* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:01] THE [1. CALL TO ORDER] BEAUFORT COUNTY STORMWATER MANAGEMENT UTILITY BOARD ON DECEMBER 10TH AT 2:00 PM WE NEED TO APPROVE THE AGENDA. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE TO TODAY'S AGENDA? I SO MOVE. SECOND. SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? MOTION CARRIES. UH, NEXT ORDER OF BUSINESS IS THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM OCTOBER 15TH. I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES. WE'LL MAKE THAT MOTION. I SECOND. SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? NO ADDITIONS OR CORRECTIONS. THE MINUTES OF OCTOBER 15TH. STAND APPROVED. AT [2. INTRODUCTIONS] THIS TIME, WE WILL DO INTRODUCTIONS AND WE WILL START ON MY LEFT. STEVE ANDREWS, NORTHERN BEFORD COUNTY, ED WARNER, HILTON HEAD, DENNIS ROSS AT LARGE. MARK FEINBERG, REPRESENTING UNINCORPORATED DISTRICT NINE AND DUSSE ISLAND. UH, THEY WILLIS TOWN OF PORT OIL. NATE FAROH, CITY OF BEAUFORT. ANDREA AND MORENO, TOWN OF LUPTON. JACOB TERRY, TOWNVILLE HEADED ISLAND. PATRICK MITCHELL, REPRESENTING LADIES ISLAND. TOM RES, BUFORD COUNTY COUNCIL. LAURA WILSON. JIM LADEN, IJO. JENNY LA ROBERTS WATER QUALITY LAB. SURE. HONOR. CITIZEN, YOU GO. OH, ALICE HOWARD COUNTY COUNCIL, ER PRIMO, CLEMSON EXTENSION. MICHELLE STRADER, BEAVERT COUNTY STORM, TAYLOR BREWER, BEAVERT COUNTY STORMWATER MANAGER, AND SALLY MCLEOD. SOLID WASTE RECYCLING. I WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR COMING TODAY. UH, AND, UH, WE WILL NOT MEET AGAIN BEFORE THE HOLIDAYS, SO I WISH EVERYONE, THEMSELVES AND THEIR FAMILIES A VERY HEALTHY AND HAPPY HOLIDAY. AND WE WILL PROBABLY SEE YOU SOMETIME IN THE NEW YEAR. IT'S LIKE FEBRUARY, UH, WOULD BE OUR NEXT MEETING. UH, [3. PUBLIC COMMENT] AT THIS STAGE, UH, WE HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT AND ANYONE WHO WISHES TO MAKE ANY PUBLIC STATEMENTS CAN COME FORWARD AT THIS TIME. I WILL RECOGNIZE THEM. PLEASE IDENTIFY YOURSELF. AND YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES. IS THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT TODAY? GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS KURT CHAPMAN. I LIVE AT SIX TURTLE LANE. YOU PROBABLY KNOW THAT ADDRESS. UM, RIGHT NOW I'M THE ONLY ONE OF MY NEIGHBORS HERE. UH, ONE HAD TO LEAVE WORK LATE, AND THE OTHER THREE NEIGHBORS UNFORTUNATELY WENT TO THE BLUFFTON LIBRARY, SO YOU MIGHT HEAR FROM THEM LATER. UM, FIRST OF ALL, I DID WANT TO POINT OUT THAT, UM, THE SUPREME COURT HAS UPHELD THE FREEDOM OF SPEECH NUMEROUS TIMES IN PUBLIC MEETINGS. SO YOUR ADMONISHMENT AT THE BEGINNING IS BOTH INACCURATE AND, UH, INCOMPLETE. BE THAT AS IT MAY. I DID WANT TO CONTACT Y'ALL AND THANK TAYLOR PUBLICLY FOR THE WORK THAT SHE HAS SPEARHEADED SINCE WE WERE HERE IN AUGUST. YOU MAY REMEMBER THERE WERE 31 INCHES OF RAIN THAT FLOODED, UH, MANY PARTS OF LADIES ISLAND. WE WERE HERE. WE WERE NOT HAPPY. I'M NOT HAPPY, I'M STILL NOT HAPPY, BUT I'M NOT AS UNHAPPY. IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING, YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT SOME PROGRESS IS, IS BEING SHOWN. UH, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO THAT. AND WE HOPE THAT THIS COMMITTEE, THIS WORKING GROUP, WILL STRONGLY SUPPORT THE WORK AND THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE PUBLIC WORKS AND THE STORM WATER UTILITY MANAGER. UM, AS YOU KNOW, WE ARE STILL EIGHT INCHES OF RAIN AHEAD FOR THE YEAR. THERE IS STILL A FLOODING PROBLEM ON LADIES ISLAND, ON BOTH OUR STREET AS WELL AS ON THE STREET BEHIND US. UM, IS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THE, THE COUNTY LEGAL DEPARTMENT HAS MOVED FORWARD AND HAS GIVEN CLEARANCE FOR CERTAIN PROVISIONS THAT MAY BE USED. AND I ENCOURAGE, UH, THAT TO, TO BE LOOKED INTO VERY, VERY QUICKLY. UM, IT IS ALSO MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THE COUNTY IS IN ACTIVE DISCUSSIONS WITH THE OWNERS OF THE OLD GOLF COURSE THAT SHUT DOWN 20 YEARS AGO. UH, AND I ENCOURAGE THAT TO HAPPEN. I ALSO KNOW THAT YOU ALL HAVE THE MONEY. YOU DON'T NEED TO SAY, WE DON'T HAVE THE MONEY BECAUSE YOU DO HAVE THE MONEY. UM, SO I ENCOURAGE THAT TO HAPPEN. UH, FURTHER, IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT [00:05:01] THERE IS A FIX. AND PART OF THAT FIX IS TO TAKE PARTS, PORTIONS OF THE OLD GOLF COURSE, TURN IT INTO A PASSIVE PARK, AND TO ALLOW IT TO BECOME A WET, DRY OVERFLOW TYPE DETENTION POND. DOESN'T TAKE A LOT OF MONEY. THE STUDY THAT YOU ALL PAID FOR ALREADY, UH, THREE, FOUR YEARS AGO, HAS LAID THAT OUT PERFECTLY. SO I ENCOURAGE THAT. I THANK TAYLOR PUBLICLY, UH, FOR THE WORK SHE'S DONE AND THE PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR, AND ESPECIALLY THE PUBLIC WORKS GROUPS. UH, THEY'VE DONE GOOD, GOOD WORK. AND I'D LIKE IT TO SEE IT CONTINUE. UH, I HOPE, AND I DON'T WANT TO THREATEN, BUT IF THERE'S NOT SOMETHING DONE BEFORE NEXT HURRICANE SEASON, GONNA BE REALLY ANGRY. AND TO QUOTE DR. BANNER, YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE ME WHEN I'M MAD. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I'LL STAND BY. THANK YOU. UH, LET ME JUST STATE FOR THE RECORD, UH, WE SUPPORT, UH, TAYLOR AND STEVEN CARTER BACK THERE WHO REPRESENTS THE PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY GO OUT AND CLEAN THE ROADSIDE DITCHES AND TAKE CARE OF A LOT OF FLOODING PROBLEMS WITHIN THE COUNTY. UH, WE ARE HERE TO HEAR FROM THE PUBLIC. THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS WE ARE YOUR OMBUDSMAN. WE, UH, ENSURE THAT THE BUDGET REQUEST, UH, THAT MADE, IT'S MADE BY THE DEPARTMENT, UH, UH, HOLDS MUSTER, AND WE, UH, TRY TO HELP THEM ALLOCATE THE FUNDS TO WHERE IT'S MOST NECESSARY. SO, UH, YOUR COMMENTS, UH, ARE TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION ALL THE TIME. THERE. ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS? CHAIR, CHAIRMAN FEINBERG, MEMBERS OF THE STORM WATER UTILITY BOARD, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK AND YOUR EXTRAORDINARY SERVICE TO THE RESIDENTS OF BEAUFORT COUNTY. MY NAME IS JIM LAWTON. I LIVE AT 52 OYSTER STREET. IN THE ALL JOY COMMUNITY, WE SEEM TO BE AT AN INFLECTION POINT. THE LONG AWAITED DELAYED DRAINAGE STUDY IS SOMEWHERE IN PROGRESS. THE DEBRIS FENCES ARE GOING IN ALONG AJOY ROAD FOR THE BIKE PATH MOST OF US DON'T WANT. AND THE FIRST STEPS TO BRING A SEWER SYSTEM DOWN TO US IS AFOOT. THE ALL JOY COMMUNITY IS GETTING THE REPUTATION OF ASKING FOR TOO MUCH. WHY THEN AM I UP HERE COMMENTING? THERE ARE CONSEQUENCES TO DEVELOPMENT IN THE LOW COUNTRY. AND THAT FALLS ON THE, THE THING WE MOST DEARLY VALUE, THE CREEKS AND RIVERS THAT MAKE UP OUR SALTWATER ESTUARY. IT IS WELL-FOUNDED THAT OUR PRESENCE IS HAVING AN EFFECT ON THE HEALTH AND VIABILITY FOR WILDLIFE, INCLUDING US IN THE COASTAL ZONE. WE ARE AT A POLITICAL IMBALANCE HERE WITH THE COUNTY AND MUNICIPALITIES OF THE LOW COUNTRY, JUGGLING THE FORCES OF DEVELOPMENT WITH THE INEVITABLE COMPROMISES TO OUR ENVIRONMENT. WE ARE LEFT WITH THE QUESTION, HOW MANY COMPROMISES IN TERMS OF POPULATION GROWTH, PROLIFERATION OF IMPERVIOUS SURFACES ULTIMATELY FLOWING INTO OUR RIVERS AND CREEKS? ARE WE WILLING TO TAKE BEFORE WE'VE SOILED THEM FOREVER? HERE'S THE POINT. IF THE DRAINAGE STU STUDY IS TRULY HAPPENING DOWN HERE, THEN WE KNOW NEED TO KNOW THE FACTS. WHERE'S THE FLOW? IF IT IS TAINTED, WHERE'S IT COMING FROM? WHAT IS THE CONDITION OF THE OUTFALL PIPES AROUND THE COUNTY? I KNOW OF AT LEAST TWO, WHICH ARE A THOUSAND FEET FROM ONE ANOTHER THAT ARE FUNCTIONAL FAILURES. THOSE ARE ON OYSTER STREET. WE HAVE NEW OUTFALLS MOVING OVERFLOW OFF THE ALL JOINT BIKE PATH GOING INTO THE MAY ARE THE MITIGATION MEASURES, THE COUNTY'S ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT FLAUNTS REALLY DOING THEIR JOB. AND HOW THE HELL WILL WE KNOW IF IT WAS? THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENT? I I WILL SAY FOR THE RECORD, THAT WE HAVE HAD ALL JOY, UH, IN OUR HEADLIGHTS FOR OVER TWO YEARS. UH, WE ARE NOT GOING AWAY. WE ARE NOT GOING TO LET ALL JOY GO AWAY. UH, THIS BOARD'S, UH, OVERWHELMING SUPPORT FOR PERVIOUS WHITE PATH IS WELL KNOWN. UH, I CAN'T SAY ANYTHING MORE ABOUT IT OTHER THAN THE WAY IT IS, IS THE WAY IT IS. THANK YOU. UH, IF THERE BE, [4. REPORTS] IF THERE BEING NO [00:10:01] FURTHER PUBLIC COMMENT AT THIS TIME, WE WILL MOVE TO REPORTS MONITORING, UPDATE BY DR. PETTY OR HIS ASSISTANT. HELLO. UM, WITH THE WATER WE GOT THE RAINFALL, WE GOT, I'M SORRY, WITH THE RAINFALL WE GOT ABOUT A WEEK AGO NOW. WE WERE ABLE TO FINISH UP OUR QUARTER FOUR WET SAMPLING EVENTS FOR THIS END OF THE YEAR QUARTER. UM, AND WE'LL, WE'RE WORKING ON, WE'RE PROCESSING OUR SAMPLES AND OUR ANALYSES RIGHT NOW, AND ONCE THAT'S DONE, WE'LL HAVE COMPLETED ALL OF OUR SAMPLING FOR THE 2025 CALENDAR YEAR. UM, WE'RE ALSO WORKING ON SOME TURNOVER WITH OUR PERSONNEL. OUR ASSISTANT, MIKAYLA BROWN, SHE GRADUATED AS A STUDENT LAST YEAR AND SHE HAD HER LAST WEEK WITH US THIS WEEK. SO WE ARE WORKING ON FILLING HER ROLE AND BRINGING IN SOME NEW STUDENTS TO KIND OF FILL THE GAP THAT SHE'S LEAVING, BUT SHE'S MOVING BACK HOME TO PURSUE, YOU KNOW, THE NEXT STEPS IN HER CAREER AS WELL. UM, WE'RE CONTINUING CONTINUING OUR MONITORING PROJECTS FOR THE TOWN OF BLUFFTON AND WITH THE PORT ROYAL SOUND FOUNDATION, UM, DOING OUR MONTHLY SAMPLING FOR THEM, MS FOUR SAMPLING, UM, ANALYSES, AND THEN THE PORT ROYAL SOUND FOUNDATION, CITIZEN MONO MONITORING PROJECT. WE'RE CONTINUING TO WORK WITH THEM ON THAT AND PROCESSING THEIR SAMPLES FOR THAT. AND THEN WE ARE ALSO, ALSO STILL CONTINUING TO WORK ON OUR IN-HOUSE NUTRIENT ANALYZER, BRINGING THAT ONLINE. AND WE'RE ACTUALLY RUNNING OUR FIRST STUDENT COLLECTED SAMPLES THIS WEEK ON THAT. SO THAT'S GONNA EXPAND THE AMOUNT OF IN-HOUSE ANALYSES THAT OUR LABORATORY CAN DO AND, UM, GIVE THE STUDENTS ON HAND SOME MORE EXPERIENCE WITH REAL WORLD ANALYSIS THAT THEY'LL BE DOING AFTER GRADUATION TOO. GREAT STUFF. CAN, CAN I ASK YOU A QUESTION? OF COURSE. WILL, WILL YOU PUBLISH A 2025 REPORT SOMETIME EARLY IN 2026 OR THIS PAST YEAR'S DATA? CORRECT. MONITORING A TABULATION HAS, I'M, I'M NOT SURE IF I'VE EVER SEEN ONE, BUT I I WAS GONNA SAY, HAVE, HAS THAT BEEN DONE IN THE PAST? I DON'T THINK. POSSIBLY NOT, BUT IT MIGHT BE GREAT DATA FOR US TO LOOK AT. I'LL WORK WITH, WORK WITH TAYLOR AND WITH SOMETHING ELSE. YEAH, I THINK THAT ABSOLUTELY. REALLY BENEFICIAL FOR US TO SEE. THANK YOU. YEAH. THANK YOU FOR YOUR REPORT. YES, THANK YOU. NEXT UP IS OUR MUNICIPAL PARTNERS, AND I AM SO GRATEFUL THAT ALL OF THEM ARE IN ATTENDANCE TODAY. THIS IS, UH, MAYBE THE FIRST TIME THIS YEAR. WE'VE HAD ALL OF THEM IN ATTENDANCE AT THE SAME TIME. SO WELCOME ALL, AND WE'LL STAND START WITH VAN WILLIS. HEY, HOW ARE YOU? HI, MAN. UM, IN NOVEMBER, OUR ENGINEERS MADE A PRESENTATION ON THE UPDATE TO OUR STORMWATER MASTER PLAN. YOU MAY TELL THOSE PEOPLE WHO YOU ARE, WHO YOU REPRESENT. THEY THEY HEARD AT THE BEGINNING TOWN POOL. OH, OKAY. UM, WE JUST DID AN UPDATE TO OUR STORMWATER MASTER PLAN, INCLUDING ALL OF THE, UH, THE BASIN INFORMATION, UH, WHICH INCLUDED, UH, KIND OF A CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS PROGRAM, UH, FLESH OUT, UH, IN TERMS OF PRIORITY AND COST, WHICH WE'LL BE EXAMINING, TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE'RE GONNA PAY FOR INITIALLY. WE'RE ALSO WRAPPING UP, WE WERE JUST TALKING, UH, ONE OF THE IRA DRAINAGE PROJECTS, UM, FOR WEST PARIS AVENUE. ONCE WE CLOSE THAT ONE OUT, WE'LL BE ABLE TO MOVE ON TO THE VILLAGES. BUT, UH, THE, YOU'VE WORKED WITH IRIA, UM, OBVIOUSLY WE'VE GOTTA MAKE SURE THAT OUR CHRONOLOGY'S DONE CORRECTLY AND OBVIOUSLY WE'RE FACING, UH, YOU KNOW, DEADLINES WITH ARPA FUNDS. SO WE'LL BE MOVING THAT FORWARD. UH, THOSE ARE THE TWO SIGNIFICANT CAPITAL PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE GOING ON, BUT OBVIOUSLY WE'LL BE PICKING UP OVER THE NEXT TWO OR THREE YEARS THE ADDITIONAL PROJECTS THAT ARE A RESULT OF THAT. UH, MASTER PLANS. THANK YOU. UH, CITY OF BEAUFORT, WE HAVE, UH, THREE BIGGER PROJECTS GOING ON. UH, EVERYONE KNOWS THE PROJECT THAT IS GOING FROM THE WATERFRONT PARK UP CHARLES STREET IT RIGHT NOW HAS THE INTERSECTION OF CHARLES AND BAY CLOSED. UH, THAT PROJECT CONTINUES TO MOVE ALONG SLOWLY. UM, BUT WE DO HAVE A NEW INTERIM CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT DIRECTOR, UM, BRIAN RANGER, WHO IS LEADING UP THAT, UH, PROJECT AND GETTING THE FEEL FOR EVERYTHING SO THAT WE CAN KEEP THAT PROJECT MOVING ALONG AS SWIFTLY AS POSSIBLE. WE'VE ALSO STARTED THE EARLY PHASES OF THE KING STREET DRAINAGE PROJECT IN THE POINT, UH, THIS IS JUST THE INITIAL KIND OF, UH, LOOKING FOR UTILITIES, SEEING WHAT'S UNDERGROUND RIGHT NOW, TO, TO HOPEFULLY NOT MAKE ANY MORE DISRUPTIONS AS ALREADY IT'S GOING TO BE. AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE THE WATERFRONT ADVISORY COMMITTEE THAT'S CONTINUING TO MEET AND, UH, MAKING DECISIONS FOR WHERE WE WANT TO SEE THE WATERFRONT PARK AND THE, UH, UPGRADES IN THE FUTURE AND THE REPAIRS. SO, UH, EVERYTHING CAN BE SEEN ON THE CITY OF BEAUFORT WEBSITE. YOU CAN GO TO THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PAGE, AND THERE IS A LIST OF ALL THE PROJECTS THAT ARE GOING ON IN THE CITY RIGHT NOW. THANK YOU. I HAVE SEVERAL UPDATES FOR YOU FOR THE TOWN OF BLUFFTON, BUT, UM, OUR MS FOUR ANNUAL [00:15:01] REPORTING YEAR IS COMING TO A CLOSE. SO, UM, BEAUFORT COUNTIES, OURSELVES AND HILTON HEADS ARE ALL DUE TO THE STATE AND, UM, BEGINNING OF APRIL, SO WE'VE GOTTA START GETTING THAT READY. UM, THE TOWN WILL BE ROLLING OUT A STORM DRAIN ART PILOT PROJECT AFTER THE NEW YEAR. THIS IS GOING TO START OUT AS A PILOT PROJECT, UM, AIM TOWARDS MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL AGE STUDENTS THAT IT'LL BASICALLY BE, THEY DESIGN AN ART, WE PICK ONE FOR EACH SCHOOL AND IT'LL BE A VINYL DECAL TRANSFER VERSUS LIKE ACTUALLY PAINTING ON A STORM STORM DRAIN. UM, SO THAT'LL AGAIN, BEGIN AFTER THE KICKOFF, AFTER THE NEW YEAR, SELECT ART IN MARCH. AND THEN WE WILL INSTALL THE DECALS IN JUNE OF NEXT YEAR. UM, WE DO HAVE AN OPEN POSITION FOR A STORMWATER TECHNICIANS, SO SPREAD THE WORD. UM, WE ALSO HAVE ROLLED OUT A PETWAY STATION PROGRAM. SO FOLLOWING THE TOWN'S WORK WITH, UM, DR. PATTY'S LAB AND THE MST PROGRAM, ANYTIME WE GET REPEATED DOG HITS, UM, FOR FECAL CALL FOR, WE ARE GONNA START KIND OF PROMOTING. THE TOWN WILL GIVE AND PROVIDE UP TO FIVE PETWAY STATIONS THAT THEN THAT H-O-A-P-O-A PROPERTY MANAGEMENT GROUP, WHOMEVER IT MAY BE, IS THEN RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING. IT'S ALSO OPEN TO EVEN AREAS WHERE WE HAVEN'T RECEIVED, UM, LIKE REPEATED HITS IF THEY'RE WITHIN A CERTAIN PROXIMITY TO THE MARYBOROUGH WATERSHED THAT THEY'RE ELIGIBLE. UM, IT'S ALL ON OUR WEBSITE. UM, LET'S SEE, WHAT ELSE WE AN UPDATE ON THE COMPREHENSIVE DRAINAGE PROGRAM. UM, SO WE, THE TOWN IS FINALIZING THE OWNER ASSET REPORT FOR CROOKED AND GARAGE COVE. AND AGAIN, THE COMPREHENSIVE DRAINAGE STUDIES ARE FOCUSED ON THE VILLE WATERSHED RIGHT NOW AND ON THE SUB WATERSHEDS, UM, THEY'RE SCHEDULED TO BEGIN ROSE DUE, UM, SUB BASIN THIS FISCAL YEAR. ROSE DUE IS THE BIGGEST OF ALL OF THEM. UM, AND THEN THE UG AND VERDE WATER SUB WATERSHEDS, UM, WERE SUBMITTED AS PART OF A HAZARD MITIGATION GRANT THROUGH, UM, S-C-E-M-D. SO WE SHOULD HEAR BACK SOON IF THAT HAS BEEN AWARDED. UM, WE ALSO HAVE A RESILIENCE PLAN RFQU OUT AND OUT FOR BED CURRENTLY, AND THAT'LL CLOSE THE 18TH. UM, CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHAT THAT IS? SO, AS PART OF SOUTH CAROLINA, YOU ARE REQUIRED, MUNICIPALITIES ARE REQUIRED TO IMPLEMENT A RESILIENCE PLAN. AND SO THIS IS JUST PUTTING THAT OUT FOR A BID. UM, WE ARE ALSO PLANNING REVISIONS TO THE TOWN'S WETLAND ORDINANCE, AND THAT'LL BE GOING FOR TOWN COUNCIL WORKSHOP IN JANUARY, THE END OF JANUARY. UM, WE'VE ALSO GOT A, UM, AND FOR THE MAYOR OF WATERSHED ACTION PLAN UPDATE, THERE IS A 2025 WATER QUALITY MODEL FOR THE MAYOR RIVER HEADWATERS. THAT WILL BE, UM, COMPARED TO 2018 AND 2002 BASELINE MODEL OUTPUTS. AND THEN SEPARATELY, NOT TO CONFUSE THE MAY RIVER STUFF, BUT THERE IS ALSO THEN A FINAL REPORT ON THE MAYOR RIVER BASELINE ASSESSMENT UPDATE THAT WAS CONDUCTED BY DNR. WE'VE RECEIVED THAT AND WE'LL BE PUT ON OUR WEBSITE SHORTLY. AND THEN LASTLY, UM, WE ARE IN THE MIDST OF OUR BUDGETING FOR FISCAL YEAR 27. I HAVE A QUESTION. YES. UH, I GUESS IT WAS, UH, A MONTH OR TWO AGO, UH, MAYOR TUMOR TALKED ABOUT CANINE WASTE BEING THE, THE NUMBER ONE POLLUTANT, UH, FOR BLUFFTON. UH, IS THAT WHAT SPEARHEADED THIS, UH, PET WASTE STATIONS AND YEAH, IT WAS JUST INITIATIVE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE AS STAFF STARTED DOING DOOR HANGERS AND TRYING TO EDUCATE PEOPLE ON PET WASTE, BUT THIS IS SORT OF TAKING AS THE NEXT STEP OF, YOU KNOW, WE, WE'VE NOTICED THAT A LOT OF OUR REPEATED HITS HAVE BEEN IN APARTMENTS. AND SO THIS IS JUST SORT OF THE TOWN'S NEXT STEP TO HELP GET PEOPLE TO PICK UP AFTER THEIR PET FREE WASTE BAGS HELP . YES. I GOT A QUICK QUESTION TOO. YEAH, GO AHEAD. THE, THE STORMWATER DRAIN PART WORK THAT YOU WERE DISCUSSING MM-HMM . AND YOU SAID THESE ARE GONNA BE VINYL APPLICATIONS. MM-HMM . IS THERE GONNA BE A TIMEFRAME WHEN THEY'RE GONNA BE PLACED ON THERE AND THEN THEY'RE GONNA BE PICKED UP? SO THEY WILL BE RELATIVELY PERMANENT? I SAY RELATIVELY PERMANENT BECAUSE THE LIFESPAN OF THESE GUYS, ESPECIALLY IN HIGH TRAFFIC AREAS, WHICH THEY INTEND TO BE, THEY'RE MEANT TO GO IN OLD TOWN WHERE THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, VISIBLE TO THE PUBLIC, UM, IS LIKE A YEAR OR TWO AT MOST. SO THIS WOULD BE SOMETHING THOUGH, WHERE IN THEORY WE ALREADY HAVE THE ARTWORK MM-HMM . AS LIKE A DIGITAL FILE MM-HMM . SO IF WE WANTED TO CONTINUE REPLACING THEM, WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO DO SO. OKAY. I WAS JUST CONCERNED ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN IF THEY DEGRADE, OBVIOUSLY. YEAH. IT'S JUST, UM, IT'S JUST LIKE ANY MARKING ON A ROAD STREET CROSSING, IT'S SIMILAR. OKAY. ALRIGHT. THANKS. LAST BUT NOT LEAST ALL GOOD. UH, CURRENTLY THE TOWN OF HILTON HEAD, TESS. OKAY. THAT'S A LITTLE BIT BETTER. CURRENTLY THE TOWN OF FELT HEADED ISLAND IS UNDERGOING STILL OUR LAND [00:20:01] MANAGEMENT ORDINANCE REWRITE, UM, KIND OF SEEING THAT LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL CURRENTLY. UM, OTHER THAN THAT, WE ARE IN THE WRAP UP SEASON RIGHT NOW FOR OUR FISCAL YEAR OR FOR OUR CALENDAR YEAR FOR ANNUAL REPORTING. SO WE ARE COMPLETING RIGHT NOW, UH, GOOD HOUSEKEEPING AND MUNICIPAL OPERATIONS INSPECTIONS. AND NEXT WEEK UP TO PROBABLY ABOUT CHRISTMAS, WE'LL BE DOING POD INSPECTIONS. UM, OTHER THAN THAT, THAT'S ALL THE TOWN HILL AND HEAD HAS AT THE TIME. UH, I DO HAVE A QUESTION. YEAH. IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING BECAUSE, UH, WE HAVE BEEN CONTACTED BY SEVERAL COMMUNITIES WHO, UH, HAVE HAD STORM WATER ISSUES LATELY, UH, ABOUT, UH, ROADS, UH, THAT WERE EITHER PREVIOUSLY STATE OR COUNTY ROADS BEING TURNED OVER TO THE TOWN OF HILTON HEAD. CAN YOU SPEAK TO ANY OF THAT TODAY? I CANNOT, UNFORTUNATELY, THAT WOULD BE A TRAFFIC, UH, QUESTION FOR THE MOST PART. UM, I'VE HEARD SOME TALK ABOUT IT, BUT THAT'S JUST IN PASSING BY ONLY BECAUSE SOME, SOME OF THE DRAINAGE GOES ALONG WITH THAT. ESPECIALLY, IT, IT WOULD, I MEAN, IT WOULD BE AN ALL ENCOMPASSING PACKAGE PRETTY MUCH FOR TRANSPORTATION AND STORM WATER. SO, BUT I'M NOT ABREAST ENOUGH TO ANSWER THAT AT THIS TIME. OKAY. THANK YOU. I HOPE I DIDN'T MISS NO MA'AM. THANK YOU. YOU'RE WELCOME. AT THIS POINT, WE WOULD LIKE TO, UH, BRING UP MR. CARTER TO TALK ABOUT MAINTENANCE PROJECTS. I WANNA THANK THE MUNICIPAL REPORTERS, YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE AND TAKING YOUR TIME. AFTERNOON EVERYONE. AGAIN, I'M STEVEN CARTER, AVER COUNTY STORM STORMWATER SUPERINTENDENT. UM, TODAY I WANNA SPEAK TO YOU ALL ABOUT SOME OF THE MAJOR AND MINOR PROJECTS THAT STORMWATER HAS HAD COMPLETED. UM, IF YOU LOOK IN THE PACKET, UM, I WON'T BE GOING THROUGH ALL OF 'EM, BUT I'LL, UH, JUST TOUCH BASES ON THE FEW OF 'EM. UM, FIRST ONE I WANT TOUCH BASES ON IS, UM, IN THE LATEST ISLAND AREA, QUIET COVE WAY, AND THE SCOPE OF WORK THAT WAS COMPLETED THERE WAS INSTALLED A CROSS LINE PIPE AND RIP WRAP FOR EROSION CONTROL. AND THE TOTAL COST OF THAT WAS 15,703. IF YOU LOOK DOWN TO, UM, SOME OF THE MINOR PROJECTS, UH, WE HAVE THE TOWN OF HILTON HEAD ON BERKS BEACH ROAD ON HILTON HEAD ISLAND. AND THAT SCOPE OF WORK, UH, CONSISTS OF CLEANING OUT 694 LINEAR FEET OF ROADSIDE DITCH AND JETTING OUT THREE DRIVEWAY PIPES AND FIVE CROSS LINE PIPES. THE TOTAL IMPROVED 690 LINEAR FEET OF DRAINAGE SYSTEM. THAT TOTAL COST WAS 10,512. UM, ANOTHER WE'LL TALK ABOUT, SPEAK ABOUT ANOTHER, UM, MINOR PROJECT, AND IT'S ON, IN THE, IN THE LADIES ISLAND AREA, THE LADIES ISLAND, UH, VALLEY DRAIN THAT CONSIST OF CLEANING OUT THE VALLEY DRAINS SO THE WATER CAN FLOW TO THE CATCH BASINS. AND THAT SCOPE OF WORK CLEANED OUT 28,754 LINEAR FEET OF VALLEY DRAINS, AND THAT TOTAL COST WAS 11,000 7 98. ANY QUESTIONS, UH, AS THE PUBLIC HAS SAID, THANK YOU VERY MUCH TO YOU AND YOUR CREWS FOR THE WORK YOU'VE DONE THIS YEAR. YES, SIR. I GIVE IT ALL TO THE CREWS THAT WORK HARD DAILY. THANK YOU. THIS TIME WE, WE OPEN IT UP FOR A LIAISON REPORT AND OUR, OUR PRINCIPAL LIAISON, UH, TO THE COUNCIL IS, IS, IS NOT HERE TODAY. MRS. BROWN, HER, HER ASSISTANT, UH, COUNCILMAN RITZ IS HERE. UH, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD OR LIKE TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD? WELL, MR. FEINBERG BOARD, UH, EVERYBODY HERE, THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. I APPRECIATE IT. UH, MS. BROWN, UM, ASKED ME TO E EXTEND HER HELLOS AND GREAT HOLIDAY WISHES AND ALL THAT GOOD STUFF. UM, I DON'T NEED GREAT REPORTS SO FAR FROM LADIES ISLAND, ALL JOY. UM, AND IF YOU, YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT IMPERVIOUS STRUCTURES, COME TO HILTON HEAD AND SEE THE SANDY BEACH TRAIL AREA AS TO WHAT'S BEEN DONE THERE AND LEARN FROM THAT AND COMING TOGETHER. AND THAT'S PART OF WHAT I WANT TO BE HERE FOR TODAY IS, UM, THE COOPERATION BETWEEN COUNCILS, UH, MUNICIPALITIES, COUNTY COUNCIL, STORM WATER, LED BY, UH, MS. BREWER AND BRADLEY. AND, UH, SO MANY, UH, JARED FOR ALEX HAS BEEN IN THE LAST 16 MONTHS. INCREDIBLE THE WORK THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO. SO THE FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS WAS TO SAY TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR AN INCREDIBLE YEAR. NOW, WITH THAT SAID, THE PEOPLE WE DEAL WITH, THEY WANT THIS DONE IN LIGHTNING SPEED. SO AGAIN, [00:25:01] IT, IN MY GREAT WISHES AND THANKS ARE, UH, TEMPERED WITH, UM, HEY, WE GOTTA, YOU KNOW, STAY AT IT AND KEEP AT IT. THERE'S AN AWFUL LOT TO BE DONE. UM, OUR WORK TOGETHER CAME TOGETHER 16 MONTHS AGO, UM, STORM DEBBIE, AUGUST 5TH TO EIGHTH. WE STARTED WITH BAIT PINES. THE WORK THAT HAS BEEN DONE THERE, UH, TO THE TUNE OF A FEW HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS OR MORE HAS BEEN INCREDIBLE THAT LED TO WORK AT TIDE POINT. UM, OLD WOODLANDS. WE'RE DOING, WE'RE WORKING ON, UH, BRADLEY, UH, CIRCLE SANDY BEACH TRAIL, THE TEAM. AND, AND ALSO PLEASE KNOW THAT MS. BREWER AND HER TEAM HAVE BEEN OUT TO THESE SITES MANY TIMES, AND I, I STARTED BRINGING 'EM THERE 16 MONTHS AGO. UM, AND THE, AND THE WORK AND THE EFFORT HAS BEEN INCREDIBLE, BUT MUCH MORE HAS TO BE DONE, UH, TO THE TOWN OF HILTON HEAD YESTERDAY WITH A SIX TO ONE VOTE. UM, THE CEDARWOOD ROAD, WOODS ROADS WERE, THEY'RE GONNA BE TALKED ABOUT BRINGING THEM IN HOUSE. UH, THEY WERE PRIVATELY OWNED FOR ALL THESE YEARS AND NOTHING WAS DONE. SO, UH, ONE THING THAT WE LEARNED OVER THE LAST 16 MONTHS IS THAT, UM, WE NEED AN ISLAND-WIDE MASTER DRAINAGE PLAN AND THE TOWN LED BY MARK AND JEFF, WHO I SEE YOU CHANGE YOUR NAME. THAT'S PRETTY GOOD. I LIKE THAT. UM, UH, ACTUALLY, UM, HAS TAKEN THAT ON AND THAT'S ONE OF THEIR GOALS IS TO HAVE AN ISLAND-WIDE MASTER DRAINAGE PLAN. UNBELIEVABLE THAT FOR ALL THESE YEARS SURROUNDED BY WATER. WE NEVER HAD THAT. BUT THE, THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT'S GETTING DONE. SO, UM, THAT'S CEDAR WOODS, UH, ASHTON COVE, UH, IS ANOTHER CHALLENGE OR A PROJECT THAT MR. FEINBERG AND I STARTED. UM, WELL I, SEVERAL MONTHS AGO I STARTED TALKING TO THEM, BUT WE VISITED THAT NEIGHBORHOOD, UH, MARK AND I MET WITH THE PEOPLE, POA, TRAVELED AROUND, SAW ALL THE HOTSPOTS. THAT'S A PROJECT I, UM, UM, BROUGHT TO MIKE MOORE'S ATTENTION AND STORM WATER AS TO HOW ARE WE GONNA ADDRESS AREAS LIKE ASHTON COVE. UM, FOR YEARS THEY HAVEN'T DONE ANY WORK ON THEIR ROADS OR THEIR ASSETS AS THEY CALL 'EM, AS WE CALL 'EM. AND THEY'RE IN A PRETTY BIG BUY NOW FOR HEAVY FLOODING, CONSTANTLY, EVEN WITH NO NAME STORMS. SO THOSE ARE SOME OF THE THINGS WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO DEAL WITH. UM, UH, OLD WOODLANDS. UM, I HEARD SOME GOOD THINGS, MS. BREWER WAS THERE RECENTLY, AND THERE'S SOME THINGS THAT WE CAN DO THERE TO HELP MITIGATE SOME OF THOSE PROBLEMS. I THINK THAT'S INCREDIBLE. UM, I, I, I KNOW WE'RE IN COOPERATION WITH THE TOWN OF HILTON HEAD FOR PLACES LIKE POINT COMFORT, POINT COMFORT CLUB, AND THOSE AREAS, WHICH, UM, HAVE BEEN DEVASTATED WITH WATER AS WELL AND NEVER ADDRESSED, BUT NOW THEY ARE. SO THAT'S VERY GOOD NEWS. UM, ONE OF THE KEY THINGS THAT I, I, AS WE END OUR LAST MEETING OF THIS YEAR IS, CAN WE PUT TOGETHER, AND, AND IT'S SORT OF WITH ME, I HAVE A RUNNING LIST OF PROJECTS, BUT CAN WE HAVE MAYBE THIS GROUP HERE HELP PUT TOGETHER A LIST OF, AND MAYBE YOU HAVE 'EM, MR. FEINBERG, I, I IMAGINE YOU DO THE WAY YOU DO THINGS. UM, I, I'M GONNA INTERRUPT YOU AND YOUR TEAM. 'CAUSE I THINK WHERE YOU'RE GETTING AT IS WHAT YOU'LL HEAR, UH, UH, BY MS. BREWER, UH, A PROJECTS REPORT OF ALL THE PROJECTS THAT THE COUNTY HAS GOING ON RELATIVE TO STORMWATER. IS THAT, LISTEN, I THINK THAT'S GREAT AND, AND AGAIN, I'LL LEAVE IT WITH THIS NOTE. THERE'S SO MUCH, I MEAN, I CAN GO THROUGH A, A LITANY OF THINGS, BUT, UM, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS WHAT WE'VE LEARNED IN 16 MONTHS AND WHAT WE'VE ACCOMPLISHED IS INCREDIBLE, BUT THERE'S SO MUCH MORE TO DO AND TO OUR FRIENDS AT ALL, JOY, KEEP THE FAITH. UM, FOLKS THAT GENTLEMAN FROM, UM, LADIES ISLAND KEEP THE FAITH BECAUSE YOU'VE GOT PEOPLE HERE THAT ACTUALLY CARE ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON. AND UM, I'M FIRSTHAND KNOWLEDGE OF THAT BRINGING IT TO YOU AS A REPRESENTATIVE OF ABOUT 18,000 PEOPLE. PROBABLY 40,000 ON HILTON HEAD. BUT, UM, THE WORK THEY'VE DONE IS, UH, I THINK AMAZING. BUT AGAIN, WE GOT THE PEOPLE IN PLACE TO GET IT ALL DONE. SO IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS, I'D LIKE TO ANSWER 'EM, BUT ANYTHING AT ALL. ALRIGHT, LISTEN, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. I APPRECIATE IT. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYBODY. THANK YOU. SAME TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AT THIS TIME I DO WANNA RECOGNIZE, UH, THAT WE HAVE IN OUR MIDST, UH, THE CHAIRPERSON FOR THE COUNTY COUNCIL, MS. ALEX HOWARD, AND I'M NOT ASKING HER TO SPEAK. UH, WE ARE THRILLED TO HAVE YOU IN OUR MIDST, UH, FOR PEOPLE NEW ON THIS BOARD AND, AND THE [00:30:01] AUDIENCE. UH, MRS. HOWARD WAS OUR LIAISON FOR YEARS TO THE BOARD FOR STORMWATER. SO THERE ISN'T ANYONE ON THE COUNTY COUNCIL WHO KNOWS MORE ABOUT STORMWATER THAN MRS. HOWARD. UH, ALSO BEFORE, UH, TAYLOR GETS UP AND SPEAKS FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME, UH, I, I, I WANNA RECOGNIZE SALLY MCLE. SALLY IS THE GLUE THAT IS HELD, UH, WHILE I'VE BEEN CHAIRPERSON, UH, TOGETHER IN STORMWATER. UH, UH, BUFORD IS GETTING, UH, THE COUNTY, UH, IS GETTING SO BIG. STORMWATER IS GETTING BIGGER, UH, UH, BUT SHE'S MOVING ON TO TAKE ON, UH, ALL OF THE NEW PROJECTS THAT SOLID WASTE AND RECYCLING HAS ON ITS AGENDA. SO WE ARE PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THAT WE HAVE A NEW BUSINESS MANAGER, MICHELLE STRADER, RADER RADER, SORRY, WITH AN R STRADER, UH, WHO HAS JUST JOINED US AND IS SITTING IN THE AUDIENCE. WELCOME. THANK YOU. UH, AT THIS POINT WE WILL HAVE MS. TAYLOR COME UP AND TALK ABOUT THE STORM WATER UTILITY REPORT PROJECTS AND CONTRACTS. GOOD AFTERNOON BOARD MEMBERS AND CHAIRPERSON. SO WE'LL START WITH OUR UTILITY UPDATE. SO I DID, UM, MEET WITH MR. THIS IS OUR STORM WATER FEE RESTRUCTURE. UM, JUST TO REFRESH EVERYONE'S MEMORY, WE ARE TRYING TO RESTRUCTURE OUR, AND CREATE A NEW DATABASE FOR HOW WE CALCULATE STORMWATER FEES. OUR DATABASE IS VERY OLD AND BULKY AND INEFFICIENT. UM, REQUIRES A LOT OF MANUAL INPUTS AND HAS CREATED ERRORS IN THE PAST. WE WOULD LIKE A DATABASE THAT'S MORE EFFICIENT, UH, FOR STAFF USE AND THAT'S MORE ACCURATE, UH, AND TRANSPARENT FOR THE TAXPAYER. SO WE'VE CONTRACTED TO HAVE THAT DATABASE CREATED AND THE STORMWATER FEE RESTRUCTURED. UM, I SPOKE WITH MR. MOORE ON THE 24TH OF NOVEMBER, AND IN LIEU OF US GOING TO THE SOLO CODE BOARD TO PRESENT, UH, HE WOULD LIKE TO REACH OUT INDIVIDUALLY TO THE UPPER ADMINISTRATIONS OF THE DIFFERENT MUNICIPALITIES TO CONVEY, UM, KIND OF WHAT WE'RE DOING AND HOW WE'RE GONNA APPROACH IT. UH, HE THINKS IT WOULD BE A MORE PERSONABLE APPROACH AND IT WILL ALLOW FOR MORE DISCUSSION. SO WE WILL STAND BY TO HEAR FROM UPPER ADMINISTRATION ON DATES FOR MEETINGS WITH INDIVIDUAL ADMINISTRATIONS. WILL YOU BE IN ATTENDANCE ON THIS MEETING? YES, SIR. OKAY. FOR THE SOLO CODE DESIGN MANUAL, UM, AS PREVIOUSLY STATED, UH, WE ARE VERY GRACIOUS TO TOWN OF BLUFFTON FOR PROVIDING US WITH THEIR UPDATES THAT THEY HAVE APPROVED TO THE SOLO CODE MANUAL. UM, WE'RE WORKING THROUGH THOSE AND WE'RE ABOUT HALFWAY COMPLETE. UM, TO REITERATE, THIS IS A, UM, CORRECTION OF SOME ERRORS. WE ARE CLEARING UP SOME THINGS THAT WERE LEFT A LITTLE AMBIGUOUS, AND WE ARE TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S A SOLID MANUAL BEFORE WE GO TO THE OTHER MUNICIPALITIES THAT WERE ORIGINAL STAKEHOLDERS AND SUGGEST IMPLEMENTATION FOR THEM AS WELL. SO ARE, ARE, ARE, ARE AT THE END RESULT? WE'RE HOPING THAT WE HAVE AN ALL ENCOMPASSING SO LOCO MANUAL THAT EVERYBODY CAN AGREE TO. IS THAT THE GOAL? YES, SIR. THERE WILL BE MINOR, UM, DIFFERENCES IN THE MANUAL, EVEN BETWEEN US AND BLUFFTON. BUT YES, FOR THE MOST PART WE WOULD LIKE A REGIONALLY IMPLEMENTABLE PRODUCT, UM, THAT WE CAN TAKE TO HARDY V RIDGELAND, JASPER COUNTY, UH, HOPEFULLY MAYBE COLLETON COUNTY, UM, FOR ADOPTION AS WELL. ALSO, UM, JUST TO MENTION, I KNOW TOWN OF, UM, PORT ROLL OF SOUND FOUNDATION STAFF ISN'T HERE TODAY, BUT THEY'RE WORKING ON, THEY HAVE RECEIVED A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS GRANT TO WORK ON A TOOLKIT ESSENTIALLY TO CREATE, UH, ALL THE DOCUMENTS AND EVERYTHING NECESSARY FOR ADOPTION OF THE SOLO CO MANUAL FOR SMALLER COUNTIES THAT MIGHT NOT HAVE THE STAFF, UM, TO CREATE THOSE DOCUMENTS ON THEIR OWN. WE WANNA MAKE ADOPTION AND IMPLEMENTATION AS SIMPLE AS POSSIBLE. UM, FOR PROJECTS, WE HAVE THE ALL JOY DRAINAGE STUDY. SO ALL OF THE INVENTORY'S BEEN COMPLETED. UH, THANK YOUS TO THE, UH, CITIZENS THAT HAVE REACHED OUT AND TOLD ME ABOUT DIFFERENT ASSETS THAT WE WEREN'T AWARE OF, UM, SO THAT WE COULD DIRECT THEM TO GET A HOLISTIC VIEW OF THE CURRENT CONDITIONS. MODELING HAS BEGUN. UM, THE NEXT STAGE OF THAT WOULD BE THEM PROPOSING SOME SOLUTIONS AND WE'RE LOOKING FOR A, UM, ROUGH, I GUESS YOU'D SAY DRAFT COMING OUT IN MARCH. SO WE'LL HAVE UPDATES FOR MAYBE SOME PROPOSED SOLUTIONS BY MARCH, APRIL, [00:35:01] UM, AND THEN THOSE WOULD GO INTO DESIGN FROM THERE. UH, BEFORE WE GO TO THE DESIGN PHASE, WHAT YOU HAVE, WOULD WE NOT HAVE A MEETING WITH THE RESIDENTS OF AJOY TO GIVE THEM THE RESULTS OF THAT STUDY? YES SIR, WE DO. WE LIKE TO HAVE A MEETING AT THE END WHEN WE HAVE A FINAL REPORT, UM, TO NOT ONLY RELEASE THE REPORT TO THE PUBLIC TO HAVE THEM FACT CHECK ANY AREAS THAT WE FOUND OF FLOODING AND THINGS LIKE THAT. UM, AND TO HAVE INPUT ON PROPOSED SOLUTIONS AS FAR AS FEASIBILITY, UM, AND NEEDS FOR THE COMMUNITY AND THINGS LIKE THAT FOR BAY PINES. UM, THE FENCE INSTALLATION WAS SUPPOSED TO START THIS WEEK, HOWEVER, THE RAIN PUT THE CONTRACTOR OFF, UM, HE WENT OUT AND VISITED ON SITE AND SAID HE DIDN'T FEEL COMFORTABLE STARTING WITH THE RAIN OVER THE WEEKEND. SO WE'RE LOOKING TO START EITHER END OF THIS WEEK OR BEGINNING OF NEXT WEEK ON INSTALLING THE FENCE. UM, WE'LL HAVE STAFF ON SITE FOR THAT INSTALLATION TO ENSURE THAT IT GOES IN WHERE AND HOW WE WOULD LIKE FOR IT TO. WE ALSO HAVE COORDINATED, UM, WITH STAFF FROM POINT COMFORT ON INSTALLATION DATES, SO THEY CAN BE ON SITE IF THEY WOULD LIKE, WHERE WE'RE STARTING THE PROCESS OF REACHING OUT ABOUT EASEMENTS, UM, FOR THE CROSSLINE PIPES, UM, WE'VE, I'VE BEEN IN PRELIMINARY CONVERSATIONS WITH ONE OF THE CITIZENS AND THEN WE ACTUALLY, IF YOU'LL REMEMBER, MOVED, PROPOSED MOVING THE LOCATION OF THE SECOND, THE SOUTHERN CROSSLINE PIPE TO AVOID A CITIZEN'S POOL PAD AND POOL EQUIPMENT. SO THAT WILL NOW NO LONGER FALL ON HER PROPERTY. IT'LL BE ON HER NEIGHBOR'S PROPERTY. UM, WE'RE HOPING FOR LESS INTRUSIVE INSTALLATION, SO WE WILL REACH OUT TO THAT CITIZEN TO START EASEMENT ACQUISITION CONVERSATIONS. WE DO HAVE A NEW RIGHT OF AWAY MANAGER FOR THOSE THAT KNEW MISS PATTY WILSON, SHE'S RETIRING. UM, SO MISS KELSEY FLOYD IS REPLACING HER AND SHE'S DONE A GREAT JOB SO FAR. I'M SURE SHE'LL DO GREAT GOING FORWARD. FOR SHELL POINT. UM, AS I SAID LAST TIME, WE'VE PIVOTED FOR THE MAINTENANCE SHELF CLEARING PROJECT AFTER GOING ON STAFF WITH MULTIPLE, UM, MEMBERS OF UPPER ADMINISTRATION AND TALKING TO SOME OF THE CITIZENS. THE CLEARING OF ALL OF THE MAINTENANCE SHELVES WITH EVERY SINGLE TREE COMING DOWN WOULD BE EXTREMELY INTRUSIVE TO THESE PEOPLE'S BACKYARDS. UM, WE WOULD INTERRUPT MULTIPLE FENCES, SHEDS, THINGS LIKE THAT. UM, WE HAVE ACCESS TO A NEW PIECE OF EQUIPMENT WITH A NEW TYPE OF MULCHING HEAD THAT WE THINK WOULD BE A LOT LESS INTRUSIVE THAN CLEARING THE ENTIRE MAINTENANCE SHELF. IT WOULD ALLOW US TO, UM, CLEAR, CLEAR AND GRUB THE AREAS THAT WE NEED WITHOUT TAKING DOWN ANY MAJOR SUBSTANTIAL TREES TO GIVE US ACCESS TO THE DITCH. UM, SO AFTER LOOKING AT IT, IT JUST WOULDN'T BE FEASIBLE TO CLEAR ALL THE MAINTENANCE SHELVES AND WE WOULDN'T GET MORE BENEFIT FOR THE DESTRUCTION THAT WE'D BE DOING. SO WE'RE GOING TO HANDLE THAT ONE IN-HOUSE. WE DO HAVE A NEW PIECE OF EQUIPMENT, LIKE I SAID, WITH A NEW MULCHING HEAD THAT WILL GO EXCLUSIVELY TO THAT PROJECT. UM, SO WE'LL START TO CREATE ACCESS FOR US TO GET IN AND KIND OF CLEAN THOSE DITCHES OUT AND MAKE SURE THAT THEY HAVE THE PROPER CAPACITY. SO WE THINK THIS WILL BE AN EFFICIENT METHOD OF CLEANING OUT THE DRAINAGE SYSTEM IN THE SHELL POINT AREA. WE ARE WORKING TO HAVE A CITIZEN, UM, COMMUNITY MEETING SCHEDULED SOMETIME SOON. SO WE WILL KEEP Y'ALL UPDATED ON THAT JUST TO LET THEM KNOW ABOUT ALL THE DIFFERENT PROJECTS IN THE AREA GOING ON. I, I HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT SHELL POINT NOW. WOULD YOU RATHER I ASK 'EM NOW OR YES SIR. LATER SIR, PLEASE. OKAY. UM, YOU ALREADY ADDRESSED THE MEETING THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE TWO DAYS AGO AND THAT WAS KIND OF CALLED OFF AND WE STILL HAVEN'T REACHED OUT TO THE SHELL POINT NEIGHBORHOOD IN ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM ABOUT WHAT THE PROGRESS IS OF THIS $7.5 MILLION PROJECT THAT WAS BROUGHT ABOUT THREE YEARS AGO, FOUR YEARS AGO, SOMETHING LIKE THAT. SO THE PROCESS HAS BEEN PAINFULLY SLOW AND I HATE TO SAY THIS, BUT I THINK A LOT OF IT HAS IN REGARDS TO OFFICER, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS IN THE PAST. THE ENGINEERING FIRMS, THE INITIAL ENGINEERING FIRM THAT CAME IN, AND THEN JAY BRAGAN ASSOCIATES CAME IN AND I'M CURIOUS ABOUT THIS. FEBRUARY THIS YEAR, THEY HAD A MEETING WITH THE COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR AND THERE WAS A PROPOSAL OF $442,000 FOR A 24 MONTH DESIGN PERIOD. AND THEN THAT WAS CANCELED AT LAST MINUTE AND WE FOUND OUT ABOUT IT THE DAY OF THE STORMWATER MEETING. AND NOW WE UNDERSTAND IN FRONT OF THE PUBLIC FACILITIES COMMITTEE THAT THEY'VE REQUESTED THAT THEY'VE TYPED IT UP A LITTLE BIT. MAYBE THEY'RE ASKING FOR $326,000 TO CONTINUE THIS PROJECT. DO WE HAVE ANY TYPE OF FEEDBACK ON THE ACCOUNTING OF WHAT JAY BRAGG HAS ACTUALLY DONE OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS OTHER [00:40:01] THAN HAVE LUNCHES? HAVE THEY REALLY DONE ANYTHING? AND HOW HAS THIS ADDITIONAL $326,000 WARRANTED FOR THEM TO CONTINUE ON WITHOUT ANY PRODUCT BEING DELIVERED? WE HAVE NOT HAD ANY FURTHER INVESTIGATION INTO WHAT'S BEEN SPENT OR THE TASK ORDERS THAT WERE COMPLETED ON THE PRIOR PO. UM, THE PROPOSED CONTRACT WOULD BE FOR THE DESIGN OF THE POND BEHIND FOOD LION AND THEN THE HAMRICK DRIVE OUTFALL, WHICH WERE BOTH INCLUDED IN THE ORIGINAL SCOPE. OKAY. BUT WE HAVE NO IDEA REALLY OF WHAT THEY'RE DOING WEEK TO WEEK. I AM, NO SIR. I'M NOT ON THAT PROJECT, SO I DO NOT HAVE ANY PROJECT UPDATES ON THE DESIGN. ALRIGHT. UM, LEMME LOOK AT MY NOTES. SORRY. IF I LOOK, I LOOKED BACK AT MY NOTES AND THIS WAS LAST UPDATED IN APRIL OF 24. THERE WAS ABOUT 354, 350 $5,000 THAT WAS ALLOCATED TO JAY BRAGG FOR PHASE ONE AND PHASE TWO OF WHICH PHASE ONE WAS 57% COMPLETE. PHASE TWO WAS 6% COMPLETE. DO WE HAVE PERCENTAGES ON HOW COMPLETE THEY ARE NOW IN THOSE PHASES? WE HAVE NOT RECEIVED ANY ADDITIONAL, UM, DELIVERABLES. OKAY. OR PROGRESS. AND THIS IS KIND OF WHY I WOULD HOPE THAT WE START GETTING SOME CLEAR CUT ANSWERS FROM JAY BRAGG OR FROM MR. FRA OR ANYBODY ELSE THAT'S INVOLVED IN THIS PROJECT. 'CAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF MONEY THAT'S BEING THROWN OUT THERE TAXPAYER MONEY, AND IT'S NOT BEING ACCOUNTED FOR IN A, IN A VERY FINANCIALLY RESPONSIBLE WAY. SO I, I REALLY THINK WE NEED TO PRESS THAT GOING FORWARD AND FIND OUT WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON AND WHAT ARE THESE FOLKS DOING? 'CAUSE WE'RE NOT SEEING ANY OF IT. UM, THE INITIAL CONTRACT VALUE OR THE EXPECTED CONTRACT VALUE AT THE BEGINNING FROM MY NOTES WAS 800 TO $850,000. YES, SIR. BUT THAT'S STILL OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS, THREE AND A HALF YEARS, AND THEY KEEP ASKING FOR MORE. SO I'M NOT GONNA BE THE DEAD HORSE. THAT'S ALL I GOT. YES, SIR. UNDERSTOOD. I HAVE MY NOTES. THAT TAKES US TO THE OKT RIVER, OR EXCUSE ME, RIVERS END. I DON'T WANNA SKIP RIVERS END. UM, WE HELD A COMMUNITY MEETING ON OCTOBER 20TH. UH, THIS IS A NEIGHBORHOOD IN OKEE, IF YOU'LL REMEMBER, THERE'S A FAILING DOUBLE LAYER PIPE SYSTEM. UH, WE PRESENTED THE PLANS AND WE HAD EASEMENT DOCUMENTS ON HAND FOR CITIZENS TO SIGN. UM, THIS, WE ARE REPLACING THE SYSTEM DOWN THE MAIN DRAG THAT FEEDS INTO THE POND THAT'S NOT BEEN MAINTAINED PROPERLY. AND, UM, SURPRISE, THE POND IS OWNED BY 154 PEOPLE. UM, EVERYONE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OWNS 1 1 50 FOURTH OF THIS POND. SO TO OBTAIN EASEMENTS WE NEED 154 SIGNATURES. THE GOOD NEWS IS WE'VE HEARD BACK FROM THE LANDOWNERS THAT RESIDE IN CALIFORNIA ALREADY, SO I THOUGHT THOSE WERE GONNA BE THE TRICKIEST ONES. UM, BUT WE HAVE ABOUT 30% OF THE EASEMENT DOCUMENTS SIGNED BACK, WHICH I THINK IS FANTASTIC. SO WE'RE GONNA WORK THROUGH THOSE AND REACH OUT INDIVIDUALLY IF WE NEED TO. AND THEN, UM, OUR LAST EFFORT WOULD BE CONDEMNATION, WHICH WOULD BE MOVING THROUGH A LEGAL PROCESS FOR THE COUNTY TO TAKE OVER THE POND. UM, FOR THE OKA T RIVER PARK POND DAM PROGRAM OR PROJECT. UM, THIS IS OVER, UM, IN THE PASSIVE PARKS DEPARTMENT OR WHAT USED TO BE PASSIVE PARKS. IT'S NOW THE LAND PRESERVATION DEPARTMENT. THEY'RE CREATING A NEW PARK AND THERE IS A FAILING DAM OF A STORMWATER POND THAT NEEDED TO BE COMPLETELY REDONE. UM, WE HAVE GOTTEN ALL THE BORINGS DONE AND THAT'S IN DESIGN. WE'RE IN CLOSE COMMUNICATION WITH THE LAND PRESERVATION DEPARTMENT TO MAKE SURE THAT, UM, OUR DESIGN IS COHERENT WITH THEIR PARK DESIGN. AND I THINK THAT IT'S GONNA BE AN INNOVATIVE WEIR OUTFALL. UM, IT'S PROJECTED TO HAVE A BRIDGE OVER IT INSTEAD OF JUST BEING A CONCRETE BOX STRUCTURE. SO HOPEFULLY IT'LL MAKE STORM WATER PRETTY AND WE'LL HAVE SOME ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION SIGNS ALONG THE WAY EXPLAINING, UM, AESTHETICALLY WHAT IT'S SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE AND THEN FUNCTIONALLY HOW IT'S SUPPOSED TO WORK FOR THE ROYAL PINES AREA. UM, WE ARE, I HAVE INVESTIGATED THE FEASIBILITY OF TRYING TO PARTNER WITH THE GREEN SPACE PROGRAM TO PURCHASE PART OF THE OLD GOLF COURSE. UH, WE MET WITH THE SELLERS AND DISCUSSED WITH LEGAL THE FEASIBILITY OF LAND ACQUISITION FROM USING STORMWATER UTILITY FUNDS. AND WE GOT AN INITIAL YES. FROM LEGAL. SO WE WENT WITH OUR, WE TOOK OUR PROPOSAL TO UPPER [00:45:01] ADMINISTRATION, UM, PROPOSING TO PURCHASE THE ACTUAL LAND WITH GREEN SPACE FUNDS AND THEN USE STORMWATER UTILITY FUNDS TO COME IN AND CREATE A STORMWATER WET DRY PARK OF SORTS. UH, THAT WOULD BE A TRAIL THAT COULD BE USED IN DRY TIMES THAT WOULD ALLOW FOR OVERFLOW AND EXTRA ADDED CAPACITY DURING WET TIMES. UH, THAT WOULD HOPEFULLY REDIRECT THE FLOW AWAY FROM LOCAL RESIDENTS. WE'RE WAITING TO HEAR BACK ON UPPER ADMINISTRATION'S OPINIONS ON THAT. WE'RE WAITING BACK TO SEE IF WHO IS UPPER ADMINISTRATION. ARE WE TALKING ABOUT MR. MOORE OR ARE WE TALKING ABOUT THE COUNTY BOARD COUNCIL? UM, BOTH. YES SIR. I STARTED WITH MR. MOORE AND, UM, AND WAITING FOR INSTRUCTIONS IF WE'RE GONNA TAKE THE IDEA TO COUNSEL OR NOT. AND, AND WE'VE GIVEN A HEADS UP TO, UH, MARK DAVIS OR JULIANA OR WHOEVER. YES, SIR. I'VE BEEN WORKING WITH MR. MARK DAVIS. HE'S IN SUPPORT OF THE IDEA. OKAY, GREAT. UM, WHAT PIECES OF THE OLD GOLF COURSE, LIKE THE WHOLE SECTION OR IS IT JUST THE AREAS AROUND THAT TURTLE LANE MIDDLE ROAD AREA? YES, SIR. IT'S THE, IT'S LIKE THE LOWER, UM, UPSIDE DOWN L CORNER PARTIAL PURCHASE. YES, SIR. IT WOULD BE A PAR A PARTIAL PURCHASE OF THE GOLF COURSE RIGHT NOW. JUST, UH, I BELIEVE IT'S NINE HOLES THAT ARE FOR SALE. YEAH. THAT'S WHAT IT, UM, THE OTHER KIND OF PRONG OF THAT SIDE IS, SINCE I HAVE GOTTEN A PRELIMINARY YES. FROM LEGAL TO PURCHASE, UH, LAND FOR STORMWATER PURCHASES, WE'RE LOOKING INTO THE FEASIBILITY OF A BUYOUT PROGRAM. UM, THIS WOULD BE SEPARATE FROM ANY KIND OF FEMA FUNDS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. THIS WOULD BE FOR STRUCTURES THAT DO NOT HAVE REPETITIVE STRUCTURAL LOSS, BUT THAT, UM, WOULD BE BETTER SUITED FOR STORMWATER CAPACITY OVER DEVELOPMENT. UH, SO WOULD THAT LAND THEN BE OWNED BY THE COUNTY? YES, SIR. THUS, THUS NO BUILDING UNLESS THE COUNTY DECIDED TO SELL THAT PROPERTY. CORRECT. YES, SIR. AND WE'RE TRYING TO WORK THROUGH THE, THERE'S SEVERAL OPTIONS OF, UM, ENTERING THE LAND INTO A TRUST OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT AFTERWARDS. UM, THERE'S THE OPTION OF A MINI STORM WATER PARK WHERE WE COULD MAINTAIN SOME SORT OF, UM, BMP THERE THAT WOULD HELP AID IN FLOOD RELIEF. UM, OR THERE'S THE ALWAYS THE OPTION TO JUST LEAVE THE LAND AND LET IT GROW AND RETURN TO NATURE NATURE AND SERVE ITS PURPOSE THAT WAY. OKAY. UH, AND, AND WE HAVE ANY IDEA O ON HOW MUCH MONEY WE HAVE IN OUR, OUR BALANCE OF THE STORM WATERS FUND PRESENTLY FOR THINGS LIKE THIS, AND DO WE ANTICIPATE HOW MUCH WE THINK IT WOULD COST TO DO THAT? HOW MUCH OF OUR FUNDS WOULD IT EAT UP, UM, TO START A PROGRAM? YOU'RE SAYING HOW MUCH FUNDS WOULD IT EAT UP THE BUYOUT? YES, SIR. UM, AND THERE WOULD, 'CAUSE YOU MENTIONED THE GOLF COURSE WOULDN'T COME FROM OUR FUNDS, RIGHT? YES, SIR. UM, WE HAVE, AND THAT WOULD BE PART OF THE VALUATION OF THE PROGRAM SETUP AS WE CALL IT. UM, THERE WOULD BE STIPULATIONS ON WHICH PARCELS WOULD BE GOOD FOR STORMWATER PURPOSES. MM-HMM . UM, THERE WOULD HAVE TO BE A CONSIDERATION PROCESS AND THEN THERE WOULD HAVE TO BE, I, IN MY OPINION, A LIMIT OF PROPERTIES PURCHASED PER FISCAL YEAR. THANK YOU. DO, DO WE HAVE AN IDEA OF WHAT THE FAIR MARKET VALUE OF SOME OF THESE PROPERTIES MIGHT BE? YES, SIR. WE'RE LOOKING IN THE RANGE OF 500,000. OKAY. BUT WE WOULD, UM, IN THE INSTANCE THAT WE WOULD BE ABLE TO OFFER SOMETHING, IT WOULD BE IN THE FAIR MARKET VALUE. MM-HMM . WE'RE KIND OF LOOKING AT GREENVILLE AS OUR, UM, KIND OF MODEL FOR THIS PROGRAM. THEY HAVE A VERY SUCCESSFUL BUYOUT PROGRAM, UM, AND THEY MAINTAIN THE PROPERTIES AS WHAT THEY CALL MINI STORM WATER PARKS. SO IF YOU WANTED TO CHECK OUT THEIR WEBSITE, THEY HAVE A REALLY GOOD MODEL FOR THIS PROGRAM. OH YEAH. WE SAW THAT FROM THE RESILIENCE HERE. THE NEXT PROJECT ON MY LIST IS ARTHUR HORN. THIS IS ONE OF MY MOST EXCITING PROJECTS, IN MY OPINION. IT'S A 17 ACRE WETLAND, UM, IN THE PORT ROYAL AREA THAT WAS KNOCKED DOWN DURING HURRICANE MATTHEW. OUR PROJECT IS GONNA FIRST AND FOREMOST RESTORE STORM WATER FUNCTION, BUT ALSO WE ARE HOPING TO HAVE DUAL, IT SERVE A DUAL PURPOSE IN PROVIDING HABITAT FOR, UH, WATERFOWL, WHICH I THINK WOULD BE EXCITING. WE'RE KIND OF USING CYPRESS WETLANDS AS OUR MODEL FOR THIS PROJECT. UH, WE'RE HOPING TO ADD SOME WATER QUALITY BENEFITS AS WELL AS WE DO HAVE A-T-M-D-L DOWNSTREAM FROM THIS PROJECT. THE, UM, RFQ WENT OUT AND BLACK AND VEATCH WAS SELECTED FOR THAT PROJECT, AND THEY'RE WORKING WITH OUR PROCUREMENT TO [00:50:01] SECURE A CONTRACT FOR OUR CONTRACTS UPDATE. SPEAKING OF CONTRACTS, WILPERT IS OUR CURRENT ON CALL FOR ARCHITECTURAL AND ENGINEERING SERVICES FOR STORMWATER. THEY'RE THEIR CONTRACT EXPIRES THIS MONTH. UH, WE HAVE AN RFQ THAT WENT OUT, UM, IN SEPTEMBER IN OPENGOV. WE HAD EIGHT RESPONSES FROM LOCAL ENGINEERING FIRMS. WE'VE BEEN INSTRUCTED BY UPPER ADMINISTRATION TO HAVE THREE ON-CALL FOR STORMWATER TO CLOSELY MIMIC WHAT THE ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT DOES FOR THEIR PROCUREMENT PROCESS. UM, IT'S SUPPOSED TO ALLOW US TO MORE EASILY MOVE THROUGH THE PROCUREMENT PROCESS BY HAVING THREE ON-CALL. I THINK IT'LL ALSO ALLOW FOR US TO HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF, UM, SPECIALTY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OUR FIRMS. SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE FIRMS THAT WE DID HAVE RESPOND. AND WE'RE IN THE SECOND ROUND OF INTERVIEWS, SO THE FIRST SCORING ROUND IS CLOSED AND THEN THERE WERE FIVE FIRMS SELECTED FOR INTERVIEW. SO HOPEFULLY WE WILL HAVE A CONTRACT ISSUED TWO, THREE FIRMS IN JANUARY FOR ON-CALL SERVICES. SO HOPEFULLY EARLY JANUARY. OTHERWISE YOU'LL HAVE NO ON-CALL SERVICE. CORRECT. FROM THE BEGINNING OF JANUARY. THAT'S THE GOAL. YES, SIR. TO GET IT IN AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE. YES. NOW YOU CAN TALK ABOUT YOUR NEW BUSINESS MANAGER. YES. , WHO CAN TAKE CARE OF THAT. SO IN OUR STAFF UPDATE, MR. MARK DID INTRODUCE MS. MICHELLE STRADER. UH, SHE'S ALREADY BEEN A BENEFIT TO OUR DEPARTMENT IN THE BUSINESS MANAGER POSITION. AND SO SHE HAS, UH, VAST EXPERTISE IN COUNCILS AND BOARDS. SO SHE WILL BE, UH, TAKING OVER FOR MS. SALLY WHEN SHE GOES FULL SOLID WASTE. SO ALL COMMUNICATION QUESTIONS, EVERYTHING LIKE THAT WILL GO THROUGH MS. MICHELLE. UM, AND I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT SHE WILL KNOCK IT OUTTA THE PARK. ALSO, I JUST WANTED, I KNOW WE'RE GONNA GO OVER THE BUDGET LATER, BUT JUST FOR A STAFF UPDATE, UM, WE DID KIND OF A PROGRAM ASSESSMENT WITH OUR A CA AND MR. MOORE. AND HE WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE STORMWATER DEPARTMENT GROW SO THAT WE CAN HANDLE THE VARIOUS NEEDS OF OUR CITIZENS. SO WE ARE ASKING FOR A VARIOUS NUMBER OF FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES, UH, TO COMING UP FOR FISCAL YEAR 27 TO HELP AID US. UM, THERE'LL BE HOPEFULLY AN MS FOUR COORDINATOR AND THEN ALMOST A FULL NOTHER INFRASTRUCTURE CREW, UH, ALONG WITH SOME, UH, SPECIALIZED EQUIPMENT THAT WE THINK WILL HELP US BETTER SERVE OUR CITIZENS. OKAY. THAT'S GOOD. THAT'S NEEDED. ON THAT NOTE, UH, AN ADDITIONAL CREW, UH, UH, AGAIN, WE KNOW MOST BUDGETS, LABOR IS THE, AND MANPOWER IS, IS THE BIGGEST PERCENTAGE OF ANYBODY'S BUDGET THESE DAYS. UH, DO WE OFTEN SAY IN PUBLIC MEETINGS FROM STORMWATER THAT WE, WE GET TO FIX THE ROADSIDE DITCHES EVERY FIVE TO SEVEN YEARS? RIGHT. AND I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES. FORGIVE ME. I THINK THERE'S SOME MORE QUALIFIED PEOPLE HERE ON THE BOARD TO TALK TO THAT. BUT I'M SURE THAT SOME OF THAT TAKES IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE COUNTRY HERE WHERE WE HAVE ALMOST 10 MONTHS OF GROWING SEASON. RIGHT. I CANNOT BELIEVE THAT, THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY SIT HERE AND BELIEVE THAT ROADSIDE DITCHES CLEANED EVERY FIVE TO SEVEN YEARS ARE ADEQUATE. AND I I, I WOULD WONDER WHAT, WHETHER A STUDY'S EVER BEEN DONE TO SAY THAT MAYBE WE NEED TO DO THEM EVERY THREE YEARS OR EVERY FOUR YEARS, NOT FIVE TO SEVEN YEARS. AND WHAT THAT WOULD TAKE IN MANPOWER AND HOW MUCH MORE, UH, WE NEED TO REALLOCATE OUR MONIES WITHIN STORMWATER, UH, UH, TO EITHER ADD, UH, TO MR. CARTER'S CREW ACTUALLY GO OUT THERE AND CLEAN THOSE DITCHES. UH, OR NOT. BUT I THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD LOOK AT BECAUSE IT'S OBVIOUS TO WHAT WE SEE IN THESE COMMUNITIES THAT THE ROADSIDE DITCHES FILL UP AND THEY FILL UP WITH GROWTH. UH, AND, AND WHEN THEY FILL UP TO A CERTAIN POINT, PEOPLE THINK IT'S PART OF THEIR LAWN AND THEY JUST GO AHEAD AND MAKE PLANTINGS IN IT TO MAKE IT LOOK BETTER. SO, UH, UNFORTUNATELY THAT DOES NOT HELP WITH OUR STORM WATER ISSUES BECAUSE ONE OF, I THINK OUR MAJOR THINGS IS TO MAKE SURE THAT ROADS DON'T GET FLOODED. SO THAT'S WHY WE HAVE THESE ROADSIDE DITCHES, UH, TO ELIMINATE AND ALLEVIATE THAT PROBLEM. SO MAYBE WE NEED TO TAKE A LOOK AT, UH, PEOPLE IN THE SOUTH WHAT THEIR MODELS ARE FOR ROADSIDE DITCH CLEAN OUTS AND NOT LOOK AT IT FROM A NATIONAL STANDPOINT. YES, SIR. AND WE'VE NOT DONE A COMPREHENSIVE STUDY LIKE THAT, BUT WE DO RECOGNIZE THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO INCREASE OUR LEVEL OF SERVICE AND THAT ADDING A CREW WOULD ALLOW US TO DO THAT. SO, BUT WE CAN DEFINITELY LOOK AT OTHER MUNICIPALITIES AND THEIR LEVEL OF SERVICE. [00:55:01] HOW OFTEN, AGAIN, REFRESH MY MEMORY, HOW OFTEN IS S-C-D-O-T DOING THEIR ROADS AS FAR AS CLEANUP? DO WE KNOW? DOES IT BE KIND OF SILLY FOR US TO SAY, OKAY, WE'RE GONNA UPGRADE TO THREE TO FOUR YEARS, BUT THE STATE IS STILL IN A SEVEN AND 10 YEAR PROGRAM? YES, SIR. I'M NOT SURE WHAT THEIR ROTATION SCHEDULE IS LIKE, BUT I WILL SAY THAT OUR MONTHLY COORDINATION MEETINGS WITH THEM HAVE PAID OFF IN BEING ABLE TO TARGET SPECIFIC AREAS. UM, THEY DO WORK WITH US IF WE SAY WE WILL BE, FOR INSTANCE, IN THE ALL JOY AREA. MM-HMM . THEY'LL TRY TO TIME THEIR CREWS TO BE DOWN IN SOME SORT OF SIMILAR TIMING TO US. 'CAUSE WE DO RECOGNIZE THAT IT'S A GRID SYSTEM AND WHAT WE DO IS NOT EFFECTIVE WITHOUT STATE ROADS FUNCTIONING AS WELL. YEAH. AND I THINK IT WOULD BE VERY IMPORTANT THAT IF WE DO DECIDE TO GO TO A, A, A MORE CONCISE SCHEDULE EVERY THREE TO FOUR YEARS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, THAT WE HAVE BUY-IN WITH S-C-D-O-T SO THAT THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO MATCH UP WITH WHAT YOU'RE SAYING YOU'D LIKE TO DO. YES, SIR. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? THANK YOU. I THINK YOU'RE EVENTUALLY GONNA SEE THE DOT TRY TO TURN OVER ALL RIGHT. OF WAYS. YEP. UH, TO MUNICIPALITIES IN THE COUNTY, ALL OF US ARE PROBABLY HAVE CONTRACTS FOR SERVICES THAT, UH, INCLUDE CLEANING OUT AND CLEANING UP STATE OWNED ROADS. AND IF YOU'VE ATTENDED ANY OF THE MODERNIZATION MEETINGS THAT, THAT WERE HELD ACROSS THE STATE, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN TALKED ABOUT. SO, UM, YEAH, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO REVISIT THE STORMWATER UTILITY FEE. YEAH. THE STATE, THE STATE RIGHT NOW IS A $1.7 BILLION SURPLUS, SO HOW'S THAT WORK? YEAH. BUT, UH, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION ABOVE MY PAY GRADE. FINE TOO. THANK YOU. CHAIRMAN FRONT, AGAIN, I APOLOGIZE FOR USURPING TAYLOR'S, UH, UH, ANNOUNCEMENT OF OF MICHELLE STARTING, UH, AND, AND OUR FABULOUS SALLY MCCLOUD LEAVING, BUT SHE'S NOT LEAVING THE COUNTY UHUH. AND THAT'S THE GOOD NEWS. UH, IS THERE ANY OLD BUSINESS THAT WE NEED TO COVER, GENTLEMEN, EX OFFICIOS, ANY OLD BUSINESS THAT YOU THINK WE NEED TO BRING UP NEW BUSINESS? YOU ARE LOOKING AT ME LIKE I HAVE SOMETHING . OH, I THOUGHT YOU MIGHT, I'M JUST, YOU'RE IN TROUBLE. I'VE SAID WHAT I HAVE TO SAY. OKAY. I GOT A FEW MORE THINGS I CAN SAY, BUT, UH, BEATING A DEAD HORSE. OKAY. UH, IN THE INTEREST OF TIME, UH, I WILL ASK, IS THERE ANY OTHER OR PUBLIC COMMENT? UH, I DO WANT BEFORE ANYBODY ELSE SPEAKS. ONE, TWO, AND I DON'T OFTEN APOLOGIZE, BUT THERE WAS A HICCUP ON THE, UH, MEETING NOTICE BOARD THAT GOES OUT TO THE PUBLIC STATING THAT THIS WAS GOING TO BE AT THE BLUFFTON LIBRARY, WHICH WOULD'VE MADE ME VERY HAPPY DOWN THE STREET, BUT IT DIDN'T WORK OUT THAT WAY. THERE WAS A, A A, SOME CHANGES MADE, BUT THEY DIDN'T MAKE IT TO THAT BANNER. SO THAT BANNER STILL SAID WE WERE MEETING THIS MORNING. UH, BUT THERE IS ANOTHER WEBSITE THAT CHANGED IT. SO WE HAVE A, A DISCONNECT AT THE COUNTY LEVEL. AGAIN, I'VE HEARD IT MENTIONED THAT IT'S ABOVE MY PAY GRADE, BUT I THINK OUR, OUR OUR, UH, COUNTY COUNCIL CHAIRPERSON WILL LOOK INTO THAT FOR US FOR THE FILE FOR NEXT YEAR. WE'LL MAKE SURE WE, MAYBE WE'LL BE BACK IN, IN CHAMBERS, UH, NEXT YEAR, HOPEFULLY. UH, YEAH. YES, YES. UH, WE HAVE TWO OPENINGS THAT WE HAVE NOT FILLED YET. UH, ONE OF OUR DEARLY DEPARTED PEOPLE WHO SERVED HERE, UH, FOR MANY YEARS. UH, AND WE HAVE, UH, A CURRENT MEMBER, UH, ED WARNER, WHO HAS MOVED ON, UH, UH, NOT TO THE GREAT BEYOND, BUT SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT JASPER COUNTY IS THAT. UH, SO BECAUSE HE IS ONE FOOT. HE IS, HE IS, HE IS LEFT BEAUFORT COUNTY, HE CAN NO LONGER SERVE. SO WE ARE HOPING, UH, IN THE NEW YEAR TO GET TWO REPLACEMENT, GET TWO REPLACEMENTS FOR THIS BOARD. BUT I WANT TO THANK ED FOR JUMPING IN WHEN I CALLED HIM AND SAID, I NEED SOMEBODY WITH AN ENGINEERING AND EQUIPMENT BACKGROUND THAT JOINED THE STORMWATER UTILITY BOARD LAST YEAR. AND HE SAID, I'M THERE TWO YEAR, TWO AND A HALF YEARS AGO. TIME FLIES WHEN YOU HAD FUN. UH, BUT I WANT TO THANK IT FOR HIS SERVICE TO THE COUNTY AND TO THE STORMWATER BOARD. AND WE WILL MISS YOU, WADE. THANK YOU. SOME. I KNOW. UM, THIS IS GONNA COST TO, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A PROPOSED AGENDA HERE. UH, COMMENT AGAIN OR NOT OH, I'M SORRY. I, I, I APOLOGIZE. THANK YOU. THANK, [01:00:01] THANK YOU. I NEED TO BE, UH, STRAIGHTENED OUT. YOU SAID IT. WE'LL OPEN [7. PUBLIC COMMENT] IT UP FOR ADDITIONAL PUBLIC COMMENT AT THIS TIME. THANK YOU. MS. RICK FACE IS DRIVING FAST FROM BLUFFTON. IT WASN'T ANGER, IT WAS JUST TRYING TO MAKE IT TO THE MEETING. I BROUGHT PICTURES AND MY SPEECH, SO EVERYBODY IS ON THE BOARD WITH ME. UM, ALSO, I AM HANDING THESE OUT. I DID NOT BUY MY, WE DID NOT BUY OUR HOUSE FOR 500 OUT. WE WANTED WAS MUCH MORE THAN THAT AND IT WAS APPRAISED OF THAT. BUT WE ALSO HAVE A, UM, SAYING THAT IT'S WORTH 1.2 MILLION. SO THAT BEING SAID, UM, YOU EXTRA. YES. THANK YOU. YOU'RE VERY WELCOME. THANK MAKE SENSE, CAROL? YEAH, I WAS GONNA SAY SOMEONE ELSE COULD HAND IT OUT SO YOU COULD SPEAK. OH, SURE. I HAVE TWO LEFT IF ANYBODY WANTS ONE. OKAY. FOR MONTHS WE HAVE ASKED FOR COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPARENCY, AND WE STILL HAVE NOT RECEIVED IT EITHER. WE DON'T GET ANY INFORMATION WHATSOEVER. AND IT'S VERY, VERY UPSETTING. OUR HOUSE IS STILL WET. I ENCLOSED PICTURES THE DAMAGE THAT THE WATER WORKS. UM, DEPARTMENT OF WHATEVER DID TOOK AWAY THE TREE IS STILL DAMAGED. UM, IN HERE, STEVE ANDREWS WAS KIND ENOUGH TO GIVE US A, UM, PLOT OF THE LAGOON FIVE. AND ON THE ONE OF THE PAPERS IT SAYS THAT LAGOON FIVE HAS NO OUTAGE. THERE'S NO DRAINAGE SYSTEM TO THAT. SO THAT WAS QUITE INTERESTING. I ALSO GOT, UM, INFORMATION FROM THE TOWNSHIP THAT WE DID NOT REQUIRE A, UM, DRAINAGE STUDY. AND THAT IT IS NOT A WETLAND AND IT IS ZONE C. UM, I HAVE ALL THE OTHER PICTURES OF OUR GROUND THAT IS SATURATED STILL. I CANNOT EVEN LET MY DOGS OUT. I GO OUT WITH BOOTS AND IT COMES UP TO HERE, THE WATER. UM, IT'S JUST SAD. WE'RE JUST SAD AND I FEEL LIKE WE'RE NOT HEARD. AND IF SOMEONE COULD JUST GET IN TOUCH WITH US AT LEAST BIWEEKLY, MONTHLY, JUST TO SAY, HEY, HOW YOU DOING? UM, HOW'S THE WATER SITUATION? IS THERE ANYTHING WE CAN DO? YOU KNOW, MY HUSBAND IS A, UM, ELECTRICAL ENGINEER. HE WORKS FOR RIO TINTO. HE DOES ALL THE MECHANICS THERE. HE'S IN CHARGE OF THAT UP IN CHARLOTTE. SO HE APPLIED FOR THIS POSITION SO HE KNOWS WHAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT. AND IT'S FRUSTRATING FOR HIM AND I TO SIT THERE AND NOTHING'S DONE AND WE'RE SAD. IT'S DECEMBER, WE DIDN'T EVEN MOW OUR LAWN YET. , I, I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO. SO MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY NEW YEAR. I'M JUST SAD. THAT'S ALL. I, I CAN TELL YOU THAT, THAT THAT PEOPLE FROM THE COUNTY STORM WATER HAVE BEEN OUT THERE, BUT THEY DON'T INTRODUCE THEMSELVES. WELL, THE, THE, WE DON'T ALWAYS DO THAT. I'M SORRY. UH, SOMETIMES PEOPLE ARE HOME, UH, SOMETIMES THEY'RE NOT, UH, WHEN OUR PEOPLE ARE OUT THERE, WE DON'T, WE DON'T MAKE AND CALL APPOINTMENTS, UH, TO VISIT MY DRIVEWAY. WHAT HAPPENS IS MY DRIVEWAY'S REALLY LONG AND IF SOMEONE DRIVES DOWN AND I'M ALONE, I'M AFRAID. LIKE WE HAVE OUR DRIVEWAY. HE, STEVE'S BEEN IN OUR HOUSE, OUR DRIVEWAY'S REALLY LONG. SO IF I SEE A STRANGER, I'M SCARED. AND OUR DAUGHTERS BARK. AND, UM, SBOS WIFE IS HOME ALONE 'CAUSE HE GOES OUTTA TOWN EVERY OTHER WEEK. SO IT'S SCARY FOR A WOMAN TO SEE STRANGERS IN THEIR YARD. IT IS. IT'S TERRIFYING. ALRIGHT, WE WILL SEE WHAT WE CAN DO ABOUT MAKING ADVANCED COMMUNICATION BEFORE WE VISIT YOUR PROPERTY. I DON'T PROMISE ANYTHING, BUT WE'LL TAKE A LOOK AT IT. THANK YOU. OUR NEXT MEETING, UH, EXCUSE ME, I HAVE TO OH, I DIDN'T SEE YOUR HAND. OOPS. OKAY. AND ALSO JUST TO SPEAK TO THE ONE THING YOU MENTIONED WITH S-C-D-O-T, THEY WERE OUT, THEY COME OUT EVERY YEAR AND DO OUR DITCHES AND ACTUALLY WE DON'T EVEN HAVE TO PUT IN A MAINTENANCE REQUEST. THEY JUST COME AND THEY SAID, I STOPPED THEM AND THEY SAID, OH, WE'RE DOING THIS, GETTING YOU READY FOR HURRICANE SEASON. BUT WE DID EMAIL FOR MONTHS ASKING FOR THE SAME, THE LAST TIME ALL JOYOUS DITCHES WERE DONE FULLY WAS JULY 20, 24. PRIOR TO THAT IT WAS 17 YEARS. SO I'D SAY WE'VE MADE SOME IMPROVEMENT. , 17 YEARS. THEY'VE ALREADY STARTED THE CLOCK. YEAH. OKAY. THANK YOU. GREETINGS. UH, FIRST ALL JOY WOULD LIKE TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT OF THANKS TO THIS BOARD AND WE HUMBLY ASK FOR YOUR CONTINUED ASSISTANCE. AT [01:05:01] A RECENT MEETING, THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS, WHEN ASKED OF CONSISTENT, TIMELY MAINTENANCE ON KEEPING DITCHES CLEAR AND ALL JOY DUE TO OUR STORM WATER ISSUES STATED THEY'LL BE DONE EVERY FIVE YEARS. IT SEEMS LIKE WE'RE BACK TO THAT OLD KH MENTALITY OF IGNORING THE PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY LIVE THERE. AND THE STORMWATER MANAGER WHO HAS SHOWN THEY CARE ABOUT THIS COMMUNITY IS BLOCKED BY AN A CA AND THE DIRECTOR OF PW FOR TWO MONTHS ANSWERING QUESTIONS AND EMAILS FROM ALL JURY RESIDENTS. INTU, IT BECAME PUBLICLY KNOWN THIS TIME LAST YEAR, HOW BE BC LEADERSHIP HAD INTENTIONALLY PROHIBITED A REPLY THAT IS SHADY. LIKE THE TWO MONTHS AL JY RESIDENTS WERE PUSHED BACK FROM THE PREVIOUS BC ASSISTANT DIRECTORS PW ASKING, PLEADING TO SUBMIT THE RIA GRANT FOR A DRAINAGE STUDY ON OUR BEHALF. AND YET WHEN THAT PERSON FINALLY DID SUBMIT, THEY MADE SURE TO JAM IT UP. HOW? BY KNOWING WHEN AN R-F-P-R-F-P GOES OUT FOR A BID, YOU SET A DATE FOR THE BID TO CLOSE. ONCE IT CLOSES, YOU ISSUE THE CONTRACT TO THE WINNER, NOT STATE, YOU'LL WAIT SIX WEEKS TO AWARD. HAVING KNOWN THE DATE IT WAS GOING FOR BID AND THE DATE IT CLOSED A DATE ONE WEEK LATER TO AWARD MAKING SURE THOSE THAT BID KNEW THE PROJECT WAS TO START. THE DAY AFTER IT WAS AWARDED. ALL THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN READY. WE LEARNED WHAT WAS DONE WAS DONE ON PURPOSE. SO IT DIDN'T COME AS A HUGE SURPRISE THAT THE AJOY DRAINAGE STUDY, BY NO FAULT OF THE STORM OWNER MANAGER, YET THIS STUDY, IT'S TAKEN 504 DAYS TO COME ABOUT. THE AJOY RESIDENTS ARE THEN ASKED BY THE COUNTY TO SUBMIT FLOODING PICTURES WITH DATES VIA A QR CODE. IN SEPTEMBER, I CONTACTED THE PROJECT MANAGER AT SEAMAN WHITESIDE, WHO WAS IN THE AREA AND OFFERED TO SHOW HIM THE TROUBLE SPOTS. I EXPLAINED QR CODES DON'T WORK WELL WITH THIS COMMUNITY AND GAVE HIM A SITE TO FIND, SAID PHOTOS. AND THEN IN LATE NOVEMBER WE LEARNED ALL OF THE SURVEY DATA HAS BEEN COLLECTED AND THE ENGINEERING TEAM HAS MOVED INTO THE MODELING PHASE OF THE DRAINAGE STUDY. AND THAT SEMEN WHITESIDE REQUESTED PICTURES OF THE FLOODING ASSOCIATED WITH AN ACTUAL STORM AS IT WOULD IMPROVE MODEL ACCURACY. WHY WASN'T ALRE DRAINAGE STUDY OF, UH, IMPORTANCE FROM THE BEGINNING FOR TOURISM? BECAUSE SLAPPING DOWN AN ACRE OF APPROVED CRA CONCRETE FOR TOURISM WAS FAR MORE IMPORTANT THAN ADDRESSING THE SEWAGE BLOWING INTO THE WATERWAYS OR THE RESIDENTS AFFECTED BY FLOODING AND DRAINAGE PROBLEMS. WE'RE SEEING WHO HAS A BACKBONE HERE AND IT IS THIS BOARD WHO'S CHAIRMAN MARK FEINBERG LET COUNTY COUNCIL KNOW THAT THE STORMWATER BOARD DISAGREED WITH THE DECISION OF THE COUNTY'S ENGINEERING TO HAVE AN IMPERVIOUS SURFACE, WHICH IS NOT IN KEEPING WITH BEST PR PRACTICE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES FOR THE CONTROL AND CONTAINMENT OF STORMWATER BROUGHT UP. YEP. THE COUNTY'S POWERS THAT BE PUSHED THAT MOTION DOWN. YET WE MADE SURE THAT THIS WAS KNOWN AND ASKED THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT DIRECTOR, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, WHY WOULD THEY APPROVE A PERMIT THAT ALLOWS POLLUTED STORMWATER TO BE PIPED INTO OUR WATERWAYS WHEN THEY BECOME THERE? THE STATE AND THIS COUNTY WILL BE KNOWN AS MEGA POLLUTERS AND THAT COMES FROM ONE OF THE OLDEST FAMILIES IN BEFORD COUNTY. I JUST WANNA SAY I REALLY APPRECIATE ALL YOU DO. SERIOUSLY. YOU GUYS GOT THE BACKBONE, YOU GOT THE MOXIE AND WE APPRECIATE IT AND WE APPRECIATE YOUR TRANSPARENCY. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. PLEASE HELP US TO CONTINUE TO PRESERVE AND PROTECT. THANK YOU. I AM NOT GONNA ASK FOR [8. NEXT MEETING AGENDA] A MOTION FOR THE NEXT MEETING AGENDA. UH, IT, IT'S STATED WE WILL MEET ON FEBRUARY 11TH, HOPEFULLY IN COUNCIL CHAMBERS. IF THAT CHANGES, I GUARANTEE THAT EVERYONE WHO IS HERE TODAY WILL GET ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. AT THIS POINT, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK OUR FOUR EX-OFFICIO MEMBERS, UH, FOR THEIR PARTICIPATION AND ASSISTANCE THROUGHOUT THIS YEAR. A SPECIAL THANKS TO MY FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS. ALRIGHT. UH, YOU ALL CARRY THE WATER? ALRIGHT. YOU'RE OUT THERE REPRESENTING THE PEOPLE IN THE AUDIENCE AND THE PEOPLE WHO AREN'T HERE. UH, OUR JOB IS, I LIKEN IT TO BEING THE OMS OMBUDSMAN FOR PEOPLE WHO PAY A STORMWATER FEE, UH, TO THE COUNTY, UH, TO HELP ELIMINATE AGAIN POLLUTION. ALRIGHT. CONTAINMENT OF, OF STORM WATER. ALRIGHT. WHENEVER POSSIBLE AND WHEREVER POSSIBLE, UH, I CAN SAY THIS YEAR, IT HAS BEEN EYE-OPENING FOR ME PERSONALLY TO VISIT MANY OF THE OLDER COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT THIS COUNTY WHO SADLY HAVE BEEN OVERLOOKED, UH, UH, THROUGH NO FAULT OF OURS. ALRIGHT? UH, BUT I TAKE RESPONSIBILITY NOW THAT ANYONE THAT COMES FORTH TO US THAT [01:10:01] PRESENTS A PROBLEM, I PROMISE YOU THAT THIS BOARD AND MY FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS AND OFFICIOS EX OFFICIOS WILL LOOK INTO IT. WE WILL NOT IGNORE STORMWATER GOING FORWARD IN BEAUFORT COUNTY. I THANK YOU AND WISH YOU ALL A HAPPY HOLIDAYS. THIS MEETING IS NOW ADJOURNED. THANK. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.