[00:00:01]
[1. CALL TO ORDER]
THIS IS THE COUNTY COUNCIL CAUCUS MEETING MONDAY, JANUARY 25TH.I'D LIKE TO CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER.
WOULD YOU PLEASE RUN FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE? I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.
[4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA ]
OKAY.OUR FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS IS GOING TO BE THE APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA.
MAY I HAVE A MOTION FROM A COUNCIL MEMBER AND A SECOND PLEASE.
SO MOVED MR. CHAIRMAN, MR. GLOVER MAKES THE MOTION OUTSIDE.
IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION ABOUT THE AGENDA? BECAUSE WE ARE IN A HYBRID SITUATION.
UH, I'M GOING TO NEED FOR EVERYONE TO RAISE THEIR HAND FOR APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA.
SO IF, UH, THERE IS APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA WITH THE MEMBERS OF COUNCIL, PLEASE RAISE THEIR HAND IN APPROVAL.
WE W I HAVE A REAL ECHO GOING ON.
DO WE KNOW WHY THAT'S HAPPENING? AND IT LOOKS LIKE I HAVE UNANIMOUS APPROVAL.
WE DIDN'T KNOW WHY IT WAS HAPPENING.
WELL, OUR NEXT ITEM IS THE REVIEW OF THE AGENDA, BUT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO WAIT FOR A MOMENT TO SEE IF THE ARTICLE CLICKS.
AM I THE ONLY ONE HEARING THE ECHO? NO, YOU'RE NOT JOE.
AND IT'S DRIVING ME INSANE AND IT MIGHT HELP IF WE GET EVERYBODY WHO'S NOT SPEAKING RIGHT NOW TO MUTE THEIR DEVICE.
[5. AGENDA REVIEW]
HAS EVERYBODY HAD A CHANCE TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE AGENDA FOR THE COUNTY COUNCIL MEETING? AND IF SO, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU WOULD HAVE ABOUT ANY ITEM ON THE COUNTY COUNCIL AGENDA? WHETHER IT'S THE PUBLIC HEARINGS AND ACTIONS OR THE CONSENT AGENDA LOOKS LIKE WE'VE GOT THE AUDIO CLEANED UP AND EVERYBODY CAN HEAR.UH, ARE THERE, THERE'S NO QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT? YOU DO UNDERSTAND IN THE CONSENT AGENDA, THESE ITEMS HAVE BEEN REVIEWED BY EVERYBODY.
I WILL BE CALLING FOR A MOTION AND SECOND, I WILL NOT READ THE INDIVIDUAL ITEMS, BUT I WILL JUST SAY, WE'RE GOING TO PROVIDE FOR THE CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS ONE THROUGH NINE.
AND IN PARTICULAR ITEM, NUMBER TWO IS THE SECOND READING OF AN ORDINANCE FOR THE DOCUMENTS.
THE, THE SETTLEMENT LITIGATION HAS TAKEN PLACE.
EVERYBODY HAS SIGNED OFF ON EVERYTHING REGARDING THAT.
SO WE'RE APPROVING THE SETTLEMENT THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN DONE.
CHAIRMAN ROOMMATE CHAPTER UNDER THE CONSENT AGENDA, WE ACTUALLY SHOULD.
WE CAN DO IT BRIEFLY, BUT EACH ITEM SHOULD BE MENTIONED BRIEFLY BY THE COMMITTEE CHAIRS, BECAUSE FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE TUNING IN, THEY DON'T HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT, THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IT.
THEY MAY NOT HAVE READ THE AGENDA, AND THIS IS A GOOD CHANCE TO LET PEOPLE KNOW THE MAGNITUDE, THE KIND OF THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING, BECAUSE SOME OF THESE ARE BIG CONTRACTS THAT WERE JUST APPROVED.
AND WE, WE WILL TAKE THAT UP WITH THE REPORTS MR. TAYLOR.
BUT WHAT COUNSEL IS THAT BEING ASKED TO VOTE ON WITH REGARDS TO THE WHITE HOLE MATTER IS ONLY SECOND READING OF THE ORDINANCE GRANTING THAT ALL MATTERS FOR TAKING CARE OF WHAT'S.
THANK YOU FOR CLARIFYING THAT.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THE AGENDA
[00:05:01]
SEEING NONE?[6. NEW BUSINESS]
IS THERE ANY NEW BUSINESS TO COME BEFORE? UM, COUNTY COUNCIL BEFORE WE GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION? IF I MIGHT SEEING NONE.HELLO? YOU CAN'T HEAR ME PURSUANT TO SOUTH CAROLINA CODE 30 DASH FOUR DASH 70.
GO AHEAD, BRIAN, CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? I CAN.
UM, I'M WONDERING IF YOU CAN GIVE US AN UPDATE ON THE PROCESS WE'RE GOING TO BE USING TO HIRE A NEW ADMINISTRATOR.
UM, YOU KNOW, I THOUGHT THAT THAT WAS GOING TO BE SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD, UH, DISPLAY, UH, YOU KNOW, WE CERTAINLY CAN DISCUSS IT NOW UNDER NEW BUSINESS, IF YOU COULD GIVE US JUST AN IDEA OF HOW WE'RE GOING TO BE DOING IT, WHAT THE PROCESS.
UM, YOU KNOW, I HADN'T THOUGHT ABOUT THE PROCESS AS YET.
UH, I WOULD CERTAINLY HAVE BE OPEN TO ANY SUGGESTION FROM A COUNTY COUNCIL.
I KNOW WHAT WAS DONE IN THE PAST.
UM, I KNOW THAT WE HIRED A FIRM TO DO THAT.
I, I DON'T REMEMBER WHAT THE CONTRACT WAS, HOW LONG IT WAS FOR WHAT THE COST WAS.
UM, DID WE LIKE THAT PARTICULAR FIRM, DID WE LIKED THE WAY IT WAS DONE IN HANDLED? UM, I KNOW THAT WHEN WE WERE TRYING TO GET AN INTERIM COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR THAT WAS SOMEWHAT PROBLEMATIC, WE, WE ONLY HAD SIX APPLICANTS, UH, FIVE OF WHICH DROPPED OUT AT THE END.
ONE OF WHICH, UM, SAID THAT MEANT, WELL, MAYBE, MAYBE NOT.
UH, AND SO WE, WE WENT IN DIFFERENT DIRECTION AND WENT IN-HOUSE TO PUT IN OUR INTERIM, UH, I KNOW OF FULL WELL, WHAT HILTON HEAD ISLAND DID REGARDING THEIR HIRING OF THEIR ADMINISTRATOR, WHICH WAS SOMEWHAT PROBLEMATIC.
SO, UM, WHAT'S THE PLEASURE OF COUNCIL? WHAT DO, WHAT DOES COUNCIL FEEL THAT WE SHOULD DO IN GETTING A FULL-TIME PERSON? SURE.
A LOT OF DETAILS, CLEARLY, MR. CHAIRMAN, IF I STILL HAVE YOUR ATTENTION WOULD NEED TO BE WORKED OUT IN, UM, AN EXECUTIVE SESSION.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK IF YOU GET SOME GUIDANCE ABOUT WHAT, WHAT PART OF THIS DISCUSSION SHOULD BE HELD IN EXECUTIVE SESSIONS VERSUS WHAT SHOULD BE OPEN, UM, WOULD BE VALUABLE TO YOU.
AND, UM, AND YOU KNOW, AS FAR AS, UM, THE PROCESS GOES, I'M, I'M ALL FOR HIRING A SEARCH FIRM, AGAIN, A NATIONAL SEARCH FIRM LIKE WE DID LAST TIME.
I THINK THE ONE THAT WE HIRED LAST TIME, UM, WHERE WE ENDED UP WITH ASHLEY JACOBS WOULD PROBABLY BE JUST FINE.
UH, SARAH MCKEE DID A GOOD JOB FOR US.
SHE GAVE US A, A VALUABLE VIABLE CANDIDATE.
AND I THINK, UM, A LOT OF THE THINGS WITH MINOR CHANGES COULD, UH, COULD, COULD WORK AGAIN FOR US.
AND THAT'S MY RECOMMENDATION TO YOU, SIR.
IS THERE ANY OTHER COUNCIL MEMBER, UM, THAT WANTS TO WEIGH IN ON WHAT WE SHOULD TALK ABOUT OR DO STU DID YOU HAVE YOUR HAND RAISED? I JUST THINK IT'S A DISCUSSION FOR EXECUTIVE SESSION PICK.
DO I GET DOWN TO PICKING THE FIRM AND THE PROCESS? CAUSE WE, I THINK IT FALLS UNDER PERSONNEL.
MS. HOWARD, I CONCUR WAS DO I THINK WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT AN EXECUTIVE SESSION? OKAY.
UM, NOW IT IS NOT ON THIS EXECUTIVE SESSION AGENDA.
UM, UH, AND SO, YOU KNOW, WE'LL, I GUESS WHAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO DO IS TO SET ASIDE TIME IN THE EXECUTIVE SESSION AT OUR NEXT MEETING, THEREFORE WE CAN GET ALL OF THE, UM, INFORMATION THAT WOULD BE NECESSARY AS TO WHAT WE DID LAST TIME SO THAT ALL OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS CAN WEIGH IN ON WHAT WE DID, HOW WE DID, WHAT THEY LIKE, WHAT THEY DID, LIKE WHAT WE NEED TO DO GOING FORWARD.
WE CAN FAIR IT OUT IN AN EXECUTIVE SESSION.
MR. GLOVER, AND THEN MR. FLOWERING.
THANK YOU, MR. CHAIRMAN RETREAT.
IS THERE A TIME THAT WE COULD DEDICATE TO THAT? IS THAT POSSIBLE? OH, SURE.
WE, WE ARE JUST PUTTING THE, UH, ENTIRE RETREAT
[00:10:01]
TOGETHER.SO THERE'S THE POSSIBILITY THAT THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE COULD, UM, UH, DEAL WITH.
UH, IF I COULD BE, THE ONLY THING I WANTED TO ADD IS THAT THE TIME IS KIND OF GETTING AWAY FROM US ON THIS.
IT'S BEEN QUITE A WHILE AND WE'VE NOT REALLY BEGUN THE PROCESS OF HIRING A FULL-TIME ADMINISTRATOR.
AND SO I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE WE PUT A SENSE OF URGENCY BEHIND THAT.
UM, YOU KNOW, NOW IS THE TIME TO BEGIN THE SEARCH, BECAUSE WHAT USUALLY HAPPENS AT THIS TIME OF THE YEAR IS ADMINISTRATORS WHO ARE DESIRING TO MOVE.
UM, THEY DO NOT WANT TO MOVE OR DO ANYTHING UNTIL AFTER THEIR AUDITS HAVE BEEN DONE AND THEY'RE CLOSING OUT THEIR PARTICULAR AUDITS.
SO THIS IS THE APPROPRIATE TIME THAT, UH, PEOPLE WOULD BE LOOKING TO MOVE, UM, AND GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS AND PROCEDURE, UH, YOU KNOW, GIVING THEIR PARTICULAR COUNTIES, UM, NOTICE, UH, YOU KNOW, WHETHER IT'S 30 DAYS, 60 DAYS, 90 DAYS PUTS THEM TOWARDS THE END OF THEIR FISCAL YEAR IN MANY CASES.
SO IT IS AN APPROPRIATE TIME FOR US TO BEGIN.
[EXECUTIVE SESSION]
OKAY.UH, MAY I HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION? WE'RE GOING IN A PLATOON PUR AS A RESULT OF A SOUTH CAROLINA CODE, SECTION 34 DASH 72 TO DISCUSS NEGOTIATIONS, UM, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND OTHER ITEMS. UH, THERE MAY BE MATTERS ARISING OUT OF EXECUTIVE SESSION, AND IF THEY ARE THE, UH, THE CAUCUS WILL THEN MAKE A MOTION TO MOVE THAT ITEM TO THE COUNCIL MEETING AT THE APPROPRIATE TIME.
SO A MOTION PLEASE, FOR EXECUTIVE MR. CHAIRMAN, MR. GLOVER, YOU MADE THE MOTION.
SECOND, MR. CUNNINGHAM, YOU MADE THE SECOND, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF CLOSED SESSION, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND AND IT LOOKS TO BE UNANIMOUS.
WE'LL WAIT FOR WE'VE COME OUT OF THE EXECUTIVE SESSION.
UM, MATTERS ARISING OUT OF THE EXECUTIVE SESSION.
UM, SARAH, DO WE HAVE ANY CITIZEN COMMENTS FROM THE CAUCUS MEETING THAT YOU ARE AWARE OF? THE ANSWER IS NO.