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Town Council - Mar 3, 2009 |
Minutes McClellanville Town Council March 2, 2009 - 7:00 PM McClellanville Town Council held a regular meeting on the above-noted date. Notice of the meeting had been published in the town newsletter and the Charleston Post and Courier. Mayor Rutledge Leland presided at the meeting and all Council Members were present: Aaron Baldwin, Bob Gannon, Gussie Humes, and Jim Scott. Others present included Clerk Mary Duke, Zoning Administrator Kathryn Basha, Building Official Paul Fields, Steve Wright representing SCE&G/SCANA, Planning Commission Chair Ginny Prevost, J.D. Wells, Kathy Leland, Ned Jaycocks, and Bob McCarley. Mayor Leland first asked Council to review the minutes from the February 2nd meeting. Councilman Humes made a motion, seconded by Councilman Gannon, to approve the minutes as written. The motion was carried unanimously. The Mayor then recognized local pharmacist J.D. Wells, who had asked to address Council. Mr. Wells said that he had purchased the local pharmacy approximately five years previously, and had inherited the debt of the prior owner. He said that he had since been struggling to keep the pharmacy afloat financially, but had increasing problems in the past couple of years. He said that the Medicare Part D program had caused further difficulties, as there was a 30 - 45 day period before he was reimbursed by the government for drugs purchased under that program. He said that he often did not have the necessary funds to order the drugs that he needed to keep in stock. Mr. Wells said that he had contacted the offices of local congressmen and senators to request their assistance. He said that Senator Jim DeMint had informed him of the availability of some grants and loans for assistance with rural health care. Mr. Wells asked Council to allow him to place a petition in the town office to gather signatures from those who wished to support retention of the pharmacy in town. He also asked whether a committee of Council could be formed to assist him in locating grant funds or other aid. He said that, without assistance, the pharmacy might not be able to continue in business until the end of the year. Councilman Baldwin asked Mr. Wells if he had any statistics on the number of his customers who lacked means of transportation to other pharmacies outside of McClellanville. Mr. Wells said that he believed there were at least 15 customers who were unable to travel elsewhere for their medication. Ginny Prevost said that she felt that even those who were able to travel to other pharmacies often preferred the more personal and caring service that Mr. Wells provided. Councilman Gannon suggested that Mr. Wells might contact County Councilman Dickie Schweers for assistance, and also said that the County Grants Administration Office might be able to offer some helpful information and direction. Mayor Leland said that he felt that an endorsement from Town Council might be more helpful to Mr. Wells than a committee. He said that Council could pass a resolution of support and/or write a letter supporting Mr. Wells and the effort to keep his pharmacy in town. Mayor Leland and the members of Council then signed Mr. Wells' petition in support of his efforts. The next item on the agenda was a public hearing for two proposed ordinances: "An Ordinance to Amend Article V and Article XII of the Zoning and Land Development Ordinance of the Town of McClellanville, South Carolina So As To Provide for an Administrative Review of Certain Work in the Historic (H) District and the Highway Commercial (HC) District," and "An Ordinance to Amend Article IV, Chapter 4 of the General Ordinances of the Town of McClellanville Pertaining to the Flood Prevention Measures." Mayor Leland opened the hearing on the first ordinance, the proposed amendment to the zoning ordinance. Zoning Administrator Kathryn Basha said that the amendment would allow administrative review of certain insubstantial projects proposed for "noncontributing" properties in the Historic District and for projects in the Highway Commercial District that were not visible from a street or publicly accessible travelway, as well as changes to existing sign faces. She said that the latest version of the amendment had no requirements for posting the property for which approval was sought or any requirement for notification of adjacent property owners or the ARB. She said that the town attorney had originally advised a five-day posting period for properties where administrative approval was sought, and that the Planning Commission had most recently recommended either a five-day posting period or notification of adjacent property owners. Councilman Gannon said that perhaps, if the zoning administrator determined a project was not "insubstantial," she/he could then require the five day posting period. Ms. Basha and Councilman Scott pointed out that whenever a project was determined to be a "substantial" change, the project would go through the regular ARB review process. Ms. Basha said that the original purpose of the proposed posting requirement in the ordinance was to allow comments from neighbors or the public, should anyone disagree with her determination that the project was insubstantial. She pointed out that an appeal of her decision would take more time than a five-day posting period. Councilman Aaron Baldwin said that, since the approvals under the proposed amendment would be for insubstantial changes, he did not believe appeals would become an issue. Mayor Leland asked whether the Town could be held liable if a neighbor was successful in appealing a decision of the zoning administrator allowed under this proposed amendment. Ms. Basha pointed out that, by law, any of her decisions or actions as zoning administrator could be appealed. Council agreed that passage of this amendment would not greatly increase the Town's risk of liability. Councilman Gussie Humes then made a motion, seconded by Councilman Aaron Baldwin, to hold second and third reading on the latest version of the proposed amendment, which has no requirement for posting the property or notifying adjacent property owners. Councilman Scott voiced some concerns over the appeal process and the town attorney's recommendation for posting the property. After discussion, however, Council agreed that they trust the judgment of the zoning administrator and believe she will be conscientious in following the requirements under the proposed amendment. The Mayor then called for the vote on the motion for second and third readings, and the motion was carried unanimously. The Mayor then invited public comment on the proposed amendment to the flood prevention requirements contained in the Town's General Ordinances. Building Official and Town Floodplain Manager Paul Fields said that FEMA has delegated review of local flood prevention ordinances to the State Floodplain Manager's Office, and that this office is now a part of the SC Dept. of Natural Resources. He said that a representative from the State Floodplain Manager's Office had made a "Community Assistance Visit" to the town last year, and had reviewed our flood ordinance and other flood prevention measures in which the Town participates. After review of our flood prevention ordinance, Paul said that the State representative had informed him that certain language in the ordinance needed to be updated to reflect the latest language approved by the State. He said that the changes included references to State Codes, references to effective dates of flood maps, and deleting language that any revisions to the flood maps were applicable. Also, a definition for "violation" was added to the ordinance. Following Mr. Field's explanation, as no questions or comments were raised by the public, Councilman Humes made a motion to hold second and third readings on the proposed ordinance. The motion was seconded by Councilman Gannon and approved by unanimous vote of Council. The Mayor then asked Building Official Paul Fields to report on his recent inspection of the fire tower located on the municipal property. Mr. Fields said that he had found the area within the fence at the base of the tower to be extremely overgrown and that the fence was no longer secure. He said that most of the metal parts of the tower were still in fairly good repair, but that the wooden parts showed extensive rot. Mr. Fields suggested clearing the underbrush around the base of the tower and removing the bottom section of the tower stairs to restrict access to the structure. Mayor Leland said that he agreed that the underbrush should be cleared, the fence should be repaired, and the lowest section of the stairs should be removed. Councilman Scott said that he would also suggest posting a "no trespassing" sign on the tower. Council asked Mr. Fields to proceed with efforts to have this work done. Ned Jaycocks asked Council about possible efforts to repair the cab of the tower and preserve the structure. Mayor Leland said that such efforts would be worthwhile for future pursuit, but that securing the structure and removing any safety threats were the most immediate concern. Ginny Prevost and others said that grant funds might be available for repairs and preservation, especially since the tower is listed on the register of National Historic Lookout Towers. Mayor Leland next asked Zoning Administrator Kathryn Basha for her report on the status of the Town's offer to buy property at 201 Cassena Street. The Mayor said that he understood that the County's Greenbelt Bank had approved $20,000 for the Town to purchase and secure the property. The grant agreement specified, however, that no more than the appraised value of the property could be used from these funds for purchase of the property. An independent appraisal procured by the Town placed the value of the property at $15,000. The property owner had communicated to Ms. Basha and Clerk/Administrator Mary Duke that he would accept no less that $25,000 for the property. The Mayor and Council agreed, however, that the Town would stand by its offer to pay the appraised value of $15,000. The Mayor then asked Councilman Jim Scott to report on complaints he had received concerning use of a vacant house on Gypsy Lane as a gathering place for late-night activity by some local young people. Councilman Scott said that residents on Gypsy Lane have complained to him that they have been disturbed by such activity at that site on more than one occasion. Clerk Mary Duke said that she had recently sent the listed property owner a certified letter describing the problems, but as yet had received no reply from him. Council agreed that Mary should contact the County Sheriff's Office and ask that the deputies patrol Gypsy Lane to check for any illegal activity and help to control this problem. Mayor Leland noted the request from the Clerk/Administrator to schedule a meeting for Council to begin work on planning the budget for the upcoming fiscal year. Council agreed to schedule this meeting for Monday, March 30, at 7:00 PM. Council then reviewed the letter from resident Jimmy McClellan, which Mr. McClellan had also sent as a letter to the editor of the Charleston Post and Courier. In his letter, Mr. McClellan discussed his concerns that the current SCDOT project to widen Steed Creek Road in the Francis Marion National Forest is a first step to encouraging more traffic and development that could endanger the valuable forest resources. Council indicated that they were sympathetic with Mr. McClellan's concern, but that they believed this project was already well underway. Ginny Prevost told Council that she understood that the National Forest had been able to retain ownership of Steed Creek Road, and that negotiations had determined that the road would remain a two-lane road, though the lanes would be widened to twelve feet each with two foot shoulders. Councilman Humes brought to Council's attention his concern that a guardrail is needed along Leland Creek, where the small creek passes under Pinckney Street across from the intersection of Pinckney and Society Road. Council asked Mary to bring this problem to the attention of SCDOT. There being no further business, Councilman Humes then made a motion to adjourn the meeting. The motion was duly seconded and unanimously approved. The meeting was adjourned at 8:10 PM. Mary S. Duke Town Clerk |