the airport 25 years. What amazed me when I started working at the airport is the amount of corporate jet traffic that we get at this airport.

» Every week we have charters and we have corporate aircraft, people coming in to look at places to build factories, and this is a growing community. We have two corporate planes that are housed at Woodward Field, but every week we have two to three a week that come in. And everyone, they enter into the terminal, and everyone is amazed at what this county provides as a front door to this county to people that want to hire people from Camden and Kershaw County. And then they go out to Highway 1, and Sammy and I live in East Camden. There's 21, at least 21, abandoned buildings between the airport and the Bishopville Highway. And even though we give us great front door, when they walk into our living room, which is Highway 1, they come back discouraged.

» And they're wondering what's going on here, because their first impression is great. And, you know, this is a long-term situation. The county, we're one year into a five-year rehab plan for our runways and taxiways. We're updating the look of the hangers, the face of the hangers. And it's a long-term situation, but West Camden looks great. Can we just kind of keep in mind East Camden? And what can we do to help the people that live in East Camden, first off, and to make our front door just a little bit nicer looking so we can invite more industry to come in? Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Philpott. All right, that concludes public comments for this evening. Thank you to everybody that signed up. Thank you for your feedback.

» All right, the next item on agenda is number seven, our public hearings. I'm going to move that down and do public presentations next so that we have our public hearings right before our ordinances. So next we'll go to item number eight, public presentations. We're going to start tonight with the history of Woodward Airfield by a Camden Military Academy senior, Mr. Roman Lepeka. Hi, Roman. Thank you for being here tonight. Thank you, ma'am. Thank you, council, for having me. Hi. My name is Roman Lepeka, and I'm a cadet officer at Camden Military Academy. Moreover, I am a life scout, and I'm here to provide you a brief of my recent eagle project.

» The mission of my project has been to honor the historical veterans that have trained as part of an international exchange for pilot training during World War II. And this happened in, I believe, one of three to five properties all ranging through the East Coast. Now, this project before I present to you, I would like to note and recognize these excellent gentlemen behind me because I would never have been able to complete nor even work this project without them. To complete this project, I've collaborated with over 20 historical foundations, agencies, societies, and not to mention the archives of Camden. And this helped a lot. And I'd like to thank you very much for having me.

» And I've provided a video that I would like to show to you, as well as the audience, that would provide a full history of the airport from the 1920s to the 2020s. In January 1929, Ernest Woodward, a philanthropist and travel enthusiast, donated 160 to 170 acres of land along with $25,000 to create Woodward Airfield in Camden, South Carolina. Previously selling the Jell-O Company, Woodward envisioned an airport that would connect his business interests with his love for flying. His donation, which was prompted by rumors that he had grown tired of airplanes landing in his pastures, laid the foundation for a modern airfield in Camden, South Carolina. Shortly after construction commenced, the airport sprang into action, setting in motion a series of transformative developments.

» Even before the erection of its inaugural hangar, Mabel Cody's Wocopep Flying Circus was already captivating audiences with airborne spectacles on the airfield's runway, thrilling the eager public. Simultaneously, the concept of aerial excursions began to take shape, offering a unique perspective of Camden from the skies and giving birth to a new industry. Woodward Airfield, the most modern airfield in the Southeast, opened on November 7, 1929. It connected the Woodward's business interests with their love of aviation and served the general aviation community, representing progress in the region. The maintenance hangar with giant Camden letters on its roof served as a landmark for pilots who did not have technology to navigate at the time.

» Woodward Field, a popular stopover for pilots, underwent major upgrades in 1940, including the addition of clay runways. Activated in 1941, Woodward Field became a basic flying training airfield under the 64th Flying Training Detachment. Pilots trained on PT-19s and PT-17s, managed by military contractor, Southern Aviation School. In 90 days, the company built classrooms, barracks, and additional hangars, and employed civilian pilots and ground school instructors. The initial staffing at the Southern Aviation School included approximately 70 officers, mechanics, and department heads, with the U.S. Army contributing up to 30 representatives and 23 flight instructors. The school's key officials were Frank W. Hulse, President, Ike E.

» Jones, Vice President, and Henry Savage, Jr., Secretary-Treasurer. Training of Army Flyers began on March 22, 1941. In June 1941, the community warmly welcomed 65 Royal Air Force cadets from England. The RAF cadets were the first group of 300 British airmen who would undergo training in Camden. The local community extended extra hospitality to the British flyers, including invitations to their homes and friendly gestures. Woodward Field was abuzz with activity in 1943, as cadets from the U.S. and Britain underwent primary flight training. Paul White, Sr., a link trainer instructor, fondly recalled the camaraderie and touch football games against officers, highlighting the strong sense of community.

» Cadets received rigorous training, and Woodward Field played a vital role in shaping their aviation skills. Robert K. Morgan, pilot of the famous B-17 Memphis Belle, had his primary training at Woodward Field in 1941. This training helped him to lead the Memphis Belle to be the first heavy bomber to complete 25 missions over Europe and return to the United States. After returning to the United States, Morgan volunteered to train in the B-29 and led the first bombing raid on Tokyo, not to be confused with Doolittle Raid. He completed 26 missions over the Pacific before returning home in 1945. Flying training at Woodward Field ended on August 4, 1944, as the airfield slowly transitioned back to civilian control.

» Woodward Field played an invaluable role in preparing thousands of pilots for wartime aviation, and many of the aircraft used stayed there. After World War II, Woodward Airfield was repurposed for education, with the former POW barracks converted into barracks for Camden Academy and later Camden Military Academy. The barracks were originally built to house soldiers and prisoners during World War II. They were later used by the Civilian Conservation Corps and Works Progress Administration. From 1943 to 1946, the buildings that today are now used by Camden Military Academy as Alpha Company, the dining facility, and band-slash-staff barracks were utilized to house up to 1,500 German prisoners of war, separately, mostly young men captured in North Africa or Italy.

» The prisoners were held for up to two years before repatriation. In 1949, the citizens of Camden founded Camden Academy, an all-male military boarding school, on the former campus of the Southern Aviation School. Camden Academy lasted until 1957, when it was purchased by Colonel James F. Risher, president of Carlisle Military School. Risher renamed the school Camden Military Academy, and the barracks at the Southern Aviation School were transformed to house young cadets. They were renovated and updated to meet the needs of the school, and the new all-male military school opened on September 8, 1958, with an initial class of 95 cadets. The barracks continue to be operated for the Corps of Cadets today.

» Woodward Airfield expanded its services in the 1960s, including maintenance, charter, and general aviation support, such as supporting the air-male service, inauguration pictured behind. The airport's commitment to its facilities contributed to its success as a community asset, with local aircraft coming and going weekly and Saturday mornings bustling with coffee chats and flights. The 1970s saw Woodward Airfield adapt to changing aviation needs. The airport continued to evolve, expanding its services and infrastructure to cater to a broader range of aviation enthusiasts. The airport's commitment to community engagement and historical preservation remained unwavering.

» Woodward Airfield embraced emerging technologies, such as newspapers, radio, and television, to enhance communication with its community and aviators. These innovations fostered a stronger sense of belonging among aviation enthusiasts, as evidenced by the annual fly-in event, pictured behind. In the 1990s, Woodward Airfield became a model for environmentally responsible aviation operations by implementing eco-friendly practices, such as using biodegradable soaps to wash aircraft and reclaim systems for waste oil and fuel. The airport's commitment to sustainability showcased its dedication to both aviation and the environment. Woodward Airfield played a crucial role in the economic prosperity of Camden and Kershaw County during the 2000s.

» It attracted corporate aviation, charter operations, and aircraft maintenance services, becoming a hub for business travelers and a source of employment. The airport hosted events such as fly-ins, air shows, and animal rescue programs, which brought in visitors who needed to stay, eat, and refuel. It has two runways, one of 5,000 feet and the other of 2,999 feet. Events include the antique vintage fly-in, the South Carolina Breakfast Club fly-in, and the Celebrate Freedom Airshow. The airport is also home to Hermitage Farms Horse Races, Carolina Motorsports Park, and Historic Camden. In addition to being a business hub, Woodward Airfield is a popular destination for pilots and tourists, known for its hospitality and safety.

» The 2020s presented Woodward Airfield with new challenges, notably the global COVID-19 pandemic. However, the airport demonstrated resilience and adaptability by implementing safety measures and ensuring the safety of travelers and employees. The airport also continued to offer a variety of services, including flight training, maintenance, and aircraft storage. Present day, the airport has 50 planes that consider Woodward their home. There are 5 private hangars, 10 T hangars, and 3 community hangars. The airport has a maintenance shop and an Air Methods helicopter station. The airport offers flight training and flight instructors. Woodward Airfield has a strong online presence, engaging with aviation enthusiasts and preserving its history through digital archives.

» One of the airport's attendants, Gary Philpott, launched an unofficial Facebook blog that has attracted over 4,400 followers. Special thanks to Roman Lepeka, author of presentation, Gregory Simonson, Camden Military Academy Boy Scout Troop 38 Scoutmaster. So, that presentation, we have installed a TV in the main terminal building in the airport. And that presentation should be running there as of today. Now, with the current stance of the Eagle Project, apart from the TV, we're currently looking at installing about maybe 10 to 12 metal steel plaques all around the property, which I look forward to working with you towards that. And they'll probably detail a specific instance of history, such as on these slides, for a section of the airport.

» I'm also looking to install, possibly in the entrance, a bronze plaque that will also maybe be a commemoration to the old pilots, especially the British pilots. Thank you very much. Have a good evening. Merry Christmas. Roman, thank you. Stay right there. I'm very proud of your project. Thank you very much for bringing it to County Council. Can you tell Council, you're a senior this year, what do you plan to do? Of course. Thank you very much. So, my aspirations include mainly getting into the Air Force Academy. That has been my dream since seven years old, and my whole family has been absolutely backing me up for that. My career aspirations include becoming a military pilot for the CIA and hopefully retiring in the J-4 or J-6 department in the Pentagon. Thank you very much. Thank you.

» And I do want to point out you're joined by Camden Military Academy, Colonel Eric Boland, your Scoutmaster, and the airport commissioners. So, thank you all for being here, and thank you for your support, Roman. Council, do you have any questions or comments for Roman? Job well done. Job well done. Excellent. Sir, excellent presentation. Thank you, sir. I'm glad to hear that it's going to be streaming at the airport. Thank you so much. That will be awesome for people to fly in. Roman, you sure you don't want to be a Navy pilot? We'll see. How about helicopters? Helicopters. It depends what the future holds. Great presentation. Thank you, sir. Yes, awesome. Thank you very much. Thank you. We look forward to seeing what you do in the future, too. Thank you. It means a lot. All right.

» Top Gun's still a good movie. All right. The next presentation tonight will be our audit presentation by Mark Wood from Sheehan Hancock & Greenland. Cool pictures. Cool pictures. Yes. Shifting gears. Oh, cool presentation, Mike. And, Council, your audit report should have been at your council seat as well. Just have a nice, boring audit report to go over with you. How about that? Sorry, I don't have cool pictures like that. Y'all should have had me before him. Right. Thank you, Madam Chair and members of council. So, it's a pleasure to be here tonight with you to discuss the 6-30-23 audit results. We're just going to go through the executive summary. I think that'll be easier than trying to flip through a bunch of pages.

» Before I get started, I just wanted to let you know that the Kershaw County has received an unmodified opinion on the financials, which is the highest opinion we can give on a set of financials. And, basically, what that says, our opinion basically says is, in all material respects, your financial statements are fairly presented in accordance with generally accepting accounting principles. Okay. So, no modifications, which is a good thing. We'll kind of go through the outline. There's some new council members, so I think it's important for me to kind of give you an outline of the audit report and what it consists of in case you want to have some good nightly reading tonight before you go to bed. It'll help you sleep. Your pages 1 through 3, of course, is our opinion.

» Pages 4 through 12 is a management discussion and analysis. And that gets into, in-depth, look at the numbers as far as the government-wide and your governmental funds and the positive and negative changes in not only your balance sheet, but your income income and revenue, your debt, and your capital assets. Then you get into the basic financial statements, which is your governmental statements. It's your fund statements, and it's your proprietary fund statements. Then we have the next section, the notes, and those go into the depth of the accounting policies for the county, plus they get into more in-depth about some of the numbers in the financial statements.

» So that's a good place to look at some detailed history, and you can learn about some of the different policies and different ways that capital assets and receivables are accounted for. Then after that, we have supplemental schedules. And the last section is a compliance section. And the compliance section deals with federal awards. But there's also two letters in the back in the compliance section. One is an internal control letter. And basically what that letter states is we did not find any internal control problems during our audit, so there are no findings. The second letter is a compliance letter regarding your federal awards and how you expended those.

» And basically what that letter states is we did not find any compliance issues in doing our compliance testing with how you spent federal awards. So both of those are clean opinions. We're going to go through, we'll go through two, three, and four. And I'm going to do the general fund first, and then I'll come back and we'll talk about the proprietary funds. General fund, your total assets were almost $47 million. Total liabilities were a little over $30 million. And so your fund balance for the general fund at $630.23 was almost $16.5 million. That's broken down between non-spendable, restricted, and committed. And then your unrestricted fund balance for the general fund is $8.5 million. Your total revenues were $32.8 million.

» Expenditures were $29.1 million, which left you an excess of revenues over expenses of $3.6 million. You had transfers that we transferred some money out to special revenue funds, which was $5 million. So your negative change in fund balance was about $1.7 million. Proprietary funds, now these are EMS and sewer combined. If you want to see each of those columns separated, those are on page 20 and 21, if you want to look at the detail of that. But total assets for both EMS and for sewer is $47.2 million, almost $10 million in liability. So your equity net position is $37.3 million. That's broken out between invested in capital assets, restricted, and then your unrestricted net position is almost $9.9 million. Total revenues were $10.6 million. Your operating expenses were $7.6 million.

» You had other expenses of about $150,000, which left an excess of about $2.8 million. You had some transfers coming in for capital projects, and so that added another $9 million. So your total change in that position for EMS and for sewer were $12.2 million. Your budget, your revenue exceeded your budget by $1 million. The expenditures were under budget by almost $2.8 million. Your transfers were over budget by $5.5 million. I know some people will look and say, well, we spent $1.7 million of our fund balance. Well, you did, but remember, this council, or council before, had passed the budget to spend about $5.6 million in reserve. So you only spent about $1.7 million. So you did good. So overall, this is a very good report. As I stated, no findings.

» And, you know, I'd just like to thank your staff. Y'all's finance staff does a wonderful job. And Sandra and her team are tremendous to work with. We come in, and we disrupt them for about two weeks and ask for a lot of information. And we ask a lot of them, and they do a wonderful job. And once again, you know, your finance staff is the one that wrote this audit report. So they're to be commended for that. So I just wanted to thank them. And with that, I'll be happy to answer any questions anybody might have. Any questions? Hey, Mark. Yeah, actually, I have one.

» Where will we find our old general revenue bonds that were created over the last decade or so? And can we find a fund balance on that, or a debt balance, rather? If you want to see all your bonds, Councilman Brazel, they're on page. You can go to page 47. And this shows you the different bonds between your installment purchase revenue bond, your geo bond, your capital leases. And then it's got the geo bonds and the SRF bonds for the business-type activities. So those are the balances as of June 30th for all the debt the county has. So currently, general revenue bonds for governmental activities is $26,968,377. Is that right? That includes your OPEB obligation as well. So if you took out about $6.3, that would end your closure cost.

» So you're roughly, just for governmental activities, you've got probably $17,18 million in bonds. Okay. Can you explain the OPEB obligation? Yeah, so your OPEB obligation, if you remember, kind of like your pension liability, the accounting principles require you, when you have insurance that you pay for retirees, you have to recognize what the costs of that future insurance costs are going to be, and that becomes a liability on the county's books, just like the retirement does for the pension. And that was probably done only roughly 10 years ago, at least. GASB-25? That we've been, well, you had GASB-45 and then you had GASB-68. And so that's, those are two liabilities that you are required to report now.

» So the state basically makes you report the unfunded liability portion that's attributable to Kershaw County for the state retirement and for the police officer retirement. Okay. And also the post-closure costs, the $895,169. That deals with the post-closure costs regarding the landfill. Say again, I'm sorry. The landfill. The post-closure costs on the landfill. Okay. If we wanted to consolidate and get more aggressive as far as trying to pay these bonds off quicker, would you have a suggestion as to how to do that? You'd have to make sure that there's no prepayment penalties on the bonds. And if you've got the available cash and if that's what council desires and there's no prepayment penalties, you could certainly do that to pay down some of the debt.

» So what I'm looking at, it looks like we've got about $19 million, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, in the first five line items. Is that right? That's correct. It seems like those may be the ones that we could get more aggressive with. Is that a fair assessment? As long as there's not any prepayment penalties, then you need to check your bond documents to make sure that you're able to do that without any penalties. So it sounds like we had maybe $3.5 million, $4 million worth of extra revenue that we had not accounted for in this year's budget cycle. Is that right? That's correct. Instead of spending that money, we could get more aggressive over the next three or four years and maybe make this piece of debt go away.

» And at that point, the millage could be reapplied to places like our fire and EMS and sheriff's office. Is that correct? That's correct. Okay. Depending on how the council is, you're marked for the budget for the current year. But I don't know. You know, I haven't seen the budget for the current year, so I don't know what decisions council made as far as using reserves or anything for the current year that we're in now. Okay. But that's something that could be looked at, yes. That may be something I'd like to discuss with you further. Thank you. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Brazel. Any other comments or questions? Thank you, Mr. Brazel. Yes, sir. Thank you. I like the way you're going over there. Well, thank you, Mr. Wood. Thank you. Thank you for being here. And while we're on the subject, Ms.

» Sandra, thank you very much. You are amazing. We appreciate you. All right. Moving back up to item number seven, public hearings. We have three public hearings tonight on the three ordinances. Okay. So we'll start. Oh, sorry, Mr. Boz. No one signed to speak. Okay. Right. No one signed up in advance to speak. If you're here and you would like to speak in any of, on any of the three public hearings, please approach the podium at this time. Okay. Okay. With that, there will be no, there, no one signed up to speak at the public hearings. So we will move on to item number nine. First ordinance is a third reading of a FLO ordinance for Project Tree. And is there a motion pertaining to Project Tree at this time? Okay. Mr. Shoemake with a motion to adopt on third reading.

» Is there a second? I'll second. Second by Mr. Tomlinson and discussion. To be clear, Mr. Chair, your motion to adopt the proposed third reading version that was placed in the agenda package? Yes. Okay. I just want to make sure because some nomenclature changes have been applied to the ordinance as well as populating property descriptions, acreages. Correct. Right. Yeah. It's been kind of flushed out third reading. Correct. That is my motion. Yes. And can we get Mr. Burgess to come up and kind of give us a brief on the updates of the FLO? Hello again, Mr. Burgess. All right. Project Tree, can you please walk us through the changes or updates that we see on this third reading? Probably better for John to walk through on that.

» So, on Project Tree and Project White Oak, which is 9B, the next ordinance before you, there were some nomenclature edits made. Earlier drafts referred to infrastructure credits, but as a term of art, there are infrastructure improvement credits outside of FLO ordinances. And in discussing that phraseology with industry counsel, they all agree that specifically defining special source revenue credits and referencing the statutory authority was probably more accurate than using infrastructure improvement credits. Just by way of background, infrastructure improvement credits are almost a mandatory refund to the industry for specific infrastructure improvements. There's nothing under the SSRC structure that would prevent that, but it doesn't make it kind of a mandatory trigger, essentially.

» The other changes to the ordinances I referenced earlier in just clarifying Mr. Shumake's motion with him. The, instead of being identified by project code names, the industry sponsor name is inserted in the third reading version, as well as the tax map numbers and total acreage for the parcel and their exhibit maps and they're showing those property locations. Aside from those edits, the price per megawatt section that was amended by council at last reading to remove it and allow Mr. Burgess to negotiate with the industries and come back to you has been populated in each ordinance. For project tree, that amount is $3,000 per megawatt hour. I'd defer to Mr. Burgess as far as those negotiations and any questions council might have on that process and the logic behind it. Madam chair, Mr.

» Jones, Mr. Thomas, the councilman Thompson to give me a, give us an update as well too, on his thoughts on this as well. Can we get the numbers for all three? Please go ahead, Mr. Burgess. Yeah. The, um, for project tree, it's a 3,000 per megawatt hour, uh, white Oak, 2,800 and project Sandy, which is before y'all on second reading is 2,900. Um, just by way of reference, tree is a 30 year term with, uh, 80 million investment on 837 acres, four miles north of Bethune, uh, project white Oak, uh, 75 million expected investment, 40 year term on 573 acres, Boise, Cascade road and Timrod road in Bethune, uh, again, because it's second reading for project Sandy, the, uh, precise location of the, um, property is not included, but it is a $90 million investment on a 30 year term.

» And again, uh, tree is 3000 white Oak, 2,800 Sandy, 2,900. And Mr. DeBose kind of looking at all the, all three of them, I noticed that within project white Oak project tree, we have, so the megawatts or 80 megawatts. And you got your per, you know, per megawatt payment for the fee load, but then it also goes up to 96 megawatts. So the company can then produce 16 additional megawatts without any additional fee. Whereas this project Sandy does not, they are 74.9 megawatts. And once they exceed that, then it is a 6% rate. What is the difference in these two project white Oak? Why are we giving them a 16 megawatt buffer considered? So I understand the, the buffering is because it's at a, at least under that, it is at a fixed fee payment amount.

» So say they produced, um, 30, they pay that amount. Or is it, I know that there are what federal and state supplements for an 80 megawatt form, I think, I believe. There is, there is. So the one that's underneath that does not receive those supplements, which would be project Sandy, but the other two are getting federal and state supplements. Yeah. And I believe. Based upon the 80 megawatt, correct? That is true. Okay. Um, I'm, I'm fine with the, you know, 3000. I think from, from my opinion, um, we're still a lot lower than every other surrounding County, but we talk about that, you know, Chesterfield is over 4,000, a megawatt, um, Darlington, some of the other ones, I think we're, we're, you know, kind of looking at that window, but this is our first attempt at, at a project.

» And I really appreciate you going back and, and negotiating, you know, you came back with a lot better number than what we were working with. And I'm fine for 3000. I think we should make 3000 the barrier, um, for, for all three of them. Um, in my opinion, I think we should set that and then going forward, maybe even looking at, you know, 3,500 or something as a, as a minimum. Um, that's kind of my opinion, since there's only so much available land in Kershaw County based upon a high generation, uh, transmission line, plus a landowner being willing to sell. They do have that. Now you got to have the PPA, which the companies currently do not have. Um, so that, that's kind of my opinion on it. Thank you, Mr. Tomlinson. Mr. Bose, can you explain the buffer again? I'm sorry.

» It was writing something down. So I believe under the, uh, fixed fee structure, essentially, um, there's a buffer. So if they overproduce, they're paying a fixed amount, but if they underproduce their projection, they're paying a fixed amount. So they believe they're going to be a certain energy production. If they don't, they'd still pay this fixed fee calculation. Um, so it's, it's kind of hedges both ways, as I understand the intent. Thank you. I'd have to agree with, um, Councilman Tomlinson. I'd like to see this, uh, uniform across the board. I'd like to see it. If 3,000 is, is the number that we choose, I'd like to see it across the board. I don't find it, um, fair to, to be at 2,800, 2,900, um, or 3,100 for that matter.

» If, if we're going to be at 3,000, we need to be at 3,000 for all these projects. Madam Chair. Yes, Mr. Tucker. Yeah, I was just looking at the numbers, Mr. Burgess, and, um, thank you. I think you've done very well, um, as Councilman Tomlinson has said from where we were at, uh, two weeks ago, um, but I'm looking at the company, White Oak, who's, uh, investing the least amount of money, but the most years come up with the lowest amount. Correct. That's part of negotiation. So, um, I don't know how we do this tonight, but, um, if the standard bearer is going to be 3,000, then let's set that tonight and move forward with all three companies. That's just my opinion. Thank you, Mr. Tucker. And would it be, um, this might be a question for Mr.

» DuBose, I guess it would have to be an amendment to each individual philo per ordinance to, uh, to amend, correct? Yes, you're correct. Okay, and the first one already meets our standard, right, so that we would just be voting. Okay, yeah. Um, so I would like to make a motion, um, that we pass the third reading of philo project tree, um, based upon the amended philo agreement. I think we have a motion, a second, but she may, she doesn't need amended. So, all those in favor of passing project tree philo ordinance and philo agreement at the $3,000 per megawatt per hour indicate by raising your hand. All right. And the vote is unanimous. Project tree is passed. All right. Moving on to the third reading of philo ordinance for project white oak. Can I ask a question? Yes.

» Can you make a motion that we approve third reading of project white oak? Okay. A motion by Mr. Shoemake. Is there a second? I'll second. Second by Mr. Tomlinson. Into discussion. Mr. Shoemake. Sure. Mr. Burgess with this one, and you can answer this question for project Sandy as well. Um, how comfortable are you that you've reached the, the sort of maximum number that you feel like you can get from these companies? Um, probably pretty much with white oak. I believe 2800 was pretty firm with my, per my last conversation with the group. Now with project Sandy, I think that after a conversation I had today, uh, with the gentleman I've been working with, it would be easy enough to move up to 3000.

» Um, so my thing, my thing on it, just since we're talking about these two that aren't 3000, I've kind of competing thoughts. One is, you know, I think that we want to send the message we're open for business, which we have by doing project tree. Um, and I think that, um, I think it's important that we send that message we're open for business. I think if you compare what we were getting with these properties to what we bring in with these philo, uh, philo's, the difference is phenomenal. Um, we're pretty close to 3000 and I think that, you know, for me, where I'm coming from, where I come from is, you know, councilman Thomson's put a lot of work into this. I am generally in, I'm generally okay with these numbers. You think maybe we can get to 3000 with Sandy.

» If we're 3000 at Sandy 3000 at tree, then, you know, presumably we'd get 3000 if white oak fell through for somewhere else. And so I'm going to defer to my fellow councilman's judgment on, you know, the 3000. Um, so that's all I have on that. Madam chair. Thank you. Mr. Jones. I want to stand firm on 3000. Yeah. I'd like to make an amendment for the third reading of project white oak to amend it to 3000, please. Second. Amendment by Mr. Brazel to increase the per megawatt fee to $3,000 and second by Mr. Tucker. Correct. Okay. Discussion on the amendment. I would, I would just like to say one thing, uh, because we were, we'd asked some about some negotiation stuff, which is protected for executive session.

» And now the public is hearing that, but I think it's important that everybody listening and watching know that I would say that councilman Thomson is, you know, and Mr. Burgess collectively deserve a hundred percent of the credit for bringing that up, particularly councilman Thomson's push to get more money on the table. And then Mr. Burgess is going back and negotiating. So I want to thank both of you men for the leadership on this issue. And I appreciate it. I mean, you brought in six figure, six figures more to the County by doing that. So thank you both. Thank you. Thank you. Um, the one thing I wanted to suggest that we've done this and we've, I've spoken with Danny and other members of administration about it.

» What I've provided them is just a simple flat fee ordinance that you would make a solar fee ordinance. Does that make sense? Yeah. Yes. Hopefully they can bring that forward, uh, down the road. That way you can set it up. Everybody knows where they're at before it even starts. Yep. Thank you, Mr. Burgess. Kind of looking at it. I'm sorry, I'm looking at it. You know, other counties have done some unique ways to, um, look at the different felos. Some have started out at a, you know, a higher amount for 15 years and then progressively lowered it for the other duration. Some have even required an up front fee, um, half a million dollars, you know, three quarters of a million dollars up front.

» What we've done is we've looked at the other surrounding counties, um, even though we're substantially lower per megawatt payment in the fee low, I think we're setting a standard instead of coming in at the 2,500 mark. Uh, that 3,000, I think is a standard that we can live at. These are our first three, uh, solar projects. And I think we're being very, very fair, um, to investors coming in. The other companies are landowners and for the future of, you know, renewable energy in Kershaw County. But I really appreciate all your hard work, Mr. Burgess. Thank you for your help. Mr. Burgess, one, one question. I know we have a pretty good location on the Sandy project, but White Oak was four miles out of Bethune.

» Could you kind of give me a little bit more exact location as to where that may be? I would say four miles north of Bethune. I've got them. I thought a map was a part of the... There's a property description and property map exhibit A. I was just curious as to how close White Oak and Sandy, because I know that I'm familiar with that property and it's not... White Oak is not located near Project Sandy. It is close to Project Tree. Thank you. All right. Anything else? And just one point of clarity, Madam Chair, on the precision of the motion to approve and then the motion to amend, I assume the motion to approve is in that proposed third reading format with all of the populated changes. Yes. All right.

» All those in favor of approving Project White Oak, third reading, FILO ordinance and FILO agreement, as amended to update the megawatt fee to $3,000 per megawatt. Megawatt indicate by raising your hand. Right. And the vote is unanimous. Project White Oak is approved. Thank you, gentlemen, for your hard work on that. Next is Project Sandy, FILO ordinance and FILO agreement. Mr. DuBose, procedurally, could I make a motion to accept with an amendment so we don't have to go through motion and amendment? Could I just out of the gate move to accept this with an amendment? Yeah, I believe you could. Okay. So I would make a motion that we accept Project Sandy as modified and adjusted in the third reading. Or it says second reading. Well, so we don't have to do that.

» So I would make a motion that we accept Project Sandy, however we do so by changing the megawatt from $2,900 to $3,000. Okay. Motion to approve second reading of the FILO ordinance for Project Sandy as amended to reflect the $3,000 per megawatt. Is there a second? I'll second. Second by Mr. Tomlinson and discussion. I think it's good to be consistent. I think that's fair. Right. All those in favor of approving second reading of the FILO ordinance for Project Sandy and FILO agreement as amended to reflect the new megawatt fee, indicate by raising your hand. And vote is unanimous. I'm chair. Yes, Mr. Tucker. Thank you. I just want to say thank you to all my colleagues that's up here for being consistent about doing business here in Kershaw County.

» And I think we've just sent the message to all three of these solar owners that, you know, we want to be fair, but we want to be consistent on doing business. So thank you. And thank you, Shoemade, for being always willing to compromise, man. I appreciate that. All right. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Tucker. Thank you, Mr. Burgess. Right. Next item, Delta, third reading of the Bethune property conveyance ordinance. Is there a motion at this time for the Bethune property conveyance ordinance? Madam Chair, I'd like to make a motion that we approve the third reading of the Bethune property conveyance for the land use for Bethune, for the town of Bethune. Motion made by Mr. Cato. Second. Second. Second by Mr. Tucker. And into discussion, Mr.

» DeBose, are there any changes on this third reading? No changes. I've adopted changes from second reading. They're all included in this version. Thank you. The final ordinance is in front of you. Any discussion, any questions for Mr. DeBose? With that, all those in favor of adopting the Bethune property conveyance ordinance, indicate by raising your hand. And the vote is unanimous. The Bethune property is conveyed to the town of Bethune. And thank you, Mr. Cato, for working on that. That was really important to them. All right. Next item. We're up to new business. One item of new business tonight, establishing and altering rules for public comments. The proposal is attached. The change would be to Section 2.5 Delta. This was placed on the agenda by Vice Chairman Jimmy Jones. Mr.

» Jones, I'll give you the floor. You're asking me to make the motion? No, you don't have to make the motion. Do you have a motion to make? Yes, I do. What I'd like to do is go ahead and make a motion to alter and amend the public comment guidelines to establish the public comment guidelines that's set forth in the public guidelines that's within your agenda packet. Okay. Motion to make the following changes to the public comment guidelines. Appendix 3, it's in your agenda packet. Is there a second? All right. I'll second. And into discussion. Mr. Jones. Thank you, Madam Chair. What I've got, and you have it in your Appendix 3, I put a copy in your agenda packet.

» What it does, it basically states in here that anybody who gets up and speaks within the public comment section, you see where it's outlined on your page, that the business at hand, that it needs to be kept germane to the county council meeting and something that's under our authority. So that's basically what we've changed here, just to make sure that when someone speaks to us, it's germane to our council agenda, and it is also under our authority, something we have control of, which is the entire budget, which is quite a bit of stuff. So that would be my comments. I'm open for questions. Mr. Jones, on the copy we have in red, underlined, that is the change. I'm not sure. And then a couple. Is that right? Is that two? Is the old page the old rules? Yeah, I think. I'm not sure.

» You should have it in your packet. Am I right? Right, but I think. You got a different copy than I got. Okay. And one quick question. Madam Chair, are we going to be taking up our rules again? In January? Yeah. We can take up changes to the rules any time. Can someone ask to speak and then go to that person so everybody's not talking at the same time? Mr. Tomlinson. Are we, because every year we, do we take up a meeting to change our rules, or is that just something that we did this past January? Yeah, you guys. We did that in January. That was my first term. That was something that was, that I put on the agenda and wanted to address. I'll have to defer to Mr. Tucker or Mr. Jones for what has been done in the past, but any member can bring a change at any point in time.

» Or as it takes one vote? So, Madam Chair, I would just like to point out, just for, because what we have is a red line, but the red line we have does not reflect the changes, all the changes. So, for example, the rules as they currently stand do not have the language. Like, so if you look at what was in our agenda packet, on agenda three, bullet point three under number one, says, is it a time for council to receive comments as to matters on the council agenda and matters within the scope of council's authority to act. That entire bullet is new language. Okay. That doesn't exist. Let me, if you'll let me finish, I'm going to get to that, Mr. Shoemake. Okay. Yeah, it's just, there's a red line. She was asking about the red lines. I got you. If I may, I'll go ahead. Yes, Mr. Jones. Okay.

» If you look under, as he said, third on number one, third bullet point, it says, is it a time for council to receive comments as to matters on the agenda, on the council agenda and matters that are within the scope of county council's authority and act. Then if you're going down, it says, okay, after the bullet point four, in short, during public comment, council will listen to public comment as to matters in council's agenda and at the council meeting and matters within the scope of council's authority to act, but not to provide general commentary or to editorialize on matters outside of council's authority.

» Then if you go down to number four, persons wishing to provide public comment must sign in, sign in sheet prior to the agenda packet and being reached in public comment is limited to persons who are present and speak at the council meeting. If you go down to number eight, of course, it even talks about here in number seven, there's a change there too about the audio. When available until a public comments agenda item is finished and concluded, audio will be provided, shall, shall be live streaming as long as the member of the public speaking is compliant with the rules of this county council. And number eight, the official record of council meeting will only contain names of the members of the public who spoke at the public comment agenda item at the council meeting.

» So what this is in a nutshell, what this is talking about is that if someone inside public speaking is live and well, someone wants to get up here and talk, keep it germane to our meeting or something within our, bless you, was something within our authority. I think that gives better guidelines for the sheriff's department, gives better guidelines for us and it's a good way to conduct business. This is about conducting our business. Thank you, Mr. Jones. Welcome any feedback. Madam Chair. Yes, Mr. Tucker. Well, I had the privilege to speak with Mr. Jones briefly this morning and I've had several conversations with him in the past about making some changes to our way we do our business.

» I'm not comfortable tonight voting on this because it seems like we're sometime knee-jerking reactions on going to making all these changes when something happens. Um, and we've, we have, and I'm going to say we, because I'm part of council, we have the more amendments to our own rules than I think we took, uh, readings on the budget this year. And, um, that's not good. And I really like to have more dialogue. Uh, Mr. Jones, you've been here as almost as long as I have. You see people come up here and don't even know the venue they're in. I've sat here and listened to people give me school board problems, city council problems, but they think they're in the right venue and I'm okay with that.

» The thing that I have never tolerated was people, um, being very malicious, vicious, mean-spirited, and then of course talking about one of our family members or family. Um, that, that's off limits. Um, so I don't know exactly what we're trying to accomplish by changing these rules, but, uh, tonight I cannot support this. I'm just one of seven. I just heard what- Yes, Mr. Jones. Well, what matters in changing these rules is the fact that if someone gets up and speaks to us, they're keeping it germane to our council meeting or something that was under our control. Somebody comes here from the school district. Somebody comes here from, uh, the city of Canada. We can direct them, them to go there, but we don't have any scope of control over that.

» Then we don't, and we, you know, at least I do in my council briefing, try to tell them it's their own venue and tell them where they need to go. But also what I do, I take a step above to make sure that they get where they need to go because now I'm aware of it. We could still do that. We could still do that. That wouldn't change a bit. That's where I lie and that's where I stand. That's a delay process. Okay. So she'll make your next. Yeah, I just, uh, my, my, my opinion on this is I don't know that our public comment system is broken. I would note that our current rules do prohibit inoffensive, inappropriate comment, which, you know, for me, I want to be as expansive as possible, um, with allowing people to get up here and speak.

» So I, I would at this point, at this time, not support a restriction on that. I think that we do have for things that cross the legal line, we have the inoffensive or the offensive and inappropriate comment language in our current rules. So I would, I'll be joining Mr. Tucker in opposition to this one tonight. Let me ask you a question, Mr. May. Would you entertain reducing the time on public comments? Um, I would, I wouldn't, I wouldn't be opposed to reducing the time of public comments. Um, as long as understanding that if we had a particularly big meeting or a budget meeting, we could buy a single vote, expand them. I wouldn't have, I wouldn't be opposed to that. Well, I'm, I've done a lot of thought. You and I had talked to her and I've done a lot of thought and I will object to that.

» Uh, but bottom line is this is good business folks. This isn't about taking away any time, not letting anybody speak. It's just keeping it, instead of talking about Disneyland, we're talking about something that we can control or something that's been our scope of authority. So don't, I don't want anybody to be misguided. Jimmy Jones is trying to, some of you out there have been here a while and come to many of these meetings and you know, there's been nobody to fight for transparency and, and, and, and freedom of speech than Jimmy Jones on this County Council. I can say that without a shadow of a doubt in my mind. Um, but I think this is, I think I've made some good changes and, uh, Madam Chair, I'd like to hear from you as well too, before the night's over on this.

» Madam Chair, can I ask a quick question? Yes, Mr. Tomlinson and Mr. Kato. This may be, I just kind of wanted to clarify what this means. Um, matters within the council scope or scope of council's authority to act. What is, what is the, you want me to tell you what that means? Yeah. Yeah. What does it mean? Within us, within us, with our discretion? With that, it's gotta be within, listen to me, just listen to me one second. Okay. Within the scope of our businesses on the agenda or within the scope of something we have authority over, which is the entire budget and the entire budget process. I mean, what's wrong with that? I just don't get it. I don't understand what's wrong with that. That's good business. Mr. Kato.

» Madam Chair, uh, Councilman Jones, I don't know that I agree or disagree with this tonight. I really don't. Um, I would like to offer suggestion that maybe we could table this until we all kind of get on the same page, kind of revisit, look at, look at this a little bit deeper, uh, try and understand what you're proposing a little bit, I guess. Um, so I would like to see us move this maybe into January and give us a little bit more time to look at it to see if there's, try and get it right, try and get it right and not, not come up with something else next month or February that we might want to add or something that we might want to take away. I'd rather us take our time on this and maybe move it to January.

» I couldn't support it tonight, but I might could support it if I had time to look at it. Well, Mr. Gunn, if I may, uh, thank you for those comments. However, I don't know what there's not to understand. I just said to keep it germane to the agenda or within the scope of our authority. I, I don't know what you guys are missing that I'm missing on this. Um, I think this is a good piece of work and I put about four hours into it, trying to get it right. Our attorneys, Mr. DeBose, we have talked about this. You, this is not a bad thing. In your opinion, legal opinion, how do you feel about this piece of work? I think it's, uh, a policy call obviously, but, um, town of Bluffton had similar, uh, public hearing or public comment rules.

» Rather, um, there, uh, questions posed to the attorney general about, um, whether those public comment guidelines were appropriate under FOIA constitution, first amendment. And, um, the attorney general resoundingly said establishing limits on public comments to matters on the agenda or within, uh, the authority of the governmental body is an appropriate, um, limitation on public comments. Um, and their opinion cited some case law that, um, federal case law that, um, spoke to the fact that, um, meetings of public bodies or, uh, business meetings to conduct business of that body. And if the body wants to limit matters to business matters before it, or business matters that it can act on, um, it's wholly appropriate to do that.

» And again, those arguments in those federal cases were that, um, the efficiency of the meeting is further about that, uh, those limitations. Thank you. Madam chair. That was my question. Mr. Bose. Thank you. Any other counties that you know of that have, um, similar limitations or, um, I've not done a, uh, census of limitations. I know Richland County has a, um, limitation on, or at least did as of two years ago, um, on matters before council or within their authority, um, town of Bluffton, again, posed questions concerning its, um, public comment guidelines to the attorney general in, uh, June of this year, 2023. Um, so I know, again, it's a municipality, but those are two that I know all off the top of my head. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Tucker. Or I'm sorry, Mr. Schumacher.

» So I want to say that I, I mean, I, I don't dis it to be clear. I, there's no part of me that thinks that Mr. Jones's amendment would be unconstitutional or legal. So I'm going to be very clear about that. I, I agree with what Mr. DeBose said. It's a policy call. The concern I have with the policy laid out in the, in the amendment is, you know, who here gets to determine what's germane and what isn't. And I worry about that becoming, you know, a tool to come and say, well, I don't, you know, one person gets to say, well, this person's thing's not germane. And then this person says it is. And I think having the offensive language works, um, bluntly, I don't have a problem with people coming in and sharing things that may not be directly germane.

» And this is our chance to hear from the people. And, um, I, I'm not going to, I wouldn't support anything that further restricts the content of what they say under the right circumstances. I might support a limitation as long as we can expand it when necessary, but a content based restriction beyond defensive language. I, that's just really what I can't get behind. Um, Mr. Schumach, to answer your question, the chair would be the determining factor of what would be germane or not, um, whoever sits in the seat. And then any council member could call a point of order if they disagree. Which is fair.

» And it's not anything against you, but to give one person the power to determine what is and isn't germane, um, I'm just not, that's, I, I just, I have the authority right now to determine what's germane or not in the whole meeting. That's, that's correct. But that doesn't mean I agree with that either. I just, but I think as we're talking about the public comments, expanding it to give more authority to any one person to call something germane or not, I just, I just can't support that. That's all. Mr. Tucker and then Mr. Trent. Well, I'm, I'm just gonna, and then I'm gonna be quiet cause I'm ready to go home. Um, Mr. Webb, I hate to call him out, Tom Webb, the second or the third, or what, how many ever the third? Okay.

» Has been coming here since I've been sitting up here and I don't know if his comments are anywhere germane to anything we have on the agenda, but what I have gotten from him is wisdom and I've gotten a lot of it from him. And I refuse when I went to the Academy, there was a professor that told me before I ever got a ticket book in my hand said, if you go out here and you use the, um, rule of thumb of you will let 10 guilty people go free before you convict one innocent soul. And I've lived with that in my, my entire life as an adult, I will not censor or shut up innocent people who come up here to share their thoughts and their beliefs in a very professional manner, because it's not germane to what we have on the agenda, which they have no authority to set or put on.

» So once again, I will not be supporting this, uh, tonight. And I'm happy as we discussed last council meeting and the meeting before that, that we would discuss this and bring this up in the first of the year and not try to rush through this by December because we're not having another meeting in December. That's what we talked about as a body up here. And then all of a sudden this appears on the agenda. So thank you, Madam chair. Thank you, Mr. Tucker. Mr. Jones, I completely understand what you're trying to do. Um, and thank you for working on this. Um, this is a business meeting and I discussed it last County council meeting. Um, there are left and right limits. It's a limited public comment. It's a part of our meeting.

» So I myself, um, was adamant about opening public comments more and loosening the guidelines. And Mr. Tucker, it was you that, um, gave me advice against that actually, just because of what can happen. Um, that has happened. So I appreciate what you're trying to do, Mr. Jones. Um, I will support you in this amendment. Um, and I do think that we need to have some tighter restrictions on our public guidelines portion of our meeting. Um, I do not think this is censorship. I do not see this as a free speech issue. I see this as a efficiency, um, efficiency policy on how we're going to run business in this room. Um, after the feedback from the sheriff's office was that we. Um, our rules are loosely followed and don't have strict guidelines.

» Um, so that, that would clear this up for them, um, when we need to remove someone or we have a problem with someone. Um, I like the addition of number two comments, not in compliance with these rules will not be tolerated. That's just point blank. If you don't follow these rules, then you don't get to speak at public comments. Um, I think that's appropriate for what has happened after the past year. Um, there's at least four people up here who have, their families have been attacked. Um, and I argue that that's offensive and not appropriate as the chair sitting up here. Um, so thank you. That's about all I have to say. This is not a free speech issue for me. This is a business meeting. And I think every member sitting up here should be able to conduct business in a peaceful environment.

» Madam Chair, if I may, you know, everybody has their opinion. Everybody has their comments. But I'm going to tell you something, folks, when you talk about, you're worried about who would determine if it's within the scope of our business. If you don't know that it's in the scope of our business, you probably don't need to be sitting up here on county council. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out either it's under our authority or it's germane to the agenda that's being placed before you. So I, I buy this as a weak argument, but I stand by this. I thank you gentlemen for your time. I thank you for your comments. I don't agree with you. Could I have a question? Mr. Cumminson. Yes, sir. Madam Chair, under these new rules, if Mr.

» Webb gets up here and talks about what he does every single time, would you call it not germane or would you allow him to talk during his five minutes? And my, my, me supporting this or not will be upon your answer. So I can't say a blanket answer on that. It really depends. His normal comment talking about putting, storing grain and going forward. So he usually has a date reference and a historical reference for the date that we sit up here. So I would say that would be germane. So his normal talk. Government affairs, anything policy related, anything funded related. Yes, I would, I would say that was germane, but it depends. His comments are not always the same. But his general comments, would you allow him to speak for his five minutes? Because if not, I cannot support this.

» But if you, if he, if what his talk right now, you feel in your head and your body, your heart, because when we all ran, so you would kick him out from not speaking his five minutes? Well, I wouldn't kick him out. I mean, but you would not allow him to continue. If it was not germane, him or any other citizen in this county. If this were, if these were our public comment guidelines and someone got up and spoke about something not germane to something in our preview of county council or government at the county level or local level, yes, I would be consistent with whatever public comment guidelines are. But it's based upon your opinion. Yes. Right. So it always has been. And I was just asking points of order on members for not being germane. Comments to Mr.

» Webb, because it's, it's a variation of the same majority of the comments and, and he never takes up his five minutes. I'd be, I'd be happy to take the five minutes to three minutes in my opinion. But if, if Mr. Webb's comments, I mean, just about every time I can kind of picture his comments briefly, if you would say that that wouldn't be germane, I can't support this, but if you would allow him to talk on basically his comments, I mean, I'd be all happy for this. And that was just the general question. I'm not putting you on the spot, but I'm saying if it's up to you to determine, and Mr.

» Webb, who spends a lot of time and does provide a lot of knowledge, if we were to not give him the time of day to talk, because it's not something that you feel is germane, I don't know that I could support this. Madam Chair, if I'm saying they have really tried to personalize this, and this is not, it's not about Mr. Webb. It is not about personalizing against any one individual. It's about this governing body setting a set of rules that if you want to speak to us, let it be germane to the agenda, or at least something we have control under, so we can get to the business of the people. This is not about any single individual. And I'm disappointed you guys took it there. But thank you, Madam Chair.

» I'm disappointed that my colleagues don't trust my judgment on germane to the meeting, but do trust my judgment on offensive or inappropriate comments. So I'm just going to leave it at thank you, Mr. Jones. I know exactly what you're trying to do to bring stricter guidelines to the public comments portion. It doesn't preclude anyone from contacting us or coming to our town halls or showing up at any other public meeting. It's just in this room, at this meeting, how we're going to conduct business and how we're going to conduct it efficiently and in a peaceful environment. Any other comments? Madam Chair, my only thing to this whole thing is we just redid the rules back in January based off basically y'all's recommendation.

» So I don't want to go back through this now without getting it right. And I think as you can tell from the discussion tonight, it's not right. It's not right with everybody up here. So we need to take some time to look at this and get it right. And if we can't get it right, I can't support it. I have no words for anything else. Any other comments? So I would like to say a few things. I've been kind of quiet. All right, Councilman Jones, thank you for your hard work on this. I think what you're trying to do is trying to create a healthier environment. That I don't have any issue with whatsoever. Obviously, there's a lot of debate between all of us. I'd like to ask Mr. DeBose a question.

» Do any of these changes affect someone's ability to video themselves at the podium or put on a production in this room? Does it address that at all? These public comment guidelines do not address people videoing, but videoing in public spaces has generally been held to be allowed. If someone said something up in front of y'all in your face, it might be disruptive of your meeting. But, yes, people are allowed to take public meetings. Okay, good. At the end of the day, I think there's some guidelines in place that we have to be willing to enforce. I think there's some that are already in place that at times have been enforced and at times have not been enforced. I think I'm leaning a little bit towards Mr. Cato's reasoning that I would like to review it just a little bit further.

» I'm not against it, but I'd like to table it and come back to it if that's possible. I don't see a form of censorship here. But at the same time, I do want people to come here and speak their mind. There was a lady that came to us one time that she didn't know exactly how to tell us what she needed, but by the time she got through talking to us, we did help her solve her problem. And I don't want to restrict people from that ability. So at this time, I would like to move to table it. Okay. Motion to table the public comments guidelines change. Is there a second? I'll second. Okay, second by Mr. Cato. Discussion on tabling? Mr. Rose gives clarification for the record on tabling.

» So from a purely parliamentary perspective, if you table something and it's not removed from the table, it would die. If the intent is to take this up at a later meeting, I think the proper motion would be a motion to defer the matter. You could defer it to a set time or the next meeting and successively defer it as long as council had that will. But again, you could also defer to some set meeting in the future. I'd like to make a motion to defer. Our next meeting is January 9th. Mr. Cato, will you defer? I'll second that motion. Defer to the next meeting or a specific meeting? Yeah, we can defer to the next meeting. I think that'd give us just a little bit of time to digest it and talk a little more amongst ourselves. Yeah, we can talk about it every Christmas. Mr.

» Jones, thank you for that point of order. All right, motion to defer to January 9th, public comment guidelines, second by Mr. Cato. All right, any discussion on the deference? Okay, all those in favor of deferring the public comment guidelines update to January 9th, that will be our next regularly scheduled meeting. Indicate by raising your hand. All right, and the vote is unanimous. This public comment guidelines issue is deferred to January 9th. We'll take it up in January. Thank you, Mr. Jones. Thank you, members of the county council. All right, next item on the agenda is Appointments, item number 11. All right, Alpha, Assessment Appeals Board, three vacancies. We have no applicants. Are there any nominations from the floor? Okay, we'll keep that on our agenda.

» If you're interested in being on the Assessment Appeals Board, please apply at kershaw.sc.gov under Boards and Commissions. Bravo, Clean Community Appointment, one vacancy. This is a City of Camden appointment. Any update, Mr. Tucker? No. Excuse me. No, ma'am. And, of course, I have not had any conversation with Ms. Hannah because of the situation. Yes. All right, we will keep that under our appointments. If you live inside the City of Camden and you are interested in being on the Clean Community Commission appointment, please see a City Council member so that you can get the City of Camden's appointment. All right, Charlie. Kershaw County Library Board, one vacancy. And we have seven applicants. I reviewed the applicants, and these are awesome applicants. This is kind of difficult.

» All right. Mr. John Ellington is coming off of the library board. He is moving to Montana. His residing district was District 5. And we do already have Mr. John Miller, our chairperson, residing in District 5. My efforts and this council's efforts as a whole is to get diversity and geographic diversity on these boards so we can have equal representation of the county. So I would like to see someone from District 4 be nominated, and we do have an applicant residing in District 4 in Lugoff. And if there are no other nominations, I have one. Okay. I make a motion that Ed Garrison, residing at 84 Oak Ridge Drive in Lugoff, South Carolina, and County Council District 4, be appointed to the library board. You said Ed Garrison, right? Ed Garrison. Okay. Is there a second? I'll second it.

» You second and second it. I second it. Seconded by Mr. Jones. All right. Any discussion? I just want to say thank you to the applicants. Very, very bright and wonderful applicants. So thank you for your interest. I wish we had more spots on there because we have a lot of great people that want to serve on this board. So if there's no other comments, all those in favor of appointing Mr. Ed Garrison from County Council District, District 4, indicate by, to the library board, indicate by raising your hand. Great. The vote is unanimous. Congratulations, Mr. Garrison. You will now be serving on the library board. And when Ms. Hannah returns, she will get that packet out to you. So we will keep these applicants. Ms. Hannah is keeping them.

» They will go online also for reference just in case there's any vacancies in the future and we can go to this list of applicants to pull from. All right. Up to item number 12, council briefings. We started with Mr. Shoemake last meeting. So, Mr. Cato, you are up first. Thank you, Madam Chair. Just a few things. Get it all in. This is the last one for the year, so I want to get it all in. But I want to apologize to start with Ms. Cook. I wish I could be there Saturday, but I have a family Christmas dinner and I'm not going to be able to make the celebration, the 100-year celebration for Larry Doby. I sure wish I could be there for that. First of all, I'd like to thank Leadership Kershaw County.

» And I would like to thank all the volunteers that contributed to the mural dedication at Mount Pisgah Community Resource Center on December 2nd. Colt Shirley done an absolutely wonderful job with those murals. And we had a great presentation. We had the singers from North Central Elementary School perform. And they had a full day of activities. And I just want to thank Kershaw County or Leadership Kershaw County for giving us that opportunity up there. And I want to also thank the Resource Center up there and the community. We've had a family in need. And I won't call names or give any circumstance. But we've had a family in need up there, desperate need. And they have come together. And this is how this works.

» They have come together to make sure that this family is going to be taken care of for a while while their father and their husband is severely injured. Their bills will be paid. They'll have food. They'll have everything that they need until he's able to come back home to them. And I really appreciate that community resource center and the volunteers and the community leaders that have come together to help this family out. I want to congratulate the Camden Bulldogs on the state runner-up. I know they would love to have been state champions. But they played an outstanding game. I watched every bit of it. And it was an outstanding game. They have nothing whatsoever to be ashamed of. So I want to congratulate them on that.

» With that being said, I would like to wish everybody a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I pray that you and your family stay safe and you can enjoy some time and dodge the sickness that's going around and just have a time to reflect over the reason for the season. So thank you all and have a Merry Christmas. Thank you, Mr. Cato. Mr. Tomlinson. Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm going to be very, very brief. I would like to remind everybody that this Saturday, December the 16th, Santa Claus will be flying in to the airport. So we are excited to have that. Me and my family, I will have my two kids out there. And they are very excited. So I know the show is going to be wonderful. I believe that starts at 11 a.m. 11 a.m. So if you're available, please come out and join.

» I appreciate the airport and the commission for putting that on. I would like to wish everybody a Merry Christmas. If y'all need anything, feel free to reach out. I will be available over the Christmas holidays, and I look forward to getting back in the chair in January. So thank y'all. Thank you, Mr. Tomlinson. Mr. Jones. I have about 20 things. It won't take 20 minutes. No, listen, I do want to say this. I want to thank my colleagues up here. We have differences of opinion. And the way you conduct yourselves with the dialogue, I appreciate that from all of you. Everybody can't be right like me all the time. Now, having said that, County Administrator and John DeBose, our attorney, I would like to ask you, Mr.

» Templer, to please get with the county attorney and please get with your planning director and be able to report back at the next county council meeting how, when, where, if we could look at a moratorium on building permits. It's been talked about, and it's been talked about, and it's a bold move, but we need to look at it, see if it's possible or not. Thank you. That's it, the next meeting. Okay. That's it. That's it. Thank you, Mr. Jones. Merry Christmas, everybody. Merry Christmas, Mr. Jones. Mr. Brazel. Thank you, Madam Chair. Mr. Templer, can we get an update on the boat ramp situation? We've talked about it a lot. I know you and I have had conversations in private about which direction it's headed. I'd like to hear it, and I'd like for the public to hear how that's shaping up.

» Sure, so the, we're actually going to redirect and have renderings made for over at the Veterans Park parcel. It makes more sense. We've been cleared to the state that those funds we've been given by the state are able to be spent on our property. It makes more sense. I think we can still keep the kayak traffic over there, non-motorized traffic, separate from the motorized traffic. So I've engaged with Alliance Consulting, and they are working on a rendering for kind of the idea I have in my head, but also taking into account all the public input we've received from the prior location.

» The problem is with the prior location, with the bridge construction, the bridge repair, I don't want to invest $600,000 into a boat ramp that wouldn't be able to be used because of a potential laydown area. And the footprint over there that I hope to have a little bit larger in terms of property and space did not come to fruition with the adjacent property owners. So to do it right and to have something we can really be proud of, it's going to be more appropriate to do it on our property where we have more leeway. We don't have the issue of the bridge. There is a lot of concern with placement of the pier, the floating docks, and the structures that it would take to support those from DOT bridge engineers as it relates to what they call scour on the downstream side of the bridge supports.

» So putting it over on our property, we avoid a lot of technical issues to overcome. And I think due to topography over there at the current boat ramp where the kayak launch is, we'll get more out of our money as it relates to site prep. We don't have quite the topography over there. We don't have the drainage issues we would have to overcome from Highway 1. So there was a major outfall there. According to DOT, we would spend all $600,000 just dealing with drainage if we were to try to use this current location at Patriot's Point and address the drainage issue and try to move it upstream. So for all those reasons and several more, we're going to move it over there. And I plan to have a rendering, maybe hopefully by the next council meeting, to share with you all.

» Well, this council would have to approve that. You do know that. We would have to approve that. I mean, I like it. I'm just saying we would have to approve it. Okay. I thought it was approved through. Not if you changed. If you change directions, I think that would have to be approved by county council. Legal opinion. On county property. Yeah. And I can't recall off the top of my head what the prior approving motion was for those funds. I do recall that there was some debate among council about Veterans Park being a possible location. Yeah. Fairly certain we said we'd have to go back and look, but Councilman Jones, I'm fairly certain that in the motion we said where it was were potentially Veterans Park. I think we actually already authorized that, but I could be wrong.

» We just need to revisit and make sure. That's fair. And I like what you're thinking, Danny. That's a great job. Our problem with all that, we didn't know if the state would allow us to build it on our property. Correct. Right. Yeah. So, I think we had a contingent provision, but we can look. We can find it. Leave it to me to create a debate in my council briefings. Are there any major – while we're in debate mode, are there any major objections to that idea? This is something that our administrator mentioned to me. It makes better sense, Councilman Brasel. Okay. We own the property. It makes better sense.

» Yeah, I think we can get it done quicker, and I think at the end of the day we'll end up with two boat ramps because the existing ramp underneath the bridge will be there, and then we will have one in Veterans Park. And I can't tell you how many times people told me, oh, years ago now, however long the park's been there, boy, I can't believe they built that park and didn't put a boat ramp in it. And that was well before I was on council. So, this has come full circle. I'm glad that it's moving in this direction. I think it can actually get traction and we can make this happen. I'd like to see it happen sooner than later, unless there are any major objections in which we could discuss. But thank you for that update.

» I would like to say to this council, each and every one of you, I enjoy working with you. We've become a group of individuals who can be respectful to one another. For four of you, it was your first year on council, right? So, it's a big adjustment in one's life to put yourself out into the public. And the scrutiny that you may encounter and the things that are said about you, I mean, I've experienced it myself. I'll say this, to each and every one of you, thank you for your service to our community. Thank you for your respectful behavior to one another, including myself. I feel like we've grown into a wonderful council and a wonderful group of individuals who care nothing but about what's best for Kershaw County. And that's what we're here to do.

» We're not here to bicker, fight, and argue. We're here to serve the public and make choices that can benefit Kershaw County as a whole. So, I want to say thank you and Merry Christmas to everyone listening and everyone in the audience and to each of you all as well. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Brazel. Mr. Tucker. Thank you, Madam Chair. I had that on my list as well there, Mr. Brazel. I want to say congratulations to the four of you, Madam Chair, for your first completed year. And I know it's been hills and valleys and not always just smooth travel ground. But when you service the public, those are the trails you trail, unfortunately. But I think you guys have done a lovely job. And I'm just going to reiterate what Mr. Brazel said. It's been a pleasure.

» And I'm very proud to be a part of the team. I really am. And I appreciate you guys, ladies or laity, for your service and your commitment. And just always remember, if it was easy, everybody would do it. And everybody can't do it. So, keep that in mind. To Danny Templer and staff, thanks for a good year. A fine audit. Make sure you tell Ms. Brown and her staff, because she left out before I could comment. Thank you to that finance team that you have put together. They do an amazing job. I can tell you when your auditor is proud of what your staff looks like, that's a good thing. Very good thing. So, give everyone, your department heads, employees, all kudos and thanks from County Council, because they're a magnificent team together. And we appreciate them. Mr.

» Danny Cato and family, thank you for my Christmas card. I really appreciate it. I won't be able to return one because I'm not driving to Bethune and the mail won't get there in time. So, I'm telling you now, Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas to all of you that's out in the audience and us live streaming watching us. Merry Christmas to my colleagues up here. And a happy new year. May y'all continue to be blessed and safe. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Mr. Tucker. Mr. Chumick. Yeah, a couple things. Obviously, Merry Christmas to everyone as well. My one-year mark won't be until, I think, March or April. So, I still have to wait. Just a couple quick things.

» I just want to clarify something, not to rehash something we talked about, but just to make a point of clarification, because, as I sit here and reflect, it may have come out wrong. I have a fundamental objection to any one of us or any one member of a small body sort of determining what is and or isn't germane. That's a philosophical opinion. I think that anyone up here is just as capable as anyone else to do it. So, I just want to be clear about that. Like, I have a philosophical difference, but there's no one up here that I don't think is capable of handling the duty. It's more of a philosophical belief about having any one person in a small body declare things germane. But that's – I realize I could have come out like I was saying a particular person shouldn't do it.

» I just don't think anybody should. But, anyway, going to the sort of council brief stuff, I wanted to talk about the catfish stomp was a big success again this year. It looked like it was going to rain, but the weather held off. I have not been a part of that parade in a really long time. I've been to it for decades. And the lights of legal off was really good, so it was great to see everybody out there. And Councilman Jones had a pretty great float out there as well. The last two things I wanted to mention is I'm going to be bringing up a litter ordinance in January to increase the fines for litter. Right now, they're only $25. I met with the county attorney on that. Yeah, it'll be – we're looking at at least $250, but we're also kind of looking to see if maybe even more.

» But I'll have an ordinance together that we can look at, debate, and amend if necessary. But it would be an increase in fine and a mandatory community service, which would be litter pickup of a certain age. Anyways, so there's that. And Councilman Jones, I wanted to mention something on the – you mentioned about the building moratorium. So in that same meeting, it's going to take – because we have to go through planning and zoning first, but I'll sort of go ahead and kind of – I mentioned it to folks already, but I'm working with legal to draft an ordinance that would go to P&Z in late January, I think, and come back to us in February. Is that the right timeline that we talked about? Yeah, I believe it. Right. P&Z for January and then for us by the last meeting in February.

» So – and this is what – now, again, it's obviously still – but it kind of addresses that issue because the problem with a moratorium is how do you carve out industrial growth or do you just say residential? And I'm not necessarily opposed to a moratorium either. What this would do is it would take – there's two problems in our ordinances, and I don't mean to get too nerdy on this, but one issue is we define a minor subdivision as 10 or less homes. So what that means is if you're a developer and you want to build nine homes, you can throw up nine homes with not a whole bunch of county oversight. So the first thing it would do is redefine a minor subdivision to anything more than two homes.

» So – and now, if you have a family plot, there's still exemptions you can go under, but it wouldn't allow you to make those four – you know, that little four-home stretch in Lugolf, they got to do that with not much oversight. And then in addition to that, any subdivision at all, so anything above minor, any subdivision, so anything of two or more homes, would go through planning and zoning as it normally does, but it would have to come in front of this body for approval. And it would also come with a letter from the school district, and any other stakeholders could have buy-in. This would exist for a year, and then obviously we could extend it. And what this would allow us to do is sort of study the growth.

» It would allow us to have some insight into what growth is happening and allow us to sort of understand where growth is, areas that could absorb it, areas that couldn't. And, again, your idea may be – you haven't really formulated this idea, just a question. I've just asked the county – Yeah, that's what I said. Yeah, let me be clear. Right, you didn't say that as an idea, but I was just pointing out that is something. And everything you just said is what I've asked Danny Tepter to get with the county attorney to plan to bring back to us at a later time. Right, and that's why I wanted to let you know. That's something that I have had some meetings on, so that's something that I'm going to put forward. And deal with the geography as well, you know, because you've got different areas.

» You've got east side, the west side, there's different needs and wants. Well, and that's why – That's what he'll be looking at. So everything you're saying is what he's hopefully going to look at and bring back to us at the next meeting. Right, and like I say, I'm just letting you know that's something that I've already put in the works for PNZ, so we'll have that ordinance I mentioned. So that will come in front of us in February. So I just wanted to point that out. That's something I've been working on with legal for some time. So – because I think we can all agree the explosive residential growth has become a real problem. So – If I may. Yeah. Derek, another thing, too.

» I thought it was important to make this a public statement that we're doing this so the public knows what we're looking at doing as well, too. And that was my reasons for getting Danny in the country. Well, I'm very glad you said it because I wasn't going to say anything about this because I was just sort of waiting until it came up. But I think – I mean, I'm sure for everyone up here, it's one of the top five things people talk to me about, especially with the bridge being out and the new bridge about to be out. It sort of reminds everyone how many freaking people we have in this area, which is wonderful.

» People want to live here, but we just have to make sure that we're not – To me, the worst thing that can happen is to become a county of starter homes because you're never going to have a tax base to do anything. So, no, I appreciate you mentioning it. I hope that didn't come – I was saying I'm agreeing with you, and that's – And homes built, we are one of the lower counties with homes built right now. I mean, the county surrounding us are having much more growth than we are. And I will say this, that's due to a lot of your work, and I appreciate that. Yours and Councilman Brazels, and I appreciate that. No, no, I think we're all on the same page on that. There's some things we don't agree on, but I think that's one we are uniformed very well. So, thank you.

» And again, Merry Christmas, everybody. Thank you, Mr. Schumach. All right. Clean Community Commissioners, past, present, if you're here, please come up to the podium. Thank you for being patient. You guys have stuck it out. I'm going to wait for my council brief. We have a special recognition of a special woman tonight, Ms. Wanda Swan, and I will give the floor to Gene Hardis for the presentation. Thank you, Chair and Councilman. We are here tonight to honor one of our own. Mr. Hardis, move the microphone close to your mouth. Say close enough. Honor one of our own. We're not here. You had a nice budget report. We don't ask for any money. They will later, though, but you bet on that. But we're here to honor a lady who led this commission to start.

» She did a wonderful job as our chairperson. Everything we did, the time I was on it, she was the one who formed it up and planned it. We picked up tons of trash. She done places that she wasn't, I guess, good old State Park. She did things out there that the Clean Commission did, and we enjoyed that. But we're here tonight to honor her for what she did for us, the years she was our chairperson on this. And I'd like to read this plaque. It says, Kershaw County Clean Commission presents to Wonders One in recognition of your years of outstanding dedication and service. Also to Kershaw County. It's not on here, but I'll add that to Kershaw County in what she did. I thank her for her outstanding service. I enjoy being with her. But let me tell you one thing.

» If you're on a committee with her, you will work. Now, if you don't want to work, when they say Wonders One, you run. Run, right. You have to work. And she did a wonderful job in putting us together. And we walked many miles up and down the roads in Kershaw County. I'd like to say it looks better than what it did when we started. Some places do, and some places don't. And, Derek, I love what you said a while ago about raising fines on litter. It should have been done years ago in this, and I appreciate that. And I hope it goes through and passes on this. Anyone else got anything to say? I know Sammy wants to go home. He doesn't mention that. I'll stay for this, Judge. I'll stay for this. Mr. Hardis, can you? I hope you will. If I was to be with Judge, I would take care of you. Mr.

» Hardis, can you come into the Dias area and the Clean Commissioners as well? And, Ryan, if you'll give him that microphone to use. Mr. Nettles. Over here. The mic's already on, so. Ms. Swan, would you like your husband to join us up here? Mr. Swan, can you join us? Tommy, will you please come forward? Tommy's the other person I work for on commissions. He's a good all-state park, and he will work you, too. Wanda, I would like to present to you this plaque for your service to Kershaw County and Clean Commission. You've done a wonderful job. Thank you, sir. Anyone else got anything you'd like to say? I just want to thank you. Honestly, this group of people that I had the privilege of working with, they've become my friends, and I love and care about them deeply.

» And to the administration, I look at Danny, and Danny was behind me 100% and patting me on the back. He encouraged me when I was discouraged, and I want to thank him and the rest of the staff. To the county councilman, wow, you guys are wonderful. It's just been an honor and a privilege to work with you. I can't thank you enough for all the times you've listened to me, even when I know you got tired of hearing me. But thank you so much for listening and for working with me, for making things happen. And, Derek, I cannot thank you enough for bringing this new ordinance. $250 is a big improvement. But I want to remind you that in West Virginia, the fine is $25,000. But $250 is a good start, okay? No pressure. No pressure.

» But these guys that I had the opportunity to work with, it wasn't just me, guys. It was them as well. And I want to thank them. They were all wonderful and wonderful people to work with. And I went home to take care of some family medical things, which we did go through. And then he put me to work at Goodall State Park. And what did I do? The first thing he assigned me to, I got the flu. So, sorry about that. But be looking out for us. We'll still be working with Goodall State Park. And I'll still be behind the commission. Thank you all. I am honored and humbled. Thank you so much. Very good. Thank you. Thank you so much. Ms. Swan, two things. Do you live in Camden? There's a vacancy on the Clean Community Commission for the City of Camden. Yes, ma'am.

» And I also want you to know, we have not forgotten about the litter officer, okay? You put that in motion and you started that. And this council has not forgotten about that. So, we'll address it again next budget cycle. Thank you and congratulations. And thank you guys for waiting until my council brief. I appreciate that. Should have moved y'all up. I'll give them a minute. Thank you all. Good one, Katie. All right. A couple more things. I had the opportunity today to visit WTC, the Willard Tech students, the auto repair students and visual art students. They restored an AH-1 Cobra for the Chesney American Legion post 48 to recognize their hard work, celebrate freedom, flew in an AH-1 Cobra from Columbia, landed it in the parking lot of WTC. It was very cool.

» The aircraft that they restored flew in Vietnam from 71 to 73, Grenada from 83 to 88, and Desert Storm from 89 to 98. So, it was really a neat part of history. This is the third aircraft that WTC has finished on behalf of Celebrating Freedom. The first one was in 2008, then in 2015, and now this one that was ready in 2023. Ryan, do we have any pictures from today? These students out at Willard Tech have a reputation with the Army of having the highest restoration standards. So, I'm very proud of them. Like, this aircraft is going to Chesney, so it's not even in Kershaw County, but they chose WTC students to restore it. Yep, so congratulations to them, and thank you. That was really neat. Really neat. All right. Larry Doby, 100th birthday observation.

» Starts at 10 at the African American Culture Center on York Street, and then from 1 to 4 at the Douglas Reed House at the Kershaw County Arts Center will be an informational program and reception. Thank you, Ms. Cook, for bringing that up. You brought up the fly-in of Santa. I wanted to let the community know that there are all-access services at Malvern Hill Baptist Church, and these services are for families of children or family members with disabilities so that they can attend church service. A need that was identified in the community is services for worship with family members with disabilities, somewhere they can go that has adequate services for their family members.

» This is tremendous because oftentimes the parents or the siblings or other family members are not able to go to worship due to not having adequate care for their family members. So Malvern Hill Baptist Church, that's at 11 o'clock on Sundays. It's called the all-access services, so that's great for our community. This is our last meeting before Christmas, so Merry Christmas. Please remember all the soldiers that are deployed during Christmas that are away from their families. They're the South Carolina National Guard unit deploying just days after Christmas. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. And when council returns in January, we will start right off with the new budget season. So I look forward to that. This has been a really great first year. So thank you, everybody.

» Thank you for your support. I do enjoy working with you all as well. And the Lights of Lugoff Parade, Miss Jill Wolf has left already, but I wanted to give her a shout-out. And the Optimist Club, the Lugoff Optimist Club. It was amazing. And I think the biggest one they've seen yet with 108 parade entries. It was really awesome. And Mr. Brazel had a Humvee in the parade. I thought that was cool. So thank you guys very much. Mr. Templer. Just a few things, Madam Chair, members of council. Just dovetailing off the Lights of Lugoff Parade, I would just like to thank staff for going out and prepping prior to and cleaning up after the event that next day. Inclement weather, but they all got out there and did what they had to do and cleaned up. We had our jail staff was out there.

» Public Works, Solid Waste, and Lugoff Fire helped us out this year as well. So huge shout-out to those groups for getting out in the rain, cleaning up, and just kind of putting everything back together. So I just wanted to mention them. Having worked at the sheriff's office and worked in the very, very early stages of the accreditation process, what Kevin Lynch has done over there is just simply amazing. That is a very daunting task. When I was sitting over there, it was just like digging a hole in sand. It's one thing to have what they call the standards. It's a series of policies, but they also expect you to follow those policies. So what he has done to put in 300 standards over there in his team is just amazing. And I'm glad he was here tonight to get that recognition.

» So that is a huge feather in the cap for the sheriff's office. So certainly something to be proud of. And that's all I have. Thank you. Mr. DeBose. I have no legal briefing. Mr. Shoemake referenced some of the matters that will be coming before council in the new year. Mr. Adams-Riscoussi and I and the administration have been talking about several other development services matters. So we don't want to get ahead of the ZLDR rewrite, but we have identified some matters to bring to council in the new year. So I look forward to it. Thank you. All right. Executive session. We do have personnel matters to take care of tonight. Is there a motion to enter executive session? Chair, I make a motion. We move into executive session for personnel. Mr. Chair makes a motion. Second. Second by Mr.

» Cato. And all those in favor of entering executive session, indicate by raising your hand. Right. Vote is unanimous. We are in executive session. Chair? Sir, a motion to come out of executive session. We entered executive session for a personnel matter. Yes. I make a motion if we come out of executive session. Okay. Motion by Mr. Tucker. Is there a second? Second. Second by Mr. Brazel. Any discussion? Okay. All those in favor of coming out of executive session, indicate by raising your hand. The vote is unanimous. We are now out of executive session. At this time, I make a motion. Effective January 1st, 2024. A salary adjustment to the administrator's salary to $165,000. Second. All right. Second by Mr. Tucker. And discussion.

» Well, I'd like to say that, Danny, we feel like you do a great job. You work hard for the citizens of Kershaw County, and it was good tonight to hear Shaheen Hancock and Godwin let us know that there was an extra $3.5 million in our budget that was received versus what we thought we were going to bring in this past fiscal year. So, an increase to your salary, it's due. You earned it, and we appreciate what you do. I appreciate what you do, and I don't want to speak for everyone, but collectively, I think we have determined that you're certainly worth it, and you work hard for the county. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Brazel. Mr. Tucker. Thank you. Well said, Mr. Brazel. So, Mr.

» Templer, I want to tell you thank you for what you have done over the past year and some change of sitting in this position, and you've really blossomed, and you're continuing to grow, and we appreciate that. Big future ahead, a lot of responsibility, a lot of things going on, but we know we've got the right man at the helm. There's no doubt about it. So, congratulations, and I just say that we'll just be leaning on you a little bit more. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Tucker. Mr. Schumacher. Again, Danny, thank you for everything you've done. I'm obviously the new guy up here, so the amount of sort of hand-holding you and your staff have had to do for me to get me through some of these issues. I've wanted to go very fast, and you've kind of made that happen, and, you know, organized meetings.

» So, again, I really appreciate what you've done for this county, and excited to see what the future holds. Hopefully, I'm in it. Thank you, Mr. Schumacher. Any other comments? Thank you, Danny. Ditto on everything that's done and been said. Madam Chair, if I may, I, you know, thank you all so much. I am honored. I don't think we've voted yet. Yeah, I'm passionate about being the administrator in my own community. I wouldn't have that opportunity anywhere else. I haven't grown up anywhere else. So, it is, it's an honor to work with y'all and to lead the employees and work with this community. So, thank y'all so much. I can't thank you enough. All right. All those in favor of adjusting the administrator's salary to $165,000 base salary annually, indicate by raising your hand.

» I'm making a phone call so I can go Christmas shopping. And all those, Mr. Jones, okay. All right. Vote is unanimous. Congratulations, Mr. Templer. All right. Item number 16, adjournment. Is there a motion to adjourn? Motion to adjourn. Motion to adjourn by Mr. Tucker. Second by Mr. Cato. All those in favor of adjournment. All right. Vote is unanimous. This meeting is adjourned.