* 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]
          CLOSED CAPTIONING PROVIDED BY BUFORT COUNTY. 
          WELCOME EVERYONE TO TODAY'S FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE MEETING. 
          WE'VE HAD AN AGENDA BEFORE THIS COMMITTEE, THE PLEDGE THERE, UH, MOVE ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA. 
          SECOND. 
          ALL IN FAVOR, UH, MINUTES FROM OUR REGULAR, UH, MEETING ON JANUARY TWE, UH, 12TH OF 2026. 
          I MOVE ADOPTION. 
          SECOND APPROVAL I SHOULD SAY. 
          OKAY. 
           AND I SECOND THAT. 
          . 
          OKAY. 
          I, I JUST ASKED THE CLERK TO JUST TAKE A LOOK AT, I THINK THE FIRST PARAGRAPH IN THERE. 
          UM, IT'S BEEN CHANGED. 
          PERFECT. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 
          UH, MR. BIRD AND I SHARE, UH, COMMONALITY OF BEING COWBOYS FANS, BUT NOT THE SAME LAST NAME, . 
          SO I APPRECIATE Y'ALL CATCHING THAT. 
          ALL IN FAVOR OF THE MINUTES BEING. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 
          UM, NEXT WE'LL HAVE A PRESENTATION BY OUR FINANCE DIRECTOR, MR. DAVE, BY WELCOME, SIR. 
          I, I SEND DAY. 
          DID THAT, I DID NOT DO THAT. 
          THAT'S OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, SO WE HAVE BEFORE YOU THE, UH, FINANCIAL UPDATE AS OF YEAR END CALENDAR, YEAR END 2026. 
          UM, KIND OF WANT TO GO THROUGH OUR FIRST TOPIC, WHICH IS REALLY, UM, OUR HEALTH OF THE TOWN THAT'S BEEN DISCUSSED. 
          SO AN UPDATE THERE. 
          WE DID GET, UH, QUITE A BIT OF DATA FROM THE STATE, UM, DATING BACK TO 2023 BY MONTH. 
          UM, SO WE ARE COMPILING THAT RIGHT NOW. 
          APRIL AND HER TEAM ARE DOING THAT. 
          UM, WE ARE GONNA BREAK IT INTO EIGHT, I'LL CALL IT EIGHT, EIGHT SEGMENTS. 
          UM, FIRST ONE IS TOURISM, WHICH IS GONNA BE ACCOMMODATION, TRAVEL AND ENTERTAINMENT SERVING VISITORS. 
          THE SECOND WOULD BE RESTAURANTS. 
          THE THIRD IS GONNA BE GROCERY, WHICH IS REALLY, UH, GROCERY STORES, SUPERMARKETS, C STORES, THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          UM, THE FOURTH WILL BE CONSTRUCTION. 
          THE FIFTH WILL BE TELECOM. 
          THE SIXTH WILL BE RETAIL. 
          THE SEVENTH WILL BE SERVICES. 
          THOSE COULD BE TECHNICAL, PERSONAL, PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. 
          AND THEN THE EIGHTH IS GONNA BE OTHER. 
          THOSE WOULD BE WHOLESALERS OR SUPPLIERS OR MANUFACTURERS THAT DO NOT SELL DIRECTLY TO CUSTOMERS. 
          OKAY. 
          AND SO IN LOOKING AT THE DATA THAT WE RECEIVED, WE'RE ABLE TO COME UP WITH THOSE EIGHT BUCKETS. 
          SO YOU'RE GOING TO, YOU'LL RECEIVE A MONTHLY VIEW YEAR OVER YEAR TO BUY THESE EIGHT BUCKETS TO SEE WHAT THE TRENDING IS LOOKING LIKE. 
          SO THAT SHOULD HAPPEN BY MARCH. 
          THAT'S OUR GOAL. 
          UM, APRIL AT THE LATEST. 
          BUT WE'RE MOVING, WE'RE MOVING WELL WITH THAT. 
          SO A GOOD UPDATE THERE. 
          LAST MONTH WE WERE STILL WAITING ON DATA FROM THE STATE. 
          SO THEY'RE GONNA PROVIDE US THIS INFORMATION EVERY MONTH, WHICH BE, WILL INCLUDE IN OUR, IN OUR FINANCIAL BOOK. 
          AND THE AMOUNT OF LICENSE FROM A BUSINESS LICENSE STANDPOINT, THAT ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE EIGHT SEGMENTS WILL BE IN THE REPORT AS WELL. 
          SOME SOMEHOW. 
          YES. 
          ARE YOU TRYING TO DO THAT AS WELL? OKAY. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          THAT'S A LOT. 
          I GET IT. 
          YES. 
          WE WE'RE GONNA BE PATIENT. 
          I'M JUST CURIOUS. 
          YES. 
          ANXIOUS. 
          AND AS WELL, YOU KNOW, THE FIRST ONE MIGHT BE A LITTLE BIT LENGTHY JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE SEEING IT THE FIRST TIME AND THEN IT'LL JUST BE UPDATES FOR THAT NEXT MONTH JUST TO HAVE THAT INFORMATION. 
          WELL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR, UH, WORKING ON THAT. 
          I KNOW IT'S NOT EASY AND LIKE YOU SAID, IT'S A LOT OF DATA, BUT I THINK IT'S REALLY GONNA HELP US HAVE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING, UM, MORE QUICKLY ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OUR TOWN AND THE HEALTH OF OUR TOWN. 
          RIGHT. 
          AND I THINK THE MAIN THING HERE IS, UM, WE DON'T HAVE IT LOCAL, SO WE HAVE TO GET IT FROM THE STATE, BUT I THINK, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT BRIDGE HAS BEEN BUILT NOW, WHICH IS GOOD. 
          PERFECT. 
          OKAY. 
          GETTING TO OUR FINANCIALS REAL QUICK HERE. 
          SO FOR THE MONTH OF, UH, DECEMBER WHEN WE TOOK A YEAR, YEAR OVER YEAR VIEW FROM 25 TO 26, UM, WE ARE BASICALLY, UM, WE, WE DID BOOK THE BEACH BONDS THIS MONTH. 
          SO YOU'LL SEE A 47% INCREASE IF YOU TAKE THAT OUT. 
          WE'RE BASICALLY FLAT, UM, YEAR OVER YEAR. 
          ONE THING I WOULD SAY IS, UM, IN 25 WE DID HAVE THAT ONE TIME ITEM FOR THE, UH, BUSINESS LICENSE FEES OF 1.4 MILLION. 
          SO IF WE KIND OF NORMALIZE THAT OUT, WHICH I THINK WE WILL NEXT MONTH, WE'RE ABOUT 3% GROWTH IN REVENUE YEAR OVER YEAR. 
          UM, JUMPING 
          [00:05:01]
TO EXPENSES, UM, ONE OF THE THINGS HERE FROM AN EXPENSE PERSPECTIVE IS ONCE AGAIN, ON A NORMALIZED BASIS, WE ARE RELATIVELY FLAT. 
          THERE'S NOT REALLY ANY SURPRISES COMING THROUGH. 
          UM, UH, THAT'S HAPPENED THIS PAST MONTH. 
          ON THE EXPENSE SIDE, UM, YOU KNOW, YOU DO SEE A, A FULL YEAR BUDGET THAT WE HAVE PUT IN HERE, WHICH FOR 2026, WHICH IT DOES TIE TO, UM, OUR UPCOMING BUDGET AMENDMENT THAT WE'RE GONNA BE PRESENTING IN MARCH. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, ON OUR CIP, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE UPDATED THROUGH DECEMBER. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, UH, AS YOU CAN TELL, WE HAVE ABOUT 78 MILLION, WHICH WE PRESENTED IN THE PAST. 
          UM, WHY ISN'T THAT MOVING? IT'S NOT MOVING SENDA. 
          THERE WE GO. 
          UM, IN THE PAST, WE PRE PRESENTED AROUND 78 MILLION. 
          UM, WE DO HAVE NOW IN OUR PROPOSED BUDGET AMENDMENT COMING FORWARD, UH, OF A 97.7 MILLION TOTAL WITH CIP. 
          THE ONE THING THAT IS DIFFERENT FROM LAST MONTH TO THIS MONTH IS, UH, WE ARE TAKING RECEIPT OF TWO, UH, IN THE FLEET PROGRAM, TWO QUINT FIRE TRUCKS OF ABOUT $2.5 MILLION. 
          THOSE ARE COVERED UNDER THE LEASE THAT WAS DONE. 
          AND, UM, SO WE'LL BE PAYING FOR THOSE THROUGH THE LEASE PROCEEDS. 
          BUT THAT, UH, THAT IS COMING THROUGH. 
          ONE THING, WHEN WE GET INTO 2027, UM, UH, WE HAVE TWO LADDER TRUCKS THAT ARE GONNA COME PROBABLY TOWARDS THE END OF THIS YEAR. 
          SO BUDGET YEAR 27. 
          AND WE WILL HAVE TO DISCUSS LATER. 
          UH, THOSE ARE NOT ON A LEASE, SO, YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S A DIRECTION TO GO ON A LEASE, WE CAN LOOK AT THAT. 
          BUT, UM, THE LEASE THAT WE DO HAVE IS COVERING THIS LAST TWO FIRE TRUCKS. 
          AND THAT'S IT FOR NOW. 
          SORRY, MR. CHAIR, CAN I ASK ONE QUICK QUESTION? THE BEACH TREE NOURISHMENT NUMBER I'D ASKED BEFORE ABOUT, UM, ACTUAL AND COMMITTED, UM, AND THE TOTAL BEING 44 MILLION WITH THE BUDGET BEING 47, ALMOST 48 MILLION. 
          AND I THINK BEFORE YOU WERE THINKING THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE ALL THE, UM, UH, RECEIPTS IN MAYBE, RIGHT. 
          UM, AND, AND, BUT, SO MY QUESTION IS WHAT DOES COMMITTED MEAN IF, UM, 'CAUSE I WAS THINKING MAYBE THAT WOULD BE PART OF THE CONTRACT. 
          WE'VE ACTUALLY SPENT 16.5 MILLION AND SO THERE'S SOME COMMITTED, SO I, UH, ANYHOW, JUST LIKE A LITTLE BIT MORE INFORMATION ABOUT MAKING SURE WE HAVE ENOUGH MONEY OR IF THERE'S EXTRA MONEY IN THAT POT. 
          AND I HAVE DOUBLE CHECKED WITH OUR CIP TEAM AND THEY DO FEEL THAT THEY'RE GONNA HIT TO THE BUDGETED NUMBER, UH, NOT EXCEED IT FOR THIS YEAR. 
          UM, AND WE'LL, I I'M EXPECTING THAT COMMITTED NUMBER WILL INCREASE AS WE GO THROUGH THE NEXT FEW REMAINING MONTHS. 
          SO WHAT DOES COMMITTED MEAN? IF NOT PART OF THE CONTRACTS HAVE BEEN ISSUED, THERE COULD BE SOME OTHER EXPENSES THAT WOULD, COULD BE COMING THROUGH. 
          I'LL DOUBLE CHECK WITH THEM. 
          I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S OTHER, UH, ITEMS THAT THEY HAVE BEYOND THE MAJOR CONTRACT. 
          JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WHAT COMMITTED MEANS. 
          YEAH. 
          UM, OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          OH, AND THEN I HAD A QUESTION ABOUT THE AMENDMENT PROCESS. 
          UH, SORRY, I'M GONNA BE TAKING THIS VEST OFF. 
          NOT, IT'S LIKE, IT'S HOT, IT'S COLD, IT'S HOT. 
          IS IT THE BUILDING OR IS IT ME? UM, SO YOU SAID IT'S GONNA COME IN MARCH AND, UH, AT THAT TIME IF, UH, YOU COULD TALK ABOUT WHAT THE POLICY IS. 
          AND, AND MY QUESTION REALLY IS, IS THERE A MINIMUM AMOUNT OF, UH, OVERAGE THAT IS USED TO DETERMINE WHETHER TO DO A BUDGET AMENDMENT OR NOT? YOU DON'T NEED TO ANSWER NOW. 
          OKAY. 
          YOU CAN DO IT IN THE BUDGET AMENDMENT PROCESS, BUT I JUST WANNA UNDERSTAND WHAT THE POLICY IS. 
          OKAY. 
          GOTCHA. 
          AND ONE THING I WILL SAY, AS WE'RE WORKING ON THE 27TH BUDGET, UM, THERE WILL BE A ROLLOVER OF THE 26 CIP, UM, AND, UH, WE'RE WORKING THROUGH THAT NOW, BUT IT MIGHT BE MAYBE UP TO 20% ROLLOVER. 
          WE'LL KIND OF SEE HOW THE CITP TEAM IS WORKING ON THAT RIGHT NOW, BUT THAT'S JUST A HEADS UP ON THAT. 
          OKAY. 
          GOING TO THE, UH, FUND BALANCE WALK. 
          UM, ONE THING THAT WE'VE DONE THIS, THIS TIME ON REVENUE IS YOU HAVE UPDATED REVENUE PROJECTIONS FOR THE YEAR FOR BUDGETED FUNDS. 
          INSTEAD OF THE BUDGET, YOU HAVE A PROJECTION. 
          AND THEN WE ALSO INCLUDED AN UPDATE OF THE, UH, SPECIAL REVENUE PROJECTION. 
          LAST TIME YOU, WE NOTED THAT THAT WAS AN AVERAGE OF THE LAST THREE YEARS. 
          WE DID UPDATE THAT FORECAST FOR THE YEAR AS WELL. 
          AND THEN WE DID INCLUDE THE, UH, BEACH BONDS AND GO BONDS AS A BUDGET AMENDMENT ITEM. 
          THEY WERE HERE BEFORE, BUT NOW WE'RE JUST CALLING THEM A BUDGET AMENDMENT. 
          SO, UM, THAT'S A LARGE NUMBER, $184 MILLION. 
          IF YOU TAKE OUT THE OTHER REVENUE SOURCES, WHICH ARE THE BONDS, WE'RE AT AROUND 130 MILLION WE'RE PROJECTING FOR THE YEAR. 
          THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT FROM A TOWN PERSPECTIVE. 
          WHAT YOU SAW LAST 
          [00:10:01]
MONTH IS PROBABLY ABOUT 1 21, MAYBE 1 22. 
          SO A BIT OF AN INCREASE IN RE-FORECASTING OUT THE YEAR. 
          UM, AND THEN GOING, AND THERE'S NO STR IN THESE NUMBERS. 
          UM, SO WE STILL ARE LEAVING THAT OUT FOR NOW UNTIL THAT GOES THROUGH THE, UH, UH, ORDINANCE PROCESS. 
          AND ON THE EXPENSES. 
          THE EXPENSES ARE STILL THE BUDGET. 
          UM, WE ARE WORKING THROUGH THE UPDATED PROJECTIONS FOR EXPENSES NOW FOR THE 27 BUDGETS. 
          SO WHEN WE HAVE A A GOOD HANDLE ON THOSE, WE'LL UPDATE THAT NUMBER AS WELL. 
          BUT SOME OF THE EXPENSES HERE, UM, YOU'LL SEE THE SAME AS THE BUDGET. 
          SO WE WERE ABLE TO UPDATE THE REVENUE, BUT THE EXPENSES WE'RE WORKING THROUGH NOW, OKAY. 
          BUT IT SHOWS THAT THE END OF THE YEAR WE'RE GONNA EAT INTO FUND BALANCE AROUND 25 MILLION BASED UPON THE UPDATED REVENUE FORECAST. 
          UH, TWO THINGS WITH REVENUE, I WOULD SAY RIGHT NOW, UM, FOR THE YEAR ONE IS WE HAVE THE, UH, $7 MILLION FOR THE FEMA REIMBURSEMENT COMING THROUGH. 
          UM, I'M NOT SURE IF WE'RE GONNA GET ALL OF THAT THIS YEAR. 
          WE HAVE SUBMITTED ONE INVOICE SO FAR TO THEM. 
          THE REMAINING INVOICES WILL BE SUBMITTED BY THE END OF JUNE, END OF MAY TIMEFRAME. 
          IT'S GOING THROUGH THE APPROVAL PROCESS. 
          SO MY EXPECTATION IS THAT FEMA WILL MOVE INTO 2027 AND WE'LL KIND OF CROSS THAT BRIDGE WHEN WE GET TO THE BUDGET PRESENTATION, WE'LL HAVE A BETTER IDEA OF TIMING AND, UM, WE ARE SUBMITTING MORE THAN THE 7 MILLION FOR REIMBURSEMENT. 
          SO WE'LL SEE WHERE THAT LANDS. 
          AND THE OTHER, UM, ITEM THAT'S NOT IN HERE IS THE RECENT NOVANT, UH, ITEM THAT'S GONNA BE CLOSING, I THINK IN MAY. 
          SO WE MIGHT HAVE ANOTHER BUDGET APPROPRIATION, UH, TOWARDS THE SPRINGTIME ON, ON THAT, ON THAT, UH, LAND OR OUR SALE OF LAND. 
          OKAY. 
          AGAIN, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT WITH THAT SALE OF LAND, UM, UH, LOOKING FOR A PROPOSAL FROM FINANCE AND THE TOWN MANAGER AS TO HOW WE WOULD ALLOCATE THAT IN A WAY THAT WE COULD USE THAT IN THE FUTURE FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. 
          RIGHT. 
          AND HAVE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, KNOW THAT THAT MONEY IS THERE. 
          YEAH. 
          MAYBE WE SET UP A SEPARATE FUND OR SOMETHING IF NEED BE, WHATEVER. 
          YEAH, YOU RECOMMEND. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND THEN THE FUND BALANCE WALK BY FUND. 
          WE'VE KIND OF WALKED THROUGH THIS ALREADY BEFORE WITH THE TOTAL FUND WALK, SO I'M GONNA KEEP MOVING ON THE EFFORT OF TIME. 
          AND THEN YOU HAVE ALL THESE SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS OF WELL THAT HAVE BEEN UPDATED WITH THE LATEST PROJECTION. 
          SO ON THE QUARTERLY REVENUE, WE'VE ADDED, UM, SOME SUMMARY CHARTS UP FRONT AT FIRST. 
          SO IF YOU LOOK HERE FROM A TOTAL TOWN REVENUE NUMBER, AND THIS IS NET OF TRANSFERS, UH, FIRST AND SECOND QUARTER ARE NOW ACTUALS. 
          OKAY. 
          AND NOW YOU HAVE OUR PROJECTIONS FOR THE THIRD AND FOURTH QUARTER, GETTING TO THE 130 MILLION I SPOKE ABOUT BEFORE. 
          UM, THE YELLOW NUMBER IS THE NORMALIZED NUMBER, WHICH EXCLUDES GRANTS, ANY TIFF COLLECTIONS, ANY SETTLEMENTS, AND ALSO INVESTMENT INCOME, BECAUSE THAT CAN VARY. 
          SO JUST TRYING TO LOOK AT BASE OPERATING REVENUE COMING THROUGH. 
          AND YOU CAN SEE 1 0 3 FROM 2023 GROWING SLOWLY TO OUR LATEST FORECAST. 
          PROJECTION IS UP 1 11 6 8 8 FOR 2026. 
          OKAY. 
          GETTING TO THE ACCOMMODATION REVENUES, UM, THE SAME TYPE OF A ITEM HERE. 
          WE, EXCUSE ME, SORRY, I WAS HEADING FORWARD BY MISTAKE. 
          OKAY. 
          SORRY ABOUT THAT. 
          OKAY. 
          NOW WE'RE ON OUR GENERAL FUND, THE SAME TYPE OF LOGIC FOR THE GENERAL FUND AS BEFORE THE NORMALIZED ITEMS. THIS DOES INCLUDE INVESTMENT INCOME. 
          WE DIDN'T TAKE THAT OUT ON THE GENERAL FUND, BUT IF YOU LOOK, THE BLUE BARS ARE THE HISTORICAL, UH, NUMBERS WITH NORMALIZING ITEMS. AND OUR, UH, YELLOW NUMBER IS FOR THE 25 UPDATE WITH NORMALIZED. 
          AND THEN THE BLUE IS OUR UPDATED FORECAST FOR THE GENERAL FUND FOR 2026 TO THE GREEN 2026 BUDGET. 
          SO WE ARE EXPECTING TO BE OVER BUDGET ABOUT $5 MILLION FOR THE GENERAL FUND THIS YEAR. 
          AND IF WE LOOK AT ALL SPECIAL REVENUES, SAME TYPE OF A LOGIC THERE, WE REFORECASTED THE YEAR, SO WE'RE AT ABOUT $56.6 MILLION. 
          UM, AND THE YELLOW BARS ARE NORMALIZED PROJECT, UH, NORMALIZED SPECIAL REVENUE NUMBERS COMPARED TO THE 2026 FORECAST FOR THIS YEAR. 
          SO ONCE AGAIN, WE'RE TRENDING UP 
          [00:15:01]
RELATIVELY FLAT COMPARED TO 2025. 
          ONCE AGAIN, THE BLUE, THE BLUE ARE THE TOTAL, WHICH INCLUDES SOME OF THE, UH, NORMALIZING ITEMS THAT ARE IN THOSE NUMBERS. 
          AND THEN FINALLY, ACCOMMODATION REVENUES. 
          WE HAVE ADDED LOCAL STATE AND BEACH FEES AS ONE SLIDE INSTEAD OF HAVING THREE SEPARATES. 
          AND, UM, ONCE AGAIN, WE HAVE THE FIRST AND SECOND QUARTER ACTUALS IN HERE. 
          UM, WE WERE DOWN IN THE SECOND QUARTER, ABOUT 3%, 3.3% LOWER IN THE SECOND QUARTER OF 2026 VERSUS 25. 
          OUR PROJECTION IN 23, EXCUSE ME, IN QUARTER THREE AND QUARTER FOUR IS TAKING THIS DOWN 4% FROM THE PRIOR YEAR. 
          SO IF YOU LOOK AT 4.272, THAT'S 4% LOWER THAN THE THIRD QUARTER. 
          SAME LOGIC ON THE FOURTH, JUST TO TAKE A CONSERVATIVE VIEW, UH, THE FOURTH HAS A, A NORMALIZING ITEM IN IT. 
          SO IF YOU TOOK THAT OUT AND TOOK IT DOWN 4%, YOU WOULD GET TO THAT $16.3 MILLION NUMBER. 
          ONCE AGAIN, COMPARING THAT HISTORICALLY WE'RE HOLDING OUR OWN, I WOULD SAY, UM, A LITTLE BIT LESS THAN 2025, UM, ON THE YELLOW BAR, BUT STILL MAINTAINING, UH, MAINTAINING A, A SOLID, A SOLID NUMBER. 
          MR. CHAIR, JUST ONE QUICK THING. 
          THANK YOU FOR, UH, MAKING THAT BUCKET. 
          UM, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT ASK ABOUT. 
          IT HELPS US LOOK AT YEAH, I LIKE IT. 
          SO THANKS, THANKS FOR RECOMMENDING IT, . 
          AND THEN I, WE DO HAVE THE, THE BREAKOUTS HERE, WHICH I'LL JUST MOVE THROUGH. 
          AND THEN WE HAVE OUR HOSPITALITY TAX. 
          UH, WE JUST TOOK THE YEAR TO DATE, FIRST AND SECOND QUARTERS ON THE THIRD AND FOURTH. 
          WE USED PRIOR YEAR AS A PROJECTION. 
          AND IT'S BEEN RUNNING RELATIVELY FLAT, AS YOU CAN SEE FROM 23 NOW THROUGH 26. 
          UM, AND, UH, SO WE'RE, THERE'S, I THINK, UM, YOU KNOW, NOT PROJECTING ANY GROWTH THERE, A LITTLE BIT OF GROWTH IN THE SECOND QUARTER, BUT WE LEFT IT FLAT IN THE PROJECTION. 
          AND THEN OUR, UM, PROPERTY TAXES, WE DID CARRY THOSE OUT. 
          WE'RE STILL ANTICIPATING OUR MAIN PAYMENTS COMING THROUGH, UH, THIS MONTH. 
          AND SO FROM A TIMING PERSPECTIVE, UH, WE HAVE, UM, YOU KNOW, CONSISTENT OUR, WE'RE DOWN A LITTLE BIT REALLY DUE TO THE MILLAGE REDUCTION. 
          SO WE TOOK THE MILLAGE REDUCTION AND THEN INCREASED, UH, THE VALUES 5% OUTSIDE OF THAT. 
          SO WE'LL SEE WHERE ALL OF THAT LANDS, BUT THAT'S KIND OF WHERE WE ARE FROM OUR PROPERTY TAXES. 
          AND SAME THING ON THE DEBT SERVICE FUND, EXCEPT THE MILLAGE REDUCTION WAS 7% INSTEAD OF 10. 
          BUT THE SAME LOGIC WAS USED FOR THE PROJECTION OF THOSE, OF THOSE REVENUE NUMBERS. 
          AND THEN ON OUR REAL ESTATE TRANSFER FEES, UM, WE JUST USED THE ACTUALS FOR THE FIRST HALF OF THE YEAR, AND THEN WE LET THE THIRD AND FOURTH QUARTER BE FLAT TO LAST YEAR. 
          WE WERE JUST TALKING THIS MORNING, I THINK OUR MOST RECENT BOOKING FOR FEBRUARY, UH, IS STRONG. 
          SO THERE'S PROBABLY GONNA BE SOME UPSIDE IN THIS NUMBER. 
          UM, BUT WE'RE REALLY HAVING A VERY STRONG YEAR, YEAR COMPARED TO HISTORICAL NUMBERS ON THIS ONE. 
          AND THEN OUR BUSINESS LICENSES, UM, WE BASICALLY, UM, HAVE ON OUR ASSUMPTIONS FOR 26, ONCE AGAIN THE FIRST HALF OF THE YEAR ACTUALS. 
          UM, AND WE DID INCREASE THE THIRD AND FOURTH QUARTER, UM, BY POINT BY 0.5%, NOT 5%, BUT 0.5%. 
          SO MINIMAL GROWTH FROM PRIOR YEAR AFTER, YOU'LL USE SOME NORMALIZING ITEMS, BUT YOU CAN SEE ON THE, ON THE BLUE, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE STILL, WE'RE, WE'RE FLAT. 
          BASICALLY, I WOULD SAY FROM A BUSINESS LICENSE REVENUE PERSPECTIVE, IF YOU LOOK AT THE BLUE BARS AND THE NORMALIZED GO FOR 25 PERMITS, UM, ARE RUNNING STRONG. 
          UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, LET'S SEE, STATE I'M GONNA KEEP GOING. 
          FRANCHISE FEES I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT A LITTLE BIT. 
          UM, OUR FRANCHISE FEES, I THINK WE'LL HAVE SOME UPSIDE FOR THE YEAR. 
          UM, VERSUS WHAT WE DID FORECAST. 
          THERE ARE, UM, A BEACH FRANCHISE FEE CHANGE OF 3% FOR THIS YEAR COMPARED TO 1%. 
          SO WE'RE STARTING TO SEE PAYMENTS COME THROUGH FOR THAT WHICH ARE, UH, LARGER. 
          SO THIS, THIS PROJECTION I THINK IS GONNA BE, I WOULD SAY CONSERVATIVE FROM A FULL YEAR PERSPECTIVE. 
          OKAY. 
          AND THEN WE HAD OUR TIFF AND OUR ELECTRIC FRANCHISEE SHORT TERM. 
          THE ONLY DELTA HERE IS THE TIMING. 
          IT WAS IN THE SECOND QUARTER AND PRIOR YEARS. 
          WE CHANGED IT TO BE MAY FOR, FOR THIS YEAR. 
          SO THAT'S PUSHING IT OUT TO THE FOURTH, FOURTH QUARTER. 
          AND ONCE AGAIN, THIS IS PRE, UH, BUDGET AMENDMENT 
          [00:20:01]
REVENUE DOLLARS, AND OUR STORM WATER IS RUNNING RELATIVELY FLAT AS WELL. 
          AND THEN INVESTMENT INCOME, AS YOU CAN SEE, HISTORICAL GROWTH OF INVESTMENT INCOME. 
          WE DID SCALE IT BACK A LITTLE BIT WHEN WE REFORECASTED THE YEAR JUST TO BE CONSERVATIVE. 
          IT ALL DEPENDS UPON TIMING OF MAKING PAYMENTS AND CASH COMING IN OVER THE NEXT SIX MONTHS. 
          BUT WE FEEL PRETTY GOOD ABOUT THAT NUMBER. 
          AND FROM A TREASURY PERSPECTIVE, WE'RE AT 2 3 8, 1 28, UM, AS OF THE END OF DECEMBER. 
          AND THAT'S ABOUT A MILLION OR SO MILLION AND A HALF LOW LOWER THAN, UH, A MONTH AGO WHEN WE PRESENTED THAT NUMBER. 
          BUT ONCE AGAIN, THAT'S ALL GONNA BE VARIABLE DEPENDING ON CASH COMING IN FOR PAYMENTS VERSUS MAJOR CAPITAL EXPENDITURES WE DO HAVE. 
          SO THERE IS YOUR FINANCIAL UPDATE. 
          THANK YOU, SIR. 
          ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE COMMITTEE, MS. BRYSON? YEAH, IT LOOKS LIKE OUR BOTTOM LINE'S STILL GOOD. 
          THAT'S WHAT I'M MOSTLY LOOK AT AT THIS POINT. 
          WE'RE DOING MS. DONNA AND I APPRECIATE ALL THE CONTINUED ENHANCEMENTS, UH, TO THE REPORT. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, BUT EVERYTHING LOOKS GREAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          AND, UH, OF COURSE WE WELCOME MR. ALFRED TO THE CONVERSATION. 
          ANYTHING TO ADD, SIR? GOOD. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU MR. BUR. 
          THANK YOU. 
          APPRECIATE IT. 
          OKAY, NEXT WE WILL MOVE ON TO UNFINISHED BUSINESS, UH, CONSIDERATION OF A FUNDING REQUEST SUPPORTING THE LOW COUNTRY REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY. 
          MS. MARY LOU FRANZO, INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR IS HERE TO PRESENT. 
          WELCOME. 
          THANK YOU. 
          GOOD MORNING. 
          THANK YOU. 
          WHAT'S OLD IS NEW AGAIN, . 
          UM, REALLY ENJOYED STEPPING BACK IN. 
          UM, I'M HERE TODAY TO JUST, UH, UH, RECAP FROM LAST YEAR'S BUDGET AND, AND, UH, JUST, UH, ASK AGAIN IF, UH, HILTON HEAD CAN, UH, SUPPORT US IN THE WAY THEY ALWAYS HAVE AND, AND WHY WE NEED THIS, UM, CASH TO MAKE OUR BUDGET WHOLE. 
          AND, UM, IT, IT, THIS IS FOR LAST YEAR'S BUDGET. 
          WE DID A FORECAST TO GO TO OUR YEAR END AND RECALCULATED WHAT WE NEEDED. 
          UM, LAST YEAR WAS A DIFFICULT YEAR FOR PROBABLY US AND OTHERS AS WELL WITH, UH, THE COST OF THINGS GOING UP. 
          AND WE'RE VERY RESTRICTED IN THE WAY WE GET MONEY IN. 
          UM, AND THIS IS, THESE ARE OUR SOURCES OF REVENUE FOR LRTA. 
          UM, WE SELL OUR OLD VE VEHICLES, WHICH IS NOT EVERY YEAR WE GOING INTO 27 BUDGET. 
          WE HAVE A LOT OF MCI THAT WE'RE SELLING. 
          AND SO WE GET ABOUT $10,000 FOR A VEHICLE ADVERTISING. 
          WE DON'T PUT ADVERTISING ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE TROLLEYS 'CAUSE WE DIDN'T. 
          NO ONE THOUGHT THAT WAS GONNA BE A VERY PLEASING RUNNING AROUND THE STREETS OF HILTON HEAD. 
          SO WE DO ADS ON THE MONITOR INSIDE. 
          WE DO ADS ON THE SCHEDULES. 
          UM, WE DO ADS ON THE OUTSIDE OF ALL OF OUR OTHER BUSES. 
          AND SO THAT IS SOME OF OUR, UH, SELF-GENERATED INCOME, REALLY ANYTHING WE CAN FIGURE OUT TO DO TO MAKE MONEY. 
          WE SELL OUR SCRAP METAL, WE HAVE INTEREST INCOME, UM, SPECIAL EVENT TRANSPORTATION. 
          WE CAN'T REALLY COMPETE WITH THE CHARTER OPERATORS, BUT WE CAN DO EVENTS FOR, FOR THE FOLKS THAT SUPPORT US, UM, THE GOVERNMENTS. 
          AND SO WE DO, WE DO EVERYTHING WE CAN FOR HILTON HEAD, FOR THE TOWN DEPARTMENTS IF THEY NEED TO GO SEE THE WORKFORCE HOUSING. 
          WE ARE TAKING BUSES UP TO TAKE 'EM UP THERE. 
          AND, AND WE DO CHARGE SO THAT THAT GOES INTO OUR INCOME, WHICH WE NEED, WHICH HELPS TO MATCH THE GRANTS. 
          UM, WE GET FAIR REVENUE. 
          UM, BUT IT'S SPECIFIC IN THE RULES THAT YOU CAN'T PUT YOUR FAIR REVENUE UP AGAINST THE GRANTS. 
          AND, UM, I WOULD TAKE THIS MOMENT TO SAY, I THINK THAT PALMETTO BREEZE IS REALLY AT A TIPPING POINT IN OUR SIZE. 
          WE'VE GOTTEN TO THE SIZE THAT, UM, IT'S VERY HARD TO SUSTAIN IT ON JUST GRANTS AND LOCAL MATCH AND WHAT LITTLE BIT OF INCOME WE CAN MAKE. 
          AND SO WE'RE COMING AROUND NOT JUST TO HILTON HEAD, BUT TO ALL OF THE LOCALITIES, TO, TO ASK FOR THE AMOUNT TO FINISH OUR BUDGET OUT. 
          AND THEN, UM, I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING BIGGER HAS TO HAPPEN HERE. 
          AND IT'S THERE, THERE'S ONLY TWO WAYS IN THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA THAT YOU CAN, AS A, AS A AUTHORITY GET FINANCED. 
          AND THAT IS THROUGH SALES TAX AND PROPERTY TAX. 
          AND SO WE WILL BE OVER TO BEAUFORT COUNTY WITHIN THE MONTH TO HAVE SOME FURTHER DISCUSSIONS. 
          AND MY GOAL, OUR GOAL AS LRTA IS TO KEEP GROWING AS THE AREA GROWS. 
          I MEAN, LOOK AT THE BUILDING THAT'S COMING. 
          LOOK AT WHAT'S HAPPENING OUT ON 2 78 AND ONE 70. 
          I MEAN, PEOPLE MAY NOT BE INCLINED TODAY TO GET OUT OF THEIR CARS AND GET IN A BUS, BUT I THINK THAT AS IT GETS MORE AND MORE CARS ON THE ROAD AND THE SAFETY CONCERNS OF ALL OF THAT, AND PERHAPS AS THEY REBUILD STUFF, WE GET A BUS LANE AND PULL OFFS. 
          I AND PARKING RIDE LOTS. 
          I THINK THAT, UM, THAT IS PART OF OUR GROWTH HERE. 
          AND YOU CAN SEE IT WHEN WE PUT THE 
          [00:25:01]
TROLLEY ON HILTON HEAD IN THE SUMMER, A LOT OF THE TRAFFIC, UH, IT WAS SO CONGESTED BEFORE WE EVER STARTED RUNNING THE TROLLEYS. 
          AND NOW 35,000 PEOPLE RODE LAST YEAR. 
          SO, I MEAN, IT REALLY DOES HELP. 
          UM, BUT WE HAVE TO GET IT. 
          UH, THE SERVICE HAS TO BE CONVENIENT AND SOMETHING PEOPLE WOULD CHOOSE. 
          AND THAT'S PART OF THE PART OF THE ISSUE TOO. 
          THE OTHER THING I WAS GONNA SAY, THE REASON WE'RE SELLING, UM, SOME OF OUR VEHICLES THIS YEAR, AND I, I I WANNA HIGHLIGHT THIS. 
          WE RECEIVED FOUR MCI BUSES. 
          THEY, THEY COST BETWEEN 800 AND $900,000 EACH. 
          AND WE HAD OH SIX AND OH SEVEN VEHICLES THAT NEEDED TO BE REPLACED THAT ARE ALREADY PARKED 'CAUSE THEY DON'T WORK ANYMORE. 
          AND IT'S TOO MUCH TO FIX THE STATE. 
          AND THE FDA, THE FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION GAVE US THE BUSES. 
          ANOTHER SYSTEM WENT OUT OF BUSINESS AND WE HAVE FOUR, UM, THEY'RE ABOUT A YEAR OLD. 
          BETWEEN A HUNDRED, 200,000 MILES. 
          THESE BUSES CAN GO A MILLION MILES. 
          AND THAT'S WHY WE HAVE 'EM. 
          'CAUSE WE'RE COMING FROM THE OUT OUTLYING COUNTIES AND, AND WE NEED BUSES THAT'LL HOLD UP WELL THE, FOR THEM TO GIFT US FOUR BUSES THAT WE'RE GETTING, UH, PREPARED WITH THE DECALS AND EVERYTHING. 
          RIGHT NOW, JUST THE LOCAL MATCH ON THAT IS CLOSE TO HALF A MILLION DOLLARS. 
          THE LOCAL MATCH ON A BUS IS 15%. 
          SO I FEEL LIKE THAT WAS HUGE FOR US AND THE ABILITY TO SELL OFF THESE OLD VEHICLES. 
          BUT, YOU KNOW, IT TAKES EVERYBODY COMING TO THE TABLE TO MAKE THIS REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION, UM, SYSTEM WORK. 
          AND THIS WAS LAST YEAR'S BUDGET. 
          UM, OUR ORIGINAL ASKS FROM EACH OF THE PROPERTIES, AND WHAT WE DID WAS WE WENT, UM, THROUGH, UH, UH, UH, AN EXERCISE OF PROJECTING, UH, THE END OF THE, THE YEAR WHERE WE WERE GONNA LAND. 
          AND SO WE DID A REVISED ASK ON THE, UH, PROJECTIONS. 
          AND SO WE'RE COMING HERE TODAY TO ASK THE TOWN OF HILTON HEAD ISLAND IF THEY COULD CONTRIBUTE THE 52,528 TOWARDS LAST YEAR'S BUDGET. 
          UM, AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE HERE TO ASK FOR. 
          AND AS I SAID, THE ONLY TWO WAYS WE CAN REALLY GET OUT OF YOUR GENERAL FUND OUTTA EVERYBODY'S GENERAL FUND. 
          AND WE'RE, WE'RE WORKING ON IT PROPERTY TAX OR SALES TAX THERE, THERE'S ANOTHER SALES TAX REFERENDUM THIS YEAR AND WE WERE ON THE LAST ONE. 
          AND SO I'M HOPING THAT WE CAN BECOME PART OF THE PART OF THE NEXT ONE. 
          UM, THERE WE GO. 
          IS THERE, DO YOU ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? IT'S MY FAVORITE THING TO TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW. 
          SURE. 
          WE DO . 
          ALRIGHT, MS. TANA, WE'LL, WE'LL, WE'LL START WITH YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          WELL THANK YOU AND WELCOME. 
          UM, I APPRECIATE YOU COMING BACK TO THE TABLE. 
          UM, I'M VERY SUPPORTIVE OF PALMETTO BREEZE. 
          IT'S AN IMPORTANT, UH, SERVICE THAT WE PROVIDE OUR COMMUNITIES, UH, AND ESPECIALLY FOR HILTON HEAD BRINGING WORKERS ONTO THE ISLAND, UH, AS WELL AS THE TROLLEY THAT YOU RUN DURING OUR TOURIST SEASON. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, THE QUESTIONS THAT WE HAVE BEEN ASKING OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF MEETINGS, HA HAS BEEN MORE ABOUT TRYING TO UNDERSTAND YOUR FINANCIALS AS WELL AS UNDERSTAND, UH, WHAT THE OTHER COMMUNITIES ARE CONTRIBUTING AS WELL. 
          RIGHT? WE WANNA CONTRIBUTE OUR FAIR SHARE, UH, AND HAVING, UH, MORE TRANSPARENCY ABOUT WHAT THE OTHER COMMUNITIES ARE CONTRIBUTING I IS IMPORTANT, UH, FOR US TO, TO UNDERSTAND. 
          UH, I ALSO APPRECIATE YOU TAKING, UH, TIME TO UPDATE YOUR FORECAST. 
          UM, AND WE'RE NOW AT A SITUATION WHERE YOU'RE ASKING FOR $52,000 AND I, I PERSONALLY AM VERY COMFORTABLE WITH THAT, UH, GIVEN ALL THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE AND THE NEED TO SUPPORT YOU. 
          UH, BUT I AGREE TOTALLY WITH YOUR COMMENT ABOUT YOU'RE AT A TIPPING POINT, YOU KNOW, AND WE'VE GOT THE AFFILIATED AGENCY INFORMATION AND YOU HAVE GOT TWO YEARS OF YOUR CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL RESULTS, WHICH I LOOKED AT. 
          AND, UM, AS I'VE SAID BEFORE, I WORRY ABOUT YOUR FINANCIAL VIABILITY IN THE FUTURE AND, UM, YOU KNOW, VARIOUS REVENUE STRATEGIES. 
          AND ONE OF THE INTERESTING POINTS THAT YOU MADE IN, IN THE MATERIALS FOR AFFILIATED AGENCY IS THAT, UM, THE STATE PROVIDES $6 MILLION, WHICH HAS NOT GONE UP, UH, IN THE YEARS. 
          AND HE $6 MILLION FOR WHAT WAS SEVEN TRANSIT SYSTEMS IS NOW, UH, CLOSE TO 30. 
          AND, UM, WE'RE WORKING HARD LEGISLATIVELY TO TRY TO GET THAT THAT NUMBER UP. 
          AND THAT'S WHAT WE GET FOR THE STATE MATCH, WHICH IS REALLY ABOUT 10%. 
          AND EVERY OTHER STATE I WORKED IN, THE STATE PUTS IN 25, THEY EQUAL THE LOCAL MATCH. 
          AND SO OUR STATE IS FALLEN BEHIND AND HAS BEEN. 
          AND SO WE HAVE THE TRANSIT ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH CAROLINA IS OUR, IS OUR ORGANIZATION THAT, UH, UH, WE ALL BELONG TO. 
          AND WE'RE, UM, HAVING LEGISLATIVE MEETINGS AND RECEPTIONS AND TRYING TO GET OUR POLITICIANS TO, TO GET BEHIND PUBLIC TRANSIT. 
          YEAH, I, I WAS BLOWN AWAY BY THAT INFORMATION. 
          UM, AND IT, UM, IT CERTAINLY PROVIDES AN OPPORTUNITY AND IF THERE'S 
          [00:30:01]
ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO AS A LOCAL MUNICIPALITY TO HELP YOU, UH, SHOW SUPPORT, UH, FOR INCREASED FUNDING FROM THE STATE, UM, YOU KNOW, I, I'D CERTAINLY BE COMFORTABLE DOING THAT BECAUSE, UM, I I THINK EVERYONE NEEDS TO STEP UP TO THE TABLE THE COMMUNITIES ARE AND LOCAL MUNICIPALITIES ARE, AND I THINK THE STATE NEEDS TOO AS WELL. 
          YEAH. 
          AND I, I THINK WHAT TROUBLES ME IS WHEN THE GOVERNOR TALKS ABOUT ALL THIS MONEY HE HAS EXTRA AND WE'RE GONNA DO BREAKFAST FOR KIDS, WHICH I LOVE, YOU KNOW, LOTS OF THINGS THAT HE WANTS, LIKE HE'S THINKING OF THINGS AND HERE IT IS RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIM THAT, UH, NOT JUST OUR SYSTEM, BUT EVERY SYSTEM IN THE STATE NEEDS MORE STATE PARTICIPATION. 
          WELL, THANK YOU . 
          SURE. 
          WELCOME BACK. 
          THANK YOU. 
          GOOD TO SEE YOUR FACE AGAIN. 
          UM, YOU WERE JUST TALKING ABOUT, UH, STATE FUNDING AND IT REMINDS ME THAT, SO LOCO, UM, IS GOING TO BE MEETING WITH OUR LOCAL DELEGATION AT A SPECIAL MEETING ON FEBRUARY 23RD. 
          UM, I'M TRYING TO REMEMBER 'CAUSE WE GO BACK AND FORTH. 
          OH, I KNOW. 
          IT'S AT THE NEW RED BARN IN BLUFFTON. 
          OH, THAT, THE 10 O'CLOCK THE PARK? YES, THE NEW, THE NEW RED PARK. 
          THAT'S A BEAUTIFUL PLACE. 
          UM, SO MONDAY THE 23RD, I THINK IT'S AT, IT'S EITHER AT NINE OR 10 O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING, BUT CHECK, UM, SO LOCO WEBSITE FOR THAT INFORMATION. 
          BUT, UM, I JUST WROTE A NOTE TO ASK OUR LOCAL DELEGATION FOR MORE TRANSPORTATION MONEY FOR OUR REGION. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          I'M GONNA, UM, MAKE IT A POINT TO ATTEND THAT MEETING. 
          YEAH, I THINK THAT'D BE HELPFUL. 
          UM, AND, AND THEN, UM, THE OTHER THING THAT WE ASK ABOUT WAS, UM, SPEAKING ABOUT THE FINANCIALS MS. TURNER'S BEEN ASKING ABOUT IS TO SCHEDULE A MEETING AS SOON AS POSSIBLE IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY DONE SO WITH OUR TOWN STAFF TO LOOK AT, UH, THE FINANCIALS AND FUNDING FOR THE NEXT BUDGET CYCLE. 
          SO I'M HOPING THAT WE HAVE ALREADY MET. 
          GOOD, GOOD. 
          I WAS SAYING, I, I THOUGHT I HEARD AFTER THE FIRST OF THE YEAR AND WE'RE IN FEBRUARY, SO I WANTED TO CHECK ON THAT. 
          UM, THE, UM, THE OTHER FUNDERS, UH, THAT YOU HAVE LISTED ON THE CHART, IT'S A COUPLE SLIDES. 
          WE HAVE, UH, WE'RE ON, UH, BLUFFTON, UH, FINANCE COMMITTEE THIS MONTH AS WELL FOR THE SAME SUBJECT. 
          AND WE'RE GOING TO BEAUFORT COUNTY VERY SHORTLY, PROBABLY NEXT WEEK. 
          SO, UH, SO YES, THAT WOULD BE A YES. 
          SO ALL PENDING, I, I, I, I'M WITH MS. TURNER, I SUPPORT THE REQUEST, THE ADDITIONAL 52,000 PLUS. 
          UM, AND I JUST ASK OUR FINANCE DIRECTOR, I'M ASSUMING WE HAVE THE MONEY SOMEWHERE TO APPROVE THAT. 
          UM, AND SO WHAT WE WOULD NEED TODAY, I, I GUESS MR. CHAIR'S A MOTION TO APPROVE THAT REQUEST, UH, SUBJECT TO WHATEVER ACTION THE TOWN COUNCIL NEEDS TO TAKE TO INCLUDE THAT, UM, IN OUR FUNDING FOR THIS YEAR. 
          OKAY. 
          THAT'S IT FOR ME. 
          ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. 
          UM, WELL, NO, NO, NO. 
          I'M THANKING MS. BRYSON, NOT YOU, MS. ZO, I HAVE A COUPLE QUESTIONS. 
          SORRY. 
          MR. COLTRANE HAS RAISED HIS HAND. 
          MR. I, I THINK THE MOTION WOULD BE TO FORWARD THE REQUEST TO TOWN COUNSEL WITH THE RECOMMENDATION FOR APPROVAL. 
          OKAY, THANK YOU. 
          OKAY, WE'LL GET TO THAT IN JUST A MOMENT. 
          UM, SO I ASKED THE QUESTION AT THE LAST MEETING, OBVIOUSLY YOU WERE NOT HERE, SO, UM, I'M GONNA GIVE YOU THE OPPORTUNITY IF YOU CAN TO HELP US BETTER UNDERSTAND. 
          SO YOU MENTIONED THAT THE, THE REGIONAL GROWTH OBVIOUSLY, UM, IS GOING TO AFFECT, UH, YOUR ORGANIZATION AND HARDY V UH, FOR THE MOST PART IS THE AREA GEOGRAPHICALLY THAT IS EXPERIENCING SUCH GROWTH. 
          SO I'M JUST CURIOUS TO UNDERSTAND HOW THAT RELATIONSHIP IS IN ITS CURRENT STATE OR IF THERE ARE ANY OPPORTUNITIES TO PARTIC UH, POTENTIALLY ADD THEM AS A CONTRIBUTOR. 
          I UNDERSTAND THAT THEIR, THEIR FUNDS ARE COMING THROUGH THE COUNTY JASPER COUNTY, BUT NOT THEM AS A MUNICIPALITY THEMSELVES. 
          ANY UPDATE ON THAT? WELL, YOU KNOW, THAT'S INTERESTING BECAUSE JASPER COUNTY IS ONE OF THE FASTEST GROWING COUNTIES IN THE COUNTRY. 
          AND, UM, WE WERE NOT, YOU HAVE TO GET IN ON THESE SALES TAX REVENUE THINGS NAMED BEFORE IT EVER GETS PASSED. 
          AND, AND, UH, BOTH BEAUFORT COUNTY AND JASPER HAD THAT GOING ON AT THE SAME TIME AND JASPER'S PASSED AND BEAUFORT DIDN'T. 
          AND, UM, WE DIDN'T ASK TO BE ON JASPER'S. 
          WE DON'T, WE DO A LITTLE BIT OF SERVICE FOR THEM TO THE WALMART IN HARDY V AND YOU KNOW, SOME, BECAUSE THEY'RE OUR BORDERING COUNTY, BUT WE HAVEN'T REALLY TAKEN ROUTES OUT INTO HARDY V UH, WE DO A COMMUTER BUS THROUGH JASPER AS WE DO THROUGH ALL THE COUNTIES, BUT I BELIEVE THAT THAT'S GONNA BE, UH, ONE OF OUR HIGHEST NEW SERVICE DEMANDS AS YOU LOOK AT WHAT'S BEING CONSTRUCTED AND ALL THE LAND THAT'S CLEARED BETWEEN HERE AND 95, UM, IT'S SCARY WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT FOR US SMALL TOWN PEOPLE TO LOOK AT 6,000 HOMES COMING IN ONE CLIP. 
          LIKE WHAT DOES THAT DO TO THE HIGHWAYS IN THE ROADS AND ALL THE INFRASTRUCTURE. 
          SO I THINK IT IS A PLACE WE'LL BE GOING TO WHICH, YOU KNOW, UM, MAYOR WILLIAMS IS VERY PROTRAN AND TO TALK TO HIM AND PRO PRO SMART GROWTH. 
          AND SO I THINK 
          [00:35:01]
THAT THEY'RE A GOOD PARTNER AS WE GROW, BUT AT THE CURRENT MOMENT WE DON'T, UM, DO A LOT FOR HARDY AND WE DON'T, UM, REQUEST FUNDS FOR THEM AT THIS POINT. 
          OKAY. 
          AND MY NEXT, UH, QUESTION, UM, IT'S PROBABLY MORE OF A COMMENT AND STATEMENT THAN A QUESTION. 
          OKAY. 
          AND I'D LIKE TO JUST LEARN A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THIS AND UNDERSTAND THIS A BIT MORE. 
          UM, WHEN WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO DISCUSS AFFILIATE AGENCIES, I THINK ON MARCH 9TH, YOU GUYS WILL BE BACK. 
          UM, AGAIN, UM, I DON'T HAVE THE ENTIRE HISTORY, BUT I I I TEND TO SORT OF POKE AROUND TO TRY TO FIND OUT HOW THINGS STARTED. 
          RIGHT? AND THE WAY THAT I UNDERSTAND THAT LRTA CAME TO EXISTENCE WAS THERE WAS SOME VERY INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE WHO CAME TOGETHER AND SAID, LET'S FIND A WAY TO GET MONEY FROM THE STATE AND COUNTY TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN. 
          I, THAT'S TYPICALLY THE WAY THINGS WORK AROUND HERE. 
          UM, AND NOW HERE WE ARE IN A SITUATION, UM, TO MS. TURNER'S POINT, YOU KNOW, YOU ARE, YOU'RE SORT OF STRUGGLING TO A DEGREE. 
          ALRIGHT? YEAH. 
          SO I'M TRYING TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHO ARE THE INFLUENCERS, WHO ARE THE MOVERS AND SHAKERS THAT ARE GOING TO HELP, NUMBER ONE AT THE STATE LEVEL FIX A PROBLEM THAT'S BROKEN. 
          I MEAN IT'S BEHIND, IT'S NOT KEEPING UP. 
          UM, WHEN WE COMPARE IT TO OTHER STATES, OBVIOUSLY WE CAN SEE IT THROUGH THE NUMBERS. 
          UM, AND THEN ALSO AT THE, THE COUNTY'S LEVEL. 
          UM, SO I'M UNDERSTANDING THAT THE COUNTY APPOINTS YOUR BOARD MEMBERS. 
          CORRECT. 
          UM, BUT I FOR ONE, AS I'VE SAT ON THIS COUNCIL FOR ABOUT FIVE YEARS, I'VE NEVER MADE A RECOMMENDATION TO THE COUNTY AS TO WHO SHOULD SIT ON YOUR BOARD TO HELP WITH THE INFLUENCING OF FOLKS THAT HAVE MORE MONEY THAN WE DO. 
          RIGHT. 
          AND I THINK THAT'S A DISCONNECT. 
          WE, WE'VE GOTTA WORK ON THAT SOMEHOW. 
          UM, WE ARE MORE THAN WILLING TO HAVE A BIGGER AND BROADER CONVERSATION ABOUT THAT. 
          UH, BUT I THINK IT'S TIME, YOU KNOW, THIS IS, UH, THIS IS A SERVICE THAT WE CANNOT LET GO AWAY. 
          AND AT THE SAME TIME I THINK IT'S UNSUSTAINABLE TO THINK ABOUT REFERENDUMS, WHICH ARE SORT OF ONE-TIME MONIES AS A SOLUTION AND ALSO SMALL MUNICIPALITIES LIKE OURSELF TRYING TO FIT THE BILL. 
          SO WE'VE GOT TO FIGURE OUT THAT DISCONNECT AS FAR AS INFLUENCES ARE CONCERNED. 
          AND AGAIN, NOT TO HAVE THAT CONVERSATION TODAY. 
          I'M JUST PLANTING A SEED SO THAT WE CAN FURTHER THE DISCUSSION. 
          WELL, UH, MR. BIRD ALSO PLANTED THE SEED WHEN HE CAME OVER TO VISIT OUR STAFF. 
          AND I DID, UM, HAVE THAT ON THE AGENDA. 
          WE HAD, WERE MAKING A MINOR, UM, UH, BYLAWS CHANGE ANYWAY, BUT WE BROUGHT UP THE DISCUSSION OF, YOU KNOW, MUNICIPALITIES THAT ARE, UM, HELPING TO FUND THE SYSTEM WOULD LIKE A SEAT ON THE BOARD AND WE DISCUSSED IT AND I THINK IT'S GONNA COME BACK UP AGAIN. 
          I THINK PEOPLE HAD TO GET THEIR MINDS AROUND IT. 
          UM, BUT I DO BELIEVE THAT THERE'S A PLACE FOR, UM, THE FOLKS THAT ARE, UH, FUNDING US AND THAT WANNA SEE US SUCCEED. 
          I THINK THERE'S A PLACE FOR THEM ON OUR BOARD, BUT THE BOARD WILL DECIDE AND IT WAS A PRETTY GOOD CONVERSATION. 
          OKAY. 
          WELL, HOWEVER WE CAN HELP, PLEASE REACH OUT ON THAT. 
          OKAY? YES, SIR. 
          ALRIGHT, SOUNDS GOOD. 
          OKAY, SO I THINK I'VE HEARD SOME ALIGNMENT AROUND THE, THE NEW ASK. 
          UM, SO IF SOMEONE CAN GIVE A MOTION, PLEASE, UM, I MOVE TO RECOMMEND WE FORWARD THIS TO TOWN COUNCIL WITH A RECOMMENDATION TO INCREASE THE FUNDING TO LOW COUNTRY REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY IN THE AMOUNT OF THE REQUEST BEING $52,528 A SECOND. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, I'M GONNA OPEN UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT, BUT BEFORE I DO SO MR. ALFRED, ANYTHING YOU WANT TO ADD TO THIS? NO, SIR. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          UH, PUBLIC COMMENT? ANYBODY SIGNED UP? MS. VIN? YES. 
          MR. WILLIAMS? NOTHING. 
          OKAY. 
          ONLY PERSON SIGNED UP. 
          ANYONE ELSE WANNA COMMENT ON THIS PARTICULAR ITEM? ALRIGHT, WE'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE DAIS AND WE ARE READY FOR THE QUESTION. 
          ALL IN FAVOR? OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY, NEXT WE'LL MOVE INTO OUR NEW BUSINESS. 
          ASK MR. BIRD TO COME BACK UP AND GIVE US WHAT I'M DESCRIBING AS A PEAK UNDER THE 10TH. 
          AS FAR AS THE AFFILIATE AGENCY REQUEST, UM, WE ARE NOT MAKING ANY DECISIONS TODAY. 
          NO RECOMMENDATIONS TODAY. 
          UM, BUT BECAUSE THIS PROCESS IS ONE THAT WE CONTINUE TO TRY TO IMPROVE ON, I THOUGHT IT WAS APPROPRIATE FOR US TO HAVE A CONVERSATION HERE ABOUT WHO'S ASKED HOW MUCH THEY'VE ASKED AND JUST GET SOME PRELIMINARY THOUGHTS OR QUESTIONS ON THE TABLE WITH, IN PARTICULAR IF THERE'S AGENCIES THAT WE WANT TO SEE SOMETHING DIFFERENT FROM, MAKE SURE WE LET MR. BIRD KNOW TODAY SO THAT HE CAN NOTIFY THOSE PARTICULAR AGENCIES. 
          ALL YOURS SIR. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UM, SO WHAT WE HAVE TODAY 
          [00:40:01]
IS THE FUNDING REQUEST THAT WE DID RECEIVE. 
          UM, THEY WERE DUE ON JANUARY THE 23RD, UH, FOR THE AFFILIATED AGENCIES AND WE RECEIVED SEVEN COMPLETED APPLICATIONS, UM, WHICH ARE LISTED HERE IN THE MEMO. 
          AND, UM, YOU ALSO HAVE, UH, IN THE PACKET AS WELL, THERE ARE APPLICATIONS THAT THEY SUBMITTED AS WELL. 
          UM, ON THE NEXT SLIDE, YEAH, SO WE JUST HAVE A KIND OF A BREAKOUT FOR AN OVERVIEW OF THE DOLLARS THAT ARE BEING ASKED FOR THIS YEAR, WHICH IS AROUND $2,430,814. 
          UM, AND THE BUDGETS THAT WERE SUBMITTED, THE ONE THING I WOULD NOTE IN THE APPLICATION IS SEA TURTLE PATROL. 
          UM, THE BUDGET AND THE FIRST PAGE THAT THEY HAD IS $112,000. 
          THAT CANNOT BE THEIR BUDGET NUMBER BECAUSE THEY ASK IS MORE THAN THEIR BUDGET. 
          UM, SO I'M ASSUMING THAT WAS A ERROR. 
          AND WHAT WE DID PUT IN HERE IS THE 2026 BUDGET EXPENSE FOR NOW AS A PLACEHOLDER. 
          UM, AND WE, WE ALSO ADDED THE AT TAX GRANT AWARDS FOR THOSE THAT DID RECEIVE THOSE AS WELL. 
          SO YOU DO HAVE THAT INFORMATION FOR BOTH, WHICH TOTALS OF AROUND $3.2 MILLION, UM, FOR 2027. 
          AND THEN THE NEXT SLIDE IS REALLY GOING THROUGH MORE OF A HISTORICAL VIEW, GETTING BACK TO 2024, WHAT THEIR ANNUAL BUDGET HAS BEEN IN THE PAST, UM, THEIR, THEIR FUNDING THAT THEY DID RECEIVE AND THEIR ATEX GRANTS FROM A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE. 
          UM, JUST JUST FROM AN INFORMATION SIDE OF THINGS, WE DO HAVE MEETINGS SCHEDULED WITH EVERY AGENCY OVER THE NEXT WEEK OR SO TO GO THROUGH THEIR APPLICATIONS, GO THROUGH THEIR BUDGET REQUESTS AS THEY ARE PREPARED TO COME BACK AND PRESENT AT THE NEXT FINANCE MEETING IN MARCH. 
          AND THAT'S, THAT'S REALLY ALL I HAVE RIGHT HERE FOR THIS PIECE OF IT. 
          UH, JUST, UH, OVERVIEW OF WHAT WE RECEIVED SO FAR. 
          OKAY. 
          MR. BIRD, UH, CAN YOU JUST SORT OF STEP US THROUGH WHAT WILL HAPPEN AFTER YOU MEET AND INTO THE NEXT MEETING AND THE EXPECTATION OF THE NEXT MEETING? SO THE MEETINGS THIS OVER THE NEXT WEEK WILL BE TO REVIEW THEIR APPLICATIONS. 
          IF THEY NEED TO MAKE UPDATES, THEY WILL, 'CAUSE I WOULD IMAGINE SOME WILL HAVE TO AND, UM, GET COMFORTABLE WITH THEIR FINANCIALS, LOOK AT THEIR BUDGETS THAT THEY DO HAVE, UM, RELATED TO THE APPLICATION THAT WAS, UH, UH, IMPLEMENTED THIS YEAR IN JANUARY FOR THEM TO, FOR DECEMBER FOR THEIR APPLICATION. 
          AND, UH, COVER ANY QUESTIONS THAT WE WOULD HAVE WITH THEIR FUNDING REQUESTS, WITH THEIR BUDGET REQUEST. 
          AND, UM, MAKE SURE THAT WHEN THEY COME FORWARD TO PRESENT, UM, IT MAKES SENSE FROM A LOGIC PERSPECTIVE AND A A NEED PERSPECTIVE. 
          UM, THAT'S KIND OF OUR GOAL OVER THE NEXT WEEK OR SO WITH THE AGENCIES. 
          AND THEN GIVE THEM THE FLOOR WHERE THEY CAN PRESENT TO THE COMMITTEE AND, UM, COVER ANY QUESTIONS THAT MIGHT BE HAD RELATED TO THE ASK FOR 2027. 
          AND THEN IN APRIL, DEPENDING ON THE, THE, UH, COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS, THERE WOULD BE A RECOMMENDATION OF WHAT THE FUNDING WOULD BE FOR THE 27 BUDGET CYCLE. 
          OKAY. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, I'M GONNA ASK FOR COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMITTEE AND I'D, I'D LIKE TO JUST, UH, REITERATE THAT WE ARE CONTINUING TO IMPROVE HERE. 
          I CAN REMEMBER MY FIRST TIME GOING THROUGH THIS AND ONE OF OUR, UH, APPLICANTS WAS NOT LISTED ON THE LIST BECAUSE THEY WERE LATE AND BRINGING THEIR APPLICATION TO THE TABLE. 
          SO WE CONTINUE TO GET BETTER. 
          UM, AND I THINK WE ALL HAVE THE SPIRIT OF, UH, CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT. 
          UH, SO, UM, I'LL START WITH YOU MS. PRICE, ANYTHING THAT YOU HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT EITHER PROCESS OR INDIVIDUAL APPLICANTS? SURE. 
          UM, THANKS VERY MUCH. 
          I'M, I'M GLAD YOU STILL HAVE THE SLIDE, UH, SHOWING OVER THE YEARS. 
          UM, IT'S INTERESTING, UM, TO TAKE A LOOK AT, I, I THINK AS FAR AS, UM, LOOKING FORWARD TO HEARING THE APPLICANT'S PRESENTATION, BUT I THINK IT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO KNOW KIND OF BOTTOM LINE, WHAT'S THE BASIS FOR, AND, AND I, I DON'T MEAN TO PICK ON ISLAND REC, BUT BECAUSE THEY'RE THE FIRST ON THE LIST, SO THE INCREASE OF, UH, LITTLE OVER 300,000, UM, UH, JUST UNDER 300,000. 
          UM, SO WHAT'S THE BASIS, WHAT'S THE REASON FOR THAT INCREASE? UH, SOME OF THE OTHERS ARE, ARE THE SAME NUMBER. 
          UM, FOR INSTANCE, MITCHELLVILLE IS, WAS 1 0 5 LAST YEAR OR THIS CURRENT YEAR 1 0 5 IN THE NEW REQUEST. 
          SO THAT'S FLAT PALMETTO 
          [00:45:01]
BREEZE. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, WE PROBABLY OUGHT TO PUT AN ASTERISK IN THERE AT 350,000 IF, IF THE TOWN COUNCIL'S GOING TO APPROVE THE FULL TOWN COUNCIL, APPROVE ANOTHER 52,000 PLUS, UM, TO NOTE THAT. 
          AND SO THERE'S AN INCREASE FROM THAT TO, UH, JUST A HUNDRED, 450,000. 
          UM, SO SOME OF THOSE REASONS FOR THE INCREASE. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, WOULD BE HELPFUL TO KNOW ABOUT EITHER FROM THE STAFF OR FROM THE APPLICANTS THEMSELVES. 
          UM, AND THEN, UM, UH, I KNOW OUTSIDE FOUNDATION IS NEW APPLICANT, I UNDERSTAND THE REASON FOR THAT. 
          UM, BUT, UM, UH, DON'T HAVE ANYTHING ELSE TO COMMENT ABOUT THAT. 
          UM, AND THEN LOOKING AT 2025, IF YOU COMPARE OVER THE YEARS, UM, THERE'S SOME, UH, AGENCIES WHO ARE NO LONGER IN THE LIST. 
          SO IT'S INTERESTING TO COMPARE, UH, A LITTLE OVER 3.25 MILLION TO THIS REQUEST. 
          2.4 SOMETHING, PARDON ME. 
          BUT IF YOU TAKE OUT THE ONES WHO ARE NO LONGER IN OUR LIST, THEN YOU SEE THE NUMBER IS CLOSER. 
          UM, SO IT MIGHT BE JUST GOOD TO HAVE A NOTE ABOUT THAT. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, UH, FOR INSTANCE, UH, 14 CIRCUITS, SOLICITOR, THE TWO, UM, ENTRIES FOR THEM WERE NO LONGER DOING THAT. 
          UM, AND THEN ALSO USEB EVENT MANAGEMENT AND THEN THERE ARE TWO, UM, REQUESTS, UH, IN, IN TWO YEARS, UM, FROM TWO, UM, ORGANIZATIONS HELPING OUT WITH WORKFORCE HOUSING. 
          AND SO THOSE ARE NOT BEING REPEATED. 
          AND, AND THOSE TWO TOGETHER ARE TOTAL, TOTAL 1.1 MILLION. 
          SO THAT'S A BIG DIFFERENCE IN COMPARING 2025 TO THE REQUEST FOR 2027. 
          UM, SO ANYHOW, THAT, THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS AT THIS POINT, BUT I UNDERSTAND THE PROCESS, I THINK THAT'S A GOOD PROCESS. 
          UM, AND I KNOW THAT IT GOES FROM THIS COMMITTEE STRAIGHT TO OUR BUDGET CYCLE. 
          UM, AND SO, UM, I THINK WE'LL BE READY. 
          OKAY, MS. DONA. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          UM, THANK YOU, UH, FOR PUTTING ALL THE MATERIALS TOGETHER. 
          I KNOW THAT TAKES A LOT OF TIME AND EFFORT. 
          UM, BUT I WANT TO, IN THE SPIRIT OF PROCESS IMPROVEMENT, TALK ABOUT THE FRONT PAGE OF THE APPLICATION, UH, WHERE IT LISTS, UM, YOU KNOW, THE PROGRAM PURPOSE AND IT LISTS FOUR ITEMS, UH, AS TO THE PURPOSE. 
          UM, SO CAN YOU, CAN YOU PUT THAT UP ON THE SCREEN? UH, DAY'S GONNA PULL IT UP REAL. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          THAT WAY I DON'T HAVE TO READ THE WHOLE THING. 
          SO THERE ARE, THERE ARE FOUR ITEMS. YES. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 
          THERE ARE FOUR ITEMS. UH, SO THE FIRST ONE IS PROVIDE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES FREQUENTLY OFFERED THROUGH GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS AND OTHER MUNICIPALITIES. 
          SECOND IS, YOU KNOW, ALIGNMENT TO STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN GOALS. 
          UH, THIRD IS MANAGE PROPERTY OWNED BY THE TOWN OF HILTON HEAD FOR A PURPOSE THAT SERVES A PUBLIC NEED. 
          AND NUMBER FOUR, REQUIRE FUNDING FROM THE TOWN OF HILTON HEAD TO PROVIDE THESE SERVICES. 
          UM, THE WAY THIS IS LAID OUT, YOU DON'T KNOW, DO I JUST NEED TO MEET ONE OF THOSE? DO I NEED TO MEET TWO OF THOSE? YOU KNOW, AND SO WHERE I WANNA GET WITH IT IS, IT FEELS LIKE THERE ARE TWO SEPARATE THINGS GOING ON IN MY OPINION. 
          AND I, AND I'D VERY MUCH LIKE TO HEAR, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT WHAT I'M GONNA SAY. 
          UM, IT FEELS LIKE WE SHOULD IDENTIFY WHAT AN AFFILIATED AGENCY IS FIRST, AND FOR ME THAT'S NUMBERS ONE AND THREE. 
          SO YOU'RE PROVIDING THAT SERVICE THAT OTHER UNI MUNICIPALITIES DO, OR YOU, UM, ARE MANAGING PROPERTY OWNED BY THE TOWN. 
          UM, THE, A CAVEAT WITH THE MANAGED PROPERTY ON THE TOWN, YOU KNOW, WE DO HAVE MO MOAS OR MOUS THAT DEFINE, YOU KNOW, THE RELATIONSHIP, UH, BETWEEN THE TOWN AND, AND THE ENTITY. 
          AND THEN ONCE YOU MEET THAT THRESHOLD, THEN YOU GO TO DOES IT ALIGN TO OUR STRATEGIC PLAN AND DOES IT REQUIRE FUNDING FROM THE TOWN? AND THE REASON I, UM, LAYING IT OUT THAT WAY IS IF I LOOK AT THIS AND I'M A NONPROFIT, IF I, IT FEELS LIKE IF I COULD ALIGN BEHIND ONE OF THESE STRATEGIC PLAN ITEMS THAT I COULD SAY, HEY, I'M AN AFFILIATED AGENCY, I WANNA APPLY. 
          AND SO I, I FEEL LIKE WE SHOULD TIGHT TIGHTEN UP THAT DEFINITION. 
          UM, SO I'M, I'M GONNA PAUSE THERE AND DO YOU WANNA GIVE ANY FEEDBACK ON THAT PIECE BEFORE I GET INTO THE OTHER ITEMS OF THINGS THAT I'M LOOKING FOR? OKAY. 
          JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR FEEDBACK IS APPROPRIATE. 
          MS. TNA, UM, IS IT A ONE AND THREE OR ONE OR THREE AS FAR AS ONE OR ONE OR THREE OR, YES. 
          OKAY. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          ALRIGHT, MS. BRYSON, ANY, WELL, IT CERTAINLY MAKES LOGICAL SENSE. 
          I, I APPRECIATE THAT ANALYSIS. 
          UM, AND I THINK AS FAR AS THIS YEAR, IT'D BE IMPOSSIBLE TO DO THIS YEAR, BUT WHAT WE MIGHT COULD DO IS TO SUGGEST THAT THE APPLICANT'S PRESENTATION FOCUS ON ONE 
          [00:50:01]
OR THREE FIRST AND THEN MOVE TO THE OTHERS. 
          AND, AND THAT MIGHT MAKE SOME SENSE AND THAT'LL BE PART OF THE TRANSITION. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, JUST SORT OF IMMEDIATE REACTION TO IT. 
          UM, AND AGAIN, I'LL, I'LL, I'LL CIRCLE BACK TO, I THINK WE HAVE, WE'VE GOTTEN BETTER AT THIS AND WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO GET BETTER AT IT. 
          UM, AND I, I, I WANNA PUT SOME CONES OUT, UH, I GUESS, BUT I'M A LITTLE CONCERNED ABOUT HOW MUCH WE CLOSE THE, THE BOX OR CLOSE THE DOOR. 
          AND I'LL GO BACK TO, UM, YOU KNOW, DISCUSSION WE HAD AT THE AFFILIATE AGENCY LEVEL, UM, AROUND HOUSING. 
          OKAY. 
          WE HAD, UH, HABITAT FOR HUMANITY AND WE HAD COASTAL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, UH, SHOW UP ASKING US FOR MONIES. 
          OKAY. 
          AND, UM, AFTER A LOT OF VERY VIVID DISCUSSION, , WE, UH, WE HAD A SUPPORT FROM MAJORITY OF THE COUNCIL TO MOVE IN THAT DIRECTION, ALTHOUGH IT WAS VERY CONTROVERSIAL. 
          OKAY. 
          AND WHEN I LOOK AT ONE OR THREE, I'M NOT QUITE SURE IF THAT OPPORTUNITY WOULD'VE GONE THROUGH. 
          OKAY. 
          AND NOW WE ARE, YOU KNOW, THREE, FOUR YEARS AWAY FROM MAKING THAT DECISION. 
          AND WE CELEBRATE THE FACT THAT THOSE TWO ORGANIZATIONS ARE MOVING HOUSING FORWARD, WHICH IS ONE OF OUR STRATEGIC PLAN INITIATIVES. 
          RIGHT. 
          UH, SO I GUESS I'M, I'M SOMEWHAT RELUCTANT TO CLOSE THE DOOR ALL THE WAY, UM, BUT I THINK IT'S WORTHY OF US HAVING MORE CONVERSATION ABOUT HOW WE GET THERE. 
          OBVIOUSLY WE DON'T WANT JUST ANY AND EVERYBODY SHOWING UP, BUT I THINK WE ALSO AS A COMMITTEE AND AS A FOLK COUNCIL HAVE THE PROFOUND OPPORTUNITY TO SAY NO TO FOLKS EVEN IF THEY ARE FITTING, UM, SOME OF THESE. 
          RIGHT. 
          UM, SO, UM, I'M NOT QUITE SURE THAT I'M GIVING YOU A YES OR NO TO YOUR QUESTION, BUT THOSE ARE MY THOUGHTS AT THE MOMENT AND THAT'S OKAY. 
          IT'S JUST SOMETHING NEW TO TALK ABOUT AND THINK ABOUT. 
          I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. 
          UM, AND THE HOUSING ONE IS A GOOD EXAMPLE AND WHAT WE DID IS FOUND ANOTHER AREA TO, TO FUND IT. 
          UM, SO YEAH. 
          YEAH, IT'S SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT. 
          UM, IN REGARDS TO, UH, SOME SPECIFICS, IS THERE A TARGET NUMBER THAT WE ARE LOOKING TO, UH, BALANCE TOWARDS? I MEAN, I KNOW WE DO THAT WITH ATEX. 
          I DIDN'T KNOW IF THERE WAS, UM, ANY, UM, THOUGHT FROM THE FINANCE GROUP AS TO A TARGET. 
          UM, I, I WOULD LOOK AT THEIR JUSTIFICATION OF WHAT THEY NEED AND GO FROM THERE. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE PREDICTING VERY MODEST IF FLAT GROWTH FROM OUR EXPENSE ON OUR BUDGET IN 27 BASED UPON OUR REVENUE BEING BASICALLY FLAT IN OUR 27 BUDGET. 
          SO ALL EXPENSES ARE GONNA BE LOOKED AT FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE, WHETHER IT IT'S OPERATING OR AFFILIATED. 
          THAT'S WHAT I WOULD SAY. 
          OKAY. 
          AND THEN, UM, SOME SPECIFICS. 
          SO, UM, I THINK ONE OF THE ORGANIZATIONS, UH, ATTACH THEIR MOU UH, I THINK IT MIGHT BE HELPFUL FOR THOSE THAT HAVE MOUS TO ATTACH IT. 
          AND THE REASON IS BECAUSE SOME OF THOSE MOUS HAVE AGREEMENTS REGARDING, UH, MANAGEMENT FEES OR, UH, SPECIFIC FUNDING THAT WE ARE COMMITTED TO OVER A PERIOD OF TIME. 
          AND THAT'S WHY MITCHELLVILLE LOOKS THE WAY IT DOES, BECAUSE THEY ASK FOR, UH, FUNDING THAT'S ALREADY INCLUDED IN THE MOU. 
          AND THEN THAT'S ONE OF MY QUESTIONS AS WELL. 
          UH, IT WAS VERY CLEAR FOR MITCHELLVILLE THAT IT IS THE AMOUNT THAT'S IN THE MOU, BUT THEN WHEN I LOOK AT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS, DID THEY INCLUDE, LIKE, FOR EXAMPLE, COASTAL DISCOVERY MUSEUM IN THEIR NUMBERS? DOES IT INCLUDE THE $75,000 MANAGEMENT FEE OR NOT? I COULDN'T TELL. 
          SO JUST TO GET SOME CLARITY, UM, ON THAT. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, FOR THE BEAUFORT COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, THEY LAY OUT THEIR, YOU KNOW, BUSINESS CASE AS TO THE AMOUNT OF BUSINESS AND IMPACT THAT THEY ARE PROVIDING TO THE COUNTY. 
          UM, I THINK IT WOULD BE INTERESTING AS WELL TO SEE WHAT THE IMPACT IS ON HILTON HEAD ISLAND. 
          SO IF THEY HAVE THAT KIND OF DETAIL, I THINK THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO ADD THAT. 
          AND IN THE PAST, I BELIEVE WE ASKED FOR BALANCE SHEETS, UM, I THINK BALANCE SHEETS ARE IMPORTANT FOR, TO SEE THE HEALTH OF AN ORGANIZATION. 
          UM, UH, SO IF WE COULD INCLUDE THAT, I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT. 
          AND, UH, THEN THERE WERE SOME ORGANIZATIONS THAT WERE MISSING INFORMATION. 
          I SENT AN EMAIL, I KNOW OUTSIDE FOUNDATION IS MISSING, UH, SEVERAL CATEGORIES AND, AND THAT'S WHY YOU'RE MEETING WITH EVERYONE SO THAT YOU CAN MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING IS ALL WRAPPED UP. 
          RIGHT. 
          UM, SO IF WE CAN JUST FIND THOSE MISSING ITEMS AND ADD THAT, UH, THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL. 
          AND THAT'S EVERYTHING THAT I HAD. 
          OKAY. 
          MR. CHAIR, CAN I JUMP 
          [00:55:01]
BACK IN? ABSOLUTELY. 
          ON ABSOLUTELY. 
          OUR PREVIOUS DISCUSSION AND THANKS TO MS. HUNTER FOR DIGGING INTO THE NUMBERS. 
          AGAIN, THAT'S ALWAYS HELPFUL TO US TO KNOW ABOUT THOSE NUMBERS. 
          UM, BUT IN LOOKING AT, I'M GLAD WE HAVE THE PROGRAM PURPOSE UP THERE AGAIN IN ONE OR THREE, I I THINK TWO IS STILL AN IMPORTANT ELEMENT IN OUR CONSIDERATION. 
          AND I'M THINKING BACK TO PARTICULARLY, UH, THE WORKFORCE HOUSING MATTERS. 
          UM, FOR HABITAT AND CCDC, IT'S LIKE, WHAT BUCKET DO YOU FIT IN? UM, SO IF YOU LOOK AT THE STRAT PLAN AND THE GOALS, AND WE WANT TO PROVIDE FUNDING TO AN OUTSIDE AGENCY, WHAT BUCKET DOES THAT MONEY COME FROM? AND WE HAVE A HOUSING FUND, BUT HOW DO YOU MAKE APPLICATION FOR MONEY FROM THE HOUSING FUND? SO I THINK, UH, TO, TO ALEX'S MR. BOUNDS POINT OF LEAVING SOME ROOM FOR, UH, CONNECTING WITH AN AGENCY WHO MAY BE AFFILIATED AND ACCOMPLISHING PART OF OUR STRAT PLAN. 
          UM, SO NOT LIMITING IT TO ONE OR THREE, BUT TO REORDER IT SO THAT IT MAKES SENSE, LOGICAL SENSE ONE, THREE AND TWO, AND THEN GET TO THE FOUR BUCKET. 
          UM, SO WITH, WITHOUT, UM, TOTALLY LIMITING IT TO ONE OR THREE, UM, AND LEAVING SOME OPPORTUNITY FOR AN AFFILIATION WITH AN AGENCY IF WE HAVE A PARTICULAR, UM, GOAL THAT CAN'T BE MET A DIFFERENT WAY. 
          SO. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, MR. BIRD, YOU, YOU'VE, UH, YOU'VE LAID OUT THE TIMELINE, YOU'VE LAID OUT THE PROCESS, I THINK WE'RE GOING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. 
          I PICKED UP ON THE SEA TURTLE, UM, DISCREPANCY AS WELL, SO I'M GLAD YOU'RE GONNA BE TAKING CARE OF THAT. 
          UM, I'M HAPPY TO SEE THE, AT TAX INCLUSION IN THIS. 
          UM, I, I DID SOME ROUGH MATH JUST TO SORT OF FIGURE OUT THE PERCENTAGE OF THE ASK VERSUS THEIR BUDGET OVER THE YEARS. 
          AND OBVIOUSLY I'M DOING THAT TO SORT OF TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THAT INFLATION IS A THING, UM, AMONGST OTHER NEEDS ARE A THING. 
          RIGHT. 
          UM, AND FOR THE MOST PART THEY'RE, THEY'RE SORT OF LINING UP FROM A PERCENTAGE STANDPOINT. 
          UM, THERE ARE A FEW OUTLIERS THAT HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE OF A PERCENTAGE ASK THAN THEY'VE ASKED IN THE PAST. 
          UM, SO JUST SORT OF UNDERSTANDING WE'VE LAID OUT THE HISTORICAL DATA FROM A FINANCIAL STANDPOINT, BUT AS THEY SHOW UP TO US, I THINK THAT IS A PIECE THAT I'D LIKE TO HEAR DURING THE THREE TO FIVE MINUTE PRESENTATION AS WELL, UM, AS WE'RE, AS WE'RE MOVING ALONG. 
          OKAY. 
          AND I AGREE WITH MS. TURNER AS FAR AS THE BALANCE SHEET IS CONCERNED, THAT'S OBVIOUSLY VERY IMPORTANT. 
          UM, NOT, NOT EVERY ORGANIZATION'S GOING TO HAVE THE SAME FUND BALANCE POLICY, BUT JUST SEEING IT TO UNDERSTAND IT HELPS US AS WELL. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          MS. ALFORD? YES SIR. 
          PLEASE APPROACH. 
          UH, GOOD MORNING. 
          TWO BRIEF MATTERS. 
          ONE, THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION DOES NOT INCLUDE THE IRS DETERMINATION OF, UH, EXEMPTION UNDER 5 0 1 C3. 
          IT WOULD BE NICE TO COMPLETE THE FILE BY HAVING THAT DOCUMENT. 
          THE SECOND I WOULD BE CURIOUS IN THE CASE OF THE TURTLE PATROL AS TO WHERE THINGS ARE LIKELY TO BE NEXT YEAR OR THE YEAR AFTER WITH BIG CHANGES POTENTIALLY COMING IN THE USE OF THE WILD WING BUILDING AND HOW THIS MIGHT AFFECT THEIR AT TAX OR A AFFILIATED AGENCY'S APPLICATION. 
          MM-HMM. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU SIR. 
          MS. BIRD TOOK A NOTE ON BOTH OF THOSE. 
          WE GOOD? I DIDN'T GET THE SECOND ONE. 
          WHAT WAS, YEAH, I, I THINK WHAT MR. ALFORD IS ASKING FOR IS I THINK THERE'S SOME, UH, REQUESTS WITHIN THE SEA TURTLE PATROL FOR RENT COVERAGE. 
          UM, BUT THERE, THERE MAY BE OPPORTUNITIES FOR, UH, SPACE THAT ARE NOT AT THE SAME RATE. 
          OKAY. 
          AS THE MARKET I THINK IS WHERE HE'S, HE'S GOING. 
          AM I CORRECT? YES, MA'AM. 
          OKAY. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          WE'RE NOT TAKING ACTION TODAY, BUT I AM GONNA OPEN UP TO PUBLIC COMMENT IF THERE'S ANYONE HERE THAT WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON THIS PARTICULAR TOPIC. 
          ANYONE SIGNED UP BESIDES MR. WILLIAMS . 
          ANYONE ELSE WANT TO, UH, COME BEFORE A COMMITTEE ON THIS PARTICULAR TOPIC? NO. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU MR. BIRD. 
          OKAY. 
          FOR THAT ONE. 
          DON'T GO THOUGH BECAUSE WE NEED YOU FOR YES. 
          NEXT ITEM, WHICH IS OUR SHORT TERM RENTAL PERMIT FEE. 
          OKAY. 
          THIS, THIS IS GOOD. 
          OKAY. 
          SO WHAT DO WE HAVE TODAY IS A STAFF REPORT REGARDING 
          [01:00:01]
OUR STR PROGRAM AND SOME PROPOSED CHANGES THAT WE'RE GONNA MAKE, UM, ON THE FUNDING OF THE PROGRAM. 
          UM, UH, AS KIND OF DISCUSSED IN THE MEMO, UH, WE CURRENTLY HAVE A FEE OF $250 PER LICENSE. 
          UM, AND WE'RE LOOKING TO, UH, BASED UPON THE ORDINANCE PASSED IN OC OCTOBER OF LAST YEAR, UH, CHANGE THE LOGIC OF THIS TO $150 PER BEDROOM FEE. 
          AND THERE ARE SOME INVESTMENTS THAT WE'RE MAKING, WHICH I'LL GO THROUGH IN A MINUTE. 
          UM, THERE ARE SOME TIMELINES HERE JUST TO KINDA SET THE TABLE. 
          UH, TODAY WE'RE GOING THROUGH THE, THE LOGIC BEHIND THE, THE FEE STRUCTURE. 
          UM, THIS WILL FEED OUR, ONE OF OUR ITEMS IN THE BUDGET AMENDMENT ORDINANCE FIRST READING IN MARCH. 
          UM, AND ALSO THEN THERE'S A TOWN COUNCIL MEETING AS WELL ON THE 31ST OF MARCH. 
          SO WE'RE PROPOSING THAT WE WOULD COVER THIS SECOND READING AT THAT TIME TO ALLOW OUR PORTAL TO GO LIVE ON APRIL 6TH, AND GIVING A LITTLE BIT OF AN EXTENSION ON THE DEADLINE FOR PAYMENTS TO OCCUR. 
          RIGHT NOW, IT'S MAY 1ST, UM, BUT WITH THE TIMEFRAME OF GETTING EVERYTHING THROUGH, WE'RE PROPOSING TO MOVE THAT TO MAY 15TH FOR JUST THIS, THIS YEAR ONLY. 
          SO THAT'S KIND OF A, KIND OF A TIMEFRAME, UH, FROM A CALENDAR PERSPECTIVE OVER THE NEXT MONTH OR TWO RELATED TO THIS. 
          UM, GETTING BACK TO ON PAGE TWO HERE, THE BACKGROUND IN OCTOBER, THE, THERE WAS AN ORDINANCE, UH, PASSED TO, I WOULD SAY INCREASE THE, UH, REQUIREMENTS AND COMPLIANCE FOR, UM, SHORT TERM RENTALS. 
          WE CURRENTLY HAVE 7,368 UNITS, UH, IN THE TOWN, UM, WHICH IS, UH, I'D SAY VERY LARGE COMPARED TO OUR SIMILAR RESORT SIZE COMMUNITIES. 
          UM, AND RELATED TO THAT, WE HAVE INCREASED DEMAND FOR INSPECTIONS, UH, TIMELY, CONSISTENT COMPLAINT RESPONSES, UH, FIRE AND SAFETY INSPECTIONS, UM, UH, AND THEN COMMUNICATION, MORE PROACTIVE COMMUNICATION CAMPAIGNS. 
          SO THAT'S KIND OF THE, THE PROCESS WE WENT THROUGH TO SEE, WELL, HOW CAN WE, HOW CAN WE DO THIS? UM, SO THE FIRST THING WE REALLY LOOKED AT IS WHAT ARE WE DOING TODAY, WHICH IS REALLY, UM, USING OUR EXISTING TOWN STAFF. 
          AND WE HAVE OUR 250 FLAT ANNUAL STR PERMIT FEE. 
          SO WE HAVE OUR FINANCE STAFF, CODE ENFORCEMENT STAFF, UM, AND THEN, UM, WE USE GOV OS, WHICH IS OUR STR SOFTWARE TO PROVIDE OUR, UM, COMPLAINT RESPONSES. 
          AND SO, UM, I THINK THAT FEE, THAT STRUCTURE HASN'T REALLY BEEN AS, UH, WHAT WE'VE WON A MODEL GOING FORWARD. 
          AND SO WITH THAT AND THE REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE HAPPENING GOING FORWARD, WE ARE PROPOSING, UM, LIKE I'VE MENTIONED BEFORE, TO CHANGE IT TO 150 PER BEDROOM. 
          AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE ENHANCEMENTS THAT ARE GONNA BE SUPPORTED BY THIS INVESTMENT THAT'S BEING MADE, UM, WE'RE GONNA HAVE FOUR ADDITIONAL PROGRAM DEDICATED STR FTES. 
          UM, WE'LL CONVERT TWO PART-TIME POSITIONS TO FULL-TIME POSITIONS. 
          WE'LL HAVE A LEADER IN OUR CODE ENFORCEMENT SUPERVISOR TO ADDRESS COMPLAINTS, AND THEN WE'LL MAKE SOME CAPITAL INVESTMENTS FOR VEHICLES AND OUR TECHNOLOGY AROUND THAT. 
          UM, OUR STR SOFTWARE AND, UM, OTHER ITEMS THAT WOULD MAKE US MORE RESPONSIVE FROM A EQUIPMENT PERSPECTIVE. 
          UM, WE WOULD ESTABLISH A TOWN OPERATED 24 BY SEVEN STR RAPID, RAPID RESPONSE HOTLINE. 
          THAT WOULD BE COVERED THROUGH FIRE RESCUE, UH, DISPATCH, AND MORE OF A CENTRALIZED COMMUNICATION FLOW WITH OUR RESIDENTS AND OWNERS, AGENTS AND VISITORS, AND AN ANNUAL PROGRAM REPORT TO COUNCIL. 
          SO THOSE ARE ENHANCEMENTS THAT ARE BEING MADE BASED UPON THIS PROPOSAL. 
          UH, NOW WE'RE GETTING INTO THE COST PERSPECTIVE OF THIS. 
          SO TODAY, AND WE JUST KIND OF WENT THROUGH IT ON OUR FINANCIAL SLIDE, UH, WE, WE, WE HAVE ABOUT 1.8 MILLION OF COSTS THAT WE'RE USING TO, IF YOU TAKE THE 7,400 LICENSES TIMES 250 BUCKS, YOU GET AROUND 1.8 MILLION. 
          AND THIS IS KIND OF THE COST STRUCTURE THAT SUPPORTED THAT 1.8 MILLION IN THE GREEN SHADED BOX. 
          THE FIRST THING WE DID IS WE KIND OF LOOKED AT, WELL, WHAT'S REALLY HAPPENING NOW FROM A TIME 
          [01:05:01]
PERSPECTIVE? UM, ONE THING I DID IS I DID ADD AN OVERHEAD ALLOCATION OF 10% TO EVERYTHING. 
          I MEAN THAT, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD DO, UH, TO COVER OTHER ANCILLARY COSTS. 
          SO THAT'S BEEN ADDED ACROSS THE BOARD. 
          BUT, UM, REALLY LOOKING AT FOR THOSE AREAS THAT THE TIME IS NOT BEING SPENT LIKE ON COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, WE TOOK IT DOWN. 
          UM, THE BIGGEST INCREASE I WOULD SAY FROM OUR EXISTING SUPPORT IS IN FINANCE. 
          UH, WE WENT THROUGH WITH OUR, UH, OUR REVENUE SERVICES TEAM, THOSE POSITIONS THAT WE HAVE ON STAFF TO ACTUALLY SUPPORT OUR STR PROGRAM, A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THOSE POSITIONS. 
          AND THEN SOME OTHER ACCOUNTING RELATED EXPENSES THAT DO, WE DO HAVE TO SUPPORT THE PROGRAM THAT, UM, THAT INCREASE IS BASED UPON THE DIRECT COST AND SUPPORTING THE STR PROGRAM THAT WE DO HAVE TODAY. 
          UM, SO GETTING BACK TO, TO ALL THE CHANGES, WE ARE GOING FROM, UH, 1.8 MILLION TO 2 MILLION 1 37. 
          THAT'S BASICALLY ON OUR EXISTING TO EXISTING PERSPECTIVE. 
          NOW WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT OUR INVESTMENTS THAT WE'RE MAKING FOR THE ENHANCEMENTS THAT WE'RE MAKING TO THE PROGRAM. 
          AND THE FIRST ONE IS OUR TWO SENIOR COMMUNITY CODE ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS, AND THEY'RE BEING BROUGHT ON TO PROVIDE INSPECTIONS, COMPLAINT, REPEAT VIOLATION, FOLLOW UP AND NEIGHBOR QUALITY OF LIFE, A FIRE INSPECTOR TO DO INSPECTIONS AND RE RE-INSPECTIONS IN COORDINATION WITH FIRE RESCUE ON OUR, UM, OUR LICENSE HOLDERS. 
          UM, AND THEN ONE DISPATCHER FOR OUR STR RAPID RESPONSE HOTLINE. 
          AND THAT WILL BE ONCE AGAIN 24 BY SEVEN. 
          SO WE ARE GONNA BASICALLY REPLACE GOV OS AS OUR OUTSOURCE, UM, PROVIDER HERE, AND WE ARE GOING TO, UH, PROVIDE THAT SERVICE, UM, INTERNALLY WITHIN THE TOWN. 
          UM, AND THEN LAST, WE HAVE TWO POSITIONS THAT WE'RE CHANGING FROM, UH, TEMP OR SHORT TERM TEMP TO FULL-TIME ON THE FINANCE SIDE. 
          ONE IS OUR RENTAL SERVICES COORDINATOR AND ONE IS ON OUR COLLECTION SIDE. 
          AND AS I MENTIONED, PROMOTION OF ONE EXISTING PUBLIC SAFETY MANAGER, SUPERVISOR TO A MANAGER TO HELP MANAGE THE PROGRAM. 
          AND THEN WE HAVE LISTED OUR CAPITAL INVESTMENTS FOR VEHICLES, EQUIPMENT UPGRADES TO ALL OF OUR VEHICLES AND HANDHELD RADIOS THAT ARE NEEDED TO MANAGE THIS PROGRAM. 
          SO IF YOU LOOK AT PAGE SIX, WE HAVE AN OVERVIEW OF OUR INVESTMENTS THAT WE ARE MAKING, UH, BASED UPON THE ADDITIONAL FTE, UM, THAT WE'RE ADDING, AND ALSO THE, UM, EQUIPMENT SIDE. 
          UH, ONE THING THAT YOU'LL SEE IS A NEGATIVE IS THE NUISANCE STR HOTLINE. 
          THAT'S WHAT WE ARE PAYING GOV OS TODAY THAT WILL GO AWAY. 
          AND SO WE DID TAKE THAT COST DOWN. 
          AND SO GETTING OVER TO THE OVERVIEW, SANDA ATTACHMENT ONE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          SO GETTING TO THE OVERVIEW HERE, IT JUST KIND OF LAYS EVERYTHING OUT ON ONE PAGE. 
          SO WE HAVE OUR EXISTING BUDGET WE JUST TALKED ABOUT. 
          WE HAVE OUR, I'LL CALL IT OUR RECON BASED UPON WHAT WE'RE DOING TODAY FOR 26. 
          AND THEN WE HAVE OUR INVESTMENTS WE'RE MAKING GOING FORWARD FOR THE PROGRAM ENHANCEMENTS. 
          SO THAT TOTALS 3 MILLION, JUST OVER $3 MILLION. 
          AND THEN WE HAVE A BREAKOUT OF OUR 707,368 PERMITS THAT WE HAVE. 
          AND ALSO THE NUMBER OF BEDROOMS IN THOSE. 
          WE HAVE 20,000 BEDROOMS BASICALLY. 
          SO IF YOU TAKE THE 3 MILLION DIVIDED BY 20,000 BEDROOMS, YOU BASICALLY, YOU GET $150 PER BEDROOM. 
          SO THAT'S WHAT THE PROPOSAL IS THAT WE'LL BE GOING INTO THE BUDGET AMENDMENT IN MARCH. 
          UM, AND WE DO HAVE THE DELTA THAT FOLKS WOULD BE PAYING, WE HAVE THE NUMBER OF PERMIT HOLDERS HERE, SO YOU CAN SEE THE, THE, WHAT THEY WOULD'VE BEEN PAYING AT TWO 50, UH, VERSUS WHAT THEY'LL BE PAYING, UH, IN THE NEW FEE. 
          AND THEN ON THE ATTACHMENT TO SANDA, UM, WE DO HAVE THE ONE CHANGE RELATED TO ATTACHMENT TWO, UM, WHICH IS OUR UPDATED FEE GOING TO ONE 50 PER BEDROOM, UM, A 12 MONTH PERIOD STARTING MAY 1ST OF 26TH, THE LATE FEE, WHICH WOULD BE AFTER MAY 15TH FOR THIS YEAR ONLY. 
          AND THEN IN 27 IT WOULD BE MAY 1ST. 
          THAT IS WHERE WE ARE ON STR. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU SIR. 
          TANYA, WE'LL START WITH YOU THIS TIME. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          WELL, THANK YOU FOR LAYING OUT ALL THIS INFORMATION. 
          YOU DID A GREAT JOB. 
          I UNDERSTOOD EXACTLY WHAT IT IS THAT YOU WERE, UM, DOING AND CALCULATING, AND THIS WAS THE PROCESS THAT 
          [01:10:01]
WE ALL AGREED TO. 
          SO, UH, AS A TOWN COUNCIL, WHEN WE MADE THE STR, UH, POLICY CHANGES, UM, WE SAID THAT WE WOULD TAKE SOME TIME AND ALLOW THE TOWN MANAGER TO DEFINE WHAT TYPE OF SUPPORT HE WOULD NEED TO BE ABLE TO SUPPORT THOSE, UM, NEW RULES AND REGULATIONS. 
          AND SO THAT'S WHY WE'RE HERE TODAY TO TAKE A LOOK AT THAT. 
          UH, WE ALSO TALKED ABOUT, UH, SETTING UP THE FEE STRUCTURE SO THAT WE WOULD COVER OUR COSTS. 
          AND SO YOU, YOU HAVE DONE THAT AS WELL. 
          UM, SO I APPRECIATE THAT. 
          UM, I DID HAVE SOME QUESTIONS. 
          SO WHEN YOU LOOKED AT, UH, WHAT WE PROVIDE TODAY IN REGARDS TO SERVICES, UM, YOU IDENTIFIED THAT, UM, THE 1.8 MILLION THAT WE HAD BUDGETED WASN'T REALLY REFLECTIVE OF THE COST OF WHAT IS ACTUALLY OCCURRING. 
          AND I THINK IT'S GOOD BECAUSE WHEN YOU HAVE NEW PROGRAMS, YOU MAKE ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT THINGS ARE GONNA COST TO GO BACK AND TAKE A LOOK AT, OKAY, NOW THAT WE HAVE A COUPLE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE, HOW MUCH ARE WE ACTUALLY SPENDING? HOW MUCH DO WE ACTUALLY COLLECT IN SHORT TERM RENTAL TODAY? UH, IT'S, UH, ONE 1.8 MILLION ROUGHLY. 
          SO, OKAY. 
          SO WE DO COVER THE BUDGETED COSTS, BUT WE DON'T COVER THE, UM, THE ACTUAL COST THAT WE BELIEVE THAT WE SET. 
          NO, WE DID THAT AS PART OF EVALUATING OUR WHERE WE ARE TODAY. 
          YES. 
          OKAY. 
          CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE 10% OVERHEAD? WHAT YOU MEAN BY THAT? UM, THAT COULD BE JUST GENERAL OFFICE EXPENSES. 
          THESE WERE MORE PEOPLE RELATED COSTS, BUT THERE'S, YOU KNOW, COST TO MAINTAIN THE BUILDING, THERE'S COST FOR SUPPLIES, THERE'S ELECTRIC, ALL OF THOSE TYPES OF OTHER ITEMS THAT I WOULD CALL GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE ON AN INCOME STATEMENT. 
          UH, THAT'S REALLY WHAT, UM, THAT 10%, AND THAT'S JUST MODELING I'VE ALWAYS DONE ON ANY DEALS THAT I'VE WORKED ON IN MY PAST. 
          OKAY. 
          JUST TO COVER THAT. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          UM, IN THE WRITEUP IT TALKS ABOUT HAVING SIX STR PROGRAM DEDICATED FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT POSITIONS. 
          RIGHT? BUT WHEN I TAKE A LOOK AT ALL THE COMPONENTS, I COME UP WITH SEVEN. 
          SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE I UNDERSTOOD. 
          YOU HAVE THE FOUR NEW POSITIONS, TWO CODE ENFORCEMENT, WHICH I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE DEDICATED CODE ENFORCEMENT. 
          I MEAN, UM, IF ANYBODY WANTS TO UNDERSTAND HOW HARD CODE ENFORCEMENT WORKS, THEY SHOULD GO BACK TO THE COMMUNITY, UM, DEVELOPMENT AND PUBLIC SAFETY MEETING WHERE THEY GAVE A REPORT AND THE THOUSANDS, TENS OF THOUSANDS OF INTERACTIONS THAT THEY HAVE. 
          SO TO HAVE DEDICATED CODE ENFORCEMENT, UM, I THINK IS IMPORTANT. 
          UH, YOU HAVE THE FIRE INSPECTOR, UM, AS ONE, AND THAT'S IMPORTANT AS WELL BECAUSE WITH THE NEW REQUIREMENTS, UM, WE'RE GONNA NEED SOMEBODY TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE ARE IN PLACE. 
          AND THEN YOU HAVE THE ONE DISPATCHER, SO YOU HAVE THE FOUR NEW ROLES. 
          UH, WHAT I LOVE ABOUT THE DISPATCHER PIECE, I, THERE WAS A LOT OF CRITICISM FROM, UM, RESIDENTS REGARDING THE GOV OS THAT THEY WOULDN'T ANSWER, THEY WERE CONCERNED ABOUT, THERE WAS NO FOLLOW UP. 
          SO THIS IS A HUGE PROCESS IMPROVEMENT TO HAVE OUR OWN DEDICATED, UH, DISPATCHER, WHICH WHAT I UNDERSTAND IS GONNA BE HOUSED IN THE, UM, YOU KNOW, ALONG WITH THE OTHER DISPATCHERS FOR 9 1 1. 
          SO THEY WILL ALL BE TOGETHER, UM, AND I THINK THAT'S GONNA PROVIDE EXCELLENT COVERAGE AS WELL AS EXCELLENT FOLLOW THROUGH. 
          UM, SO THOSE ARE THE FOUR NEW ROLES. 
          AND THEN WE ALREADY HAVE, UH, TWO REVENUE PEOPLE THAT ARE GONNA GO FROM PART-TIME TO FULL-TIME, BUT THEN THERE WAS ALSO THE CODE SUPERVISOR WHO IS GONNA BE PROMOTED. 
          SO IF I ADD THAT, THAT'S SEVEN. 
          SO IN THE VERSUS SIX, THE EXISTING, THE, THE PROMOTION ONE IS ALREADY ON STAFF. 
          WE'RE JUST PROMOTING HIM TO A MANAGER. 
          OKAY. 
          OH, SO THEY'RE ALREADY IN, THEY'RE ALREADY HERE. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          UM, OKAY. 
          SO, UM, WHEN YOU FIGURE OUT THE COSTS WITH THE NEW EMPLOYEES, AND THERE'S SOME DETAIL IN YOUR EXCEL SPREADSHEET, UM, THOSE SALARY AMOUNTS, THOSE ARE FULLY LOADED WITH, UH, BENEFITS, WITH BENEFITS AND THAT TYPE OF THING. 
          AND WHAT, AS A RULE OF THUMB, HOW MUCH IS THAT? WE DID 35% TO THE SALARY NUMBER, AND THAT'S LOOKING AT THE BENEFIT COST THAT THE TOWN HAS FOR ALL THE BENEFITS THAT ARE PROVIDED EMPLOYEES. 
          OKAY. 
          AND THAT, THAT'S VERY REASONABLE. 
          WE, UH, MY CORPORATE CAREER, WE USE 30 TO 35%. 
          SO, UM, SO I JUST WANNA PUT THAT OUT THERE IN CASE PEOPLE ARE LOOKING AT THESE NUMBERS AND THEY'RE WONDERING, UH, IT ADDS 35% ASSOCIATED WITH ALL THE BENEFITS. 
          UM, LET'S SEE. 
          UM, AND THEN AT THE END OF THE DAY, WHEN YOU ADD IT ALL UP AND YOU HAVE $3 MILLION, YOU HAVE TO DECIDE HOW 
          [01:15:01]
YOU'RE GONNA ALLOCATE IT BETWEEN THE VARIOUS, UM, STR AND SO SOMEONE IS GONNA HAVE TO PAY MORE. 
          SO YOU, UH, SO THE RECOMMENDATION IS TO COVER THOSE COSTS, TO ALLOCATE IT BY THE NUMBER OF BEDROOMS. UM, WHEN I TAKE A LOOK AT THAT, UM, 57% OF THE POPULATION OF STR WILL, UH, PAY $50 MORE OR LESS. 
          SO, UM, YOU KNOW, A LARGE INSIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF PEOPLE WILL HAVE A VERY MODEST, IF NOT, UM, PAY LESS MOVING FORWARD WITH THIS, UH, DEAL. 
          AND I DO WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE, UH, AS THE BEDROOMS GO UP, THERE IS A LARGER COST. 
          UM, AND IF WE LOOK AT THAT, UH, COST, AND WE THINK ABOUT THE TIME THAT THE STR IS FILLED, WHICH, UM, I HEAR A RULE OF THUMB, THUMB IS LIKE 16 WEEKS AND YOU TAKE THAT COST AND YOU DIVIDE IT BY THE 16 WEEKS, UM, I THINK THAT'S A NICE WAY OF TAKING A LOOK AT THAT. 
          SO FOR THREE BEDROOMS, UM, ALTHOUGH THE EXISTING FEE MAY GO UP $200, IF YOU DIVIDE THAT OUT OVER 16 WEEKS, THAT'S $12 AND 50 CENTS. 
          OKAY. 
          AND THEN THE VERY LARGEST, WHICH ARE OF HANDFUL SEVEN, UM, UNITS, UM, THE FEE WOULD GO UP $1,250 AND OVER 16 WEEKS AT $78 A WEEK. 
          SO, UM, I JUST THINK IT'S GOOD TO TAKE A LOOK AT THAT AND PUT THAT INTO PERSPECTIVE. 
          UH, BUT THOSE ARE ALL MY COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS. 
          I THINK YOU'VE LAID THIS OUT, UH, VERY WELL AND IT'S EASY TO UNDERSTAND. 
          OKAY, THANK YOU. 
          GREAT, MS. BRYSON, HARD TO FOLLOW THAT ACT, BUT I AGREE . 
          UM, SO I THANK YOU AGAIN FOR THIS ANALYSIS. 
          IT'S VERY HELPFUL. 
          UM, THE ONE THING I'M NOTING, AND I'M GLAD WE HAVE THIS ATTACHMENT ONE UP HERE IS THAT FOR FY 26, THE INCREASE IS ABOUT 312,000. 
          UM, SO I THINK IT'D BE HELPFUL TO PUT IN, IN THE STAFF REPORT THAT THAT IS FOR FISCAL YEAR 26, AS OPPOSED TO, MY INITIAL QUESTION IS, ARE WE ONLY INCREASING OUR, UM, REVENUE BY 312,000? BUT THAT'S JUST FOR THE REMAINING PART OF FISCAL YEAR 26, RIGHT? PART OF MAY AND INTO JUNE. 
          UM, SO I THINK IT'S BE HELPFUL TO POINT THAT OUT. 
          UM, THE, UM, IN, IN LOOKING BACK AT, UM, AND, AND I'M, I'M GLAD WE'RE MOVING AWAY FROM GOBOS. 
          I DON'T THINK WE HAVE MANY POSITIVE COMMENTS ABOUT THAT EXPERIENCE . 
          SO, UH, I'M GLAD WE'RE TAKING IT UNDER OUR WING. 
          UM, THE ONE QUESTION I HAD ABOUT CHANGING IT OVER TO, UH, FIRE AND RESCUE, UM, HOTLINE IS NOT JUST THE PERSONNEL IMPACT. 
          'CAUSE I SEE WE'RE ADDING A PERSON THERE TO BE ABLE TO HANDLE, UM, THE, THE, THE PHONE TRAFFIC, IF YOU WILL. 
          UM, BUT I'M GUESSING THE COMMUNITY MIGHT ASK, DOES THAT HAVE ANY IMPACT ON OUR FIRE RESCUE RESPONSE BY HAVING SOMEONE HANDLING THAT? SO I THINK THAT'D BE HELPFUL TO REPORT ABOUT THAT. 
          THE FULL TOWN COUNCIL MEETING. 
          UM, THE, UM, UH, THOSE ARE THE MAIN THINGS THAT I NOTED. 
          UM, I APPRECIATE THE ANALYSIS MS. HUNTER MADE ABOUT THE COST PER WEEK AND THE IMPACT OF THE INCREASE. 
          UM, AS THE, AS THE ST R INCREASE IN SIZE, THERE'S OFTEN MORE IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITIES AROUND THEM. 
          UM, AND SO THAT IS WHERE OUR, OUR COST CENTER INCREASES. 
          UM, AND AS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT BEFORE, THIS IS NOT A COST CENTER. 
          I MEAN, THIS IS, THIS IS A COST CENTER IS NOT A PROFIT CENTER. 
          SORRY, I ALMOST GOT 'EM BACKWARDS THERE. 
          UM, AND SO THIS, UH, IS OUR ACTUAL COST AND, UM, TIMING WISE, UM, WE NEED TO INCLUDE THIS BEFORE THE NEW PERMIT SYSTEM GOES LIVE. 
          UM, SO WE DO HAVE A TIME CRUNCH HERE. 
          UM, NOTICE WISE, WE HAVE PLENTY OF TIME FOR FOLKS TO RECEIVE NOTICE ABOUT THE INCREASE IN THE FEES, UM, AND TO PREPARE FOR THAT. 
          UM, SO, UM, UH, I, I KNOW IT'S TAKEN SOME TIME. 
          I MEAN, LOOK AT ALL THE DETAIL IN THIS REPORT. 
          IT'S TAKEN SOME TIME TO PUT THIS AMOUNT OF DETAIL TOGETHER. 
          UM, SO I APPRECIATE THE TIMING OF IT AND THE NEED FOR US TO PROCEED. 
          SO I'M READY TO GO AHEAD AND RECOMMEND APPROVAL TO THE FULL TOWN COUNCIL OF THIS SUBJECT TO WHATEVER MR. BROWN AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC MIGHT SAY. 
          OKAY. 
          I'M, I'M GOOD WITH IT AS WELL. 
          UM, I'LL BE VERY BRIEF, MR. BYRD. 
          UM, YOU GUYS HAVE NOT JUST LAID OUT THE COSTS AND THE REVENUE OF THIS, BUT I THINK WE'RE PUTTING A LOT OF ATTENTION INTO VALUE ADD IN MY OPINION. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, WE WERE NOT IN THE SHORT TERM RENTAL BUSINESS FOR A LONG TIME. 
          NOW WE ARE IN THE SHORT TERM RENTAL BUSINESS. 
          AND, AND TO BE IN THE BUSINESS, YOU HAVE TO BE IN THE BUSINESS. 
          SO THIS REALLY LAYS OUT THE PATH FORWARD. 
          SO I APPRECIATE THE HARD WORK THAT STAFF HAS DONE, UH, BASED ON DIRECTION THAT COUNCIL GAVE WHEN WE WERE CONSIDERING THE CHANGES. 
          UH, MS. ALFORD, ANYTHING YOU WANT TO ADD? NO. 
          OKAY. 
          [01:20:01]
I WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION, PLEASE. 
          YOU WANT COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC FIRST OR AFTER THE MOTION? OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, I MOVE THAT WE RECOMMEND, UH, THAT, THAT WE FORWARD THIS TO TOWN COUNCIL WITH A RECOMMENDATION TO APPROVE, UM, THE NEW PERMIT STRUCTURE RECOMMENDED BY STAFF SECOND. 
          OKAY. 
          SANDIA, HAS ANYONE SIGNED UP FOR THIS? IS IS MR. WILLIAMS? NO PROBLEM. 
          THAT IT? YES. 
          ANYONE ELSE WANNA APPROACH ON THIS PARTICULAR TOPIC? OKAY. 
          SEE NONE. 
          WE'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE DIOCESE. 
          ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ALL IN FAVOR. 
          THANK YOU MR. BIRD AND COMPANY FOR ALL THE HARD WORK. 
          OKAY, NOW WE MOVE ON TO PUBLIC COMMENT ON NON AGENDA ITEMS. ANYONE SIGNED UP BESIDES MR. WILLIAMS? MR. WILLIAMS? ANYONE? OKAY. 
          SEEING NONE, WE FOUND OURSELVES AT ADJOURNMENT. 
          THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR ATTENTION TODAY. 
          YOU'RE WATCHING BEAUFORT COUNTY TV, LIVE, WORK, PLAY. 
          THIS IS LARRY ROWLAND AND THIS IS A BEAUFORT COUNTY MOMENT. 
          ONE OF THE, UH, MOST FASCINATING ARTIFACTS IN BEAUFORT COUNTY TO TOURISTS AND RESIDENTS ALIKE ARE THE RUINS OF THE OLD SHELDON CHURCH. 
          THE PROPER NAME IS THE PARISH CHURCH OF PRINCE WILLIAM PARISH, SOUTH CAROLINA. 
          PRINCE WILLIAM PARISH WAS FOUNDED IN 1745. 
          IN RESPONSE, IT WAS THE SECOND ANGLICAN PARISH IN THE BEAUFORT DISTRICT. 
          AFTER ST. 
          HELENA PARISH FOUNDED IN 1712, THE ORIGINAL PARISH, PRINCE WILLIAM PARISH IN 1745 WAS IN THE MIDST OF AN ECONOMIC BOOM BECAUSE RICE PLANTATION SURROUNDED THE SITE ON HUSB NECK, WHERE THE CHURCH EVENTUALLY WAS BUILT, AND THOSE RICE PLANTERS WERE VERY WEALTHY. 
          IN 1745, THE COMMONS HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY ESTABLISHED PRINCE WILLIAM PARISH, AND IN 1751, THEY LAID THE CORNERSTONE FOR PRINCE WILLIAM PARISH CHURCH. 
          THE CHURCH WAS FINISHED BY 1755 AND WELL APPOINTED. 
          IT HAS THE DISTINCTION OF BEING THE FIRST OR OLDEST TEMPLE FORM GREEK REVIVAL BUILDING IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE. 
          SO THAT RUIN AT SHELDON, WHICH FASCINATES PEOPLE, ABSOLUTELY SHOULD FASCINATE PEOPLE BECAUSE IT IS THE FIRST EXAMPLE OF A TYPE OF ARCHITECTURE THAT BECAME ASSOCIATED WITH AMERICAN DEMOCRACY IN AMERICAN PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 
          PRINCE WILLIAM PARISH CHURCH, OR THE OLD SHELDON RUINS, WAS BURNED BY BRITISH TORRIES DURING THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION IN 1779, IT LAYIN RUINS UNTIL 1826. 
          CHARLES FRAZIER, THE FAMOUS LOW COUNTRY ARTIST, PAINTED A PICTURE OF IT IN 1819 AFTER IT WAS RESTORED TO USE AND SERVICES. 
          IN 1826, HE CAME AND LOOKED AT IT AND HE SAID, MY GOD, THEY'VE TAKEN A BEAUTIFUL RUIN AND TURNED IT INTO AN UGLY CHURCH. 
          SO THE UNION ARMY AND THE EVENTS OF THE CIVIL WAR RESTORED IT TO A BEAUTIFUL RUIN. 
          WE THOUGHT FOR MANY YEARS THAT PRINCE WILLIAM PARISH CHURCH HAD BEEN BURNED BY SHERMAN'S FORCES AS THEY MARCHED THROUGH THIS DISTRICT. 
          THAT TURNS OUT NOT TO BE TRUE. 
          THE CHURCH WAS INTACT AFTER THE CIVIL WAR AND WAS DISMANTLED BY LOCAL FOLKS WHO USED THE PARTS OF THE CHURCH TO BUILD THEIR HOMES AND BARNS. 
          AND SO THE WOOD BASICALLY WAS TAKEN OUT, THE ROOF FELL IN THE CHURCH, BECAME A RUIN, AND WAS IN DISUSE UNTIL MODERN TIMES IT HAS REMAINED. 
          AS CHARLES FRASER SAID, A BEAUTIFUL AND ENTICING RUIN. 
          THIS IS LARRY ROLAND. 
          THIS HAS BEEN A BEAUFORT COUNTY MOMENT. 
          TO SEE MORE BEAUFORT COUNTY MOMENTS GO TO THE BEAUFORT COUNTY LIBRARY HOMEPAGE AND CLICK ON THE LOCAL HISTORY TAB.
* 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.