[00:11:13] FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY [00:11:23] AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. [00:11:25] I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE JUST A MOMENT OF PRAYER. THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF CURRENT THINGS TO HAPPEN. SO LET'S HAVE IT. STEVE, WOULD YOU MIND? YES. I'D LIKE A MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR THE FOR OFFICERS IN NORTH CAROLINA THAT WERE GUNNED DOWN NIGHT BEFORE LAST AND THE VICTIMS OF THE TORNADOES IN OKLAHOMA. SO IF WE COULD HAVE A MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR THEM. THANK YOU. VERY GOOD. THANK YOU STEVE. I'D LIKE TO PASS A NEW RULE THAT CARRIE DOESN'T HAVE ANY LUNCHES ON THE DAY OF THE WORKSHOP. SECOND, LET'S MAKE HIM A BREAKFAST MAN. [INAUDIBLE]. MR. WHITE, DO WE WANT TO GO ON TO NUMBER TWO AND START NUMBER TWO? NUMBER TWO? YEAH. AND THEN, BECAUSE WE GOT SOME FOLKS HERE THAT ARE CONSULTANTS. SO AND THEY'RE ON THE CLOCK. [INAUDIBLE] SO WHY DON'T WE START MR. DAVIS ON NUMBER TWO, AND THEN WE'LL COME BACK WHEN THE MAYOR GETS BACK, UP TO SIX MINUTES AND FIVE MINUTES. THAT'S RIGHT, THAT'S RIGHT. THANK YOU. [INAUDIBLE] SO GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. YES. WOODEN PARTNERS ALONG WITH THEIR THEIR PARTNERS COURT ATKINS ASSOCIATES, THEY'RE THEY'RE HERE TO GIVE YOU THE JUST TO GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF THE FINAL DESIGN OF THE VETERANS PARK. AS YOU KNOW, WE'VE BEEN THROUGH A VERY PUBLIC PROCESS, AND THE LAST THING WE DID PUBLICLY WAS WE MET WITH THE VETERANS AGAIN JUST TO GET THEIR SPECIFIC INPUT. AND THEY'VE TAKEN ALL THAT AND PUT THAT INTO WHAT I THINK IS A REALLY GREAT LOOKING DESIGN. AND SOMETHING WE CAN BE VERY PROUD OF. BUT THEY'RE GOING TO GO OVER THAT. SO I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO THEM AND LET, LET THEM TELL YOU WHAT THEY'VE COME UP WITH. AND MATT, THANKS FOR YOUR COORDINATION WITH THE OUTSIDE FOLKS. WE APPRECIATE IT. ALL RIGHT. THERE HE IS. DID YOU HAVE A GOOD LUNCH? [I. CALL TO ORDER] GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS TODD THEODORE. I'M WITH WOODEN PARTNERS. DAVID MCALLISTER HERE IS GOING TO HAND OUT WHAT WE'RE PRESENTING TODAY. OTHER TEAM MEMBERS IS COURT ATKINS. JASON BROWNIE AND JAMES ATKINS IS HERE. AND I'M SURE A LOT OF YOU ARE FAMILIAR WITH OUR CIVIL ENGINEER, WARD EDWARDS. [2. MUNICIPAL HUB PROJECT UPDATE] IS IS ASSISTING WITH THIS PROJECT AS WELL. WE STARTED THIS PROJECT BACK IN 2000. I THINK WE KIND OF WENT THROUGH THE COVID PERIOD THROUGH THROUGH SOME OF THAT LOOKING AT THE MUNICIPAL HUB AND GOT A LOT OF GOOD PUBLIC INPUT AND OBVIOUSLY CAME TO THE POINT OF WHERE NOW WE HAVE THIS INITIAL PHASE, WHICH IS THE VETERANS PARK, WHICH IS KIND OF A BOOKEND TO THAT PORTION OF THE OF THE BLOCK. AND AND THE VETERANS PARK. WE STARTED OUT WITH A KICKOFF IN AUGUST OF LAST YEAR. WE PRESENTED A SCHEMATIC DESIGN IN NOVEMBER AND THEN AT THE END OF JANUARY, WE HAD KIND OF A VETERANS FOCUS MEETING [00:15:06] AT THAT TIME AS WELL. SO WE HAVE A LOT OF GOOD PUBLIC INPUT. SINCE THEN, WE'VE BEEN ADVANCING DETAILED DESIGN FOR THE PROJECT. SO SO THERE'S SOME DESIGN COMPONENTS THAT WE'VE BEEN ADVANCING, BUT WE'VE ALSO AT THE SAME TIME ADVANCING BASICALLY CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS. THESE ARE DOCUMENTS THAT TELL A CONTRACTOR HOW TO HOW TO BUILD THIS SET. AND AGAIN, THE COMPONENTS ARE THAT WE HAVE THE PATRIOTS GARDEN, WE HAVE THE VETERANS PLAZA, VETERANS PAVILION KIND OF A BEGINNINGS OF A PARKING AREA AND THEN IMPROVEMENTS TO DASHER LANE BEGINNING TO SET THAT UP AS A STREET VERSUS KIND OF THIS LITTLE ALLEY THAT EXISTS NOW. SO IT BEGINS TO SET UP THE FUTURE AS WELL, FOR HOW THE REST OF THE HUB WOULD BE BUILD OUT. SO THIS IS KIND OF TAKING ALL THAT INTO CONSIDERATION. YOU'VE SEEN THIS PERSPECTIVE LAST TIME IS WHAT THIS WOULD LOOK LIKE FROM A STREET VIEW. AND OBVIOUSLY WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THE DETAILS OF WHAT GOES INSIDE THE PARK AREA, THE PAVILION AND ALL THAT. INCLUDED HERE, JUST SO YOU KIND OF SEE WHAT WE'RE ADVANCING. THESE ARE THE TECHNICAL DRAWINGS THAT BASICALLY, YOU KNOW, TELL HOW TO BUILD IT, INSTRUCTIONS TO THE CONTRACTOR AND, AND ASSIST WITH PRICING AS WELL. THIS IS ONE OF OUR SITE DEVELOPMENT PLANS. WARD EDWARDS ISN'T HERE, BUT THEY'VE BEEN ADVANCING THE UTILITIES. I THINK WE MENTIONED THE LAST TIME THAT THE WATER TABLE HERE IS PRETTY HIGH SO THERE'S A THERE'S A FAIR AMOUNT OF INFRASTRUCTURE THAT'S PUT INTO HERE AND WE'VE RAISED THE SITE. WE TALKED ABOUT THAT. WE BASICALLY UTILIZE THE EXISTING DETENTION AREA THAT'S BEHIND THE FIRE STATION, BUT WE HAD TO EXPAND IT TO ACCOMMODATE THE THE ADDED SURFACE AREAS THAT WE'RE GOING TO IMPACT STORM DRAINAGE. SO BASICALLY, PART OF THE FOOTPRINT IS OVER TOP OF WHERE WE WERE SHOWING EARLY ON WHERE A PLAYGROUND WAS GOING TO GO, BUT WE STILL ALLOCATED ROOM FOR AS THE MUNICIPAL HUB MOVES FORWARD OF ADDING THE PARKING AND THE SORT OF THAT GREENSWARD PARK THAT RUNS MARTIN STREET TO DASHER AS WELL. AS I MENTIONED, OUR LAST MEETING THAT WE HAD IN JANUARY, WE HAD A LOT OF GOOD INPUT FROM THE VETERANS, AND THIS IS JUST SOME IMAGERY OF SOME EXAMPLES OF OBVIOUSLY IDENTIFYING THE MILITARY SEALS HOW THE PLAZA IS GOING TO WORK AND WHEN THERE'S BIG EVENTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT ARE GOING ON AND HOW IT CAN THEN PLAY INTO THAT GARDEN, THE PATRIOT'S GARDEN THAT WE HAVE, THAT IT CAN BE SORT OF A CONTEMPLATIVE SPACE WITH LANDSCAPING AND COLOR, SEASONAL INTEREST AND THINGS LIKE THAT, BUT ALSO ACCOMMODATE BIG EVENTS SO THAT YOU CAN PUT CHAIRS OUT THERE AND KIND OF HAVE A BIGGER VIEWING AUDIENCE AND GIVES YOU FLEXIBILITY FOR DIFFERENT TYPES OF EVENTS, BUT MAINLY FOCUSED ON VETERAN EVENTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. AND WE TALKED ABOUT MONUMENTATION KEEPING IT SIMPLE, BUT THE FEEDBACK THAT WE HAD THAT THEY PREFERRED NOT TO USE THE BLACK GRANITE. SO WE'RE LOOKING AT USING A GEORGIA GRAY GRANITE FOR THE MONUMENTATION. AND JUST OBVIOUSLY RECOGNIZING THE FIRST RESPONDERS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. AND SOME OF THIS WILL BE ADDRESSED UNDER THE BUILDING, AND THE ARCHITECT WILL TALK ABOUT THAT AS WELL. AND THEN THESE ARE JUST EXAMPLES OF SOME OF THE MATERIALS. AND WE TALKED ABOUT THERE WAS INTEREST IN USING WHAT WE CALL INDIGENOUS MATERIALS LIKE TABBY SIDEWALKS AND BRICK AND THINGS LIKE THAT THAT ARE KIND OF IN THAT VERNACULAR THAT COMPLEMENTS THE, THE HISTORY OF OF HARDEEVILLE AND SORT OF THAT TRAIN KIND OF TYPE ENVIRONMENT AS WELL, INCLUDING THE ARCHITECTURE AND THE WAY THE ARCHITECTURE IS ADDRESSING THE LOCATION AS WELL. AND THEN THESE ARE JUST SOME IMAGES OF THE MONUMENTATION. OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING NEEDS TO BE ACCESSIBLE. ADDRESSING THAT, LOOKING AT LIKE A BLUESTONE PAVEMENT BORDER AND BRICK FOR THE PAVER FIELDS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. THE SPACE WHERE YOU HAVE THE PATRIOTS GARDEN AND THEN THE PLAZA AREA AND THEN OBVIOUSLY THE BUILDING HERE AS WELL. SO YOU HAVE YOU KNOW, THIS CAN BE USED YEAR ROUND AS A PARK, A PASSIVE USE PARK, THAT KIND OF THING. BUT THEN ALL OF THIS CAN BE ENERGIZED BY DIFFERENT SIZED EVENTS AS WELL. AND JUST PUTTING INTO THE VERNACULAR OF THE PAVEMENT THE STAR IN THE MIDDLE. AND THEN THERE'S RADIATING LINES THAT REACH OVER TO EACH OF THE MONUMENT STATIONS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. [00:20:06] JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE. AND THEN JUST, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO ADDRESS HOW THIS APPEARS AT NIGHTTIME, AS WELL AS LIGHTING THE MONUMENTS AND THE FLAGPOLES AND THE OUTDOOR SPACES AND THINGS LIKE THAT AS WELL. AND THEN LIKE I MENTIONED, THAT DASHER LANE WILL BECOME MORE OF A PRONOUNCED STREET ENVIRONMENT WITH ON STREET PARKING, SIDEWALKS AND THAT SORT OF THING AS WELL. AND THEN JUST SHOW LIKE THIS VIEW IS FROM THE BUILDING LOOKING OUT AND HOW THE SPACE IS SORT OF ENGAGE EACH OTHER AND BEING ABLE TO KIND OF HAVE THAT CONNECTIVE EXPERIENCE BETWEEN ALL THOSE DIFFERENT AREAS. AND THEN I'LL LET COURT ATKINS, TALK ABOUT THE ARCHITECTURE. HELLO AGAIN JAMES ATKINS WITH COURT ATKINS GROUP. AS TODD MENTIONED, WE HAD A REALLY PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATION WITH THE VETERANS GROUP AT OUR LAST MEETING, JUST BEGINNING TO DIAL IN SOME OF THE THE DETAILED DESIGN AND PROBABLY THE THEY GENERALLY, THEY LOVE THE PAVILION. THEY LOVE THE CONCEPT. THERE WAS A LOT OF FEEDBACK ABOUT PROVIDING A LITTLE BIT MORE OF A REFLECTIVE SPACE WITHIN THE ENTIRE, YOU KNOW, FOR SOMEONE WHO JUST NEEDS TO SIT DOWN, MAYBE HAVE A QUIET MOMENT. THERE ARE A LOT OF DIFFERENT CONVERSATIONS ABOUT HOW THAT MIGHT LOOK. EARLY ON, I DON'T KNOW IF THIS HAS A POINTER OR NOT, BUT GREEN LITTLE UP AT THE TOP THIRD. YEAH. IN THE FIRST ITERATION, WE TALKED ABOUT HAVING SOME COMMUNITY RESOURCES, SOME HELPLINES, SOME DESIGNATIONS OF THINGS FOR VETERANS AND FIRST RESPONDERS SUPPORT. WE'VE BUILDING UPON SOME OF THE MONUMENTATION THAT'S IN THE PARK. WE HAVE CREATED A LITTLE BIT OF A CENTRALLY FOCUSED REFLECTION AREA. JOHN HAD MENTIONED. I'LL GO BACK REAL QUICK TO HERE. YOU KNOW, A LITTLE BIT OF MONUMENTATION FOR THE FIRST RESPONDERS AS WELL AS A FALLEN SOLDIER CROSS STATUE. AND OUR THOUGHT WAS THOSE COUPLE OF THINGS CAME UP DURING THE MEETING IS TO PROVIDE TURN THESE WALLS INTO SOME, PARKING IS DOWN HERE. SO WHEN YOU ENTER SOME KIND OF ARRIVAL INFORMATION, WHETHER IT'S CORPORATE DONORS TO THE PARK, WHETHER IT'S INDIVIDUAL DONORS, A WELCOMING TYPE THING, MAYBE A LITTLE BIT OF INFORMATION ABOUT THE HISTORY OF THE PARK AND THE CITY AND HOW THIS CAME TO BE. AND THEN ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THIS, SOME MONUMENTATION FOR FIRST RESPONDERS, THAT KIND OF ACTS AS A AS A BACKDROP TO THE OPEN AIR PAVILION AND THEN WITH SET WITHIN THAT, AND THESE WALLS WOULDN'T GO TO THE FULL SCENE. THEY'RE KIND OF MONUMENTATION. BUT THEN YOU KIND OF STEP INTO THIS MONUMENT FOR, YOU KNOW, A REFLECTION AREA IF YOU NEED BE. SO A PLACE TO SIT, PERHAPS THE FALLEN SOLDIER CROSS HERE IN THE MIDDLE OR SOME OTHER STATUE OF SOME SORT. SO THAT SITS IN AS AN ARRIVAL SEQUENCE FROM THE PARKING, BUT ALSO KIND OF SETS UP A BACKDROP FOR THE COVERED PAVILION AND THAT LEADS OUT. AND WE CAN TALK ABOUT WHAT IT SAYS, BUT YOU CAN SEE HERE FROM THE PARKING LOT AT ARRIVAL. AND IT'S BEFORE WE USED TO HAVE A SIGN WAY UP HERE. THIS IS A LITTLE BIT MORE AT YOUR EYE LEVEL, A LITTLE BIT MORE APPROACHABLE WHEN YOU COME UP TO THE PARKING. SO I THINK THAT WORKS REALLY WELL. STARTING TO DIAL INTO SOME OF THE MORE DETAILED DESIGN AND THEN LOOKING FROM THE PLAZA BACK KIND OF A FIRST RESPONDERS MONUMENTATION THERE. STARTING TO LOOK AT SOME COLORS SOME MET WITH STRUCTURAL ENGINEER KIND OF CONTINUING TO DIAL IN SOME DETAILS AND TALKING TO SOME CONTRACTORS AS WELL THAT HAVE BUILT SIMILAR STRUCTURES. JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE CONTINUING TO BE CONSCIOUS OF THE OVERALL COST AS WELL. AND THEN A FEW PERSPECTIVES. YOU CAN SEE THIS REFLECTIVE MONUMENT BACK HERE THAT YOU CAN KIND OF STEP AROUND. WHEN YOU'RE IN IT, YOU'RE SOMEWHAT ENCLOSED, BUT YOU WON'T FEEL LIKE YOU'RE CAPTURED WITHIN A SMALL ROOM THERE. SO, YOU KNOW, TWO SCALE WITH A PERSON HERE AND AGAIN, EYE LEVEL. SO THAT WAS ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS THAT CAME OUT OF THE LAST VETERANS GROUP IT'S JUST A PLACE TO KIND OF HAVE A REFLECTION MOMENT, NOT BE WITHIN THE LARGE PARK ITSELF. IN JUST A FEW MORE PERSPECTIVES. AND NOT TO REPEAT, BUT THE LAST TIME WE KIND OF TOOK SOME OF THIS STRUCTURE INSPIRATION FROM TRAIN STRUCTURES, TRAIN TRESTLES, THINGS LIKE THAT AGAIN, TO BEGIN TO TIE A LOT OF THAT IN SOME OF THIS VERTICAL SIDING HERE, AND KIND OF A VERY SQUINT M AYBE YOU CAN SEE SOME RAILROAD TRACKS, THAT KIND OF STUFF. SO LOCAL INSPIRATION. [00:25:02] THAT WAS IT. SO ANY QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? JUST CHECKING WITH WHAT YOU'RE SAYING IT SOUNDS LIKE WITH ALL OF YOUR TEAM, THE VETERANS INPUT, THE VETERANS FEEDBACK IS ALL WHAT WE WOULD WANT IT TO BE. THAT GREAT. LOOKS GOOD. HERE'S A COUPLE OF SUGGESTIONS. IS AM I HEARING YOU CORRECTLY? THAT'S HOW WE CAME AWAY FROM THAT. YES, THEY WERE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THIS OPPORTUNITY. EXCITED. THAT'S A GOOD WORD. YEAH. AND I THINK WE'LL HAVE WAYS TO WHERE YOU CAN ADD TO THIS OVER TIME. YOU KNOW, THERE WILL BE PLACES WHERE YOU CAN ADD MONUMENTATION. MAYBE THERE'S PLACES WHERE YOU CAN ADD NAMES. YOU KNOW, WE'RE RIGHT NOW IT'S A LITTLE MORE GENERIC. IT'S NOT AN INDIVIDUAL RECOGNITION, BUT IT'S, YOU KNOW, RECOGNITION AT A LARGER SCALE. THAT'S VERY HELPFUL. AND THE INPUT AND THAT IT'S IT WORKS FOR EVERYBODY, YOU KNOW IS THE OTHER THING IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU'VE GOT GOING ON THERE. [INAUDIBLE] GOOD. I HAVE A QUESTION. I GUESS IT'S MORE FOR THE COUNCIL AS A WHOLE. IS THERE ANY PROBLEM IF I SHARE THIS INFORMATION WITH TWO OF THE VETERANS GROUPS THAT I'M AFFILIATED WITH, I BELIEVE. I BELIEVE THEY WERE PART OF THIS. BUT YOU KNOW, I THINK THIS IS IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN AS OF RIGHT NOW. SO, YOU KNOW. IF I COULD, I'D LIKE TO HAVE ANOTHER COPY SO I COULD SHARE ONE WITH THEM WHILE I CAN. YEAH. WE HAVE I BROUGHT A FULL SIZE SET OF OUR. OKAY. WORKS IN PROGRESS. IT'S A LITTLE MORE DETAILED. THANK YOU. ONLY ONE OTHER CONCERN AND I USUALLY DON'T BRING UP PERSONAL STUFF UP HERE, BUT THAT PIECE OF PROPERTY WAS DEDICATED TO MY DADDY 30 SOMETHING YEARS AGO, CARROLL PARK. SO SOME SOME PLACE IN THAT PARK NEEDS TO BE DEDICATED TO HIM OR SOMETHING. I THINK WE BROUGHT THAT UP BEFORE, BUT THE CITY DEDICATED THAT TO HIM. [INAUDIBLE] AND WE'LL JUST TAKE YOUR GUIDANCE ON THAT. YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, WHERE YOU WANT TO SEE THAT RECOGNITION, WHETHER IT'S OVER THE ARCH OR ANY OF THAT. WELL, SOMEWHERE BECAUSE LIKE I SAY, HE WAS NOT ONLY DID HE WAS HE 40 YEARS, BUT HE WAS A FIRST RESPONDER BECAUSE HE WAS A DOCTOR. SO SO I MEAN, IT WOULD ALL ALL THAT COULD FIT IN. AND JOHN DIDN'T WE AND I THOUGHT THAT WE HAD THIS DISCUSSION EARLIER AND THE COUNCIL ALL AGREED THAT THIS DIDN'T WE SAY THIS WAS GOING TO BE CARROLL MEMORIAL PARK? DIDN'T WE SAY DID WE SAY THAT. I MATT, I THOUGHT WE, I THOUGHT WE HAD HAD, HAD DONE THAT. WE HAD SAID I THOUGHT WE CARROLL MEMORIAL VETERANS. YEAH. I THINK THERE MAY BE MISUNDERSTANDING ON ONE SIDE OR THE OTHER, BECAUSE TB CARROLL PARK IS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE LIBRARY. THIS IS WHERE THE DASHER HOUSE WAS, WHICH WAS NEVER A PARK THAT I MEAN, TB CARROLL PARK IS. NO. BUT YES, I THINK WE UNDERSTOOD THAT. BUT I THOUGHT THE CONVERSATION WAS THAT WE WANTED THIS TO BE TB CARROLL MEMORIAL PARK. I MEAN, THERE ARE STILL, YOU KNOW, AS WE DEVELOP THE HUB, THERE ARE OTHER PARK AREAS THERE, LIKE WHERE THE TRAIN CURRENTLY IS, WHICH IS SIGNED TB CARROLL PARK RIGHT NOW. AND THAT WOULD OBVIOUSLY STILL BE THAT. SO AGAIN, WHATEVER YOU ALL DECIDE. BUT THAT WAS I GUESS MAYBE. WE'LL HAVE TO BRING THAT UP TO A VOTE WITH THE COUNCIL. BUT IT'S MY I THINK WE ALREADY HAVE THAT AREA DESIGNATED. ABSOLUTELY. WE HAD TALKED ABOUT SINCE THIS WILL ALL BE PART OF THE HUB AND PART OF THE TB CARROLL PARK, WE PERFECTLY FINE. WE JUST MISUNDERSTANDING PROBABLY ON MY PART [INAUDIBLE]. WELL THAT'S WHY THAT'S WHY I ASKED JOHN WHO WE SHOULD BRING THIS BACK UP BECAUSE AS YOU DESIGN THAT ARCHWAY TO ENTRANCEWAY, IF THIS COUNCIL IS ALL AGREED, AND IF WE NEED TO HAVE A VOTE, LET'S HAVE IT. BUT I THINK WE SHOULD RESPECT WHAT'S THERE. JUST LIKE WE'RE RESPECTING THE TRAIN. YOU KNOW THAT THIS SHOULD BE CALLED TB CARROLL PARK. THAT'S JOHN, EASILY HANDLED AND VETERANS PARK BECAUSE TB CARROLL VETERANS OR IT'S IT'S MEMORIAL PARK MEMORIAL BECAUSE WE'RE WE'RE FIRST RESPONDERS AND VETERANS. YEAH. SO MEMORIAL PARK I THINK WOULD BE MORE APPROPRIATE. RIGHT. MEMORIAL PARK. YEAH. AND DO WE COUNCIL DO YOU WANT DISCUSSION AND VOTE ON THIS OR ARE YOU READY JUST TO GIVE THIS? WE DON'T NEED A VOTE. REMEMBER, WE CAN'T VOTE IN THE WORKSHOP. [00:30:02] NO, BUT WE CAN TAKE A STRAW POLL. AND THAT WAY IT GETS DEBATED. AND THEN AND THEN A VOTE. IT CAN DO. ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU. ANY MORE QUESTIONS? I THINK THAT THIS IS PHENOMENAL, SOMETHING I I ASKED FOR AND COULD NEVER HAVE ENVISIONED A SCOPE OF WHAT YOU'VE DONE. SO MY COMPLIMENTS. BUT I ALSO AND I'M GOING TO DIRECT THIS NOT ONLY TO THE CITY, BUT TO JEN. WE TALKED SO MUCH ABOUT SPORTS TOURISM. I THINK THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR CULTURAL TOURISM THAT COULD, YOU KNOW, BE A REAL PLUS TO OUR CITY. AND I KNOW AT A RECENT MEETING WE TALKED ABOUT HOW TO UTILIZE THE OLD CITY HALL. I WOULD STILL LIKE TO SEE A HISTORICAL MUSEUM IN HARDEEVILLE AND USE AND TALK ABOUT USING OLD CITY HALL. IT'S RIGHT THERE. IF WE COULD HAVE A MUSEUM. YOU KNOW, WITH ALL THE HISTORY OF HARDEEVILLE. I CAN'T TELL YOU HOW MANY PEOPLE FIRST TIME HERE AND THEY SEE THE THE HISTORICAL PICTURES OUT THERE AND SAY, OH, THAT'S GREAT, YOU KNOW, SO I, I THINK WE COULD DO A LOT TO MAKE THIS AREA A SOURCE OF CULTURAL TOURISM. YEAH. OBVIOUSLY YOU YOU OWN THE WHOLE BLOCK. SO THERE'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO, YOU KNOW, TO TAKE THIS VETERANS PARK AND TIE IT INTO SOMETHING BIGGER AND MAKE IT MORE OF A DESTINATION, MORE OF A TOURISM THING AS WELL AS YOU MENTIONED THAT. AND BESIDES, IT ENERGIZES THAT WHOLE NEIGHBORHOOD AS WELL. SO IT'S IT'S A GREAT PLUS. SO I'M LEAVING OFFICE THE END OF THE YEAR. WILL THIS BE DONE BY THEN? SORRY, JUST MY SIXTH SENSE OF HUMOR. SORRY. MR. MAYOR, MAY I SUGGEST IF WE WANT TO GET THIS UP FOR A VOTE FOR TOMORROW'S MEETING, WE. SO WE GET IT IN UNDER THE 24 HOUR CHANGE THAT. ROBIN, GET THAT AGENDA CHANGE PRIOR TO 5:00 TODAY. IS THAT POSSIBLE? CAN WE DO THAT, MIKE? CAN WE. WE CAN GET IT ON. OKAY. WE FORGET THIS CONVERSATION AND THEN, YOU KNOW, YOU YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO AND YEAH. OKAY. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. OKAY. I ASSUME YOU DID A GREAT JOB OPENING THE MEETING. YES, SIR. WELL, STRETCH ME BEYOND MY MERITS. WHY DON'T WE GO TO NUMBER THREE AND THE CITY TRANSPORTATION PROJECT UPDATE? THANK YOU EVERYBODY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I SAW MIKE GET UP, SO I. OH, [INAUDIBLE] JUST ON THE FLY. JUST ON THE FLY. EARNING YOUR MONEY TODAY, MAN. [3. CITY TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS UPDATE] SO MUCH FOR AN AGENDA [INAUDIBLE]. I MEAN, I MEAN, THE MAYOR WAS LATE. THAT NEVER HAPPENS. WE'RE SWAPPING THE AGENDA AROUND. WHAT'S GOING ON? ALL RIGHT. YES, WE DID WANT TO GIVE YOU AN UPDATE ON OUR PROPOSED TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENTS AND WHAT'S HAPPENING. AND OBVIOUSLY, AS WE ALL KNOW, IT'S. IT'S ONE OF YOUR WHAT? TOP TWO TOPICS PROBABLY USUALLY IS TRAFFIC. SO ANYWAY, WE WANT TO GIVE YOU A QUICK UPDATE. SO THIS IS JUST SORT OF KIND OF SO I'LL TALK ABOUT SEVEN DIFFERENT THINGS. FIRST TO BE THE NEW RIVER SIGNAL THE TEMPORARY SIGNAL. WE EXPECT TO ACTUALLY PROBABLY PUT THAT OUT TO BID NEXT WEEK, SO THAT'S EXCITING. FIGURE 45 DAYS OR SO TO GET THE BIDS OUT. BIDS IN AND MOBILIZE MOBILIZE AND ALL THAT GOOD STUFF. SO AFTER THAT, THEN ONCE CONSTRUCTION STARTS, WE ANTICIPATE ABOUT 90 DAYS FOR THAT PARTICULAR SIGNAL. [00:35:02] SO DEFINITELY THIS SUMMER, YOU KNOW, THAT SHOULD BE DONE. THEN OF COURSE, EVERYONE'S FAVORITE INTERSECTION, THE ARGENT SHORTCUT JASPER STATION. WE'RE GETTING DOWN TO THE VERY END, AND WE'RE GOING TO GET A LITTLE DETAIL ON SEVERAL OF THESE IN A MOMENT, BUT WE STILL HAVE WHAT THEY CALL THE DRY UTILITY COORDINATION. YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE PALMETTO ELECTRIC, YOU HAVE HARGRAY, YOU HAVE SPECTRUM, ETC.. SO DOMINION GAS, SO THERE'S A LOT OF OTHER UTILITIES AS WELL AS THAT WATER LINE WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH. WE EXPECT TO BE ABLE TO PUT THAT OUT TO BID PROBABLY IN MID JUNE. AND AGAIN, THAT ESTIMATED COMPLETION IS ABOUT EIGHT MONTHS. AS YOU KNOW, THAT'S GOING TO BE A VERY EXPENSIVE PROJECT. THESE PROJECTS ARE BEING PAID FOR PRIMARILY WITH DA FEES. THE ARGENT ARGENT SHORTCUT JASPER STATION WE ALSO HAVE SOME OTHER DEVELOPER CONTRIBUTIONS, SOME CONTRIBUTIONS BY SCDOT THEMSELVES AS WELL. BUT WE DO ANTICIPATE THAT KICKING OFF, YOU KNOW, THIS YEAR AS WELL AND FINISHING UP HOPEFULLY EARLY NEXT YEAR. THEN THE OTHER ONE IS OF COURSE, LATITUDE BOULEVARD, LAKESIDE BOULEVARD, THE TURN LANES THERE. WE ALL KNOW WHAT WHAT THE ISSUES ARE CAUSING THERE ON 278. SO THE PLAN IS TO, YOU KNOW, CREATE TWO LEFT TURNS INTO BOTH OF THOSE, BOTH OF THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS AND LENGTHEN THOSE TURN LANES AS WELL. THAT WILL ALLOW THAT CYCLE, THAT GREEN TIME ON US 278 TO BE LONGER, WHICH SHOULD GO A LONG WAYS INTO ALLEVIATING THOSE BACKUPS THAT WE CURRENTLY SEE DURING PARTICULARLY DURING THE MORNINGS. IT'S IT'S BRUTAL. YEAH. BRUTAL. AND AND IN THE MEANTIME, ALSO WE'RE WORKING AGAIN WITH BEAUFORT COUNTY BECAUSE THEY'RE THE ONES THAT CAN ACTUALLY CONTROL MAINTAIN THE SIGNAL. WE'RE GOING TO WORK AGAIN WITH THEM TO TRY TO TWEAK THE TIMING SOME MORE AS WELL. BECAUSE WE'VE GOT TO GET TRAFFIC THROUGH THAT INTERSECTION FASTER THAN WE CURRENTLY ARE. THERE IS SOME SOME BAD NEWS THERE. YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THOSE MAST ARMS WHICH LOOK REALLY GREAT. THEY ARE NOT ADEQUATE FOR WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO THERE. WHEN WE WHEN YOU ADD THAT ADDITIONAL LANE AND THAT ADDITIONAL TURN LANE, THERE'S THOSE MAST ARMS ARE NOT LONG ENOUGH TO MOUNT THE SIGNAL HEADS. YES, SIR. YES, SIR. SO PROBABLY WHAT WE'RE GOING TO RECOMMEND IS SAY IS, IS POLES WITH WIRES FOR THE SIGNALS AS A KIND OF A TEMPORARY SOLUTION. AND WE THE REASON WE'RE RECOMMENDING THAT IS I WOULD HATE TO SEE THE CITY YET AGAIN PUT IN MORE, YOU KNOW STEEL POLES THAT ARE GOING TO HAVE TO BE MOVED AND OR RESIZED AGAIN WHEN WE ULTIMATELY GET TO WHERE WE WANT TO BE, WHICH IS THE WIDENING OF 278. SO I JUST, YOU KNOW, IT'S KILLING ME THAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO RIP THOSE OUT, BUT THERE'S NO OTHER OPTION. I MEAN, IT'S, IT'S IT'S NOT POSSIBLE TO USE THE ONES WE HAVE. SO UNFORTUNATELY, HOPEFULLY WE CAN REPURPOSE THEM SOMEWHERE ELSE. I THINK THAT'S A POSSIBILITY [INAUDIBLE] LET YOU KNOW THAT US 278 AND ARGENT BOULEVARD, AS WE'VE TALKED BEFORE, THAT'S A, THAT'S A SCDOT PROJECT THAT'S NOT OUR PROJECT AT ALL. STILL, I KNOW THAT PROJECT, AS I TOLD YOU BEFORE, HAS TURNED INTO MORE THAN JUST THE SIGNAL THEY WERE GOING TO DO. MY UNDERSTANDING IS NOW THEY ARE GOING TO LENGTHEN THAT LEFT TURN LANE ONTO ARGENT, WHICH IS SORELY NEEDED, AS WE ALL KNOW. AND ALSO, I'M UNDERSTANDING A DECELERATION LANE IF YOU'RE HEADED WESTBOUND ON 278 TO THEN TURN RIGHT ONTO ARGENT, WHICH, YOU KNOW, GETS THAT FAST MOVING TRAFFIC, YOU KNOW, KEEPS THAT MOVING SO WHEN THEY'RE TURNING. SO THAT'S GOOD. IT SHOULD BE SOMETIME THIS YEAR. I DON'T HAVE ANY MORE. SCDOT JUST KEEPS KIND OF, YOU KNOW, FIDDLING AROUND WITH IT, FOR LACK OF A BETTER WORD T ECHNICAL WORD. THEN WE HAVE THE NEW RIVER SIGNAL. NEW RIVER EAST ARGENT PARKWAY ARGENT. THE PERMANENT SIGNAL, AS WE SAID, THE FIRST THING YOU KNOW, WE'RE DOING THAT TEMPORARY SIGNAL TO GET SOME IMMEDIATE RELIEF BECAUSE WE HAVE A LOT OF ISSUES RIGHT NOW. BUT THE FULL SIGNAL WILL CREATE YOU KNOW, A FULL BLOWN INTERSECTION, YOU KNOW, LONGER TURN LANES WIDENING OF THE ROAD AND WIDENING OF ARGENT IN THAT AREA. THAT'S A LENGTHY REVIEW. THERE'S ONCE YOU GET INTO THAT, ALL THAT, THAT WIDENING, THERE'S A LOT THERE'S WETLAND IMPACTS. SO, YOU KNOW, PROBABLY YOU'RE LOOKING AT TOWARDS THE END OF THIS YEAR OR EVEN EARLY NEXT YEAR BEFORE YOU HAVE ENVIRONMENTAL APPROVALS ON THAT, WHICH IS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY IT WAS SUGGESTED THAT WE GO AHEAD AND DO A TEMPORARY SIGNAL THAT DOT WAS COMFORTABLE WITH SO WE CAN GET SOME RELIEF IMMEDIATELY. BUT THAT IS THE LONG TERM PLAN. SO HOPEFULLY WE CAN SOMETIME NEXT YEAR IN 2025, THAT WILL BE BID OUT AS WELL. AND THEN FINALLY, AS YOU KNOW, THE US 278 CORRIDOR STUDY, I KNOW THEY CAME HERE EARLIER AND GAVE YOU SOME OF THEIR EXISTING CONDITIONS FINDINGS THERE. THAT'S ALMOST COMPLETE. BUT IN CONJUNCTION WITH THAT, WE WE'VE MEETING WITH ALL THE OWNERS AND DEVELOPERS AND BUILDERS OF THE BIG PROPERTIES ALONG 278 TO MAKE SURE EVERYBODY'S ON THE SAME PAGE AGAIN. I'LL TALK ABOUT THAT IN A LITTLE BIT. AND WE'VE ALSO NOW STARTED HAVING A THIRD PARTY REVIEW, ALL THEIR TRAFFIC IMPACT ANALYSIS TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE'S IT'S APPLES TO APPLES, AND EVERYONE'S USING THE SAME, THE SAME DATA TO MAKE THEIR COMPARISONS. AND THEN FINALLY JUST, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, THE LONG TERM SOLUTION IS TO WIDEN. 278 THAT'S OBVIOUSLY A REGIONAL PROBLEM WITH REGIONAL ISSUE. [00:40:03] CERTAINLY THE MAYOR AND I TALKED TODAY EARLIER AND, YOU KNOW, WE BOTH AGREE AND MOST EVERYONE UNDERSTANDS, YOU KNOW, 278 THROUGH HARDEEVILLE IS A BIG DEAL FOR BEAUFORT COUNTY. AND, YOU KNOW, BLUFFTON HILTON HEAD AS WELL. THEY HAVE A LOT OF EMPLOYEES THAT TRAVEL ON 278. AND THEY'RE HAVING A HARD TIME GETTING THROUGH HERE AS WELL. SO IT'S GOOD BECAUSE EVERYONE REALIZES IT IS A REGIONAL ISSUE AND WE'LL HAVE THAT COOPERATION. YOU KNOW, WE'VE ALREADY HAD MANY CONVERSATIONS WITH BEAUFORT COUNTY, JARED FELIX IN PARTICULAR. AND SO HOPEFULLY, YOU KNOW, WITH LIKE THE TRANSPORTATION SALES TAX THAT IS GOING TO BE A REFERENDUM THIS YEAR, THAT WILL BE ONE FUNDING SOURCE. AND OBVIOUSLY THERE WILL BE OTHERS AS WELL. BUT WE'RE WORKING ON THAT. AND THEN JUST TO GET IN A FEW DETAILS SPEAKERS] PUT A QUARTER ON THE TABLE AND YOU'RE ALL SET. [INAUDIBLE] YOU CAN TALK. WE'RE EVENTUALLY GOING TO GET TO THE BUDGET EVENTUALLY. RIGHT. YOU GOT A LOT OF COMEDIANS HERE [LAUGHTER] YEAH. SO THIS IS THE THIS IS THE EXISTING. THIS IS EAST ARGENT PARKWAY. ARGENT BOULEVARD, NEW RIVER. THIS JUST SHOWS YOU THAT AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE'S SOME REALLY MINIMAL LEFT TURNS ON THE, ON THE ARGENT NEW RIVER. BUT THAT IS WHAT DOT IS COMFORTABLE WITH. NOW FOR THE TEMPORARY SIGNAL. JUST WANT TO LET YOU KNOW THAT. SO THERE'S VERY, VERY MINIMAL IMPACT AS FAR AS THERE'S VERY LITTLE NEW PAVING OR ANYTHING THERE. AND AGAIN, THAT WAS ON PURPOSE TO DO THIS TEMPORARY SIGNAL. SO WE DIDN'T GET HUNG UP IN THAT ENVIRONMENTAL PERMITTING. THAT TAKES A RIDICULOUSLY LONG AMOUNT AMOUNT OF TIME. AN ARGENT SHORTCUT. I JUST I WANT TO SHOW YOU. SO THIS IS OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, THE INTERSECTION AGAIN THIS IS ARGENT JASPER STATION SHORTCUT. SO THE IMPROVEMENTS WILL FULLY ALIGN THE INTERSECTION SO THEY'RE NOT OFFSET LIKE THEY WERE. BUT I PUT THIS DRAWING IN AND IT'S REALLY A BUSY DRAWING AS YOU CAN SEE. BUT THAT'S I REALLY DID THAT TO UNDERSCORE HOW MUCH IS GOING ON THERE. THERE'S A LOT OF UTILITIES THERE. IT'S YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE WATER LINES, YOU HAVE SEWER LINES, YOU HAVE GAS LINES, YOU HAVE OVERHEAD ELECTRIC LINES. THERE'S CABLE, YOU KNOW, FIBER, ALL THAT STUFF. SO THERE'S A LOT THAT GOES INTO THIS. BUT ULTIMATELY, YOU KNOW, THERE WILL BE DEDICATED LEFTS RIGHTS AND THROUGH LANES SO, YOU KNOW, IT'LL BE A FULL INTERSECTION. AND THEN ALSO ALONG JASPER STATION ALONG HERE, THERE ACTUALLY BE A CONCRETE MEDIAN. SO TO, TO MAKE THIS TRAFFIC FLOW EVEN BETTER. SO AND THEN THE OTHER THING IS WE STILL WE'RE WRAPPING UP OUR RIGHT OF WAY ACQUISITION. AS YOU CAN SEE THERE'S ALSO A LOT OF DIFFERENT PROPERTIES INVOLVED. SO CITY ATTORNEY HAS BEEN A BIG HELP IN THAT. AND WORKING WITH THESE, THESE VARIOUS PROPERTY OWNERS WE NEED SOME SOME WE NEED RIGHT AWAY ADDITIONAL RIGHT AWAY FROM SEVERAL WE NEED JUST CONSTRUCTION EASEMENTS THAT ARE, YOU KNOW, WILL BE TEMPORARY. BUT THAT'S WHERE WE ARE WITH THAT. AND WE ANTICIPATE THAT WRAPPING UP REALLY SOON. WE'VE HAD SEVERAL CALLS EVEN AGAIN THIS WEEK. SO I THINK BY BY MID NEXT MONTH WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO TO BID THIS PROJECT AS WELL. ONE THING. YES, SIR. I KNOW YOU SAID A LOT OF UTILITIES AND SOME OF THE UTILITY COMPANIES WORKING WITH US. I KNOW BEAUFORT-JASPER WATER IS NOT RIGHT. WELL, ACTUALLY WE WE'RE GOOD WITH THEM NOW. OH, REALLY? YEAH. WE WE FINALLY GOT THERE. YOU KNOW, I MEAN, THAT WAS THAT WAS A STRUGGLE. BUT LAST TIME YOU SAID, YOU KNOW. YEAH IT WAS IT WAS DIFFICULT BECAUSE WE, YOU KNOW, WE HAD TO RELOCATE ALMOST A HALF A MILE OF THAT WATER LINE, WHICH HAS ADDED A GOOD BIT OF COST, BUT AT LEAST IT'LL BE IN THE RIGHT PLACE WHEN ALL OUR AGENTS WILL ULTIMATELY WIDENED. BUT YEAH, WE'RE DEALING WITH THE OTHERS AS WELL. AND YES, SIR. AND WE'RE WORKING, YOU KNOW, THROUGH OUR, OUR CONSULTANT ON THIS PROJECT AS THOMAS AND HUTTON AND THEY'RE, THEY'RE WORKING WITH ALL THEM TO GET ALL THAT SQUARED AWAY. SO WE CAN WE CAN GO OUT TO BID AND WE'RE WRAPPING THAT UP RIGHT NOW. AND AGAIN, JUST THIS IS THE TURN LANES. THEY'RE ON 278 AT LAKESIDE BOULEVARD LATITUDE BOULEVARD. AND AGAIN, YOU CAN SEE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE CREATING THE, YOU KNOW, TWO LEFT LANES WHERE NOW THERE'S JUST ONE SHORT ONE. AND THEN TO I KNOW MISS GUZMAN IS GOING TO ASK, I'M GOING TO HEAD HER OFF THE PASS THAT AS SOON AS THIS HAPPENS, YOU WILL GET THAT PROTECTED LEFT INTO HILTON HEAD LAKES. BECAUSE WE'RE ADDING THAT ADDITIONAL LANE. SO. YEAH. SO I MEAN, WE TRIED EVERYTHING WE COULD DO TO GET IT NOW, AND WE'VE WE'VE BEEN REBUFFED. BUT ANYWAY, THE GOOD THING IS THERE'S VERY THERE'S NO ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS, REALLY, AND THERE'S MINIMAL UTILITY WORK BECAUSE MOST, YOU KNOW, THE WORK IS REALLY HERE FOR THE MOST PART IN THE, IN THE MEDIAN. AND THEN WE'LL JUST HAVE TO RESET THE POLES IN THESE CORNERS AND WE'LL DO THAT. BUT BUT THAT'S, THAT'S COMING ALONG AND WE ANTICIPATE THAT WORK STARTING YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY SOMETIME MID TO LATE SUMMER WOULD BE IDEAL. HOW MUCH ARE THE LEFT TURN LANES BEING LENGTHENED MATT. DO YOU KNOW. I THINK THEY'RE. [00:45:09] SO OKAY, I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT BY PUTTING A SECOND LANE IN THERE WITHOUT LENGTHENING THE WHAT WE ORIGINALLY HAVE. WE'RE NOT. OH NO. NO THAT'S DEFINITELY GETTING LONGER. YEAH. IT'S AT LEAST DOUBLING THAT EXISTING LENGTH PLUS A COUPLE OTHER LANES. SO YEAH I'M SORRY I JUST DON'T KNOW THAT NUMBER OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD. SO WE THE TURNS INTO HILTON HEAD LAKES ARE WE GETTING DUAL TURN LANES? LEFT TURN LANES? YES. SO WE'RE GETTING THE TWO LEFT TURN LANES BEFORE WE GET THE DEDICATED GREEN SIGNAL. IS THAT WHAT? NO, NO, NO, IT'LL BE IT'LL BE AT THE SAME TIME. AT THE SAME TIME. AWESOME. OKAY. THANK YOU. YEAH. THEY THEY CAN'T THEY WON'T DO YOU CAN'T HAVE TWO LANES WITH WITHOUT THE DEDICATED GREEN DEDICATED. OKAY. GOOD. I REMEMBER THAT MINTO HAD DISCUSSED ABOUT SOME CHANGES ON THEIR ENTRANCE TOO HOW DO THOSE FIT INTO ALL OF THIS? THEY. ARE THEY GOING TO I KNOW THERE'S IT'S A IT'S A NIGHTMARE RIGHT NOW. WILL THAT ALL BE COORDINATED WITH THIS OR IS THAT ON ALL ON THERE? NO, WE'VE ALREADY COORDINATED WE'VE SHARED THESE PLANS WITH THEM BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IF YOU MIGHT RECALL, THEY HAD ONE OF THE THINGS. MIC] ANYWAY I CAN TALK ABOUT IT, BUT IF YOU RECALL, ONE OF THE THINGS WAS THE RIGHTS OUT OF OF YES, OF MARGARITAVILLE. IT WAS GOING TO HAVE TO BE A DOUBLE RIGHT. SO. RIGHT. WE HAVE SHARED THE CAD DRAWINGS WITH, WITH THEIR DESIGNERS ALREADY SO THAT EVERYTHING IS OKAY BECAUSE AND WHEN YOU'RE, WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT REALIGNMENT WITH THE POLLS AND EVERYTHING ELSE, BUT FOR THEM TO MAKE THAT A DOUBLE RIGHT OUT, THAT POLL IS GOING TO HAVE TO BE GONE. THAT'S RIGHT. YEAH, THAT'S RIGHT. IT WAS GOING TO HAVE TO MOVE REGARDLESS. BUT YEAH. YES. THAT'S CORRECT. OKAY. THANK YOU. SORRY. SO. WHAT'S GOING ON? HE'S TRYING TO RESTART IT. I DON'T THINK IT WAS ME. I THINK IT WAS THEM. OH, THROW YOUR OWN STAFF UNDER THE BUS. IT'S THE STAFF UNDER THE BUS. NO, NO, I'M THROWING THE EQUIPMENT UNDER THE BUS, SIR. NOT NOT NOT. OKAY. YOU GOT TO PUT ANOTHER QUARTER IN THE MACHINE SO IT'LL PLAY. I WOULD NEVER DO THAT TO THE STAFF. CAN I ASK YOU A BROADER QUESTION, SIR, ON THIS? I THINK THAT FIRST OF ALL, CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU AND ALL THE FOLKS INVOLVED IN THIS. I KNOW IT'S BEYOND YOU, BUT BUT TAKE A COMPLIMENT. SORRY. WHAT I THINK YOU'VE GOT A GOOD STORY TO TELL HERE AND WHAT I THINK COULD HAPPEN AT MARGARITAVILLE AND MAYBE SUN CITY. IN THE NEXT. THIS IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST ISSUES IN THIS AREA. AND WHY NOT HAVE A COUPLE OF PROGRESS REPORTS WHERE YOU OR SOMEONE GOES OVER TO MARGARITAVILLE OR SUN CITY, SAY, THIS IS WHAT OUR PLAN IS LONG TERM. WE'RE GOING TO GIVE YOU SOME PROGRESS REPORTS SO PEOPLE GET THE BENEFIT OF ALL THE GOOD WORK THAT'S BEING GONE AND AND KNOW ABOUT IT SO THAT I JUST THINK THERE'S A GOOD STORY TO TELL HERE. THE LAST TIME WE HAD A GOOD STORY TO TELL, I DON'T REMEMBER GETTING TOLD. I CAN'T EVEN REMEMBER WHAT THE STORY WAS. BUT THIS IS A LOT OF GOOD WORK. AND I THINK PROGRESS REPORTS AND PAYMENTS AT A COUPLE OF OUR KEY COMMUNITIES AND DOWN WITH HARDEEVILLE COULD BE VERY WELL RECEIVED. SO I ENCOURAGE YOU TO THINK ABOUT THAT MAYBE 2 OR 3 MEETINGS OVER THE NEXT PERIOD OF TIME. SURE IS. IT'S EXCEPTIONAL WORK AND GOT A LOT OF COOPERATION FROM A LOT OF PEOPLE, AND THAT WASN'T EASY TO DO. I BELIEVE THAT'S A GREAT IDEA, NEAL, IF YOU COULD MAYBE SCHEDULE THIS FOR COFFEE AND CONVERSATIONS THAT WE DO, THAT WOULD BE EXCELLENT. BECAUSE I THINK AS WE MOVE FORWARD, BOTH DEVELOPMENTS AND HILTON HEAD LAKES ARE THE ONES THAT ARE GOING TO SEE THE BIGGEST IMPROVEMENTS, BUT WE'RE ALSO GOING TO SEE SOME MAJOR HEADACHES AS THESE IMPROVEMENTS COME ALONG. YEAH. WITH THE GOOD PROMISES, THE HEADACHES ARE A LOT EASIER TO TAKE AND A BROAD OVERVIEW. IF THEY KNOW WHAT'S COMING, THEY CAN THEY'LL WORK BETTER WITH IT. THAT'S RIGHT. IT'S A GOOD POINT. I HAVE A LOT OF EMAIL PEN PALS, BUT TO GET THE WORD OUT TO A LARGER AUDIENCE IS A GOOD IDEA. AND WHEN YOU HAVE THOSE, I'LL BE BUSY SOMEWHERE ELSE. ALL RIGHT. THANKS. ALL RIGHT. JUST KIDDING. YEAH. AND THEN FINALLY JUST AGAIN, THE 278 CORRIDOR STUDY. I JUST WANT TO KIND OF GO OVER THAT AGAIN. ONE THING. WE HAD A REALLY BIG MEETING LAST WEEK OVER AT THE REC CENTER. WE HAD EVERYONE FROM MORGAN TRACKED WEST ARGENT AND SOUTH POINT. THE BUILDERS, DEVELOPERS, THEIR ENGINEERS. WE HAD EVERYBODY IN THE SAME PLACE TO TALK ABOUT US 278 WITH OUR CONSULTANT KIMLEY-HORN, WHO'S DOING THE STUDY AS WELL. [00:50:02] AND THEN ALSO WE WE CONTRACTED OUT WITH STANTEC TO DO THIRD PARTY REVIEW OF ALL THOSE TIAS BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THEY DON'T WHEN THEY WHEN THESE TIAS ARE DONE, THEY'RE NOT NECESSARILY ALL USING THE SAME LIKE, SAY, BACKGROUND INFORMATION, OR MAYBE THEY DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THIS DEVELOPMENT OR WHATEVER. SO MAKING SURE EVERYBODY WE GOT EVERYBODY ON THE SAME PAGE. AND THE ULTIMATE GOAL IS, WELL, THE ULTIMATE GOAL IS OBVIOUSLY TO WIDEN 278 AND MAKE THOSE VARIOUS INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS. BUT WE'RE WORKING ON A MEMO THAT'S KIND OF GOING TO OUTLINE IMPROVEMENTS THAT EVERYONE'S AGREED UPON AND KIND OF TIE THAT TO VARIOUS PHASING OF THESE DEVELOPMENTS AND WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN THERE AND MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE'S USING THE SAME DATA TO MAKE THOSE ASSUMPTIONS. AND THE THINGS ARE LOOKING AT AND AGAIN, AS I MENTIONED, THE THIRD PARTY REVIEW, BUT I THINK, YOU KNOW, EVERYONE REALIZES THAT THERE'S A PATH FORWARD, BUT THERE'S GOING TO COME A POINT WHERE, LIKE, WE JUST CAN'T DO IT ANYMORE UNLESS WE HAVE X, Y, AND Z IN PLACE AND WE'RE WORKING TOWARDS THAT. SO EVERYONE UNDERSTANDS THAT BECAUSE WE CAN'T JUST KEEP WELL, NOT THAT WE HAVE, BUT YOU KNOW, WE DON'T WANT TO LOOK AT THESE IN A VACUUM. WE WANT TO LOOK AT THEM ALL TOGETHER, MAKE SURE THAT ONE IS NOT MAKING AN IMPROVEMENT THAT'S ACTUALLY IN CONFLICT WITH ANOTHER DEVELOPMENT, ETC., OR SOMETHING THAT'S GOING TO HAVE TO BE RIPPED OUT IN SIX MONTHS. SO IT WAS A REALLY GOOD MEETING. THERE WERE SOME DEFINITELY SOME, SOME TREPIDATION, I BELIEVE AT FIRST FROM THOSE FOLKS, BUT I THINK THEY REALIZED THE BIG PICTURE AND WE ALL GOT TO PULL TOGETHER. SO WE'VE GOT EVERYBODY, YOU KNOW, GOING IN THE SAME DIRECTION, WHICH IS REALLY IMPORTANT WITH THIS. SO WE'LL SHARE UPDATES WITH THAT AS THEY OCCUR. WE'RE GOING TO WE'VE ALREADY HAD TWO FOLLOW UP CALLS THIS WEEK. AND THEN WE'LL BE GETTING TOGETHER WITH THOSE FOLKS AGAIN IN THE NOT TOO DISTANT FUTURE TO CONTINUE TO MEMORIALIZE WHAT WE'RE GOING TO. THE PLAN IS GOING FORWARD. SO THAT'S WHAT I HAVE AS FAR AS THE TRANSPORTATION. ANYTHING THAT CONCERNS YOU WITH ALL THIS? LIKE IN THE BACK OF YOUR MIND? I MEAN, THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT HAVE TO GO, BUT IS THERE SOMETHING LIKE, BOY, THIS IF THIS DOESN'T GET DONE, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, I. I DON'T THINK IT'S ANY ONE THING. I THINK IT'S THE CUMULATIVE EFFECT OF EVERYTHING THAT'S HAPPENED, INCLUDING, YOU KNOW, AS WE TALKED ABOUT THAT TRAFFIC ON 278, THAT'S NOT HARDEEVILLE TRAFFIC FOR THE MOST PART. THAT'S GETTING HUNG UP. YOU KNOW, IT'S TRAFFIC FROM OTHER AREAS THAT ARE TRAVELING THROUGH HARDEEVILLE TO GO OTHER PLACES. SO IT'S VERY MUCH A REGIONAL ISSUE. THE GOOD PART IS, AGAIN, LIKE I SAID, OUR PARTNERS UNDERSTAND THAT, YOU KNOW, IT BENEFITS THEM TO HAVE A FREE FLOWING 278 AS WELL FOR, YOU KNOW, BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY AND THE RESIDENTS AND ETC., BECAUSE THEY WANT THEIR PEOPLE TO GET TO WORK ON TIME AND MATERIALS TO GET THERE, ETC.. SO YOU KNOW. I MEAN, THE BIG THING IS FUNDING, YOU KNOW? YOU KNOW, THERE'S GOING TO BE I KNOW YOU CAN'T PIN IT DOWN AND COST WISE AND WHATEVER, BUT DID Y'ALL COME UP WITH ANY LIKE, OPTIONS? OR MAYBE IF WE CAN DO THIS AND FINANCING FROM THIS AND, WELL, IT'S GOING TO BE FAR BIGGER THAN THE CITY OF HARDEEVILLE. CERTAINLY. YOU KNOW, I MEAN, THESE VARIOUS DEVELOPERS ARE GOING TO HAVE TO DO IMPROVEMENTS AT THEIR VARIOUS INTERSECTIONS, ETC.. HOPEFULLY THERE'S SOME ADDITIONAL FUNDS LEFT OVER FROM, YOU KNOW, DA FEES THAT WE CONTRIBUTE TOWARDS THE WIDENING OF, YOU KNOW, 278. YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY THE TRANSPORTATION SALES TAX PASSES, THERE'S FUNDS THERE, YOU KNOW, MAYBE OTHER FUNDS IN THE STATE. I MEAN, IT MIGHT BE THIS INFRASTRUCTURE. STATE INFRASTRUCTURE BANK AGAIN, POSSIBLY. YOU KNOW, MAYBE THERE'S FEDERAL MONEY. I MEAN, ALL THAT IS ON THE TABLE AT THIS POINT. I KNOW JARED FELIX, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE WE'RE KIND OF LOOKING AT THIS AS AN EXTENSION OF THE TRIANGLE PROJECT. SO, YOU KNOW, WE'RE LOOKING AT ALL THOSE THINGS, AND I THINK WE'RE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GETTING CLOSE TO HAVING A PLAN. BUT, YOU KNOW, IN THE MEETING, SOME FOLKS SAID, YOU KNOW, IN TEN YEARS. AND I SAID, I DON'T THINK IT'S GOING TO BE TEN YEARS UNTIL 278 IS WHY I DON'T THINK WE CAN WAIT THAT LONG OR IT'S GOING TO, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WON'T BE ABLE TO GET ANYWHERE. BUT THAT'S AGAIN, THAT'S NOT FROM OUR TRAFFIC. WE HAVEN'T EVEN GENERATED THE TRAFFIC YET. BUT TO GET TO THAT. YES. IS GOING TO REQUIRE NOT A COUPLE MILLION BUT OVER $100 MILLION JUST TO DO THAT. OKAY. AND THAT'S NOT EVEN GET TO THE TRIANGLE. WHAT IS GOING TO BE AND FOR THE CITY OF HARDEEVILLE. AND WHAT'S NEXT YEAR'S GROUP HAS TO DO IS FIND ALTERNATE SOURCES OF FUNDING. AND THAT'S WAS ONE OF MY BIG POINTS TO THE HILTON HEAD BLUFFTON CHAMBER AND LINDSEY GRAHAM AND TOM DAVIS LAST DECEMBER. WE CANNOT DO THIS ALONE AND WHEN I SAY WE I'M NOT JUST TALKING THE CITY OF HARDEEVILLE. I'M TALKING ABOUT THE REGION BECAUSE I SHOWED MATT. I SHARED MATT A EMAIL THAT WENT TO COUNCIL, COUNTY COUNCIL PERSON WHO SHARED IT WITH ME. THIS PERSON WAS TALKING ABOUT COMMUTING FROM RIDGELAND TO HILTON HEAD. IT'S TAKEN FOREVER TO GET PAST MARGARITAVILLE BUCHWALTER AT AT RUSH HOUR TIME [00:55:03] IS IS NOT SO EASY. AND THEN YOU SIT IN A TRAFFIC JAM GETTING OVER THE BRIDGE. I MEAN, I, I DON'T KNOW HOW PEOPLE DO THAT. AND HE'S NOT THE ONLY ONE, I'M SURE. SO WE HAVE TO I THINK MATT WIDENING IS LONG TERM, BUT SHORT TERM WE HAVE TO IMPRESS UPON WHOEVER THAT WE HAVE TO CHANGE THAT LIGHT. AT MARGARITAVILLE. SOMETHING HAS TO BE CHANGED. IT'S TERRIBLE. AND IT'S THE TRAFFIC HAS MULTIPLIED THE PROBLEMS JUST FROM THAT ONE LIGHT AND AND THAT AFFECTS AND YOU ALL KNOW WHO HAVE COME HERE EARLY IN THE MORNING JOHN SMITH ROAD TRYING TO GET TO 278 IS YOU KNOW NOW WE'RE GOING TO HOLD UP KIDS GETTING TO SCHOOL. AND SO THAT LIGHT HAS TO BE FIXED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. IF WE HAVE TO BRING JARED IN CHAIN HIM TO A CHAIR. AND, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER WE HAVE TO DO. BECAUSE BEAUFORT COUNTY IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE TIMING OF THAT LIGHT. AND IT'S REALLY IT'S REALLY BAD. I'LL TALK WITH HIM AGAIN TOMORROW. YEAH. AND SPEAKING OF THE MONEY, WHERE ARE WE? WHERE IS JASPER COUNTY WITH GETTING THIS REFERENDUM ON THE BALLOT? WE'RE THE CLOCK IS TICKING. WE'RE. THAT HAS TO BE PASSED BEFORE JULY, RIGHT? IT'S COMING VERY SOON. DO WE EVEN HAVE. DID WE EVEN SUBMIT A LIST OF PROJECTS WE NEED? DO WE HAVE ANY IDEA WHERE THEY ARE WITH THAT? WELL, HE SPOKE AT THE NEXT WAS WHAT'S THE DATE, NEIL? THE 20TH, THE COFFEE. MAY 20TH MAY 20TH. HE, HIM AND JARED ARE SUPPOSED TO BE AT MARGARITAVILLE TALKING ABOUT BOTH TRANSPORTATION SALES TAX. SO YOU KNOW WHAT THEY'RE PLANNING TO DO. WE, MATT AND I AND BRIAN AND OTHERS, WE'VE BEEN WORKING THE COUNTY AND THE IMPACT FEE SO THEY KNOW WHAT OUR PROJECTS ARE. WE'VE IDENTIFIED, WE'VE IDENTIFIED THEM AND HOW MUCH THEY'RE GOING TO COST THAT WE WANT TO PUT ON THE REFERENDUM. WELL, I THINK THEY HAVE TO LIST LIKE THE PROJECTS, OBVIOUSLY, THE COST AMOUNT. THAT'S WHAT WE DID LAST TIME FOR ALL OUR PROJECTS. BUT I THINK THEY'RE GOING TO LIST THE PROJECTS THAT WE'VE NOTED THAT COULD BE FINANCED IF THE TRANSPORTATION SALES TAX PASSES. AND I THINK THE COUNTY BEAUFORT COUNTY IS PUTTING ON, WE GOT TO VERIFY IT. BUT THE 278 ISSUE, I THINK, AREN'T THEY PUTTING THAT ON THEIRS? YEAH. SO I MEAN NOT THE 278 JASPER COUNTY 278 UP TO THE COUNTY LINE. NO, I BELIEVE ACTUALLY THAT APPARENTLY THEY THERE'S A THEY ARE ABLE TO SPEND MONEY IN ANOTHER COUNTY. YEAH. JARED TALKED TO. THE LAST I HEARD. I WON'T SAY WHO I HEARD IT FROM, BUT A PRETTY HIGH UP THAT THE $1.6 BILLION BUFORD COUNTY REFERENDUM IS AT STRONG RISK OF BEING CUT BACK IN ORDER TO GET IT PASSED. YOU KNOW, THEY SO I DIDN'T THE LIST I SAW DIDN'T INCLUDE 278 JASPER COUNTY. YOU KNOW, EVEN THE TRIANGLE THAT REFERENDUM, THE 100, $100 MILLION IS JUST FOR 170 FROM 462 TO 278 DOESN'T INCLUDE ARGENT BOULEVARD. THE LIST I SAW THE $1.6 BILLION DIDN'T INCLUDE 278 WIDENING IN JASPER. IT'S IN THE FUTURE PLANS OF NEEDS. BUT DON'T EXPECT BUFORD COUNTY TO GIVE $100 MILLION TO JASPER COUNTY 278 I'M HEARING THEY'RE GOING TO CUT BACK THAT $1.6 BILLION. SO WE NEED TO GET THOSE THINGS BECAUSE AND THIS IS WHERE I WAS HEADED WITH THE, THE THE FEDERAL AND STATE HELP. I KNOW WE IN THE PAST HAVE INTERVIEWED LOBBYISTS. AND MIKE YOU'LL BE GONE I'LL BE GONE. BUT FOR THIS COUNCIL, WE MAY NEED TO GET SOMEBODY WHO IN COLUMBIA WHO CAN WORK FULL TIME WORKING ON STATE AND FEDERAL FUNDS, AND THERE'S LOBBYISTS IN COLUMBIA THAT CAN THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S PLENTY OF THEM THERE. SO WE WE EVER HIRED A GUY TWICE. TWICE. YEAH. THEY WERE PRETTY GOOD THAT NEIL WOULD HAVE TO GIVE AN UPDATE. SORRY. WE DON'T NEED TO GIVE HIM HERE A PERFORMANCE REVIEW. [01:00:05] THAT'S A WHOLE SEPARATE THING. NEED SOMEONE WHO PROBABLY BASED IN COLUMBIA, WHO KNOWS HOW TO GET THE EAR OF THE STATE AND EVEN MORE IMPORTANT, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, BECAUSE JASPER COUNTY'S TRANSPORTATION TAX ISN'T GOING TO SOLVE 278. IT'S GOING TO TAKE A LOT MORE FUNDING SOURCES THAN JUST THAT. AS YOU ALL RECALL, WE DID INTERVIEW THREE DIFFERENT ENTITIES AT THAT POINT AND WENT AND DECIDED ON A, THE LESSER PRICED ONES OF THE GROUP. AND, YOU KNOW, THEY RAN THROUGH THE CONTRACT PERIOD, AND WE TRULY WAS UNHAPPY WITH WHATEVER WE SAW FROM THEM AS FAR AS ANY TYPE OF RESULTS OR ANYTHING OF THAT SORT. SO THAT CONTRACT WAS NEVER EXTENDED, NEVER BROUGHT BACK TO YOU BECAUSE OF THE WE DIDN'T FEEL LIKE IT WAS WORTH THE MONEY AT THAT TIME. SO. YES, MAYOR, TO ADDRESS YOUR CONCERNS, WE DEFINITELY NEED TO LOOK AT THAT AND LOOK AT THE ONES THAT. YEAH, BRING THEM BACK. BRING THEM BACK IN BECAUSE NOW WE HAVE IF WE AND REMEMBER WE HAD A CONVERSATION GIVE THEM SPECIFIC PROJECTS. SO NOW IF WE GIVE SOMEBODY SPECIFICALLY WE NEED ROAD MONEY. AND WHO'S A SPECIALIST IN THAT AND WHO WHO'S FRIENDS WITH LINDSEY GRAHAM AND ETC.. AND AS PART OF OUR PROJECTS THAT WE DID GIVE THE ONE THAT WE DID HAVE HIRED, WE DID GIVE THEM THAT LIST OF PROJECTS AND STUFF AND TRYING TO HAVE THEM TRY TO WORK THROUGH. AND LIKE I SAID, WE WAS VERY UNHAPPY WITH THE RESULTS OF STUFF. OKAY. FOUND OUT WHY THEY WERE THE LOWEST PRICED. YES WE DID. YES WE DID. YEAH. THERE'S ONE OTHER THING THAT, YOU KNOW, AS WE'RE TALKING LONG TERM AND I KNOW THIS IS GOING TO BE A SORE SPOT, BUT I DON'T CARE. I GO DOWN HOW MANY TIMES A DAY A WEEK I GO DOWN JOHN SMITH ROAD. REALLY, OTHER THAN THE FACT WHEN THE TRUCKS ARE BACKED UP, IT'S A REALLY PRETTY. COUNTRY LANE. WE GOT SOUTH POINT, WE GOT MORGAN 202.5 MILLION SQUARE FEET OF WAREHOUSING. JOHN SMITH ROAD IN TEN YEARS, WE ARE GOING TO ABSOLUTELY RUIN. AND WE HAVE TO IF WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT BIG PICTURE WHEN MORGAN AND SOUTH POINT COMES IN, IF THEY'RE GOING TO TEAR DOWN THAT LINE OF TREES TO PUT IN TURNING LANES OR WHATEVER ELSE IS REQUIRED, WE'RE JUST GOING TO MAKE A MESS OF THAT ROAD THAT IS ARGENT BOULEVARD IN THE MAKING ALL OVER AGAIN. WE'RE GOING TO WE CONTINUE TO MAKE THE SAME MISTAKES. I THINK WE HAVE TO, AS A CITY, LOOK AT THOSE TWO DEVELOPMENTS AND RECONSIDER WHAT WE'RE GOING TO REQUIRE BEFORE WE ABSOLUTELY DESTROY JOHN SMITH ROAD. WE CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT THE THAT STUPID WAREHOUSE THAT WAS CHANGED FROM RURAL PRESERVATION, JUST LIKE ALL THOSE AREAS IN THE SO-CALLED MORATORIUM. AND THEY APPROVED THAT TO GO IN THERE BEHIND A RECREATION CENTER AND A SCHOOL. SO WE'RE DEALT WITH SOME THINGS THAT UNFORTUNATELY WERE DONE. BUT WE CAN'T BEFORE THEY START TEARING DOWN JOHN SMITH ROAD AND THOSE TREES, I HOPE THE FUTURE LOOKS AT WHAT WHAT WE'RE DOING THERE, BECAUSE IT'S NOT GOING TO BE MY GRANDCHILDREN. THEY'RE GOING TO GET KILLED IN A CAR ACCIDENT ON ON JOHN SMITH ROAD. AND THAT'S HAPPENING. THAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN JUST LIKE IT'S HAPPENING ON ARGENT BOULEVARD. I'M SORRY, I DIDN'T MEAN TO GET ON A SOAPBOX. BUT I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING AS YOU LOOK AT ROADWAYS, WE HAVE TO TAKE THAT ALL INTO CONSIDERATION AND DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO PREVENT A FIASCO BEFORE IT HAPPENS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT IS. THAT'S. YOU'RE SMART. YOU'LL FIGURE IT OUT. OKAY, COUNCIL, PLEASE GET ME OFF MY SOAPBOX AND THROW ME OUT. NEXT, NEXT. ALL RIGHT. COULD I HAVE A FIVE MINUTE BREAK? YOU CAN. [01:11:28] OUR GOAL AND OUR RECOMMENDED DATE FOR FIRST READING WOULD BE MAY 16TH. [01:11:32] SO WE ARE READY, WILLING AND ABLE. WE HAVE THE BOOK, WE HAVE THE PRESENTATION, WE HAVE THE SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL IF THE COUNCIL WANTS TO REVIEW ANY OF THAT, THAT'S WHERE WE'RE AT MR. MAYOR. IF YOU ALL BEAR WITH ME, I'LL. I'LL TAKE THE LEAD ON THIS BECAUSE I, I DID SOME MORE RESEARCH. THE BIG CONVERSATION WAS ABOUT THE MILLS, AND THERE ARE CERTAIN THINGS SAID. SO I WENT BACK. I MOVED HERE IN MARCH OF 2015. 2015 MILLAGE RATE. AND REMEMBER, MILLAGE THAT WE SET IS A CALENDAR YEAR. IT WAS 136. I TOOK A $350,000 HOME MID-PRICE HOME IN SUN CITY IN 2015 OR THEREABOUTS, AND I CALCULATED THE TAXES EVERY YEAR SINCE THAT YEAR WITH THE REDUCTION. OF THE MILLAGE THAT THE CITY DID. AND IF YOU GO DOWN AND THERE WAS A REASSESSMENT IN 2022. SO I ADDED 10% TO THE ASSESSMENT OF THAT. 350 AND I KNOW, YOU KNOW WE ALWAYS TALK EVERYBODY TRY TO BREAK IT DOWN TO ITS COMMON DENOMINATOR. YOU KNOW, IN ONE MILL THIS YEAR WOULD ONLY BE $17 A HOME SINCE 2000 AND AND 15. THE HOMEOWNER OF AN AVERAGE HOME AS A RESULT OF THE TAX REDUCTIONS THAT THE CITY DID. THAT HOMEOWNER SAVED $2,119 CUMULATIVELY OVER THE COURSE OF THE LAST NINE YEARS BECAUSE OF THE TAX REDUCTION, BECAUSE OF THE COMPLICATIONS, I DIDN'T EVEN BOTHER OR EVEN DIDN'T EVEN TRY TO CALCULATE THE SAVINGS ON THE CAR TAXES IN THAT TIME. SO AN AVERAGE HOMEOWNER SAVED IN THE LAST NINE YEARS, PROBABLY CLOSE TO $3,000 BECAUSE OF THE TAX REDUCTIONS OF THE CITY OF HARDEEVILLE. AND THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE TO LOOK AT IT NOT JUST WHAT ONE MILL IS THIS YEAR. IT'S THE CUMULATIVE EFFECT OF THIS PROGRAM. NOW, WHAT DID THAT HAVE AN IMPACT ON THE ABILITY OF INVESTORS TO COME IN HERE LIKE A MARGARITAVILLE AND SELL HOMES UNDER LOWER TAX RATES OR BUSINESSES? I KNOW YEARS AGO PEOPLE WERE COMPLAINING, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WANTED TO BUILD APARTMENTS. THEY COULDN'T AFFORD THE TAXES. CAN YOU JUST IMAGINE IF JASPER COUNTY WAS NOT LOWERED ANY TAXES, HAD DONE EVEN HALF OF WHAT WE DID, WHAT WHAT THAT WOULD HAVE MEANT FOR THE TAXPAYERS. AND I BRING THAT UP BECAUSE THINK OF WHAT WE WE'VE ACCOMPLISHED. ALL THE PARKS, THE REC CENTER, WE THE EVERYBODY WAS RIDING IN DILAPIDATED CARS BACK THEN, THE PARKS THAT WE DID, THE FIRE STATIONS, THE RENOVATION OF BUILDINGS. LOOK AT MIKE INSTITUTED A FAIR AND AND PROGRESSIVE EMPLOYEE [01:15:06] INCREASE AND MERIT SYSTEM. [1. FY25 BUDGET DISCUSSION] LOOK AT ALL THE BENEFITS THAT THE THE OUR STAFF HAS BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH. WE'VE ACCOMPLISHED SO MUCH AT THE SAME TIME THAT WE'VE REDUCED TAXES. WE HAVE PROVEN THAT YOU CAN DO BOTH. WE HAVE A AND NOW WE'RE IN A YEAR WHERE WE HAVE RECORD NEW INCOME. WE HAVE A BIG TABLE THAT EVERYBODY SHOULD BE ABLE TO EAT FROM ALL THE GOALS THAT WE WANT TO ACCOMPLISH, THE NEW THINGS VETERANS PARK RAISES FOR EVERYBODY, WE CAN DO BOTH. WE'VE PROVEN IT FOR THE LAST NINE YEARS TO COME HERE AND AND NOT REDUCE. AND CHANGE WHAT WE'VE DONE FOR THE PAST DECADE OF POSITIVE THINGS, FOR OUR COMMUNITY AND FOR THE TAXPAYERS. AND THAT'S OUR NUMBER ONE. WHAT WE SERVE UP HERE, I THINK, WOULD BE A WOULD BE A TERRIBLE MISTAKE. AND AND I URGE THIS COUNCIL NOT TO CHANGE THAT THAT POLICY, I THINK WITH 6 MILLION NEW DOLLARS OF, OF NEW REVENUE, WE CAN AFFORD TWO MEALS, WHICH IS 230,000 AND FIND A WAY TO MAKE THAT UP SOMEWHERE ELSE. I THINK IT WOULD BE A BIG, BIG MISTAKE. WHEN I FIRST RAN FOR COUNCIL AND CASTLE'S SEAT AFTER SHE QUIT NINE YEARS AGO, I RAN ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WILL BRING LOWER TAXES, AND I STILL BELIEVE IN THAT. I BELIEVE IN THAT BASIC PREMISE AND WE AS A CITY HAVE PROVEN IT. AND THAT'S A COMPLIMENT TO EVERYBODY WHO WORKS HERE. ALL THE COUNCIL PEOPLE, ALL THE STAFF, EVERYBODY. IT'S A COMPLIMENT. WE SHOULD BE PROUD OF THE FACT THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO BOTH, AND WE SHOULD BE PROUD TO CONTINUE DOING THAT. AND UNTIL WHILE WE'RE STILL GETTING EVERY YEAR THIS INCREASED REVENUE BECAUSE OF PEOPLE MOVING HERE, COMMERCE IS COMING, INDUSTRIES COMING, THAT'S GOING TO CONTINUE TO RAISE OUR TAX ROLLS. AND I WANT TO ADD ONE OTHER THING TO THAT. IN RECENT CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHER MUNICIPALITIES, THIS WON'T AFFECT ME, BUT IT'S AFFECTS THIS BUDGET. I THINK THAT THE COUNCIL SHOULD RAISE THE MAYOR'S SALARY TO 15,000 FROM 13 TWO AND, AND PUT AN EXTRA THOUSAND INTO THE COUNCIL SALARY. I FORGET WHAT IT IS. 9000 OR 10,000, I CAN'T REMEMBER. BUT EVERY IT SEEMS THAT ALL THE OTHER MUNICIPALITIES ARE RAISING OR CONTEMPLATING RAISING THEIR COUNCIL, THEIR ELECTED OFFICIALS SALARIES. I LOOKED UP WHAT WHAT IT IS NOW ACCORDING TO MARK, BLUFFTON MAYOR IS 16.5. COUNCIL IS 11. HILTON HEAD MAYOR IS 25,000. SOMEBODY TOLD ME IT WENT UP QUITE A BIT, BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT FOR SURE. IT WASN'T ON MARK AND COUNCIL IS 12,800. AND REGARDLESS OF THE SIZE, I DON'T THINK I DON'T THINK WE'RE ANY LESS COMPLICATED THAN ANYBODY ELSE IN THIS REGION. WE WE HAVE A LOT OF TOUGH DECISIONS. AND OF COURSE, THIS WON'T GO INTO EFFECT UNTIL AFTER WHATEVER, THE NEXT ELECTION. SO IF YOU VOTED TODAY, IT WOULD, IT WOULD IT WOULDN'T GO INTO EFFECT UNTIL JANUARY. SO YOU'RE TALKING 4018 HUNDRED. YOU'RE TALKING $5,800 PER YEAR. BUT FOR THIS BUDGET, $5,800 MORE, IT'S 9500 FOR COUNCIL MEMBERS AND 13,000 FOR THE MAYOR, CURRENTLY 13 TWO FOR MAYOR. RIGHT. YOU MAY HAVE HAD THAT TOO. YOU ADDED AS A LIKE COLA INCREASE. THE LAST ORDINANCE YOU DID HAD 1313. SO IF YOU GO UP, YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY GET $1,000 RAISE. [01:20:03] I, I THINK AS A COUNCIL AND ALL FOUR OF YOU MAY BE HERE. I THINK YOU DESERVE IT. I WOULD I WOULD ADD THAT TO THE BUDGET. THAT'S MY RECOMMENDATION. SO I'M, I'M RECOMMENDING THAT THAT WE REDUCE TWO MILLS, GIVE A RAISE TO THE COUNCIL. AND AS OUR DISCUSSION OF LAST TIME, I THINK THOSE TWO POSITIONS SHOULD BE PART TIME. BUT THAT'S UP. THAT'S UP TO THE COUNCIL TO DECIDE. THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO SAY. BIG SIGH OF RELIEF. ANYONE ELSE? LET ME ASK A QUESTION. IF WE REDUCE ONE MILLAGE POINT, WHICH SOMETHING WAS IN THE BACK OF MY MIND AS A POSSIBILITY, MY QUESTION WOULD BE FOR YOU, MIKE, WITH THESE POSITIONS, WOULD THAT MEAN THEY COULD START SOONER OR MAYBE A LITTLE BIT OF DELAY? I KNOW IT'S A NARROW. I'D LIKE TO HEAR FROM HIM, JOHN. SO YOUR QUESTION IS IF WE IF WE THE COUNCIL REDUCED THE MILLAGE ONE, WHAT IMPACT DOES THAT HAVE ON STAFFING. YEAH I READ WHAT YOU SAID. YEAH. TO HEAR YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE. YEAH THAT'S ONE ONE POTENTIAL ALTERNATIVE IS YOU JUST DELAY A MONTH OR TWO FOR SOME OF THOSE POSITIONS. AND AS WE ALL KNOW, YOU KNOW, BEST LAID PLANS. EVEN IF WE SAID, LET'S JUST SAY HYPOTHETICALLY THAT COUNCIL APPROVES WHATEVER MILLAGE RATE AND YOU APPROVE THE REST OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS. AND WE IMMEDIATELY TRY, YOU KNOW, ADVERTISING AND GOING THROUGH THE SELECTION PROCESS. AS YOU KNOW, YOU'VE BEEN ON SEARCH COMMITTEES. IT TAKES MORE THAN SOMETIMES YOU DON'T GET APPLICANTS. SOMETIMES BE THE PROCESS TAKES MUCH LONGER, SOMETIMES. SEE, YOU GET APPLICANTS THAT YOU DON'T WANT TO HIRE. SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT'S A POSSIBILITY. AND BEING ABLE TO COVER RECOVER SOME OF THAT, YOU KNOW, THE 120,000 WOULD BE, YOU KNOW, DELAYING, YOU KNOW, IT WOULD BE NATURALLY IT WOULDN'T. I MEAN, WE COULD DO IT ON PURPOSE AND OR NATURALLY DELAY A MONTH OR TWO TO MAKE UP THAT 120,000. IF THE COUNCIL, YOU KNOW, DECIDES TO REDUCE THE MILLAGE THAT ONE MILL. WELL, MY THOUGHT WAS EXACTLY WHAT YOU SAID, THAT WHEN YOU GET INTO THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS, FINDING A PERSON AND GENERALLY HAVE TO RESIGN AND GIVE NOTICE WHERE THEY ARE AND STUFF LIKE THAT, MY HUNCH IS THAT THERE WILL BE MORE DELAYS THAN WE'RE ACCOUNTING ON THAT WILL ALMOST COUNTER SET THAT AS MY IS MY SENSE OF THAT. I THINK THAT'S A PRETTY ACCURATE STATEMENT. OKAY. AND I'M NOT OPENLY I'M NOT DISAGREEING, HARRY. I MEAN, I'M TRYING TO GET A COUPLE ALTERNATIVES HERE BECAUSE I THINK WE'VE WE'VE GOT A GOOD LEGACY AND A GOOD TRACK RECORD, AND I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT. AND I CAME UP WITH TWO BECAUSE AS I WAS THINKING ABOUT IT AND I KNOW WE WERE ALL TALKING ONE POSSIBLY, AND WE WANT TO LOOK AT MORE. BUT AGAIN, WE HAVE AT LEAST $6 MILLION IN NEW REVENUE. IT'S A RECORD INCREASE. WE GAVE ONE LAST YEAR WITH EVEN LESS OF AN INCREASE. AND I'LL GO BACK TO HAVING, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A BIG THANKSGIVING TABLE TO EAT OFF OF. EVERYBODY SHOULD BENEFIT FROM THAT. THE STAFF, THE POSITIONING, THE CARS, THE, THE, THE FIRE STATIONS, BUT ALSO THE TAXPAYER. WE HAVE A SHOULD. EVERYONE SHOULD BENEFIT FROM THE INCREASED REVENUE. AND THAT'S WHY I THINK, YOU KNOW, TWO MILLS. WE WERE ONLY ONE LAST YEAR. AND AGAIN I'M, I'M STATING MY POSITION, WHATEVER THE WILL OF THE COUNCIL IS. YOU KNOW IF WE DID MY GOAL AND IF WE DECIDED ONE. YOU COULD LIVE WITH THAT, YOU WOULD. I MEAN, BUT YOU'VE MADE YOUR STATEMENT, AND I GOT IT. YEAH. I'M RECOMMENDING I'M RECOMMENDING TWO. OKAY, ZERO. I VOTE NO ON THIS BUDGET. BUT THAT'S, YOU KNOW, AGAIN. TAKE THAT FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH. SO I DIDN'T TOUCH THAT. YOU KNOW, GOING BACK TO YOUR QUESTION THAT YOU ASKED MR. WHITE WHAT WOULD THE OPTIONS INCLUDE? SO ONE OF THEM WAS DELAY HIRING OF PROPOSED NEW STAFF BY AN AVERAGE OF 1.5 MONTHS. BUT THEN IT ALSO GOES ON TO, SAY, REDUCE PROGRAM FUNDING AND INCREASING FEES FOR SERVICE, DECREASE GENERAL FUND SUPPORT FOR CAPITAL PROJECTS, EITHER BY UTILIZING ALTERNATE FUNDING SOURCES AND OR DELAYING OR POSTPONING PROJECTS FROM A TAXPAYER'S [01:25:04] POINT OF VIEW, AND FROM SOMEBODY WHO RUNS MY HOUSEHOLD. IF I AM SACRIFICING MONEY FOR ONE THING. AND THEN ON THE OTHER HAND, I'M SAYING, OKAY, I'M MAKING THIS SACRIFICE, BUT HERE'S WHAT ELSE IS GOING TO HAVE TO PAY THE PRICE. AND AND IT DOES TO ME, IT'S NOT MAKING ANY SENSE, BECAUSE IF YOU'RE GOING TO REDUCE THE MILL AND GIVE IT BACK TO THE TAXPAYER, WHICH IS AND I KNOW IT'S GOING TO TAKE SOME PEOPLE OFF BECAUSE I ASKED, WHAT WAS THE MILL GOING TO BE, A REBATE 100 FOR THE CITIZENS OR FOR THE WHAT'S IT GOING TO COST? WHAT IS IT GOING TO COST? THE NO. WHAT IS IT GOING TO BE AT THE END OF THE DAY? WHAT AM I GOING TO GET BACK IN MY IN MY CHAIR, $17 IN JASPER COUNTY. 18 IN BEAUFORT COUNTY. OKAY. SO YOU'RE GOING TO GIVE ME $17. SO LET'S SAY I WANT TO POUR A PATIO IN MY BACKYARD, OR I WANT TO DO SOMETHING ELSE, AND I HAVE TO COME IN AND GET A PERMIT FROM YOU GUYS, AND YOU'VE RAISED THE FEES BECAUSE YOU'RE TRYING TO MAKE UP THE SHORTFALL. SO THAT'S $17 IS MOOT, RIGHT? IT'S CANCELED OUT BECAUSE NOW I'M SPENDING MORE MONEY. I'M GETTING 17 BACK, BUT I'M HAVING TO SPEND MORE MONEY BECAUSE YOU GUYS HAVE HAD TO RAISE THE RATES TO MAKE UP FOR THE SHORTFALL IN, IN THE BUDGET. SO I'M FINDING IT REALLY DIFFICULT TO WRAP MY HEAD AROUND THAT. AND I'M ALSO VERY CONCERNED WITH HAVING IMPROVED SAFETY, IMPROVED PUBLIC SAFETY SERVICES. CHIEF, HOW OFTEN DO YOU GUYS REPLACE YOUR BULLETPROOF VESTS? EVERY FIVE YEARS. OKAY. AND THAT'S BEEN HAPPENING. YES, MA'AM. WE ALSO WE ALSO TRY TO GET MONEY THROUGH A GRANT TO HELP PAY FOR THAT, TOO. OKAY. SO AND KNOWING THAT CHIEF HAS, YOU KNOW, FOR EXAMPLE, THREE FOLKS DOWN FROM ILLNESS AND THEN FOLKS ARE GETTING READY TO LEAVE TO GO TO BETTER TO GREENER PASTURES. YOU KNOW, WE SHOULD TRY TO INCREASE THE SALARY OF THESE FOLKS THAT WE ARE SO DESPERATELY TRYING TO HIRE, AND WE DON'T HAVE THE MONEY FOR IT. PEOPLE ARE BYPASSING HARDEEVILLE AND GOING ELSEWHERE. I HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT. I MEAN, YEAH, GIVE THE TAXPAYERS MONEY BACK. IF IT'S A COUPLE OF HUNDRED DOLLARS, I'LL BE DANCING ON THIS DAYS HERE. BUT I SPOKE TO A COUPLE OF MY NEIGHBORS AND JUST ASKED THEM, JUST THROW THE QUESTION OUT THERE. HEY, WOULD YOU PREFER TO HAVE THIS IN YOUR CHECK OR WHAT WOULD YOU PREFER? THEY SAID, KEEP THAT AND IMPROVE OUR QUALITY OF LIFE, IMPROVE OUR SERVICES PROVIDED BY THE CITY, AND IF WE ARE GOING TO REDUCE THE MILLAGE AND THEN REDUCE SERVICES AND REDUCE FUNDING FOR OUR CAPITAL PROJECTS AND ALL OF THESE THINGS, THEN I'M MY VOTE IS PRETTY MUCH EASY AND I'M GOING TO VOTE NO ON DROPPING THE MILLAGE. VALERIE. AND. THERE'S A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT I THINK YOU HAVE A LITTLE BIT WRONG. NUMBER ONE, THERE'S NO TALK ABOUT RAISING OTHER OTHER, OTHER FEES TO MAKE UP FOR THIS MILLAGE. NO CONVERSATION OF THAT WHATSOEVER. SO WE'RE NOT TAKING THAT $17 AND, AND AND RAISING BUILDING INSPECTION FEES TO MAKE IT UP. THAT'S NOT PART OF IT. THAT'S NUMBER ONE. NUMBER TWO, AS I POINTED OUT. AND IF YOU LOOK BACK AT ALL THE BUDGETS WE HAVE, WE HAVE INCREASED THE TWO BIGGEST EXPENSES THAT WE'VE INCREASED OVER THE LAST NINE YEARS AS WE WERE LOW IN TAXES, AS POLICE AND FIRE. THEY HAVE BETTER VEHICLES, BETTER EQUIPMENT, CAMERAS AND EVERYTHING THAT WE'VE DONE IN THOSE TWO DEPARTMENTS, THE IMPROVEMENT OF, OF PUBLIC SERVICE OR PUBLIC SAFETY HAS BEEN EXPONENTIAL. AND AGAIN, AS I SAID BEFORE. OVER THE COURSE OF A SYSTEMATIC TAX REDUCTION. IT'S NOT $17 A YEAR BECAUSE IT'S 17 THIS YEAR. NEXT YEAR, THE YEAR AFTER, EACH RESIDENT HAS SAVED BETWEEN PERSONAL TAX AND PROPERTY TAX OVER THE LAST NINE YEARS, CLOSE TO SOMEWHERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF $3,000. AND IF WE HAD NOT HAD THIS POLICY OF TAX REDUCTION, IT WOULD NOT HAVE HAVE THAT $2,000 WOULD BE IN YOUR TAX BILL RIGHT TODAY. AND THAT'S HOW YOU HAVE TO LOOK AT IT. IT'S A CUMULATIVE EFFECT OF A POLICY OF CONTINUAL TAX REDUCTION. AND NOTHING HAS BEEN SACRIFICED. PUBLIC SAFETY, RECREATION STAFF SALARIES, VEHICLES, FACILITIES AND AND FIRE [01:30:05] STATIONS AND FIXING OUR WE HAVE NOT SACRIFICED A THING. SO IT'S NOT LIKE WE'RE SAYING, OH GOD, WE'RE GOING TO REDUCE THE MILL. WE CAN'T FIX THE DOOR BECAUSE IT'S BROKEN. AND WE REDUCED THE 115,000. AND THE WAYS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THAT, 115,000, LIKE PUTTING PART TIMERS INSTEAD OF, YOU KNOW, FULL TIMERS AND ADMINISTRATIVE POSITIONS. THERE'S WAYS TO DO IT. NOT WE'RE NOT LOWERING THIS HAND AND RAISING THE OTHER. IT'S JUST NOT THAT'S NOT WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE. THERE'S NO PROPOSAL TO RAISE FEES. THAT'S NOT THAT'S NOT PART OF THE CONVERSATION. MR. CZYMBOR, SO THAT RESPONSE TO THE QUESTION FROM MR. WHITE, WHAT WOULD A MILL REDUCTION LOOK LIKE? ONE OF THE OPTIONS WAS THAT WAS STATED REDUCING PROGRAM FUNDING AND SLASH INCREASING FEES FOR SERVICES. IS THAT CORRECT? THAT WOULD BE ONE OPTION, VAL. YES. OKAY. AND THE OTHER ONE, I THINK MR. WHITE SAID WHAT OPTIONS DO WE HAVE. RIGHT, RIGHT. SO THOSE ANY ANY COMBINATION OF THOSE COULD MAKE UP THE DIFFERENCE. YES MA'AM. OKAY. BUT NOT NECESSARILY ALL OF THEM. RIGHT. BUT WE DIDN'T SAY WE WERE GOING TO DO THAT. THERE'S NO WE HAVE NOT HAD ANY CONVERSATION. NO. HE'S JUST PUTTING OUT ALL THE POSSIBILITIES. HE'S NOT SAYING THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING, BUT IT'S IT'S STILL REDUCING IT BY THAT AMOUNT. WE WE ARE GETTING READY TO HIRE A BRAND NEW CITY MANAGER. AND IF THERE IS GOING TO BE AN OVERLAP SOMEWHERE, WHERE IS THE MONEY GOING TO COME FROM? AND, AND, AND I THINK IT'S VERY UNFAIR THAT WE'RE GOING TO DO THIS. WE HAVE A BRAND NEW MAYOR THAT'S GOING TO COME IN NEXT YEAR. WE MAY HAVE TWO BRAND NEW CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS COMING IN, AND WE ARE ALREADY STACKING THE DECK AGAINST THESE FOLKS BY DROPPING THE MILL BY TWO AND NOT LETTING THEM DECIDE THAT BECAUSE WE NEVER WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THE ECONOMIC THE ECONOMY IS GOING TO BE NEXT YEAR, WITH THE ELECTIONS GOING TO BE HELD THIS YEAR, WHAT IT'S GOING TO BE, WE CANNOT GUARANTEE OURSELVES THE FACT THAT WE ARE GOING TO HAVE INCREASED BUSINESS IN THE CITY. WE DON'T KNOW. THERE IS NO CRYSTAL BALL OUT THERE THAT'S GOING TO TELL US, WELL, YOU KNOW WHAT? YOU'RE GOING TO FLOURISH. THAT'S THAT IS A PIE IN THE SKY. I MEAN, IT'S LIKE, OKAY, YOU KNOW, I'M GOING TO GO GET IN DEBT NOW BECAUSE I'M GOING TO, YOU KNOW, THINK THAT, OH, ALL OF THIS STUFF IS GOING TO COME. AND IF THAT THING FALLS FLAT ON ITS FACE, WELL, GUESS WHAT? WE'RE GOING TO GET STUCK HOLDING A BAG OF DEBT AND I, I, I DON'T KNOW, THAT'S THAT'S MY, MY THING. I DON'T AGREE WITH DROPPING THE MILLAGE. WE DON'T KNOW WHERE THIS IS GOING. LIKE JOHN ALWAYS BRINGS TO POINT WHAT HAPPENED IN RICHLAND. YOU DROP DROP DROP AND THEN SOMETHING BAD HAPPENED. AND THEN YOU HAVE TO GO BACK AND INCREASE AND THE PEOPLE ARE GOING TO COME BACK AND SAY, WHAT THE HECK WERE YOU DOING? NOW? IT'S IT'S ALWAYS EASIER TO DROP SOMETHING. IT'S EXTREMELY HARD TO JUSTIFY THE INCREASE WHEN WE WHEN, WHEN WE SHOULD NOT HAVE DONE IT. I THINK WE SHOULD WAIT, WRITE THIS OUT, AND THEN LET THE NEW FOLKS NEXT YEAR DECIDE IF THEY'RE GOING TO DROP THE MILL OR WHATEVER IT IS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO DO. SO THAT'S MY MY THING. VALERIE, THIS IS OUR BUDGET. IT'S NOT THE NEXT MAYOR'S. IT'S NOT THE NEXT COUNCIL. THIS IS OUR BUDGET. IT'S A BUDGET FOR ONE YEAR. IT'S NOT A BUDGET FOR ONE DECADE. IT'S FOR ONE YEAR. AND IT'S THIS COUNCIL'S BUDGET. IT'S NOT THE NEXT MAYOR'S. IT'S THIS COUNCIL'S BUDGET, THIS COUNCIL'S VOTE, THIS COUNCIL'S DECISION. AND NOBODY AND NO ONE, NO ONE WE GAVE WE'VE GIVEN A 4.5% RAISE TO PEOPLE WE'VE AND POTENTIALLY ANOTHER 4% IN MERIT. WE'RE. WE'RE GIVING GOOD RAISES TO OUR STAFF. WE'RE ADDING WE HAVE $6 MILLION IN NEW REVENUE, AND WE'RE NOT PROJECTING WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN IN 2030. WE'RE PROJECTING WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN UP UNTIL JANUARY, JULY 1ST, 2025, PERIOD. THAT'S ALL. SO SORRY. SO LET ME ASK YOU THIS. OKAY. LET'S SAY, YOU KNOW, FOR WHATEVER IT'S WORTH, WE GIVE YOU THE TWO MIL THAT YOU'RE ASKING FOR. ARE YOU THEN IN TURN GOING TO AGREE TO HIRE EVERY SINGLE PERSON THAT'S BEEN RECOMMENDED FOR HIRING IN HERE? I RECOMMEND IT AS ONE OF THE OPTIONS TO FIND THAT $230,000. YOU HAVE TWO ADMINISTRATIVE POSITIONS, AND I RECOMMENDED LAST TIME, INSTEAD OF SPENDING $110,000 TOTALLY AND [01:35:06] 150,000 WITH ALL BENEFITS INSTEAD OF HIRING AT THOSE. EXTRA PEOPLE TO MAKE THEM PART TIME. AND THEN YOU DON'T PAY TAX. YOU DON'T PAY YOU DON'T PAY THEIR THEIR PENSIONS AND AND ALL THE OTHER LINES. YOU PAY THEM AN HOURLY FEE. THERE'S THERE'S OTHER WAYS TO MAKE UP THE $230,000 OF WHICH ALL THE POSSIBILITIES THAT MR. CZYMBOR LAID OUT IN HIS THING. AND THAT'S WHAT WE DECIDE. OKAY, HERE'S HOW YOU WITH 6 MILLION MORE DOLLARS. WE'RE NOT WE'RE NOT POOR AND WE'RE NOT WORRIED ABOUT. AND IN FIVE YEARS AND I SAID THIS LAST TIME IN FIVE YEARS, IF THERE'S A TERRIBLE DOWNTURN, IT'S NOT GOING TO BE JUST ABOUT RAISING TAXES. PEOPLE. ALL THESE EXTRA POSITIONS, THE ONES THEY WANT TO HIRE, NOW THEY'RE GOING TO GET FIRED. I'VE SEEN IT. THIS IS MY 15TH MUNICIPAL BUDGET I WORKED ON, AND THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS. AND YES, THERE MIGHT BE TAX TAX INCREASES, BUT AT LEAST THEY'LL BE COMING FROM A LOWER RATE. BUT IT'S IT. AND WHETHER YOU'RE IN BUSINESS, IN ANY SITUATION WHERE YOU HAVE STAFF, WHEN YOU HAVE A DOWNTURN, THAT'S THE FIRST PLACE IT GOES. YOU CUT STAFF BECAUSE THAT'S THE SINGLE BIGGEST LINE ITEM THAT YOU CAN CONTROL. AND THAT'S WHAT WILL HAPPEN FIVE YEARS FROM NOW IF THAT DOOM AND GLOOM HAPPENS. LET ME ASK A QUESTION, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN WORKING AND THINKING ABOUT THIS ALL WEEK, AND I THOUGHT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT ONE MILL REDUCTION, AND NOW SUDDENLY WE'RE TALKING ABOUT TWO MILL REDUCTION. AND TO ME, THAT'S PART OF THE RESISTANCE. THAT'S IN MY MIND THAT WE COULD DO ONE. AND WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS. YOU KNOW, YOU'RE COMING UP WITH TWO, HARRY, AND YOU'VE DONE THE ANALYSIS AND I RESPECT IT. BUT THAT'S NOT WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT OR WE'RE THINKING ABOUT. AT LEAST I WASN'T. AND SO IF WE'RE GOING TO COME UP WITH A ONE MILL REDUCTION, IS THAT SOMETHING YOU'RE GOING TO VOTE AGAINST OR YOU CAN LIVE WITH THAT. SINCE THAT WAS OUR ORIGINAL THINKING UNTIL THIS MOMENT THAT WE'RE DISCUSSING IT TODAY, AS FAR AS I WAS CONCERNED. I'VE SAID ALL ALONG. THAT I WOULD. I WOULD BE I WOULD ACCEPT ONE THAT IF THERE WAS NO REDUCTION, I WOULD VOTE NO AGAINST THIS BUDGET I'M RECOMMENDING TO AS I STUDIED IT AND STUDIED THE NET EFFECT THAT I'VE SOUGHT. AND BUT IT'S NOT A IT'S NOT A DEAL BREAKER FOR ME. I HEAR YOU, THAT'S WHAT I MEANT. NO, NO DECREASE FOR ME. THAT'S A DEAL BREAKER. WELL, MY MY FEELING IS THAT I THOUGHT ABOUT IT. I WAS IN THE CAMP OF NO REDUCTION, AND I THINK VALERIE MADE AN EXCELLENT SYNOPSIS OF WHAT THAT'S ALL ABOUT. AND I HONOR THAT. AND I DON'T THINK THAT'S A BAD ANALYSIS. I'M IN THE CAMP OF ONE MILL REDUCTION FOR ALL THE REASONS WE HAVE, AND I KNOW THAT IT'S WE'LL BE ABLE TO DO WHAT WE WANT TO DO WITH THAT. I I JUST HAVEN'T DIGESTED TOO. AND IT'S NEW TO ME, AND I'M CONCERNED ABOUT THAT. I DON'T THINK YOUR NUMBERS ARE OFF OR ANYTHING ELSE, BUT I THINK WE HAD CONSENSUS AROUND ONE, OR AT LEAST WE WERE GETTING TO A MAJORITY THERE. AND I DON'T THINK WE HAVE A MAJORITY FOR TWO, TWO MILLAGE REDUCTIONS. JOHN, DO YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS? I'M NOT PUTTING YOU ON THE SPOT. NO, I MEAN EVERYBODY. NO, IT'S I CAN'T ENTERTAIN TO. WE HAD TALKED ABOUT AND I'M GOING TO BE HONEST WITH YOU, I HAVE GRAVE RESERVATIONS ABOUT REDUCING EVEN ONE MILL. AND I'VE SAID THAT ALL ALONG. BUT CAN YOU HEAR ME? EVERYBODY SAYS THEY COULDN'T HEAR ME, SO I'VE HAD GRAVE RESERVATIONS ABOUT IT ALL ALONG. AND I SEE WHERE STEVE AND VAL ARE COMING FROM. BUT I WOULD CONSIDER I WOULD CONSIDER A ONE MILL DECREASE THIS TIME, BUT I THINK WE OUGHT TO LEAVE THE POSITIONS AS AS RECOMMENDED IN THE BUDGET. ONE MILL DECREASE. THIS IS JUST MY RECOMMENDATION. [01:40:01] ONE MILL DECREASE AND LEAVE THE POSITIONS THAT WAS RECOMMENDED IN THE BUDGET. AND I ECHO THAT, JOHN, YOU'VE ADDED THAT OTHER PART, BUT ABSOLUTELY, I'M WITH YOU ON THAT. SO MY TURN YET? IT'S YOUR TURN WHENEVER YOU. I'VE BEEN SITTING OVER HERE WAITING. I'M SORRY I MISSED THE LAST MEETING. AND JUST BEAR WITH ME. I'VE GOT QUITE A BIT TO SAY. FIRST OFF IS A KUDOS TO THE STAFF. MIKE. JOHN, EVERYBODY, FOR PREPARING THIS BUDGET. I HAVE MY UTMOST CONFIDENCE IN EVERY ONE OF YOU. I'VE ALWAYS GONE BY THE MANTRA IS YOU HIRE GOOD PEOPLE TO DO A GOOD JOB. AND I BELIEVE YOU ALL HAVE DONE THAT EXCELLENT JOB. AND WITH THAT SAID, MY QUESTIONS AND I HAVE MANY OF THEM HERE. BUT FIRST OFF IS, IS TO JOHN WHEN I, WE DISCUSSED EARLIER ABOUT POSSIBLY HAVING TWO CITY MANAGERS FOR A SHORT GIVEN PERIOD OF TIME, AND YOU TOLD ME THEN THAT YOU HAD BUILT INTO THIS BUDGET FOR ONE MONTH. WHAT WOULD THE COST BE IF WE HAD TO SAY, DO THREE MONTHS? THANK YOU, MR. MEERSMAN. NOT NOT TO BE GLIB, BUT IT DEPENDS ON WHAT YOU'RE PAYING THAT SECOND PERSON. WELL, BASED UPON WHAT MR. CZYMBOR IS MAKING NOW. OKAY. SAY EVERY MONTH OF THAT IS GOING TO BE. SO YOU'RE SAYING INSTEAD OF ONE MONTH, THREE MONTHS, CORRECT, YOU'RE PROBABLY LOOKING AT RAW SALARY IN THE $30,000 RANGE AND THEN YOU'RE PROBABLY YOU'VE GOT 9% FOR RETIREMENT, 7.65% FOR SOCIAL SECURITY. AND THEN THE CITY DOES PAY THE HEALTH INSURANCE FOR THE EMPLOYEE. IT'S HIM OR HERSELF, HIS OR HERSELF. SO WE'RE LOOKING AT ABOUT POTENTIALLY $40,000. VERY MUCH SO. YES, SIR. VERY MUCH. OKAY. THERE'S A $40,000 UNPLANNED EXPENSE IN THIS BUDGET. OTHER COSTS THAT I, THAT, THAT I WANT TO SEE IN HERE IS WHAT WAS BUILT IN FOR THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. OVERTIME COST. IF WE RUN SHORT ON STAFFING FOR PARAMEDICS, THAT'S ALWAYS A POSSIBILITY TO HAVE. WE HAVE AN AMBULANCE. WE HAVE PROMISED THE CITIZENRY WE WILL STAFF AN AMBULANCE, SO WE WILL HAVE TO DO IT. IS THAT BUILT INTO THIS BUDGET? THAT IS CHIEF CAMP CERTAINLY CAN ADDRESS THE DETAILS OF THAT. BUT WE HAVE WE HAVE PLANNED FOR THAT. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT CHIEF CAMP HAS WORKED REALLY HARD ON IS HAVING PART TIME PARAMEDICS, SO THAT IF SOMEBODY CALLS OUT RATHER THAN HOLD SOMEBODY OVER, WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO CALL SOMEBODY WHO TYPICALLY IS WORKING FULL TIME FOR ANOTHER AGENCY TO BE ABLE TO COME IN AND DO THAT. OKAY. FIRE DEPARTMENT OVERTIME COST, SINCE THEY WILL BE STARTING ON 95 PER YEAR, PROBABLY WITHIN THIS NEXT BUDGET YEAR, THERE ARE PROBABLY GOING TO BE TRAFFIC CONTROL ISSUES. WHAT IS THERE ANYTHING FOR OVERTIME COSTS FOR OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT TO HANDLE THESE ISSUES AS THEY COME UP? AGAIN? THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING CHIEF CHIEF WOODWARD COULD, COULD ADDRESS THE SPECIFICS OF, BUT I WOULD BELIEVE THAT THEY HAD HAD LOOKED AT ALL THINGS THAT THEY COULD ANTICIPATE FOR THE UPCOMING YEAR. OKAY. IN RELATION TO THOSE TWO THINGS THAT WE HAVE JUST DISCUSSED BY THIS TIME NEXT YEAR, GIVEN WHAT WE HAVE, WE WILL HAVE A THOUSAND NEW HOMES CLOSED IN. HARDEEVILLE. THOSE THOUSAND HOMES ARE GOING TO NEED POLICE PROTECTION. FIRE PROTECTION. AND WE WILL HAVE YET RECEIVED $1 OF PROPERTY TAX ON THOSE ON THOSE NEW HOMES. WE ARE GOING TO EXPAND AND WE CURRENTLY ARE DOING, BUT WE ARE EXPANDING AND HAVING TO PROVIDE SERVICES WITHOUT HAVING ANY REVENUE FOR THOSE ALSO. THAT'S A SCARY THOUGHT. YES, THERE'S THERE'S A LAG FOR A NUMBER OF OUR FUNDING SOURCES. OKAY. WE HAVE 30,000 HOMES ON THE BOOKS. DOESN'T MEAN WE'RE ALL GOING TO BE HERE TOMORROW, BUT WE'RE AVERAGING A THOUSAND HOMES A YEAR, AND WE HAVE BEEN. SO THOSE COSTS ARE GOING TO BE CONSISTENT WITH THE DIRECTION THAT WE'RE GOING. IT WAS WE TALKED JUST EARLIER ABOUT A LOBBYIST IN COLUMBIA. WAS THAT BUILT INTO THE BUDGET? MY RECOLLECTION IS WE BUDGETED NOTHING FOR THAT. WHAT WHAT WHAT KIND OF COST WOULD WE BE LOOKING AT FOR THAT? WELL, MATT SAID WE BOUGHT THE CHEAP ONE LAST TIME, AND NEIL. I'M SORRY. SORRY, SORRY. IT WOULD DEPEND ON THE BANG FOR THE BUCK AND WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO, BUT, I MEAN, BUT WE DON'T HAVE IT IN THE BUDGET. THERE'S NOTHING IN THE BUDGET, AND WE DISCUSS THE IMPORTANCE OF THAT. YOU'D BE THINKING THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS PER MONTH, AND YOU'D HAVE TO ENGAGE, FOR SURE. A PERIOD OF MONTHS FOR SURE. OKAY. I KNOW WE IT'S BEEN DISCUSSED PRIOR TO RETENTION BONUSES FOR CRITICAL STAFF. [01:45:02] WE DON'T WANT TO LOSE CRITICAL STAFF. AND ONCE WE HAVE GOOD PEOPLE IN A GOOD PLACE, WE DON'T WANT SOMEBODY ELSE STEALING THEM. SO WE HAVE TO HAVE BE COGNIZANT OF THAT POSSIBILITY. BUT WE TALKED ABOUT ADDED COST FOR ROAD IMPROVEMENT WORK, STUDIES THAT WEREN'T EVEN THERE. WE'RE LOOKING AT A THIRD PARTY REVIEW. COST IS, YOU KNOW, THAT'S SOMETHING WE'VE NEVER HAD BEFORE. THESE ARE ALL ADDED COSTS. AS WE GROW, WE KNOW WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO PAY THEM, BUT WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE. WE'RE KIND OF WE'RE GUESSING AS WE GROW WITH THOSE WE HAVE TO TRY TO FIND ALTERNATIVE FUNDING. BUT WHAT IF IT'S NOT AVAILABLE? THESE COSTS WERE GOING TO HAVE TO DO. THE TRAFFIC ISSUES THE MARGARITAVILLE, HILTON HEAD LAKES, WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THAT COST IS GOING TO BE, BUT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO DO IT. THOSE ARE COSTS THAT HAVE ME CONCERNED. IT WAS SAID THAT WE HAVE TO FIND A WAY. FIND A WAY IS NOT AN ANSWER. THAT'S A QUESTION. AND I DON'T LIKE TO TO HAVE THAT FIND A WAY. I LIKE TO KNOW ANSWERS AS WE MOVE AHEAD. WITH OUR 3000 HOMES, WE ARE 30,000 HOMES THAT WE DO HAVE APPROVED. YES. I'D LOVE TO BE ABLE TO COUNT ON THIS CONTINUATION OF OUR ASSESSED VALUATION, BUT WE DON'T HAVE THAT AS A GUARANTEE. THERE IS NO GUARANTEES. SO WE LOOK AT MAYOR, RESPECTFULLY, YOU SAID THE AMOUNT OF SAVINGS SINCE 2015. WE'LL BACK OUT ALL THE HOMES THAT WERE THERE. MY HOME WASN'T THERE IN 2015. MY HOME WASN'T ON THE TAX ROLLS UNTIL 2020. SO YES, I HAVE SAVED, BUT IT'S BEEN A MINIMAL AMOUNT OF MONEY. AND AS I LOOK AT THIS BUDGET, I DO NOT BELIEVE THE STAFF LOADED IT, BLOATED IT OR ANYTHING ELSE. I BELIEVE YOU ALL GAVE US A LEAN, MEAN BUDGET WITH THE STAFFING THAT WE NEED. I CANNOT IN GOOD CONSCIENCE APPROVE A REDUCTION OF MILLAGE WHEN THERE ARE TOO MANY UNKNOWNS OUT THERE AT THIS TIME. LIKE I SAID, IT'S JUST THAT'S MY THOUGHT ON THIS. I WOULD MUCH RATHER HAVE A BIT OF A CUSHION AS WE AS WE MOVE INTO THE NEW YEAR. THIS NEXT FISCAL YEAR IS IT COULD BE GREAT. IT COULD BE DEVASTATING THAT WE DON'T KNOW. WE'VE TALKED ABOUT POSSIBLY LAYING OFF STAFF. THE, THE SCENARIO THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE THE WORST TO HAPPEN WOULD BE A COMPLETE SLOWDOWN IN HOME CONSTRUCTION, INTEREST RATES, THINGS LIKE THAT COULD TAKE. WHAT DEPARTMENT WOULD BE HIT THE WORST ON THAT? PROBABLY BE BUILDING, PLANNING, ZONING, ALL OF THAT. BUT IT WILL NOT TAKE A NECESSITATE A REDUCTION ON THE POLICE AND FIRE. WE'RE STILL GOING TO HAVE TO MAINTAIN THOSE SERVICES FOR THOSE HOMES. SO OUR REDUCTION IN STAFF COMES DOWN TO VERY FEW DEPARTMENTS THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO HAVE. I JUST NOT I'M JUST NOT COMFORTABLE WITH REDUCING THE MILLAGE WITH THE SMALL AMOUNT THAT IT IS. I BELIEVE THE STAFFING THAT HAS BEEN PROPOSED IS NECESSARY IF WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON INTO THE FUTURE. AND THAT'S THAT'S WHAT I HAVE TO SAY. THANK YOU, JOHN. THANK YOU. OKAY. IF THERE'S NO FURTHER COMMENTS. AND I CERTAINLY COULD GO ON ALL DAY, BUT I'M NOT GOING TO. IT'S BEEN SAID IF SOMEBODY WANTS TO MAKE A MOTION FOR A STRAW POLL BECAUSE THIS BUDGET HAS TO BE POTENTIALLY CHANGED OR NOT CHANGED THAT SO THEY NEED DIRECTION. SO WE NEED A STRAW POLL ON THE MILLAGE. SO I'LL MAKE A MOTION. WE TAKE A STRAW POLL. OKAY. SO I'M GOING TO MAKE A MOTION THAT WE REDUCE THE MILLAGE BY ONE. THAT'S SO SINCE THIS STRAW POLL, IT'S NOT MOTION OR SECOND. SO LET ME WE HAVE THE CLERK HERE. WOULD YOU TAKE A ROLL FOR A STRAW POLL? ALPHABETICALLY. ON THERE'S THERE'S A SUGGESTED ONE MIL REDUCTION. LET'S TAKE A STRAW POLL ON EITHER YAY OR NAY. AND PLEASE TAKE IT ALPHABETICALLY. YOUR FIRST NAME. HMM'HMM. [01:50:01] FIRST NAME. ALPHABETICALLY. NO. LAST NAME. LAST NAME. OKAY. WHO IS THAT? JOHN CARROLL. JOHN. CARROLL. HOW DO YOU VOTE FOR ONE MILL? WELL, I WANT TO REVISE THAT A LITTLE BIT. I JUST SAID ONE MILL AND LEAVE STAFF AT, LIKE WE RECOMMENDED ONE MILL LEAVE STAFF. THAT'S MY THAT'S THAT'S THAT. I'LL. I'LL REVISE. I'LL REVISE THE MOTION TO ONE MILL LEAVE STAFF AS THIS. OKAY. VALERIE GUZMAN. NO REDUCTION. BUT MAINTAIN THE STAFFING LEVEL THAT THE CITY MANAGER AND MR. BOYLE HAS PROPOSED, BECAUSE WE ARE ASKING PEOPLE TO DO MORE WITH LESS. SO. NO. OKAY. MR. MEERSMAN STEVE MEERSMAN. I VOTE TO AT ZERO MILLAGE REDUCTION BASED UPON THE BUDGET THAT WAS PRESENTED BY STAFF AND ADMINISTRATOR. MR. MAYOR. SO MAYOR PRO TEM WHITE, I AGREE WITH THE MOTION THAT JOHN MADE WITH THE REDUCTION OF ONE MILL AND KEEPING THE STAFF IN PLACE, THAT WAS PART OF THAT BUDGET. AND I'LL VOTE FOR ONE MILL. KEEP THE STAFF. SO BY THREE TWO, PLEASE PRESENT FOR FIRST READING. AND THIS IS NOT A VOTE. THIS IS JUST DIRECTION FOR STAFF TO PREPARE THE FIRST READING OF THE BUDGET IN IN TWO WEEKS ON THE 16TH SO THAT MR. BOYLE. MR. CZYMBOR. IS THAT CORRECT? ARE WE DOING EVERYTHING CORRECT THAT YOU NEED? THERE'S ONLY ONE OTHER ISSUE THAT WAS ON THE TABLE THAT TAKE A STRAW POLL. I SUGGEST THAT WE GIVE MAYOR AND COUNCIL $1,000 RAISE BEGINNING JANUARY 1ST, 2025. TAKE A STRAW POLL WHETHER THE COUNCIL WANTS TO SAY YES OR NO TO THAT. ASK A QUESTION. YES. YOU MAY SINCE IT WILL NORMALLY TAKE EFFECT AFTER THE NEXT ELECTION. MRS. GUZMAN AND I WILL NOT BE ELIGIBLE FOR THIS PAY INCREASE. I THINK IT IS. I THINK YOU ARE. AN INCREASE IS DONE BY ORDINANCE. SO YOU'D HAVE TWO READINGS AND THEN IT TAKES EFFECT AFTER THE NEXT ELECTION. IT APPLIES TO ALL SEATED MEMBERS AT THAT TIME. ALL SEATED MEMBERS, WHOEVER'S YOU KNOW, THE THE INCUMBENTS AS WELL AS WHOEVER. OKAY. I'M SORRY, I APOLOGIZE. IT'S DIFFERENT FROM MY PAST EXPERIENCE. SO YOU WOULD IT CAN BE BUDGETED FOR, BUT YOU WOULD STILL HAVE TO APPROVE THE ORDINANCE WITH WITH THAT HIGHER RATE. IT'S A HALF AND IT WOULD BE HALF OF BUDGET YEAR. OKAY. [INAUDIBLE] OKAY, SO TAKE TAKE THE ROLL. SEE IF THE COUNCIL WANTS TO DO THAT. OKAY. COUNCIL MEMBER CARROLL, HOW DO YOU FEEL? YES AND YES IN FAVOR FOR AN INCREASE. COUNCIL MEMBER GUZMAN. NO. NO. COUNCIL MEMBER MEERSMAN. NO. YES. MAYOR WILLIAMS. YES. OKAY, SO PUTTING THE BUDGET YOU HAVE $1,000 RAISE, WHICH MEANS $2,500. I ASSUME YOU CAN FIND SOMEPLACE TO TAKE THAT FROM. LET ME JUST SAY ONE THING ABOUT THE RAISE. RAISES COME WHEN THE COMPLEXITY OF A JOB CHANGES IN THE SCOPE OF A JOB CHANGES AND THINGS LIKE THAT. SO WE'RE NOT THE COMPLEXITY OF BEING ON THE COUNCIL. WHETHER WE GET A RAISE OR NOT IS A LOT DIFFERENT TODAY THAN IT WAS FIVE YEARS AGO OR EIGHT YEARS AGO, BECAUSE OF THE NATURE OF THE WORK AND THIS AND THAT. AND THE OTHER THING IS THAT WHEN PEOPLE ARE GOING TO COME IN THE FUTURE, THEY'RE PUTTING A LOT OF TIME IN THIS 20, 30 HOURS A WEEK. AND SO LET'S NOT MAKE THIS SOUND LIKE WE'RE PATTING OURSELVES AND PUTTING MONEY IN OUR POCKET. THE THE MONEY FOR THE COUNCIL, EVEN WITH A RAISE, IS IS NOT A PLACE THAT YOU COME TO GET RICH. AND IT'S A LOT OF TIME. AND I JUST THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE HAVE THAT SAID, AND IF WE DON'T DO IT, WE DON'T DO IT. AND IF WE DO DO IT, WE DO DO IT. BUT THAT'S JUST THE COST OF BUSINESS WHEN YOU'RE BUILDING A COUNCIL AND YOU'RE BUILDING A CITY, AND YOU CERTAINLY HAVE THAT APPLY FOR STAFF. [01:55:06] I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DON'T SEEM LIKE WE'RE JUST TAKING ADVANTAGE OF OUR POSITION HERE. YEAH, WELL, MY ONLY CONCERN IS THAT I WISH WE WOULD HAVE HAD A LITTLE BIT MORE DISCUSSION THAN HAVING TO DO THE STRAW VOTE ABOUT IT TODAY. I'M NOT OPPOSED TO A I THINK WE CAN HAVE SOME MORE DISCUSSION ABOUT. THERE'S GOING TO BE DISCUSSION AT FIRST READING. OKAY. YOU KNOW, BUT AND YOU KNOW, I GET IDEAS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT AND I DON'T GET UP AND GIVE YOU A PHONE CALL. SO IT'S THIS IS A THOUGHT I HAD BASED ON CONVERSATIONS OF SIMILAR CONVERSATIONS IN OUR NEIGHBORING JURISDICTIONS. AND I THINK BO YOU MADE AN EXCELLENT POINT. THE TO GET PEOPLE TO COME FORWARD AND YOU THINK ABOUT WHO'S MOVING HERE AND ALL THOSE NEW HOMES THAT WE TALK ABOUT. THESE ARE PEOPLE I'M FINDING MORE AND MORE ARE COMING THAT ARE STILL WORKING. AND THE ONES WHO ARE AND WHO AREN'T, THEY'RE THEY'RE NOT INTERESTED IN GETTING INVOLVED IN CITY GOVERNMENT. THEY WANT TO KNOW WHEN THE NEXT PICKLEBALL GAME IS. AND AND THAT'S WHAT THEY CAME HERE FOR. THAT'S NOT A CRITICISM. IT'S JUST A REALITY. AND, AND YOU KNOW, I THINK GIVEN A LITTLE MEAT ON THE BONE WILL MAYBE IT'LL HELP RECRUITMENT. BUT I THINK THAT WAS A GOOD POINT. ANYWAY SO, YOU KNOW, THE DIRECTION OF COUNCIL REGARDING THE ISSUES THAT WERE UNRESOLVED AT THE LAST MEETING? COUNCIL, IS THERE ANY OTHER DIRECTION THAT WE WANT TO GIVE ANY OTHER COMMENTS? LET'S LET'S WE GOT SOME TIME. LET'S DO COUNCIL COMMENTS STARTING STARTING WITH ALPHABETICALLY WITH JOHN. NOT. ANY COMMENTS, I GUESS SOMETIME GET A LITTLE I GUESS EMOTIONS RUN A LITTLE HIGH. WE ALL HAVE STRONG OPINIONS, AND THAT'S A GOOD THING. AND I ALWAYS SAY THAT WE CAN'T ALWAYS AGREE. IF WE ALWAYS AGREE, THEN YOU'RE NOT DOING YOUR JOB. AND SOMETIMES YOU GOT TO COMPROMISE. AND I'M NOT EXACTLY HAPPY. BUT WE HAD A COMPROMISE, AND I CAN LIVE WITH THAT. AND I'M SURE MIKE AND JOHN CAN CAN HANDLE THAT, THAT AMOUNT. SO THAT'S MY COMMENT. WE MOVE FORWARD. MRS. GUZMAN. MR. MEERSMAN. I'M GLAD WE WILL HAVE A DISCUSSION AT THE NEXT AT THE COUNCIL MEETING. THE FIRST READING AS FAR AS THESE INCREASES GO. AND BO, I DO APPRECIATE YOU KNOW, WHERE YOU'RE COMING FROM WITH THIS. IT DOES TAKE DEDICATION TO DO THIS JOB. I SAT IN A HOTEL ROOM IN BELGIUM UNTIL 1:00 IN THE MORNING TO WATCH OUR CITY COUNCIL MEETING. I DID THE SAME TO WATCH THIS LAST BUDGET MEETING. I TAKE THIS JOB SERIOUSLY. IT'S NOT JUST SOMETHING TO DO PART TIME OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. IT DOES TAKE A LOT OF TIME AND I APPRECIATE THAT. SO I BELIEVE A LITTLE MORE DISCUSSION ON THE RAISE, BUT I'M NOT OPPOSED TO TO THE RAISE IN THAT AT ALL. BUT IN CLOSING, I WOULD LIKE TO SAY WE ALL SIT UP HERE. WE'RE FIVE INDIVIDUALS WITH FIVE DIFFERENT IDEAS OF HOW THINGS SHOULD POSSIBLY GO. IN A WAY, WE ARE ALL FRIENDS AND WE NEED TO REMAIN FRIENDS BECAUSE THE DAY THAT ANY ONE OF US WALKS OUT OF THIS ROOM AND CAN'T SAY WE ARE STILL FRIENDS WITH THE OTHERS IS PERHAPS A DAY WE SHOULDN'T BE IN OFFICE ANYMORE. EXACTLY RIGHT. YEAH, THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO SAY, MR. [02:00:02] WHITE. EXCELLENT POINT. STEVE, I AGREE WITH YOU. I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING MORE TO ADD. ONE OF THE THINGS, THOUGH, AND EVERYTHING IN COMPENSATION FOR STAFF OR ANYBODY, IS BASED ON COMPLEXITY, JOB RESPONSIBILITY. THERE'S A NUMBER OF FACTORS THAT GO INTO THAT. AND THEN THERE'S A WHOLE MUNICIPAL SALARY SCALE THAT WE CAN LOOK AT WITH OTHER CITIES. AND THOSE ARE OTHER FACTORS TO CONCERN OURSELVES. AND SO WHETHER WE DO IT OR NOT, TO ME IS IMMATERIAL. AND IF WE DECIDE TO DO IT FOR THE NEXT COUNCIL, WHOEVER THAT WILL BE. AND AND IF WE WANT TO PUT A SPECIAL ORDINANCE, YOU CAN TURN IT DOWN. WE'LL LOOK EVEN AT THAT. BUT MY POINT IS, THIS IS JUST THE WAY BUSINESS WORKS, AND IT'S NOT A SENSE OF GREED OR ANY OF THAT OR TAKING ADVANTAGE. EVERYBODY SAID. AND YOU'RE RIGHT, WE HAVE FIVE DIFFERENT WAYS OF LOOKING THINGS. AND AND WE ALL HAVE TO SAY ANY DEBATE. AND CERTAINLY I'M PASSIONATE IN ANYTHING I BELIEVE IN, BUT WE DO HAVE TO, AT THE END OF THAT, LEAVE THE ROOM WITH THE KNOWLEDGE THAT WE THIS WAS A DEBATE THAT WE HAD SOMETIMES DIFFERENCE OF OPINION WITH TWO, THREE, TWO VOTES. IT'S DEFINITELY A DIFFERENCE OF OPINION. AND WE HAVE TO GO AND AND WHATEVER THE NEXT ISSUE IS, YOU KNOW, DECIDE FOR OURSELVES WHAT, WHAT WHAT WE THINK IS THE RIGHT COURSE FOR THE CITY AND THEN COME IN AND FIGHT FOR IT PASSIONATELY. AND, AND NOBODY SHOULD TAKE OFFENSE BY THAT. AND, AND I KNOW OVER THE COURSE OF YEARS THE PEOPLE DO TAKE OFFENSE OF THAT. AND SO I HOPE THAT THIS GROUP UP HERE IS BIGGER THAN THAT. I HAVE JUST ONE OTHER THING THAT I THINK IS VERY IMPORTANT. I'M HERE YESTERDAY, AND I WAS OUT FRONT AND THERE'S AMBULANCE, THERE'S SIRENS GOING. JASPER COUNTY AMBULANCE GOES BY AND THE JASPER COUNTY FIRE TRUCK GOES BY, OBVIOUSLY FROM STEINY ROAD. NOW, ANYBODY WHO'S GOT A BRAIN HAS GOT TO SAY TO HIMSELF, THAT'S GOT TO BE THE DUMBEST THING IN THE WORLD WHEN WE HAVE BETTER EQUIPMENT AND A FIREHOUSE A LOT CLOSER TO WHEREVER THAT WAS GOING THAN TO TAKE THAT. I HAVE ASKED THIS COUNCIL, COUNTY COUNCIL AND OUR STAFFS TO GET TOGETHER AND TALK. WE SAY, WE GOT TO TALK. WE GOT TO TALK TO THEM. AND AND CHIEF MIKE. AND THIS WAS SECONDED BY THE CHAIRMAN OF THE COUNTY COUNCIL THAT HE BELIEVES IN THIS. THERE IS NO REASON WHEN A MAYOR AND A COUNTY COUNCIL CHAIR AGREE ON SOMETHING AND ON A MEETING THAT WE CAN SHOULD GO, WHAT'S IT, TWO MONTHS, THREE MONTHS SINCE I ASKED FOR THIS WITHOUT HAVING THIS MEETING TAKEN PLACE? AND CHIEF, I KNOW YOU AGREE, BUT I JUST MY MESSAGE IS LET'S STAY ON THIS BECAUSE THAT IS A WASTE OF TAXPAYER MONEY. AND AND IF THEY SAY IT'S CHEAPER, TELL THEM, SHOW ME THE ANALYSIS, SHOW ME THE MONEY. AND AND I HEARD THAT SOMEWHERE, YOU KNOW. SO PLEASE, PLEASE FOLLOW UP ON THAT. MR. MAYOR, MAY I MAKE A REQUEST? YES. I WOULD LIKE TO GRAB FIVE MINUTES OF THE COUNCIL TIME ALONE TO GIVE THEM AN UPDATE ON SOME OF THE PROJECTS I'M WORKING ON. ON THE SEARCH? NOTHING NEGATIVE, JUST AN UPDATE. AND SO I'D LIKE TO HAVE FIVE MINUTES WITH THE COUNCIL ALONE. IF I COULD ASK THE ATTORNEY, YOU CAN MAKE A MOTION TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION. AND THEN YOU CAN ADJOURN FROM THERE. OR YOU CAN. YEAH. AND YOU CAN ADJOURN THE WORKSHOP FROM THE EXECUTIVE SESSION. ALL RIGHT. SO, BO, WHY DON'T YOU MAKE THAT? I'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION THAT WE MOVE INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION FOR A COUPLE OF UPDATES. SECOND, WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE. AYE. WE ARE NOW IN EXECUTIVE SESSION. THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.