* 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, MARCH 10TH. [I. CALL TO ORDER] WE'LL CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER. START WITH A PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE, FOLLOWED BY THE INVITATION ALLEGIANCE TO FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IN TO REPUBLIC FOR RELIGIOUS THINGS. ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. HAMILTON MOST HEAVENLY FATHER, COME NOW TO ASKING YOU TO GUIDE US TO BE THE PEACE AGENT YOU WANT THE WORLD TO SEE. FATHER, THAT YOU BLESS OUR HEARTS IN TOWN FOR THE THINGS THAT WE SAY WHILE WE IN PUBLIC WILL REPRESENT YOU. FATHER, THAT YOU GIVE US YOUR GRACE AND MERCY SO THAT WE REPRESENT THIS TOWN AND THE WISDOM TO DO IT WITH DIGNITY. THESE AND ALL OTHER BLESSING NEPHEW FROM YOUR SON JESUS NAME. AMEN. OKAY, FIRST WE [IV. ADOPTION OF THE MINUTES] GOT THE, UM, ADOPTION OF THE MINUTES COUNCIL, IS THERE ANY CHANGES? NO THERE ANY CHANGES OR ANYTHING? UH, NONE FROM STAFF COUNCIL HAS NONE? NO, SIR. OKAY. IS THERE A MOTION? SO MOVED. SECOND. SECOND. SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE. AYE. AYE. YOU MA'AM. MESSING WITH THE EXCEPTION OF DAN. I I SHOULD HAVE SAID THAT. DAN'S OUT. UM, NOT GONNA BE HERE TONIGHT. HE'S, HIS FATHER PASSED AWAY AND HE'S GONE TO MAKE ARRANGEMENTS AND STUFF TO TAKE CARE OF HIM. SO, ALRIGHT, UP NEXT WE HAVE, UM, I GUESS WE HAVE TO HOLD THAT OFF, RIGHT? PRESENTATION, [V. PRESENTATIONS, CELEBRATIONS, AND RECOGNITIONS] CELEBRATIONS AND RECOGNITION. THERE'S A BUNCH OF THEM. AT FIRST WE'LL HAVE BEAUFORT COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT CHARACTER STUDENT OF THE MONTH, AND THIS MONTH WE HAVE LIN MOLINA. DID I SAY THAT ALMOST RIGHT? SHE'S A FIFTH GRADER AT RED CEDAR ELEMENTARY, AND HER CHARACTER TRAIT IS PRE PERSEVERANCE. YOU WANT ME TO SHARE HER LETTER ABOUT HER? I'M, YEAH. COME UP HERE AND BRAG ON HER. YOU CAN. I'M, I'M GOING TO, UM, MY NAME'S AUDREY KANEY. I AM MALINS. I WAS HER FOURTH GRADE TEACHER AND HER FIFTH GRADE TEACHER. AND WHEN WE WERE PICKING SOMEONE FOR STUDENT A MONTH FOR PERSEVERANCE, INSTEAD OF JUST KIND OF THINKING ABOUT WHAT THEY DID THAT YEAR, UM, WE REACHED OUT TO PREVIOUS TEACHERS. AND WHEN WE REACHED OUT ABOUT MALIN, THE THING THAT KEPT COMING THROUGH ABOUT HER FROM KINDERGARTEN WAS THAT SHE NEVER GIVES UP, THAT SHE WORKS HARD. SO I'M JUST GONNA GO AHEAD AND SHARE THE LETTER THAT WE SUBMITTED FOR HER. THE FIFTH GRADE TEAM IS PROUD TO NOMINATE MALIN PAN AND MOLINA AS STUDENT OF THE MONTH FOR PERSEVERANCE. A, A TRAIT SHE HAS DEMONSTRATED THROUGHOUT HER ENTIRE TIME AT RED CEDAR. AS WE PREPARED THIS NOMINATION, WE GATHERED INPUT FROM MANY STAFF MEMBERS WHO HAVE WORKED WITH MALIN OVER THE YEARS, ALL OF WHOM SHARED THE SAME MESSAGE. MALIN NEVER GIVES UP. PERSEVERANCE MEANS CONTINUING TO WORK HARD, EVEN WHEN TASKS ARE CHALLENGING. AND MALIN HAS SHOWN THIS QUALITY CONSISTENTLY SINCE DAY ONE. SHE TRULY EXEMPLIFIES THE CHARACTER EDUCATION TRAIT OF PERSEVERANCE AND IS HIGHLY DESERVING OF THIS RECOGNITION. ACADEMICALLY, LIN'S JOURNEY IS INSPIRING. AS A KINDERGARTEN AND FIRST GRADE STUDENT, SHE FACED CHALLENGES ACROSS ALL CONTENT AREAS. LEARNING DID NOT ALWAYS COME EASY, BUT WHAT STOOD OUT MOST WAS HER DETERMINATION. SHE WILLINGLY TOOK ON EVERY TASK PRESENTED TO HER, EVEN WHEN IT WAS DIFFICULT OR FRUSTRATING. SHE APPROACHED LEARNING WITH A POSITIVE ATTITUDE. UNDERSTANDING THAT GROWTH TAKES TIME AND EFFORT BECAUSE OF HER PERSEVERANCE AND CONSISTENT POSITIVE ATTITUDE, HER PROGRESS AT EVERY PACE WAS ESPECIALLY MEANINGFUL AND REWARDING TO WITNESS. WHEN MALIN BEGAN RECEIVING RESOURCE SUPPORT IN THIRD GRADE, SHE WAS READING AT A KINDERGARTEN LEVEL. RATHER THAN FEELING DISCOURAGED, SHE ACCEPTED THAT CHALLENGE AND WORKED TIRELESSLY TO IMPROVE THROUGH CONSISTENT EFFORT AND DETERMINATION. MALIN MADE REMARKABLE GAINS. SHE HAS SINCE BEEN RELEASED FROM ANY EXTRA SERVICES, AND NOW IS NOT ONLY READING ON GRADE LEVEL, BUT PERFORMING AMONG THE TOP STUDENTS. IN HER CLASS, SHE CONTINUES TO EMBRACE CHALLENGES AND WORKS HARD TO MASTER NEW CONCEPTS, NEVER SETTLING FOR LESS THAN HER BEST. HER DETERMINATION ALSO, EXCUSE ME, ALSO SHINE. DURING HER OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY SESSIONS, INITIALLY SHE STRUGGLED WITH SOME BASIC SKILLS SUCH AS THROWING AND CATCHING A BALL, AS WELL AS COORDINATION SKILLS LIKE SKIPPING AND JUMPING AND DOING JUMPING JACKS AND NEGOTIATING [00:05:01] RECIPROCAL STEPPING PATTERNS. BUT THROUGH HER HARD WORK, PATIENCE AND PERSEVERANCE, SHE MASTERED THESE SKILLS. HER GROWTH ALLOWED HER TO CONFIDENTLY KEEP UP WITH HER PEERS DURING RECESS AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION CLASSES REFLECTING HER DEDICATION AND RESILIENCE. IN ADDITION TO HER ACADEMIC AND PHYSICAL GROWTH, LIN'S CREATIVITY IS ANOTHER AREA WHERE HER PERSEVERANCE SHINES. SHE'S A TALENTED ARTIST WHO TAKES PRIDE IN HER WORK. SHE ENJOYS WRITING STORIES THAT HIGHLIGHT HER AMAZING SENSE OF HUMOR. THROUGH HER ART AND WRITING, SHE SHOWS CONFIDENCE, CREATIVITY, AND A WILLINGNESS TO EXPRESS HERSELF FURTHER, DEMONSTRATING HOW FAR SHE HAS COME. WOW. SHE'S AWESOME. YOU SAY, DO YOU WANNA SAY ANYTHING TO ANYBODY? THANK YOU. . SHOULD WE GET IN A PICTURE? PICTURE? YEAH. YEAH. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. READY? 1, 2, 3. I GOT IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MARSHA. TURN IT UP, MARSHA. CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU. UP NEXT, WE HAVE SOAR SPECIAL OLYMPICS DISABILITY AWARENESS MONTH PROCLAMATION. THE TOWN OF BLUFFTON RECOGNIZES THE IMPORTANCE OF, OF PROMOTING AWARENESS AND INCLUSION OF INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. DISABILITY AWARENESS MONTH IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC ABOUT THE CHALLENGES FACED BY INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES AND TO PROMOTE THEIR RIGHTS AND WELLBEING. LUPTON IS PROUD TO SUPPORT THE SPECIAL OLYMPICS AREA EIGHT SPRING GAMES, AN EVENT THAT CELEBRATES THE ABILITIES AND ACHIEVEMENTS OF ATHLETES WITH DISABILITIES. UH, MAYOR TUBER, ALONG WITH LUPTON TOWN COUNCIL, DO HEREBY PROCLAIM THE MONTH OF MARCH TO BE DISABILITY AWARENESS MONTH. DO WE HAVE SOMEONE THAT'S MM-HMM . TO ACCEPT THIS? UNFORTUNATELY, THE ATHLETES ARE STUCK IN TRAFFIC ON HILTON HEAD, AND WE'RE ABLE TO COME AND ACCEPT THIS. AND I'M VERY SORRY. WE THANK YOU VERY MUCH FROM SWORD AND SPECIAL RECREATION. GREAT. AND WE'LL SEE YOU AT THE GAMES. WE'LL SEE YOU. THANK YOU. AND THANK YOU TO THE TOWN OF . 1, 2, 3. I GOT IT. THANK YOU. NEXT, UH, BEAUFORT COUNTY, DSN DEVELOPABLE MENTAL DISABILITIES AWARENESS MONTH PROCLAMATION. MORE THAN 500,000 SOUTH CAROLINA RESIDENTS AND FAMILIES ARE IMPACTED BY SEVERE LIFELONG DISABILITIES. WE OWE A DOUBT OF GRATITUDE TO THE CAREGIVERS WHO SELFLESSLY PROVIDE SUPPORT TO OUR RESIDENTS WITH DISABILITIES AND SPECIAL NEEDS. DEVELOPMENTAL DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES AWARENESS MONTH CELEBRATES A SUCCESSFUL PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE PEOPLE WITH AND WITHOUT DISABILITIES, AS WELL AS THE INCREASING INVOLVEMENT OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AND EDUCATION, EMPLOYMENT, AND COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES. I'M MAYOR LARRY TRUMER, ALONG WITH BLUFFTON TOWN COUNCIL. DUE PROCLAIM THE MONTH OF MARCH TO BE DEVELOPMENT DISABILITIES AWARENESS MONTH. AND DO WE HAVE SOMEONE HERE COME UP HERE? YOU LADIES WANT TO SAY SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR, YOU WANNA SAY SOMETHING ELSE? PROGRAM WHAT YOU'RE DOING. DO YOU WANNA SAY SOMETHING? NO, JUST THE SPECIAL NEEDS, JUST WHERE WE TAKE 'EM, EVERY ELEMENT AND MAKE 'EM FEEL NORMAL JUST LIKE EVERYONE ELSE. . GREAT. OKAY. THIS ALL RIGHT? YOU READY? 1, 2, 3. I GOT IT. THANK YOU. 26 ANNUAL TELL AWARD. BUFORD COUNTY TV. OH. UP NEXT WE HAVE THE BUFORD 46 ANNUAL TELE AWARD. BUFORD COUNTY TV FOR THE BLUFFTON CHRISTMAS PARADE. UM, VINCENT? YES, HE IS. YOU DO GOOD? SURE. YOU WANT, YEAH. I'LL SAY JUST A FEW WORDS AND THEN I'LL CALL OUT A FEW NAMES. HELLO EVERYONE. UM, THANK YOU, UH, ALL FOR HAVING ME, UH, GIVING ME A LITTLE BIT OF, UH, TIME ON YOUR AGENDA THIS EVENING. MY NAME IS VINCENT [00:10:01] VIRGA. I'M THE DIRECTOR OF BROADCAST SERVICES FOR BEAUFORT COUNTY TELEVISION. UH, WE COVER AND BROADCAST ALL THE TOWN COUNCIL AND COMMITTEE MEETINGS ALONG WITH OTHER PRODUCTIONS SUCH AS GRADUATIONS AND PARADES, WHICH IS WHY I'M HERE, UH, THIS EVENING TO ANNOUNCE AND HONOR THE MINI TOWN OF BLUFFTON STAFF MEMBERS WHO HELPED US WITH THE PRODUCTION OF THE 2024 BLUFFTON CHRISTMAS PARADE. THE TELE AWARDS HONOR EXCELLENCE IN VIDEO AND TELEVISION ACROSS ALL SCREENS. THIS WON'T TAKE TOO LONG. FOUNDED IN 1979 TO HONOR, UH, LOCAL AND REGIONAL AND CABLE TELEVISION COMMERCIALS WITH NON-BROADCAST VIDEO AND TELEVISION PROGRAMMING. ADDED SOON AFTER THE TELE AWARDS, ANNUALLY SHOWCASES THE BEST WORK CREATED WITHIN TELEVISION, ACROSS A VIDEO FOR ALL SCREENS, RECEIVING OVER 13,000 ENTRIES GLOBALLY, UH, FROM SIX DIFFERENT CONTINENTS IN ALL 50 STATES. TELE AWARD WINNERS REPRESENT WORK FROM SOME OF THE BEST, MOST RESPECTED ADVERTISING AGENCIES, TELEVISION STATIONS, PRODUCTION COMPANIES, AND PUBLISHERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD. AND I'M HERE TONIGHT TO PROUDLY ANNOUNCE THAT BCTV SUBMITTED THE PRODUCTION OF THE 2024 BLUFF AND CHRISTMAS PARADE. AND GUESS WHAT, WHAT IN THE CATEGORY OF GENERAL LIVE EVENTS AND EXPERIENCES, WE WON A BRONZE TELLY. WHOA. A LITTLE BIT MORE. THE LIVE BROADCAST OF THE BLUFF AND CRISPS PARADE IS A, UH, CHERISHED LOCAL TRADITION. AS FOR ITS BROADCAST HISTORY, THE PRIMARY BROADCASTER HAS BEEN BCTV BEAUFORT COUNTY TELEVISION, FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE COUNTY CHANNEL. A LOT OF PEOPLE STILL CALL IT THE COUNTY CHANNEL. THAT'S FINE. UH, BEAUFORT COUNTY HAS BROADCASTED THE PARADE SINCE 2011, ACTIVELY IMPROVING THE BROADCAST EACH YEAR, GROWING FROM STATIONARY CAMERAS ONLY TO WIRELESS CAMERAS, WALKING AROUND IN THE PARADE, ADDING DRONES OF AERIAL FOOTAGE, UH, AND GREAT INTERVIEWS WITH PARADE PARTICIPANTS. AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE PARADE FANS. UH, BCTV HAS CONSISTENTLY BEEN THE GO-TO SOURCE FOR WATCHING THE PARADE FROM HOME, OFFERING LIVE STREAMS AND RECORDING RECORDINGS AS THE TRADITION IS A BIG DRAW FOR THE AREA. WITHOUT THE PARTNERSHIP, HARD WORK, AND MANY HOURS OF AND ON OF HARD WORK AND DEDICATION FROM THE DEVOTED AND PASSIONATE, UH, STAFF AT THE TOWN OF BLUFFTON, NONE OF THIS WOULD'VE BEEN POSSIBLE. AND AS A TOKEN OF OUR APPRECIATION, WANNA PRESENT TO YOU AT THE TOWN OF BLUFFTON AT TELE AWARD STATUE AT, I WILL BE CALLING UP THE INDIVIDUALS WHO HELPED US AND THEIR ROLE AT THE NATIONALLY AWARD-WINNING BLUFFED AND PARADE PRODUCTION. PLEASE GIVE A BIG ROUND OF APPLAUSE AS I CALL THESE NAMES. I'LL SHOW THE STATUE THAT. SEE, THEY'RE PRETTY COOL. OH, UNWRAPPED IT. THESE ARE FRESH, AS YOU CAN TELL. SO HERE THEY ARE. CALL UP A FEW NAMES. UH, CARRIE GUZMAN, UH, STAGE MANAGER ORGANIZATION. VERY IMPRESSIVE ORGANIZATION. GURU. MM-HMM . MISS ANGIE. IAN? YES. STAGE MANAGER. COULDN'T HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT ANGIE. ANGIE COULDN'T HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT CARRIE, UH, MR. BOB CHARLES WITH IT'S BOB HERE TONIGHT. BOB'S GREAT. WE CAN DO ALL THE PLANNING AND ORGANIZE WE WANT WHEN WE PLUG EVERYTHING IN. IF IT DOESN'T WORK, , IT'S OF NO CONSEQUENCE. SO WITHOUT BOB, UH, DOING THE IT FOR US, NONE OF THIS WOULD BE POSSIBLE. KEVIN ICARD FOR THE TIMER. IT'S A REALLY IMPORTANT JOB. I WAS ABOUT TO SAY, YOU DON'T REALIZE HOW IMPORTANT TIMING IS IN A PARADE UNTIL YOU'RE PART OF THE PARADE. TIMING IS LITERALLY EVERYTHING. OTHERWISE, YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY'S BUMPING INTO EACH OTHER. UH, MS. CHRISTINE SMITH AS CAMERA OPERATOR. CHRISTINE GETS SOME OF THE BEST SHOTS AT THE PARADE, SO WE ALWAYS ENJOY HAVING HER. THANK YOU, MS. CHRISTINE. AND THEN MS. DEBBIE SPANKER AS THE PARADE HOST AND ANNOUNCER, WE AFFECTIONATELY REFER TO HER AS THE PARADE DIVA . I DUNNO IF WE GAVE HER THAT NAME, OR MAYBE SHE GAVE HERSELF THAT NAME, BUT EITHER WAY, SHE DOES A FANTASTIC JOB. AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST, OUR GOOD, UH, BUDDY AND COLLEAGUE, MR. MARK ROBINSON, WHO IS UNABLE TO ATTEND TONIGHT DUE TO ILLNESS. UH, WE'RE GONNA GIVE A STATUE [00:15:01] FOR MARK, AND YOU LADIES CAN, UH, AND GENTLEMEN CAN PROVIDE THAT TO MARK AT A LATER TIME. SO THAT'S IT. BIG ROUND OF APPLAUSE. THANK YOU SO MUCH. AND, UH, WE'LL SEE YA AT NEXT YEAR'S PARADE. THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH. CONGRATULATIONS. YEAH. YOU GOTTA GET THE TROPHY. OKAY. UP NEXT WE HAVE OUR ANNUAL UTILITIES. YEAH. YOU WANT THE OTHER ONE OR JUST THE ONE? JUST THE ONE. HOLD THE RIGHT WAY. YES. PUT YOUR FINGER COVERING. THERE YOU GO. ALL RIGHT. YOU READY? MM-HMM. 1, 2, 3. I GOT IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE AND DOMINION ENERGY. UP FIRST IS PALMETTO ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE. ASHLEY FESTER, COMMUNITY AFFAIRS PALM. GOOD EVENING MAYOR. COUNCIL MEMBERS, TOWN STAFF. UH, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE A BRIEF UPDATE ON BEHALF OF PALMETTO ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE. UH, FIRST I WANT TO BRIEFLY TOUCH ON VEGETATION MANAGEMENT. AS YOU KNOW, THIS IS OFTEN A TOPIC OF INTEREST IN ANY COMMUNITY. UH, PALMETTO ELECTRIC COMPLETED OUR MOST RECENT ROUND OF TREE TRIMMING AND BLUFFTON LAST FALL. WE ARE PLEASED TO REPORT THE WORK WENT SMOOTHLY, AND WE APPRECIATE THE COLLABORATION WITH TOWN STAFF THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS. REGULAR VEGETATION MANAGEMENT IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS WE CAN DO TO HELP PREVENT OUTAGES AND MAINTAIN RELIABILITY FOR OUR MEMBERS. OUR NEXT SCHEDULED TREE TRIMMING CYCLE IN BLUFFTON WILL TAKE PLACE IN APPROXIMATELY THREE YEARS. AND AS ALWAYS, WE'LL COORDINATE WITH TOWN STAFF IN ADVANCE TO MAKE SURE THE PROCESS RUNS AS SMOOTHLY AS POSSIBLE. UH, IN ADDITION TO VEGETATION MANAGEMENT, PALMETTO ELECTRIC HAS RAMPED UP OUR SYSTEM-WIDE MAINTENANCE PROGRAM WITH A STRONG FOCUS ON SWITCH, GRADE, SWITCH GEAR UPGRADES, AND TRANSFORMER REPLACEMENTS IN BLUFFTON AND ON HILTON HEAD. THE GOAL IS TO PROACTIVELY REPLACE AGING EQUIPMENT BEFORE IT FAILS, HELPING US, UH, REDUCE OUTAGES AND IMPROVE OVERALL RELIABILITY. ON AVERAGE, WE ARE CURRENTLY REPLACING ABOUT 20 TO 30 TRANSFORMERS EACH WEEK, UH, DEPENDING ON EQUIPMENT AVAILABILITY. AND OVER THE PAST YEAR AND A HALF, WE'VE REPLACED ABOUT 580 UNITS ACROSS THE SYSTEM. UH, DESPITE CONTINUED RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL GROWTH IN THE BOSTON AREA, SERVICE RELIABILITY HAS REMAINED STRONG. WE'VE CONSISTENTLY MET OUR RELIABILITY GOALS FOR THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS, AND 2006 IS ALREADY OFF TO A STRONG START FOR OVERALL SYSTEM PERFORMANCE. UH, ANOTHER PROJECT WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT IS CONTINUED GROWTH OF THE DON RYAN CENTER, UH, THROUGH OUR STATEWIDE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION, THE SOUTH CAROLINA POWER TEAM, PALMETTO ELECTRIC WAS PROUD TO SUPPORT THE DON RYAN CENTER'S NEWEST EXPANSION, THE COVE, UH, THROUGH A COMBINATION OF SOUTH CAROLINA POWER TEAM GRANTS AND UTILITY TAX CREDITS. UH, PALMETTO ELECTRIC HAS PROVIDED 1.2 MILLION TOWARD THE FACILITY'S LANDING PAD. UH, WE BELIEVE THE COVE WILL POSITION BLUFFTON TO ATTRACT AND GROW INNOVATIVE COMPANIES FROM AROUND THE WORLD, REINFORCING THE TOWN'S REPUTATION AS A PLACE WHERE GREAT BUSINESS AND GREAT PEOPLE WANT TO CALL HOME. UH, ANOTHER INITIATIVE I'D LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT IS BROADBAND EXPANSION, UH, FOLLOWING THE PANDEMIC, AS I KNOW I'VE TALKED TO YOU, A NUM, A NUMBER OF YOU ABOUT PALMETTO ELECTRIC. PARTNERED WITH PALMETTO RURAL TELEPHONE COOPERATIVE TO BRING FIBER BROADBAND SERVICE TO RURAL PARTS OF BEAUFORT, JASPER, AND HAMPTON COUNTIES. UH, A PROGRAM WE CALL PALMETTO LINK. THAT PROJECT WAS COM COMPLETED OVER ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF AGO, UH, AND HAS SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED CONNECTIVITY TO THOSE COMMUNITIES. WE'RE NOW BUILDING ON THAT SUCCESS. PALMETTO LINK IS CURRENTLY PARTNERING WITH DEVELOPERS IN EAST AR AND OKEE, UH, AND WE'RE EVALUATING ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITIES TO EXPAND FIBER SERVICE INTO OTHER PARTS OF SOUTHERN BEAUFORT COUNTY. UM, AND ON AN INTERNAL NOTE, PALMETTO ELECTRIC WAS RECENTLY RECOGNIZED AS NUMBER 15 ON THE LIST OF BEST PLACES TO WORK IN SOUTH CAROLINA. AND AS SOMEONE WHO WORKS WITH OUR TEAM EVERY DAY, I CAN SAY THIS RECOGNITION REFLECTS THE INCREDIBLE PEOPLE AND THE COOPERATIVE THAT WE WORK WITH AND WORK HARD TO SERVE OUR MEMBERS AND THE COMMUNITY. UH, AND FINALLY, I DO WANNA TOUCH BRIEFLY ON AN IMPORTANT LEGISLATIVE EFFORT THAT WE HAVE GOING ON AT STATE HOUSE ELECTRIC COOPERATIVES. AND THE UTILITIES ACROSS SOUTH CAROLINA ARE SUPPORTING LEGISLATION HOUSE BILL 5 0 5 8, AND SENATE BILL 8 0 8, UH, THAT WOULD PROVIDE ADDITIONAL PROTECTIONS FOR UTILITY WORKERS AND OTHER CREWS WHO RESTORE CRITICAL SERVICES DURING DISASTER RESPONSES. UH, THE LEGISLATION WOULD ESTABLISH MISDEMEANOR PENALTIES FOR HARASSMENT OR THREATS TOWARD RESTORATION EFFORTS AND CREWS, UH, AND ALSO CREATE, UH, FELONY PENALTIES FOR ASSAULTS OR ACTIONS THAT ENDANGER WORKERS DURING AN EMERGENCY RESPONSE. UNFORTUNATELY, THESE TYPES OF INCIDENTS DO HAPPEN, AND THEY, AND THEY DO HAPPEN DURING MAJOR STORMS AND RESTORATION EFFORTS, AND THEY SLOW DOWN THE ABILITY OF CREWS TO SAFELY RESTORE SERVICE. THE BILL WOULD APPLY ONLY AFTER THE GOVERNOR IS DECLARED A STATE OF EMERGENCY, AND IT WOULD PROTECT NOT ONLY ELECTRIC COURT LINE WORKERS, BUT ALSO CREWS RESTORING TELEPHONE, INTERNET, WATER, SEWER, NATURAL GAS, AND ROAD ACCESS. BEAUFORT COUNTY REPRESENTATIVES, BRADLEY HERB, KERMAN, AND NEWTON ARE ALL CO-SPONSORS OF THE BILL. SO PLEASE THANK THEM THE NEXT TIME YOU SPEAK WITH THEM. UH, IN [00:20:01] CLOSING, I JUST WANT TO TELL YOU HOW MUCH WE APPRECIATE THE TOWN'S PARTNERSHIP. WE LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUE WORKING TOGETHER TO SUPPORT BLUFFS GROWTH AND RELIABILITY AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY. THANK YOU ALL FOR HAVING ME THIS EVENING. NOW. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, ASHLEY. ANY QUESTION? OUR NEXT WE HAVE, UH, DOMINION. DOMINION ENERGY. BLAKELY WILLIAMS IS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND LOCAL AFFAIRS MANAGER. HELLO, MR. MAYOR, MEMBERS OF COUNCIL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING US TONIGHT. I KNOW YOU ALL ARE FAMILIAR WITH THE WORK THAT DOMINION ENERGY DOES. SO BRIEFLY, LET ME REITERATE THAT WE PROVIDE REGULATED ELECTRIC UTILITY SERVICE TO 3.6 MILLION HOMES AND BUSINESSES IN VIRGINIA, NORTH CAROLINA, AND SOUTH CAROLINA, AS WELL AS REGULATED NATURAL GAS SERVICE TO 500,000 CUSTOMERS HERE IN SOUTH CAROLINA. AS THE OPERATOR OF PUBLIC UTILITIES, WE UNDERSTAND THAT HOW, HOW VITAL OUR MISSION IS TO PROVIDE RELIABLE, AFFORDABLE, INCREASINGLY CLEAN ENERGY. WE GO TO WORK EVERY DAY WITH THE AWARENESS THAT IF WE DON'T CARRY OUT OUR MISSION, NO ONE ELSE CAN CARRY OUT THEIRS. WITH ME TONIGHT IS OUR SOUTHERN DISTRICT MANAGER AND PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER EVAN WHEELER, AND OUR ARBORIST TREAD DIXON. AND BOTH ARE AVAILABLE FOR QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS. SHOULD WE, YOU NEED THEM. THIS, THIS EVENING, I WANTED TO ROUND TO ROUND OUT A PROJECT THAT I BRIEFED YOU ON LAST YEAR, UM, THE HARDY BELT OF BLUFFTON TRANSMISSION LINE. I'M HAPPY TO REPORT THAT THAT PROJECT IS NOW COMPLETE. UM, THE GOOD NEWS IS WE RECENTLY COMPLETED THIS PROJECT JUST AT THE END OF 2025, AND THE BENEFITS ARE THAT IT WAS BUILT ON EXISTING RIGHT OF WAY. THE STRUCTURES WENT IN ROUGHLY THE SAME PLACES WHERE OUR EXISTING STRUCTURES WERE, AND WE REPLACED WOODEN STRUCTURES WITH GALVANIZED STEEL. AND THIS IS GOOD NEWS BECAUSE IT WILL REPLACED AGING INFRASTRUCTURE, AND IT IMPROVES RESILIENCY THROUGHOUT OUR COMMUNITY. UM, UPDATES FOR THIS PROJECT AS WELL, IS DURING THIS PROJECT, WE ALSO WERE ABLE TO BUILD A NEW DISTRIBUTION LINE ON THIS CORRIDOR FROM PERSIMMON STREET TO BUCK WALTER PARKWAY. AND THIS IS GREAT NEWS FOR OUR NEIGHBORS AND FRIENDS ALONG BUCK WALTER PARKWAY. SO THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS ARE GONNA SEE A REDUNDANT FEED THAT'S GONNA IMPROVE RESILIENCY AND RELIABILITY FOR THOSE FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS. THAT SAME THEME OF RESILIENCY, WE ADDED A SECOND FEEDER AT PALMETTO BLUFF, AND THIS, TOO WILL INCREASE RELIABILITY AND ACCOMMODATE THE GROWTH THAT'S COMING IN THAT NECK OF THE WOODS. A PROJECT THAT I KNOW IS YOU ALL ARE INTERESTED IN IS THE BRIDGE STREET PROJECT. THE BRIDGE STREET PROJECT IS AN OVERHEAD TO UNDERGROUND UTILITY CONVERSION PROJECT. PIKE CONSTRUCTION HAS BEEN SELECTED AS OUR SUBCONTRACTOR, AND THEY'RE FINALIZING THEIR PLANS RIGHT NOW. AS SOON AS WE GET THE APPROVALS AND THE OKAYS FROM PIKE, WE LOOK FORWARD TO BRIEFING TOWN STAFF TO BEGIN EASEMENT ACQUISITION. OUR LIGHTING DEPARTMENT CONTINUES WORK ON BRIDGE STREET AND PRITCHARD STREET, AS WELL AS OTHER IMPROVEMENTS TO THE DOWNTOWN AREA. WHILE EXACT TIMELINES ARE NOT YET FIRM, WE ANTICIPATE BEGINNING ON OUR LIGHTING PROJECTS THIS SUMMER AND COMPLETING MANY OF THOSE BY THE END OF THIS CALENDAR YEAR. I'D LIKE TO PIVOT TO DISCUSS THE IMPORTANCE OF VEGETATION MANAGEMENT. TRIMMING AND MAINTAINING RIGHT OF WAYS IS CRITICAL TO RESILIENCY AND RELIABILITY. LIKE ASHLEY TALKED ABOUT. THIS ALLOWS FOR FASTER RESTORATION. IT PREVENTS OUTAGES IN THE FIRST PLACE, AND IT INCREASES SAFETY FOR ALL OF OUR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS. RIGHT NOW, WE'RE, WE'RE, WE ARE TRIMMING TREES IN THE TOWN OF BLUFFTON. LEWIS TREE SERVICES IS OUR SUBCONTRACTOR. AND TREAD DIXON IS AVAILABLE TO YOU ALL IN ANY TIME, 24 7. AND OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE AVAILABLE IS AVAILABLE FOR ANY OF YOUR CONSTITUENTS THAT MIGHT NEED FURTHER HELP AND SUPPORT. OUR TEAM MET WITH THE TEAM STAFF IN DECEMBER TO REVIEW THE ROUTES AND THE TIMELINES. AND I'M HAPPY TO REPORT THAT THE FIRST ROUTE THAT WE'RE WORKING IS 43% COMPLETE AS OF TODAY. AND OUR PLAN IS TO KEEP WORKING SAFELY AND EFFICIENTLY TO COMPLETE OUR WORK BY THE END OF APRIL. WE CAN'T STRESS THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RIGHT TREE IN THE RIGHT PLACE. AND SO WE'VE COME UP WITH THIS EDUCATIONAL PIECE, AND WE'VE SHARED THIS WITH TOWN STAFF IN HOPES TO THAT, TO IMPLEMENT PREVENTATIVE MEASURES SO THAT KNOWING THAT WHEN NEW BUILDS ARE COMING AND NEW LANDSCAPING PLANS ARE BEING REVIEWED, THAT THIS WILL HELP ALL WITH KNOWING WHERE THE RIGHT TREE IN THE RIGHT PLACE IS. AND WE'RE SO PROUD TO WORK WITH THE TOWN, AND WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTNERSHIP, AND WE ARE HAPPY TO BE WITH YOU ALL AND ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE. BUT THANKS AGAIN. THANK YOU. ANY QUESTIONS FOR BLAKELY? OKAY, MOVING RIGHT ALONG. UP NEXT WE HAVE THE BEAUFORT COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION UPDATE. JOHN MAYOR, COUNSEL, THANKS FOR HAVING ME IN TONIGHT. UH, PAUL AR IES HAS GOT LIKE A, A BRACELET ON MY ANKLE. IF I GO ALONG, I WILL JUST LIKE FALL TO THE GROUND. SO I'LL TRY TO BE, UH, UH, PRETTY SWIFT ABOUT WHAT I'M DOING HERE. UH, IT'S, UH, IT'S GREAT TO BE BEFORE YOU. LET ME JUST SEE HOW I'M DOING HERE. I KNOW HOW, WHAT I'M DOING, UH, THIS IS A LITTLE OUTLINE OF WHAT WE'LL TRY TO COVER, AND YOU ALL HAVE THIS IN YOUR PACKETS, RIGHT? SO I WILL GET THROUGH IT QUICKLY. I KNOW YOU HAVE [00:25:01] A LOT OF WORK TO DO. MANY OF YOU MAY HAVE TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF THE CONFERENCES THAT WE OFFERED OVER THE LAST TWO WEEKS ON OUR WORK. AND OUR, IF YOU DIDN'T GET THAT AND YOU WOULD LIKE TO PARTAKE IN THAT, JUST LET US KNOW. BUT OUR VISION'S PRETTY, UH, CLEAR. WE TRY TO BE THE, UH, FACILITATOR, UH, GETTING PEOPLE TO WORK. AND IT'S REALLY GREAT TO FOLLOW TWO GREAT PARTNERS. UH, THE TWO ENERGY COMPANIES YOU JUST HEARD FROM. OUR, UH, WHAT WE'RE LOOKING TO DO, WHAT OUR PASSION IS, IS CHANGE IN THE QUALITY OF PEOPLE'S LIVES. AND WE'LL SHOW YOU HOW WE DO THAT. OUR BUDGET REQUEST, UH, IS 42,000 IN THE UPCOMING YEAR, WHICH IS THE SAME LEVEL YOU'RE AT CURRENTLY. AND I HOPE THAT AS I GO THROUGH MY PRESENTATION, YOU DON'T LOOK AT THIS AS AN EXPENSE, BUT YOU MIGHT CONSIDER IT A WAY OF BUILDING TAX BASE, UH, FOR IN BLUFFTON AND A WAY OF, UH, UH, PROVIDING BETTER FOR YOUR RESIDENTS, AS I KNOW YOU HAVE A LASER FOCUS ON IT. IN TERMS OF RESULTS, IN TERMS OF JOB GROWTH, OUR MSA, UH, IS, UH, UH, DOING QUITE WELL. OBVIOUSLY, SOUTH CAROLINA IS ONE OF THE LEADING STATES FOR GROWTH. OUR GROWTH IN THIS MSA EXCEEDS THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA AND THE UNITED STATES IN TERMS OF HOW WE STACK UP AGAINST OTHER MSAS IN, UM, THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA. I THINK AS YOU LOOK AT MYRTLE BEACH AND YOU'RE AT 54% OVER THAT PERIOD OF TIME, YOU'RE PROBABLY GRATEFUL WE ARE NOT THAT HIGH, UH, BECAUSE, UH, AS YOU KNOW, UH, GROWTH PUTS A LOT OF PRESSURE ON WHAT WE ALL LOVE ABOUT THE AREA AND ALSO INFRASTRUCTURE. BUT WE STACK UP VERY WELL COMPARED TO AREAS THAT YOU MIGHT LOVE AND KNOW, GREENVILLE, COLUMBIA, SPARTANBURG, FLORENCE SUMPTER. UH, WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR RESULTS YEAR TO DATE, AND, UH, WE'VE ENJOYED A LOT OF SUCCESS, UM, UH, IN BLUFFTON OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS, UH, BEING ABLE TO WORK ON SOME PRETTY NEAT PROJECTS. OUR YEAR RUNS LIKE YOURS DOES FROM JUNE OF JULY, BUT WE'RE JUST UNDER $60 MILLION IN INVESTMENTS. UH, AND, UH, UH, 106, UH, I'M SORRY, 60 MILLION AND 165 JOBS. AND THEY'RE WHAT, GOOD PAYING JOBS. SOMETIMES PEOPLE SAY, WELL, WHAT ARE, WHAT ARE THE QUALITY OF THE JOBS YOU'RE CREATING? AND WE HAVE THAT THERE FOR YOU. SINCE INCEPTION, I WOULD EXPECT BY THE END OF THIS YEAR, WE WILL, UH, PROBABLY BE OVER A BILLION DOLLARS OF INVESTMENTS THAT WE'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK ON OVER, UH, THE, UH, PAST NINE YEARS, UH, 30, JUST NEAR, UH, JUST UNDER 3,200 JOBS. AVERAGE COMP, UH, UH, WAS ABOUT 60 OVER THAT ENTIRE TIME. WHEN YOU LOOK AT WHAT'S HAPPENING TO THE, UH, UH, QUALITY OF THE JOBS WE'RE ATTRACTING, AND YOU'LL LOOK AT THAT GRAPH IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS, THE, UH, RATE OF PAY HAS INCREASED BY 90%. SO HOPEFULLY YOUR RESIDENTS ARE THE BENEFICIARIES OF THAT. AND AS I SPEAK ABOUT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN BEAUFORT COUNTY, I HOPE THAT YOU UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE A LARGER COMMUNITY. BEAUFORT COUNTY, OBVIOUSLY BLUFFTON IS A BIG PART OF THAT GROWTH. UH, AS YOU CAN SEE BEFORE YOU, IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS, UH, 2,600 JOBS, AND A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE GETTING COMPENSATED NEARLY, UH, UH, UH, ONE, UH, 100 AND, UH, $70 MILLION A YEAR IN COMPENSATION. SO THAT'S GOOD. UH, IN TERMS OF OUR METRICS, AND AGAIN, LOOKING AT IT FROM YOUR POINT OF VIEW, OKAY, OVER THE LAST NINE YEARS, YOU'VE PAID, UH, $247,000 INTO THIS OPERATION. WE'VE SEEN $198 MILLION INVESTED IN BLUFFTON, SPECIFICALLY, UH, 402 JOBS. UH, AND THAT'LL BE GOING UP WITH THE HEALTHCARE INVESTMENTS GOING ON, UH, THE, UH, SALARY JUST OVER $93 MILLION, UH, PAID TO PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN BLUFFTON. AND AGAIN, UH, JUST THINK OF THAT 247. AND WHAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO WITH COUNTY FUNDS IS PROVIDE INCENTIVES TO COMPANIES AND ALSO 130,000 TO THE, UH, COVE PROJECT. UH, BUT YOU'VE HAD 580 COME BACK, UH, UH, TO COMPANIES IN YOUR AREA. OUR APPROACH TO WORK IS OBVIOUSLY FOCUSED ON THE, ON THE, UH, RIGHT HAND SIDE, JOBS, TAXES, INCOME, WHICH, UH, WE'RE ALL AWARE OF THE COMPANIES WE WORK, WORK WITH, TRYING TO PUT THEM IN TOUCH WITH COMPANIES, UH, THAT THEY CAN DO BUSINESS. BUT WHEN WE'RE NOT DOING THAT, WE TRY TO HAVE A HAND IN, UH, PUBLIC POLICY AS IT PERTAINS TO HOUSING, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, UH, SITE DEVELOPMENT, AND THEN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, MAKING SURE WE'RE GETTING OUT AND VISITING COMPANIES AND HAVE OUR, OUR EAR TO THE GROUND, OUR, OUR PLAN OF WORK. AND, UH, UH, UH, CHRIS, UH, FORSTER AND STEVEN STE, UH, PARTICIPATED IN A, UH, UH, A SESSION WE HAD, UH, LAST WEEK TO LOOK AT OUR WORK PLAN. UM, AND, UH, THAT WAS, UH, WELL RECEIVED. AM I FORGETTING SOMEBODY? STEVEN? COUNCILMAN HAMILTON WAS THERE AS WELL. OKAY. YEAH. YOU WERE SITTING RIGHT AT TABLE NUMBER FIVE. MAYOR TIM HAMILTON. SORRY. AND FRED HAMILTON WAS THERE. I APOLOGIZE. THANK YOU, STEVEN, FOR FIDGETING. I WOULD'VE MISSED [00:30:01] THAT. THANK YOU. UM, AND FRED, THANKS FOR BEING THERE. I APOLOGIZE. I, I KNOW WE SPOKE THAT DAY. TERMS OF PROJECTS THAT WE'RE WORKING ON RIGHT NOW, UH, UH, SPARTINA IS ONE WHERE WE PROVIDED IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS, A $30,000 GRANT. THEIR, THEIR INVESTMENTS, UH, OVER 6,000,015 GOOD JOBS. AND THAT CAME, UH, AS PART OF OUR ONGOING VISIT VISITS WITH, UH, INDUSTRY, THIS COMPANY CS INSTRUMENT. UH, CHRIS FOSTER COULD TELL YOU MORE ABOUT THIS PROJECT BECAUSE IT WAS HIS, HIS, UH, SWIFT MOVEMENT THAT SEALED THE DEAL, UH, FOR BLUFFTON GETTING A CALL AT ABOUT 10 O'CLOCK FROM OUR PROJECT MANAGER. UH, KELLY BRUNSON AGREEING TO BE AT LUNCH WITH HIM WHEN THE CEO WAS IN FROM GERMANY. UH, BUT, UH, THAT'S A LOW COUNTRY WELCOME THAT WE TRY TO PROVIDE, UH, THROUGH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. JET ZERO, A CUTTING EDGE COMPANY OUTTA CALIFORNIA. UH, THEY MADE THEIR NATIONAL DECISION TO LOCATE IN GREENVILLE, UH, NORTH CAROLINA. BUT WHAT THEY'RE FINDING IS, IS THAT THEY CAN HIRE PEOPLE FROM GULFSTREAM IN SAVANNAH AND, UH, BOEING IN CHARLESTON. AND SO, UH, UH, PAUL, UH, AND THE GREAT TEAM AT THE DON RYAN CENTER, UH, I'M SAYING THAT, SO HE DOESN'T HIT THE BUTTON AND I, I FALL TO THE GROUND. NO, WE'VE GOT A GREAT TEAM THERE, BUT THEY'VE INKED THE CONTRACT AT THE COVE, UH, WITH THIS COMPANY, AND THEIR SALES TEAM IS WORKING OUTTA THERE AT THE SAME TIME. UH, THEIR PROPULSION ENGINEERS ARE WORKING OUT OF OUR BLUFF, OUR BEAUFORD, UH, LANDING PAD. SO JUST A, A GREAT COLLABORATION THAT WE HAVE WITH THE DON RYAN CENTER. AND IF YOU ATTENDED, UH, CONVERGE, YOU WOULD'VE HEARD ABOUT THAT AS WELL. BEAUFORD MEMORIAL, UH, UH, KELLY BRUNSON WORKED WITH THEM. UH, WE PROVIDED A, A GRANT TO BEAUFORD MEMORIAL, UH, TO MAKE, UH, THEIR ENTRANCE INTO THE MARKET AND THEIR BUILDING'S COMING ALONG QUITE WELL. UH, DOLNIK PROPERTIES, UH, UH, GREAT WORK AGAIN BY THE TEAM HERE IN THE CITY. UH, UH, IN TALKING TO MR. DOLNIK LAST WEEK ON THE, UH, UH, THE COVE, UH, THE COVE TURNED OUT QUITE WELL. THE, UH, UH, BUILDING, UH, RIGHT BEHIND KROGER'S OF SIX SPOTS, FIVE OR LEAST. AND, UH, WE'RE, WE'RE WORKING ACTUALLY, KELLY BRUNSON'S, WORKING WITH HIM TO MARKET HIS BUILDINGS COAST GUARD FACILITY. UH, WE DID, WE LOST OUT ON THE COAST GUARD FACILITY TO BIRMINGHAM, BUT WE THANK THE MAYOR FOR TAKING A REGIONAL APPROACH AND BEING SUPPORTIVE OF THAT. AND WE HAVE ONGOING, UH, DISCUSSIONS NOW WITH THE NAVY TO GET SOME OTHER OPERATION IN THAT UNDERUTILIZED, UH, UH, FACILITY. IN THE LAST 18 MONTHS, WE'VE HAD WHAT WE CALL BUSINESS RETENTION AND EXPANSION MEETINGS WITH 18 COMPANIES. WE'VE, UH, UH, TOUCHED OR SERVED ANOTHER 24 COMPANIES, UH, IN TERMS OF MARKETING AND ATTRACTION. AGAIN, UH, CHRIS IS, UH, VERY ACTIVE ON OUR BOARD. UH, AFTER THE NEW YORK ELECTION, CHRIS SUGGESTED THAT, UH, UH, THE MAYOR MANAMI WAS NOT THAT POPULAR IN NEW YORK. IT MIGHT POSE A GREAT MARKETING OPPORTUNITY FOR US. SO, AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THOSE GREEN AREAS ON STATEN ISLAND AND QUEENS, UH, WHERE THE, UH, MAYOR OF, UH, NEW YORK RECEIVED 23% OF THE VOTE. WE, UH, AGAIN, KELLY BRUNSON IS, UH, WORKING ON A DIGITAL MARKETING CAMPAIGN, UH, TO ATTRACT INVESTORS FROM THAT AREA. UH, SIMILARLY, UH, UH, UH, THE MAP TO THE LEFT SHOWS YOU TAMPA, WHERE WE'RE TARGETING, UH, UH, FINANCIAL SERVICE COMPANIES THAT ARE NOT TOO HAPPY, UH, WITH, UH, THEIR OPERATIONS BEING IN TAMPA. ONE THING TO NOTE IS, UH, SOMETIMES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS RELATIONSHIPS. UH, UH, UH, THESE CAMPAIGNS WERE SUGGESTED TO US BY BOARD MEMBERS. UH, KELLY BRUNSON APPLIED FOR A GRANT ON A FRIDAY. SHE SAID SHE WOULD'VE APPLIED ON A WEDNESDAY, BUT IT TOOK ME TWO DAYS TO SIGN THE GRANT. AND BY MONDAY, THIS, THIS DIGITAL CAMPAIGN WAS FUNDED BY SANTI COOPER AND BY EXTENSION PALMETTO ELECTRIC. SO WE'RE VERY GRATEFUL FOR THAT. WE CONTINUE TO MARKET EXISTING, UH, BUILDINGS IN, UH, UH, BLUFFTON. AND, UH, WE HAVE THE CONVERGE PROGRAM, NOT ONLY THE SUMMIT, UH, BUT WE ALSO HAVE, UH, A TV SHOW WHERE WE TRY TO HELP, UH, YOU GET YOUR MESSAGE OUT AND GET OUR MESSAGE OUT. AND AGAIN, UH, THE MAYOR, UH, AND PAUL, UH, HAVE APPEARED ON THAT SHOW RECENTLY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. AND IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER 'EM. AND I APOLOGIZE, PAUL, ANY QUESTIONS FROM COUNSEL? OKAY, THANK YOU. YEP. UH, NEXT WE WILL HAVE AN UPDATE ON THE BEAUFORT COUNTY TRANSPORTATION PENNY TAX ADVISORY COMMITTEE. LISA SALT. OH, HERE WE GO. OKAY. THANK Y'ALL FOR LETTING ME GIVE YOU A QUICK UPDATE. THERE ARE ONLY ABOUT 10 SLIDES AND ABOUT TWO MINUTES WORTH TALKING. UM, [00:35:01] FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR PUTTING ME ON THIS TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE WITH BEAUFORT COUNTY. FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO DON'T KNOW, AND THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE LEAVING, UM, WE ARE PUTTING IT ON THE BALLOT IN NOVEMBER. AND WE HAVE A WONDERFUL GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO ARE ON THE COMMITTEE THAT SIT WITH ME. THESE ARE THE NAMES. YOU CAN GO TO BEAUFORT COUNTY PENNY.COM AND SEE THEY ARE, UM, BIOS. BUT IT'S REALLY INTERESTING. ALL AGE GROUPS, VERY DIVERSE. SEVERAL WHO WERE ON PAST COMMITTEES, SEVERAL WHO ARE PAST ELECTED OFFICIALS. AND THEN WE HAVE ONE OF MY FAVORITE PEOPLE WHO SAT ON LATS WITH ME, CRAIG FORESTS, WHO'S A FORMER DOT COMMISSIONER, UM, VERY FOCUSED ON THE PURPOSE. AND THE MEETINGS ARE, UM, REALLY GREAT AND, UM, PRODUCTIVE. WE'VE HAD FOUR MEETINGS. I ONLY HIGHLIGHTED THREE 'CAUSE THE FIRST ONE WAS JUST AN INTRODUCTORY TO GET ME TO BE CHAIR. I THINK I'M THE CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE. UH, WE'VE HAD TWO MUNICIPAL MEETINGS LAST WEEK WITH STEVEN AND STEVEN. YOU KNOCKED IT OUT OF THE BALLPARK. IT WAS REALLY LIKED. I SENT IT TO PEOPLE WHO WEREN'T THERE. THEY WERE QUITE IMPRESSED WITH REALLY THE BACKGROUND OF WHERE WE WERE AND WHAT WE ARE AND WHERE WE'RE GONNA GO. AND AFTER, UM, THAT PRESENTATION, WE NEED TRANSPORTATION TO GET ALL THESE WORKERS TO THEIR JOBS. SO WE MEET TOMORROW AT HILTON HEAD ISLAND, UM, AT THEIR TOWN HALL. AND Y'ALL CAN SEE THE MEETING DATES ON THAT. IT IS ALSO ON THE BEAUFORT COUNTY PENNY. UH, BEYOND THE COMMITTEE'S WORK, YOU CAN SEE THE SCHEDULE THAT COUNTY COUNCIL HAS, MAY 11TH, THEY'LL DISCUSS IT, UM, GO THROUGH A RESOLUTION THREE READINGS TO GET IT TO THE STATE BY AUGUST AND TO GET IT ON THE BALLOT ELECTION DAY, WHICH IS NOVEMBER 3RD. AND WE'LL BE HERE BEFORE YOU KNOW IT. SO THEY QUIZZED US ON MY FIRST MEETING, AND I DIDN'T HAVE ANY OF THE RIGHT ANSWERS. BUT, UM, WE WERE ACTUALLY THE FIRST PENNY TRANSPORTATION TAX IN THE STATE. AND IT, IT WAS PASSED IN 1998, UM, 1998. AND THEN WE HAD TWO OTHER SINCE 2006 AND THEN 2018. UH, WHAT HAVE WE DONE WITH ALL THOSE PENNIES? WELL, WE INVESTED ALMOST $300 MILLION INTO OUR INFRASTRUCTURE. ONE 70, WE REMEMBER THE TWO LANE ROAD OF ONE 70. SO WE WIDENED 13 MILES OF THAT NEW RIVER CROSSING IMPROVEMENTS, 2 78, UM, EAST THE BRIDGE, WHICH IS CALLED THE CORRIDOR PROJECT, AN EXPANSION AND REALLY AN EXPANSION. THE CREATION OF THE BLUFFTON PARKWAY IMPROVEMENTS ON 2 78 AND 17 CORRIDORS. LADIES ISLAND HAD, HAS AS MUCH TRANSPORTATION LOWES AS WE DO. THEY DID TRAFFIC UPGRADES FOR THEM, AND THEN SIDEWALKS AND MULTI-USE PATHS. SO, UM, I'M GONNA GO THROUGH ANOTHER FEW SLIDES BECAUSE I EVEN SAID IT MYSELF. WHY ARE WE PASSING ANOTHER PENNY IN 2024, UM, WHICH WAS THE LAST PENNY THAT FAILED. AND WE HAVEN'T COMPLETED THE 18 PROJECTS THAT IS GONNA BE BIG ON EVERYONE'S MINDS. THIS YEAR, THIS ADMINISTRATION, NEW ADMINISTRATION, UM, COVID HAS COME AND GONE. THE 18 PENNY. WE DIDN'T KNOW COVID WAS COMING, BUT IT HIT US ABOUT MIDSTREAM INTO TRYING TO DO THE WORK TO GET THIS PENNY, THE PROJECTS, UM, COMPLETED. BUT THEY ARE COMMITTED TO COMPLETING THE PROJECTS THAT ARE ON THE 18 LIST. AND YOU WILL NOT SEE ANY CARRYOVER OF PROJECTS FROM THE 18 LIST ON THIS LIST. UM, THIS IS REALLY INTERESTING. AND, AND I WAS TOLD THIS, IF YOU THINK THROUGH THE PROCESS AND Y'ALL, WE ALL CAN GO DOWN AJOY ROAD AND IT JUST TOOK FOREVER AND EVER. AND I RIDE DOWN THERE, I'M LIKE, IT'S JUST A PATHWAY. IT IS A SIDEWALK. IT'S TAKEN SO LONG. WELL, EASEMENT ACQUISITION, WE ALL DO IT WITH OUR SEWER PROJECTS. WE KNOW HOW LONG IT TAKES DESIGN PERMITTING, NOT JUST THROUGH THE STATE, BUT ALSO THROUGH FEDERAL AGENCIES, PROPERTY ACQUISITION, UTILITY COORDINATION, UM, AN EXAMPLE. AND IT HAPPENED EVEN WITH BLUFFTON PARKWAY, BUT THE BOUNDARY STREET IMPROVEMENT WAS COMPLETED 13 YEARS AFTER THE 2006 PENNY, AND SEVEN YEARS AFTER THE COLLECTION HAD FINISHED. IT TAKES TIME. BUT I'M PROUD OF THE COUNTY FOR COMMITTING TO THE 18 PROJECTS, EVEN THOUGH IT'S TAKEN A LITTLE LONGER THAN WE ALL EXPECTED OR ALL, ALL THOUGHT ABOUT. UM, THIS SLIDE SHOWS YOU THE 2018 PENNY PROJECTS. VERY FEW, WELL NONE WENT THROUGH THE TOWN LIMITS. AND WE HAD A FEW THAT TOUCHED THE TOWN LIMITS. UM, SO A LOT OF THIS IS LADIES ISLAND CORRIDOR. YOU SEE THAT TWO ARE COMPLETED. UH, THE REMAINING ARE IN DESIGN AND THE COUNTY COUNCIL VOTED TO PUT THREE OF THE PROJECTS ON HOLD. SIDEWALKS. WELL, WE HAVE BLUFFTON PARKWAY THAT'S COMPLETED. THAT WAS EIGHT FOOT SIDEWALK THAT CONNECTED 46 TO [00:40:01] THE CIRCLE. UM, ALL JOY BURNT CHURCH ROAD IS GONNA BE A SIX FOOT SIDEWALK. AND THEY'VE HAD THOSE MEETINGS. THAT'S IN DESIGN AND ALL JOY ROAD, IF YOU HAVEN'T BEEN DOWN THERE, I WOULD DRIVE DOWN IT. UM, THEY'RE PRETTY CLOSE TO GETTING COMPLETED, SO THEY'RE WORKING REALLY HARD ON THAT. AND AGAIN, DECIDED TO PUT A FEW PROJECTS ON HOLD. SO, ANOTHER QUESTION. WHY DOESN'T THE STATE DO THIS? THESE ARE STATE ROADS. WHY DOESN'T THE STATE PAVED THE ROADS WE NEED? WELL, ANOTHER FUN FACT. WE ARE IN THE TOP FOUR IN THE COUNTRY OF NUMBERS, OF MILES OF ROADS IN OUR SYSTEM. WE HAVE 41,000 ROADS IN OUR SYSTEM IN THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA, YET WE'RE ON THE BOTTOM FOUR TO 10 STATES IN THE COUNTRY IN TERMS OF SIZE. SO WE HAVE ONE OF THE SMALLER STATES AND ONE OF THE LARGEST COLLECTION OF MILES. THEY HAVE FOCUSED ON INTERSTATES AND BRIDGES. AND THAT IS ALL THEY'RE GONNA DO. THAT IS ALL THEY'RE FOCUSED ON OVER THE NEXT 10 TO 20 YEARS. SO A PENNY TAX REALLY IS THE TOOL AVAILABLE TO ANY COUNTY TO REALLY ADDRESS ISSUES THAT WE SEE ON A DAILY BASIS. THESE ARE THE THREE PENNIES. 1998, 2006, AND 18. THE LARGEST PENNY WAS IN 2006. UM, COLLECTED THE MOST MONEY. WE ARE LOOKING NOW INTO HOW LONG AND HOW MUCH. THAT'S ONE OF OUR, OUR TASK. SO MORE TO COME ON THAT. SO THIS IS THE SITE, BEAUFORT COUNTY PENNY.COM. IF YOU GO ON IT, YOU SEE THE TOP TAB, UM, HOME PROPOSED 2026 REFERENDUM REFERENDUM HISTORY IN 2018 REFERENDUM PROJECTS. IF YOU CLICK ON PROPOSED 2026 TRANSPORTATION REFERENDUM, YOU'LL SEE THE MINUTES OF ALL OUR MEETINGS. YOU'LL SEE VIDEOS THAT THE BUFORT COUNTY CHANNEL IS TAKING OF ALL THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS, JUST TO GET YOU A FEEL OF WHO'S SITTING ON THE COMMITTEE WITH ME. BUT IF YOU CLICK ON THAT 2026, YOU'LL SEE ANOTHER TAG THAT SAYS RESOURCES. IF YOU CLICK ON THE RESOURCES, THEN YOU'RE GONNA HAVE A GRAPHIC SIMILAR TO WHAT RYAN DOES FOR THE TOWN WHERE IT'S INTERACTIVE. YOU CAN SEE THE PROJECTS ON THE LEFT AS THEY'RE COLLECTED. THE COUNTY'S PUTTING THEM IN ON THE RIGHT IS MORE INFORMATION. OR YOU CAN GET THE SCREEN AND CLICK ON ANY OF THE YELLOW DOTS TO SEE WHAT PROJECTS WERE UPLOADED. ANY PROJECT, ANY PROJECT THAT A CITIZEN SUBMITS, ANY PROJECT THE TOWNS SUBMIT OR THE COUNTY, WE WILL UPLOAD ON THAT MAP. SO IT'S VERY STATIC AND IT'LL CHANGE. THE OTHER THING WE'RE GONNA DO, WHICH A CITIZEN IN BEAUFORT COUNTY GAVE US THE IDEA IS CREATE A SPREADSHEET FROM THAT MAP. AND IT'S GONNA BE SORTABLE. WE'RE GONNA HAVE THE CATEGORY, THE PROJECT SIZE, THE PROJECT SOURCE, IF THERE IS ONE. UM, WHAT JURISDICTION WOULD IT HELP? SOMETIMES IT'S GONNA HELP BLUFFTON IN BEAUFORT COUNTY. SOMETIMES IT'S JUST GONNA HELP BLUFFTON OR ONE OF THE OTHER MUNICIPALITIES. IS IT NEW? THE PROJECT STATUS, THE ESTIMATED COST, THE ESTIMATED TIME TO START. SO THAT IS GONNA BE VERY HELPFUL WITH THIS COMMITTEE TO REALLY RANK THE PROJECTS. WE'VE, WE PROBABLY HAVE 50 NOW AND THERE'S NO WAY THE COUNTY CAN DO 50 PROJECTS, NOR CAN WE RAISE ENOUGH MONEY. SO THE CRITERIA STEVEN ASKED LAST WEEK, WHAT IS THE CRITERIA THEY WANT? THE COMMITTEE WANTS THE MUNICIPALITIES, AND THEY'RE VERY FOCUSED ON THE MUNICIPALITIES, WHICH MADE ME SMILE. THEY WANT US TO RANK IN SOME FASHION WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO EACH MUNICIPALITY. SO STEVEN ASKED ABOUT THE CRITERIA, SAFETY, EVACUATION ROUTES, HOTSPOTS. UM, THANK YOU CHIEF FOR ALL THE WORK YOU DO ON THAT, UH, TRANSPORTATION MOVEMENT. AND THEN THE COUNCIL, COUNTY COUNCIL HAS GIVEN US VERY CLEAR GUIDELINES, WIDENING RESURFACING, WHICH ALSO INCLUDES PAVING PUBLIC DIRT, ROADS, AND INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS. SO WITH THAT, THIS IS PART OF STEVEN'S PRESENTATION, UM, LAST WEEK. IT IS ON BEAUFORT COUNTY SITE. I WOULD URGE EVERYONE TO LOOK AT IT AS JUST SUPER INFORMATIVE. UM, WE HIGHLIGHTED FIVE PROJECTS THAT AFFECT BLUFFTON, THE 1 70 46 ROUNDABOUT ALL THE WAY TO THE JASPER COUNTY LINE, US 2 78 AND ONE 70. THAT'S ALSO A BIG PROJECT. THE COUNTY IS VERY INTERESTED IN, UM, SIMMONS, PHIL, BUCK ISLAND INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS, AND THEN THE YEARS ONE TO FIVE AND THE ROUNDABOUT FROM THE BLUFFTON PARKWAY STUDY. SO THAT'S KIND OF MY HOMEWORK TO GIVE TO Y'ALL. I NEED IT BEFORE THE LAST MUNICIPAL, UM, PRESENTATION, WHICH IS IN TWO WEEKS. BUT YOU'RE NOT GONNA HAVE ANOTHER COUNCIL MEETING UNTIL THEN. AND WE NEED IT BEFORE YOUR NEXT COUNCIL MEETING. SO [00:45:01] I NEED YOU TO THINK THROUGH THAT. UM, I'M HAPPY TO TAKE 'EM BACK WITH ME TONIGHT OR Y'ALL CAN DISCUSS IT. AND, AND IF STEVEN CAN LET ME KNOW, THAT WOULD, THAT WOULD BE REALLY BE GREAT. UM, IT'S A REALLY GOOD COMMITTEE. I AM LEARNING MORE AND MORE Y'ALL. WE'VE GOTTA HAVE THIS. I'M EDUCATING, BUT I CAN ADVOCATE. WE NEED THIS PENNY IF WE DON'T HAVE THIS PENNY. THINK BACK TO 18 TO NOW WITH THE TRAFFIC. NUMBER ONE ISSUE ON EVERYONE'S MIND IS TRANSPORTATION. FROM OUR OWN SURVEY AND FROM THE REALTORS ASSOCIATION SURVEY, THEY KNOW IT'S IMPORTANT AND THERE ARE PROJECTS THAT THE NEW COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR SAID WE CAN START YEAR ONE. SO WE ARE GONNA START GETTING BOOTS ON THE GROUND SIGNAGE TO PUBLICIZE THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE. I THINK WE'VE MISSED THAT THE LAST 20 YEARS. NO, NO SIGNAGE TO, TO CELEBRATE WHAT WE'RE DOING. UM, WITH THAT, THAT IS MY LAST SLIDE. I'LL LEAVE IT UP IF Y'ALL WANNA DISCUSS IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS. STEVEN, I DON'T KNOW HOW BEST TO GET A RANKING. MAYBE YOU HAVE A SUGGESTION. SO I REALLY DON'T HAVE A SUGGESTION, BUT I WOULD JUST SAY THAT WE, UM, THE, AGAIN, THE ONES THAT WE HIGHLIGHTED, WE FIGURED IF WE, THIS WAS, UM, FORMER MAYOR SUL AND I TALKING, IS IF WE WERE TO GO THROUGH AND IDENTIFY FIVE THAT WE FELT THAT WOULD HAVE THE BIGGEST IMPACT IN AND AROUND BLUFFTON, THOSE WERE THE FIVE THAT WE KINDA PICKED OUT JUST BECAUSE THEY, UM, AND, AND THESE ARE BASED ON THE LATS LONG RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN PROJECTS THAT WERE IDENTIFIED. UM, SAME THING WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT FOR A WHILE, AS WELL AS TRYING TO ADDRESS EVACUATION ROUTES, UM, TO MAKE SURE WE CAN GET PEOPLE OUT SAFELY SHOULD IT HAVE TO OCCUR. SO THESE WERE KIND OF THE FIVE THAT WE PULLED OUT. THEY AFFECTED 46 FROM THE ROUNDABOUT. UM, AND, AND WITH THAT, I WOULD ALSO SAY WHAT I THREW IN WHEN WE WERE TALKING WAS FOR THEM TO INCLUDE THE NEXT THREE INTERSECTIONS THAT THEY DESIGNED AT STAR. I THINK IT'S STARDUST, STARDUST BLUFF, AND, AND, UH, GIBB IT. SO WE WOULD ASK FOR THAT TO BE INCLUDED IN THERE AS WELL. THE INTERSECTION 2 78, 1 70, SOME IS, SOME HAS BEEN DONE, BUT THERE'S STILL MORE TO BE DONE AND COMPLETED AS WELL AS THE INTERSECTIONS ON 2 78 THAT SHE MENTIONED. AND THE BLUFFTON PARKWAY, JUST BECAUSE WE ALREADY KNOW SEVERAL OF THE INTERSECTIONS THERE ARE AT CAPACITY AND HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED FOR YEARS ONE THROUGH FIVE. UM, WHAT I RELAY TO THEM IS IF THEY WANTED US TO, TO RANK 'EM, TO KIND OF GIVE US A CRITERIA, DO YOU WANT A TOP FIVE, A TOP THREE, A BUDGET LIMITATION? UM, THEY DIDN'T REALLY KIND OF COME OUT WITH THAT. SO I THINK FIVE WOULD BE A GOOD, UM, BASE AND THAT'S WHY WE WENT WITH THIS. BUT IT'S UP TO COUNCIL FOR Y'ALL TO DISCUSS AND SEE IF YOU FEEL THAT ANY RISE TO THE TOP THAT YOU WANT, UM, LISA TO GO BACK AND MAKE SURE SHE FIGHTS FOR, TO HAVE AS A TOP PRIORITY OR THE TOP THREE PRIORITIES FOR THE COMMUNITY. AND IF YOU JUST WANNA LISTENING TO YOU, IF YOU JUST WANNA SAY, THESE ARE OUR TOP FIVE, I CAN TAKE THAT. I WILL TELL YOU, I, SINCE 18, WE ALSO CREATED OUR NPO AND WE NOW HAVE LATS THAT HAS DONE ALL THE STUDIES, ENGINEERED, SOME ARE IN DESIGN. MOST OF THE LATS STUDIES, UM, ARE UNFUNDED. THERE'S NO MONEY. WE ARE PUTTING OUR MONEY, AS Y'ALL ALL KNOW, THROUGH LATS TOWARD THE BACKWATER BRIDGE AND THREE 15 GOING TO SAVANNAH. THAT'S WHERE THE MAJORITY OF OUR GOD SHARE WENT FOR 10 YEARS. ALL OF THE, THE ONES THAT AREN'T HIGHLIGHTED ARE IN THE COUNTY'S PLAN IN ON THAT MAP THAT I SHOWED YOU. SO THEY'RE NOT GOING AWAY. THEY, I JUST LOVE THE COMMITTEES WANT OF THE MUNICIPALITIES TO CHIME IN BECAUSE WE DO, WE ARE THE BOOTS ON THE GROUND AND WE DO SEE IT EVERY DAY. SO YOU CAN SAY THOSE FIVE ARE GREAT. I WILL TELL YOU THE OTHERS ARE GONNA BE ON THE LIST. BUT WHAT DOES THE TOWN THINK IS MOST IMPORTANT? SO I DON'T THINK WE HAVE TO DO 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, AND YOU CAN SAY, HEY, I THINK ALL OF THEM AREN'T HIGHLIGHTED. I MEAN, IT REALLY IS UP TO Y'ALL. SO IF YOU WOULD, YEAH, WE'LL WANT ME TO GIVE ONE MORE STATEMENT. I'D BE WILLING TO SAY THIS. IF I THINK IF YOU HAD TO PICK OUT THE TOP TWO THAT WOULD BENEFIT THE RESIDENTS THE MOST THAT AREN'T, THAT WOULDN'T NECESSARILY BE ON THE LIST THAT THE COUNTY WOULD ADOPT THAT IT WOULD PROBABLY BE THE, THE ROUNDABOUT AND THE WIDENING THERE AND THEN THE BLUFFTON PARKWAYS. I THINK THOSE WOULD BE THE ONES THAT WOULD PROBABLY HAVE THE MOST DIRECT BENEFIT ON OUR RESIDENTS. UM, JUST INSIDE THE TOWN LIMITS. BUT THAT WOULD, AGAIN, IT'S UP THE COUNCIL AND Y'ALL HEAR FROM THE RESIDENTS, UM, AND CITIZENS ALL THE TIME. OKAY. I'LL, I'LL, UM, EMILY, ANY COMMENT YOU WANNA NO, THANK YOU FOR AGREEING TO BE ON THIS COMMITTEE. UM, I'M GLAD YOU ARE REPRESENTING US. I THINK YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB WITH IT. I AGREE WITH YOUR FIVE TOP. UM, I WOULD LOVE TO SEE ALL OF THESE GET APPROVED. IF I HAD TO PICK A TOP TWO, I AGREE WITH WHAT STEVEN [00:50:01] SAID, UM, THE ROUNDABOUT TO JASPER COUNTY AND THE BLUFFTON PARKWAY. BUT I'D REALLY LIKE TO SEE ALL FIVE OF THEM STILL LIST. OKAY, THAT'S GOOD. THAT'S GOOD FEEDBACK TO TAKE WITH YOUR ADDITION OF GOING TO THE THREE, THE STAR TO THREE INTERSECTIONS. YEAH, I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT. MR. ALLEN, I'M GOING TO TAKE A DIFFERENT STAB AT IT. UM, I WANT TO TAKE A, A PROACTIVE APPROACH THAT IF THE PENNY DOESN'T PASS, THEN I THINK WE NEED NUMBER ONE, UM, FROM THE TOWN TO SAY IF THERE, IF THERE'S ANY FUNDS WHERE WE, WHERE, WHERE WOULD WE GO THEN? SO I DON'T HAVE THAT NUMBER ONE, BUT I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE NEED TO LOOK AT. SO WHAT I DIDN'T SAY TOMORROW AT TOWN HALL, AT HILTON HEAD, IF THEY, IF THEY DON'T HAVE THE ABILITY TO LIVE STREAM, THEY DO RECORD AND PUT IT ON AND YOU CAN GET IT THE NEXT DAY. BUT HILTON HEAD SHOULD HAVE THE LIVE STREAM CAPABILITY BECAUSE THEY'RE DOING IT IN TOWN HALL. STEPHANIE ROSSI WITH LOW COG IS COMING. MOST OF THAT COMMITTEE IS VERY UNAWARE OF NPO LATS STUDIES. VERY UNAWARE. THEY'RE UNAWARE OF WHAT JASPER COUNTY'S PENNY IS DOING. JASPER PASSED THEIR PENNY, UM, AND SHE'S GONNA PRESENT JASPER OWN BECAUSE THAT WAS A BIG CONCERN OVER THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS. MY QUESTION TO STEPHANIE, SO IT, THIS MONEY CAN BE SPREAD OUT. UM, Y'ALL ALL REMEMBER SIX, THERE WAS, THERE WERE DIFFERENT FUNDS FOR PROJECTS, IMPACT FEES, GRANTS IN THE PENNY. WHAT OF THESE PROJECTS HAVE A CHANCE OF BEING FUNDED IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS? SO THIS PENNY DOESN'T HAVE TO GO TO EVERY SINGLE PART OF THE PENNY. UM, WHICH SOMEBODY SAID CALL IT A NICKEL 'CAUSE WE'RE NOT MAKING PENNIES ANYMORE. UM, BUT WHAT THIS 1%, HOW CAN WE MAKE THE MOST OF THE MONEY? SO THAT'S MY QUESTION TO HER IS FUNDING. UM, AND I'LL ASK THAT QUESTION FOR YOU AS WELL, MS. FRAZIER. UM, JUST ECHOING SOME OF THE SENTIMENT IS I'M GRATEFUL TO SEE YOU ON THIS, UH, COMMITTEE. I THINK YOU'RE GONNA BE A GOOD ASSET FOR US. UM, MAYOR PRO, TIM HAMILTON'S CONCERN, I THINK THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO NOTE 'CAUSE WE KNOW THAT SOMETIMES THESE, UM, REFERENDUMS DON'T ALWAYS, AREN'T ALWAYS SUCCESSFUL. UM, SO I HAVE TWO QUESTIONS ON THAT. UM, LAST COMMENT. I DO SUPPORT, UM, THE SUGGESTION OF WHAT YOU STATED AND WHAT STEVEN FOLLOWED UP ON IN TERMS OF OUR PRIORITY, UM, WITH THESE. UM, FIRST QUESTION IS WHAT'S THE, UH, PLAN FROM THE COMMITTEE IN TERMS OF HOW IS THIS COMMUNICATED TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC TO KIND OF HELP BOLSTER SUPPORT FOR THIS? UM, THANK YOU. AND I THINK I'VE HEARD FROM ALL OF Y'ALL ASKING SOME QUESTIONS AND I STILL HAVE TO HEAR FROM THE MAYOR, BUT I HEAR NOW TWO OF THE PROJECTS ARE TOP PRIORITY. UM, ELECTED OFFICIALS CANNOT ADVOCATE, NOT, NOT, I'M NOT ELECTED. SO I CAN ADVOCATE, I COMMITTEE CAN ADVOCATE AND EDUCATE. THE COUNTY IS IN DISCUSSIONS WITH SOMEONE TO TAKE ON THE REINS TO HIRE A MARKETING COMPANY TO DO THE ADVOCATION. I WAS ON A CALL WITH JARED WITH A WONDERFUL LADY THAT DOES THIS AND GOT A PENNY PASSED. SHE CAN EITHER EDUCATE OR ADVOCATE AND I TOLD THE COUNTY, I'M NOT SURE IF WE DON'T NEED BOTH. SO YOU CAN'T START ADVOCATING UNTIL MAY, BUT YOU CAN EDUCATE BETWEEN NOW AND MAY. OKAY. SO THAT'S GONNA ALSO BE A QUESTION. BUT THE PLAN IS TO HAVE AN OUTSIDE SOURCE SIM. WE ALL WATCH SLOS IN SAVANNAH. MM-HMM. WE ALL, I NEVER SAW THE JASPER BUT NEVER FOUGHT ON TV, UM, TO DO ADVOCACY. BUT WE CANNOT ADVOCATE, Y'ALL CANNOT ADVOCATE. SO ANY GROUPS, I'M FINE TO GO TALK TO THEM. THIS GROUP, WHEN WE FIND THEM, WE'LL TALK TO THEM. I FEEL LIKE WE NEED THOSE STAKEHOLDERS. THE, THE BIKE GROUPS, THE ROTARY CLUBS, UM, THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS COMING TO TALK TO US AS WELL AND THEY HAVE SUPPORTED IT. THE REALTORS ASSOCIATION HAS SUPPORTED IT. SO I MEAN, IN THEORY WITH THEIR SURVEY, THEY KNOW TRANSPORTATION'S IMPORTANT. SO, UM, THIS IS SO NEW. WE'RE FIVE MEETINGS IN, AND I THINK WE ARE LIKE DEER IN THE HEADLIGHTS WITH ALL THESE PROJECTS. BUT THE LAST, TOWARD THE END OF APRIL, WE'RE GONNA HAVE MEET, WE'RE HAVE ALL THE PRESENTATIONS, ALL THE PUBLIC SUBMISSIONS, AND THEN WE'RE JUST GONNA GO THROUGH IT AND RANK IT. AND THAT'S WHERE I THINK THE SPREADSHEET WILL WORK BECAUSE WE CAN SORT IT, YOU KNOW, JUST COST. AND IT, IT'S A BIG JUMP 'CAUSE WE HAVE TO FIGURE OUT NUMBER OF YEARS AND HOW MUCH MONEY AND THE PROJECTS THAT BENEFIT ALL OF BEAUFORT. UM, [00:55:01] SO THAT'S THE PLAN. WELL, IT, IT SOUNDS LIKE Y'ALL ARE THERE. DEFINITELY AGREE THAT EDUCATING AND ADVOCATING IS GONNA BE CRUCIAL. AND MY LAST QUESTION, UM, MORE IS A COMMENT TOO. SO I SEE WE HAVE FIVE PRIORITIES UP HERE. UM, FOR THE FIRST ONE IT'S FROM ONE 70 TO 46 IN THE ROUNDABOUT. UM, I'M CONCERNED THERE ON THE LACK OF INCLUSION OR I COULD BE INCORRECT OF ALL OF 46 IN TERMS OF UM, COMING DOWN EVEN FURTHER INTO THE TOWN. UM, 'CAUSE WHEN WE THINK OF HOW FOLKS EVACUATE, WE KNOW THEY'RE SPLIT WAYS IN TERMS OF THOSE WHO ARE GONNA BE GOING NORTH DOWN THAT WAY TO, WELL FROM 46 TO ONE 70 MM-HMM . BUT THEY'RE ALSO THOSE, THOSE THAT ARE GONNA BE TAKING THAT FROM OUR AREA TO GO UP TO LIKE 16 OVER ALAMA AND ALL THAT. AND HOW 46 IS NOW, IT'S ALREADY LIKE A BOTTLENECK, CONGESTED TYPE PLACE. SO, UM, ARE THERE ANY PLANS TO INCLUDE, UH, A DISCUSSION ON THE ENTIRE ROUTE 46 OR IS IT ONLY LIMITED TO THIS AREA? BUT THESE ARE LIMITED TO THIS AREA 'CAUSE THEY'RE IN OUR TOWN LIMITS, THE CIRCLE COMING EAST, THE MAJORITY OF THAT'S IN THE COUNTY. AND YES, THE COUNTY HAS THAT PROJECT TO CONTINUE. STARDUST GIVE IT AN OLD POUND OF A BLUFF. I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE WIDENING PART OF IT. UM, SO, BUT THEY DEFINITELY HAD THAT IN THEIR KIND OF, IN THEIR, WHEN THEY STUDIED IT, THEY DIDN'T COME ALL THE WAY DOWN. THEY STOPPED. I THINK THEY STOPPED AT LIKE, MAY HAVE BEEN OLD MILLER ROAD. I DON'T THINK THEY CAME ANY FURTHER THAN THAT. BUT THAT WAS AS FAR AS THE STUDY WENT, YOU MEAN? YEAH, THE THE THE ONE THAT WAS COMPLETED BY THE COUNTY AND LATS. RIGHT. REALLY GREAT STUDIES. UH, MAYOR. YES. SORRY, YOU GOT MORE? MM, NO. UM, COUPLE OF QUESTIONS CLAR FOR CLARIFICATION. UM, 2 78, 1 70, WE'RE CALLING THAT BLUFFTON COUNTY BUT THAT'S IN THE COUNTY, CORRECT? CORRECT. WELL NO 1 72 TOUCH THE INTERSECTION THERE. YEAH, THESE AREN'T JUST LIMITED TO BLUFF AND THEY'RE SAME, UH, PRODUCTS THAT IMPACT. YEAH, BUT THEY'RE JUST LIMITED. SEE SOME ARE JUST TOTALLY ON LISTED AS COUNTY PROJECTS. THIS ACTUALLY WAS A, DIDN'T YOU DO THE NUMBERS ON THESE ARE OLD NUMBERS. THIS WOULD TELL YOU AN ESTIMATED 2025 ESTIMATE IF YOU DID ALL THESE PROJECTS. KIND OF, YOU SEE WHAT THIS WITH A 20% CONTINGENCY, 2025 NUMBERS. LET'S JUST BUMP IT UP. IT'S GONNA BE WELL OVER 600 MILLION IF WE DID ALL OF THOSE PROJECTS. AND WE'RE NOT EVEN GOING ACROSS THE BROAD RIVER BRIDGE YET RIGHT NOW. I WAS JUST TRYING TO TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION. OKAY. IF WE ARE ASKED TO RANK RIGHT, WHAT WE ARE SUPPOSED TO BE RANKING PROJECTS THAT ARE WITHIN BEYOND LIMITS. CORRECT? CORRECT. UM, OKAY. SO IT IS MY OPINION IF WE'RE GONNA RANK THAT. I THINK THAT FROM JASPER LINE THROUGH THE CIRCLE AT NEW RIVERSIDE IS THE MOST CRITICAL AND DANGEROUS PLACE WE HAVE IN THE TOWN. OKAY. UM, OUR OTHER INTERSECTIONS COMING THIS WAY, INCLUDING PALMETTO BLUFF AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY'RE GONNA DO, BUT GIVE IT ROAD IS A SERIOUS SITUATION TOO, AS WELL AS MILLER, OLD MILLER ROAD. SO I KNOW THOSE ARE KIND OF IN THE COUNTY OUT OF THE TOWN AND ALL THAT. BUT, UM, IF WE UNDO THE IMPROVEMENT FROM THE CIRCLE TO THE JASPER COUNTY LINE, JASPER COUNTY'S ALREADY STARTED DOING THEIR IMPROVEMENTS AS YOU'VE SEEN MM-HMM . UM, IT'S KIND OF LIKE BRIDGETTE JUST SAID, WE'RE GONNA FIX ALL THAT SO TRAFFIC CAN FLOW BETTER AND THEN EVERYBODY'S GONNA BE BLOCKING THE WHOLE REST OF THE ROAD COMING THIS WAY AND, YOU KNOW, IN FRONT OF THE SCHOOLS, UM, AND ALL THAT. SO I THINK THAT SHOULD BE INCLUDED IF I HAD MY WAY ANYWAY. OKAY. SO INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS ON THE, EVEN IF WE CAN'T WIDEN, YOU KNOW, MAY RIVER ROAD IMPROVING THOSE INTERSECTIONS, 'CAUSE 90% OF OUR ACCIDENTS AND PEOPLE GET HURT ARE INTERSECTIONS. UM, AND A LOT OF WHAT PACKS IT UP IS PEOPLE GOING LEFT, RIGHT. SOMEBODY WANTS TO TURN LEFT COMING OUTTA PALM ROAD, THEN NOBODY CAN TURN RIGHT. 'CAUSE THEY GOT, IT'S ALL BLOCKED UP. UM, WHICH WE'RE SEEING THAT, UM, I WOULD BE IN FAVOR OF THESE, SOME OF THESE SMALLER PROJECTS HIGHER ON THE LIST BECAUSE IF WE GOT FIVE THINGS TO DO AND WE CAN DO TWO LITTLE ONES, THEY MIGHT NOT BE THE MOST IMPORTANT ONES, BUT THEY, THAT'S TWO, TWO THINGS THAT ARE DONE. SO IT WILL HELP INSTEAD OF WAITING UNTIL ALL OF THEM ARE FUNDED OR, OR WE GET [01:00:01] APPROVAL FOR IT. YOU TALK ABOUT SIMMONS BILL AND BUCK ALLEN BEING THE SMALLER ONES. YEAH, WELL THAT'S, THAT'S PART OF IT. AND ALL OF THE PARKWAY IMPROVEMENTS, RIGHT. UM, ARE CRITICAL TOO. UM, AND NOT, NOT A TON, A TON OF MONEY. THOSE ARE SOME OF THE SMALL THINGS THAT I THINK THAT WE COULD DO IS SHOW THE PEOPLE THAT THE MONEY IS BEING USED AND IT'S NOT JUST, YOU KNOW, SO I I DO AGREE ABOUT 2 78, 1 70 EVEN THOUGH AT SOME POINT IT DOES TOUCH BLUFFTON SOMEWHERE, RIGHT. FURTHER DOWN. BUT IF Y'ALL, I HEARD ONE 70 ROUNDABOUT TO JASPER. UM, THE SMALLER PROJECTS LIKE SIMMONS, BUCK ISLAND, THE INTERSECTIONS FOR STARDUST GIBBON, UM, AND OLD PALM OF BLUFF, I'M GONNA BLUFF AND BLUFFTON PARKWAY IMPROVEMENTS, THOSE ARE THE INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS. AND THEN THE ROUNDABOUT IS ALSO PART OF THE QUADRANT TWO OF THE BLUFFTON PARKWAY STUDY. AM I RIGHT STEVEN IN IT? QUADRANT TWO? UM, TWO AND THREE. TWO AND THREE, WHICH IS PRETTY MUCH FROM BUCK WALTER TO THE UM, ROUNDABOUT. OKAY. IS IT CLEAR? YEAH. UH, SO HERE'S MUD. SO WHAT DID YOU SAY ABOUT THE ONE 70? UM, 2 70, 78? I DON'T KNOW. I MEAN, YOU COULD, YOU COULD EITHER I HIGHLIGHTED OR STEVEN, I THINK I HIGHLIGHTED 'EM, I THINK I HIGHLIGHTED THEM BASED OFF OF WHERE IT SAID BLUFFTON. UM, AND I, AND THAT IS ABSOLUTELY GONNA BE PART OF THE COUNTY'S REQUEST. 'CAUSE THE COMMON, EVERY SINGLE PERSON ON THAT COMMITTEE, EVERY ONE OF THEM COME IN AND SAY ONE 70 AND IT TOUCHES EVERY PART OF OUR COUNTY. AND THE RESIDENTS IN BEAUFORT WHO ARE TRAVELING DOWN ONE 70 TO COME TO WORK IN HARDY BLUFFTON AND HILTON HEAD, THOSE RESIDENTS ARE IMPACTED IN BEAUFORT. SO ONE 70, THE WHOLE ONE 70, I WOULD BE SHOCKED, TOTALLY SHOCKED IF THAT WASN'T THE TOP PROJECT. NOW IT MIGHT TAKE THE LONGER TO DO AND IT MIGHT BE AN ESTIMATED TIMEFRAME OF LATER DOWN THE ROAD, BUT I HAVE NO DOUBT IN MY MIND THAT'S NOT GONNA BE A TOPIC. AND PART OF THAT WHOLE PROJECT RELIES ON JASPER COUNTY BECAUSE ONE SIDE OF THE ROAD IS JASPER COUNTY ONE'S BEAUFORT. SO THEY'VE GOT TO GET ALL THAT COORDINATED AND FIGURED OUT. I WAS JUST THINKING ABOUT THE TOWN OF BLUFFTON. IF WE WERE ASKED TO RANK OR LIST SOME PROJECTS, UM, I, I KNOW THAT'S A MESS OUT THERE THAT THIS TRIANGLE OR ARGENT BOULEVARD AND ALL THAT. IT, IT'S, IT IS. UM, BUT I ALSO DON'T, IF SOME OF THESE DON'T AFFECT US AT ALL OKAY. THAT ARE LISTED AS COUNTY. SO IF IT'S, I THINK IF WE FIX, START IN OUR BACKYARD AND FIX THE MOST CRITICAL HERE, OR AT LEAST LIST THEM, WELL, WE'RE NOT GONNA GET OUR WAY OFF FIRST WHEN THE MONEY STARTS COMING IN ANYWAY. WE KNOW THAT. SO THAT'S JUST MY THOUGHTS. OKAY. SO SAY THE 10. WE HAD THE MONEY AND Y'ALL WERE READY TO GO. I'M HERE IN ONE 70, THE ROUNDABOUT TO JASPER COUNTY LINE. UM, Y'ALL TELL ME IF I'M WRONG, I SMALLER INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS, WHICH ARE REALLY SMALL AND I THINK THOSE COULD BE FIT IN AND THAT AFFECTS OUR RESIDENTS IN BLUFFTON PARKWAY. IS THAT WHAT I'M HEARING IS, IS THIS SOMETHING YOU, YOU, YOU GOTTA HAVE WHEN, HOW SOON YOU HAVE THAT? WELL, THE LAST TWO PRESENTATIONS ARE THE NEXT TWO WEDNESDAYS, WEDNESDAY. SO WE HAVE HILTON HEAD AND THEN WE GO TO BEAUFORT. I JUST WANTED IT PUBLICLY KNOWN. WE NEED SOME THOUGHT. IF Y'ALL CAN GET WITH STEVEN AND HE PUT IT IN AN EMAIL TO ME SOMETIME BEFORE TWO WEEKS FROM TOMORROW, UM, IT WOULD BE HELPFUL. WE'RE NOT RANKING ANYTHING UNTIL WE HEAR IT FROM EVERYONE. AND I WOULD SAY PART OF THE FRUSTRATION WAS, THIS LITERALLY CAME UP WHEN I WAS PRESENTING LAST WEEK WHEN THEY ASKED ME IF COUNCILS WOULD BE WILLING TO DO THIS. AND I SAID, I CAN TAKE IT BACK AND BE MORE THAN GLAD TO ASK, BUT WE'RE GONNA NEED SOME PARAMETERS TO BE ABLE TO DO SO. THAT WAS THE FIRST WE HEARD ABOUT IT WAS LESS THAN A WEEK AGO. SO, AND I ALSO HAD TO RELAY TO THEM IS WE DON'T HAVE A COUNCIL MEETING AGAIN UNTIL APRIL. SO IT WAS A LITTLE FRUSTRATING, BUT, BUT IT WAS FROM THE PRESENTATION THAT WAS ON THE SPOT. I AM TELLING YOU, THEY, THAT COMMITTEE, THEY DON'T COME THROUGH BLUFFTON LIKE WE DO. AND THEY WANTED TO KNOW WHAT WAS GOING ON AND WHAT'S GONNA CAUSE MORE TRAFFIC AND YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT'S GOING ON. AND THEY WERE VERY IMPRESSED BY OUR PRESENTATION. YEP. SO I I DON'T THINK WE NEED TO LOOK AT THIS FROM BLUFFTON ANYMORE. YOU HAVE TO LOOK [01:05:01] HARDY, UM, OR JASPER AND BLUFFTON NOUN HAS TO BE COLLABORATIVE IN OUR THINKING AND OUR PLANNING. WE KEEP THINKING VILLE, FIGURE OUT WHAT THEY'RE GONNA DO AND LOVE TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WE NEED TO DO. WE ARE NOT, WE ARE NOT COMMUNICATING IN AN EFFECTIVE WAY THAT'S GOING TO, THAT'S GONNA BRING BALANCE LOW. THE LATS GROUP IS BRINGING THE BALANCE BECAUSE STEPHANIE, WHO IS PRESENTING TOMORROW, AND I'M SURE IT'S GONNA BE LIVE, AND IF I WILL GET THE LINK AND SEND IT TO STEVEN, SHE IS GONNA FILL IN THOSE BLANKS OF WHAT JA JASPER'S DOING, WHAT'S WHAT'S FUNDED THROUGH LATS FOR JASPER AND HOW WE'RE GONNA COMPLIMENT EACH OTHER. AND THE 46 ROUNDABOUT TO JASPER COUNTY LINE. WE'RE COMPLIMENTING THAT. IT'S GOT TO COME TO THAT CIRCLE. MY MY THOUGHTS ARE WE'RE JUST GONNA BE BOTTLENECK FURTHER DOWN THE ROAD. SO I AGREE WITH YOU. AND THAT HAS BEEN THE CONCERN BY THIS COMMITTEE BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT LATS AND THEY DIDN'T, THEY DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE NPO AND WE HAVE A MILLION STUDIES AND A GREAT WEBSITE. UM, SO SHE'S COMING TO PRESENT TOMORROW. OKAY. SO I THINK IT'LL BE A VERY GOOD PRESENTATION. SO I APPRECIATE Y'ALL, THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU DO AND ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, YOU KNOW WHERE TO FIND ME. ANYTHING ELSE FOR MS. LISA? THANK YOU, LISA. THANK YOU FOR DOING DOING LISA. THANKS. OKAY, SIX. YES. UP NEXT WE HAVE 2026 CCB, CDBG NEEDS ASSESSMENT. MS. KIMBERLY BARN, CNED, DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF LOW COUNTRY COUNCIL OF GOVERNANCE. AND THIS WAS, UM, WE'RE HAVING, UH, PUBLIC HEARING, SO WE'LL START THE PUBLIC HEARING. I'LL MAKE THE FIRST CALL FOR COMMENT ON THE, ON THIS PUBLIC HEARING. SECOND CALL FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. THIRD CALL FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. COMMENT IS NOW OVER CLOSED. GOOD EVENING TO THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL. THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. I'M KIMBERLY VA. I'M HERE ON BEHALF OF LOW COUNTRY COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS AND I WANTED TO GO THROUGH OUR GRANT PROGRAM AND POSSIBLY SEE IF WE CAN DO SOME THINGS WITH OTHER PROGRAMS THAT YOU HAVE GOING ON. UM, THIS IS THE 2026 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM, WHICH IS FUNDED THROUGH THE SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE. IT IS TO HELP THE UNITS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT WITH THE ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY NEEDS FOR THE PERSONS OF LOW INCOME IN IN THE COMMUNITY. IT WAS STARTED IN 1982 BY HUD AND THIS YEAR WE HAVE $20 MILLION IN THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA FOR THIS PROGRAM. THEY DID HAVE A DRAFT ACTION PLAN THAT WAS AVAILABLE IN JANUARY AND FEBRUARY. THE COMMENTS HAVE ALREADY BEEN SUBMITTED ON THAT ONE. WE DO COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, AND REGIONAL PLANNING. AND ON THIS SCREEN YOU HAVE THE, THE BIGGEST PART OF WHAT WE DO, THE COMMUNITY INFRASTRUCTURE GRANTS. WE HAVE $8 MILLION IN THE STATE. THE APPLICATION REQUEST IS DUE AT THE END OF NEXT WEEK AND THE APPLICATION IS DUE IN APRIL. THAT'S THE SPRING ROUND. WE CAN DO IMPROVEMENTS TO WATER AND SEWER, WE CAN DO DRAINAGE IMPROVEMENTS AND WE CAN WORK ON ROADS THAT WERE AFFECTED BY WATER AND SEWER AND DRAINAGE, SUCH AS IF, IF YOU HAVE A BAD ROAD AND YOU HAVE TO DO SOME DRAINAGE IMPROVEMENTS ON THE SIDE, ROAD PAVING CAN BE PART OF IT, BUT IT CANNOT BE A STANDALONE. THAT PROGRAM HAS 50,000 TO A MILLION DOLLARS AVAILABLE. THE NEXT TWO PROGRAMS ARE IN OUR FALL ROUND. LOCAL PRIORITIES HAS 2 MILLION. WE CAN DO PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY, QUALITY OF LIFE RESILIENCY IN THE DIG DIGITAL DIVIDE. WE'VE GOT 50,000 TO 300,000 AVAILABLE THERE. THIS IS ALSO WHERE YOU CAN DO SMALL PARKS AND TRAILS AND GREENWAY TYPE PROJECTS, BUT THEY HAVE TO BE IN LOW INCOME AREAS. MM-HMM . THE COMMUNITY ENRICHMENT HAS ALMOST $8 MILLION. THIS HAS A VARIETY OF PROJECTS INCLUDING DEMOLITION, DOWNTOWN STREETSCAPE, REGIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE LIBRARIES, SOME TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES, UM, FIRE SUBSTATIONS OR FIRE TRUCKS, HEALTH CLINIC FACILITIES, PUBLIC FACILITY [01:10:01] MOFI MODIFICATIONS. AND AS A NEW ONE THAT CAME IN LAST YEAR IS NEW SIDEWALKS IN THE LMI AREAS. SO IF YOU WANTED TO PUT THIS WITH WHAT SHE WAS JUST TALKING ABOUT, I KNOW WE'VE WORKED WITH BUCK ISLAND SIMMONS BEFORE IN CERTAIN AREAS. SO IT MAY BE THAT WE COULD PAIR THE TWO TOGETHER SO THAT YOU GET MORE BANG FOR YOUR BUCK. THERE IS 50 TO 750,000 IN THAT CATEGORY. THE NEXT ONE IS A READY TO GO 750,000 AVAILABLE FOR PROJECTS BETWEEN 50 AND 500,000 ON THOSE PROJECTS. ALL OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL AND THE ENGINEERING AND EVERYTHING HAS TO BE DONE. IT HAS TO BE READY TO BID. AND THEN THAT, THAT WILL KIND OF FILL A GAP. ANY OF THESE PROJECTS MUST BENEFIT LOW TO MODERATE INCOME PERSONS AID IN THE PREVENTION OF SLUM OR BLIGHT OR MEET ANOTHER URGENT NEED. UM, A FEW YEARS AGO WE HAD A TORNADO COME THROUGH AND DAMAGE A BUILDING TO THE POINT THAT IT WAS A SEVERE THREAT. WE DO HAVE SOME BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS THAT'S DONE THROUGH COMMERCE. THE REGIONAL PLANNING IS TO ALLOW US TO HELP AT THE COG TO HELP OUR MUNICIPALITIES FUND, UM, AND PLAN THE PROJECTS THAT THEY'RE INTERESTED IN. THERE ARE BONUS POINTS FOR OPPORTUNITY ZONE LOCATIONS IN APPLICATIONS. HOWEVER, BLUFFTON IS NOT A IN OPPORTUNITY ZONE. THOSE SHOULD BE, UM, UPDATED THIS SUMMER AS, AS BEST I UNDERSTAND AS WELL. CAN WE ASK QUESTIONS, STOP YOU AND ASK QUESTIONS? EVERYBODY GO OR DO YOU WANNA FINISH YOUR ROLE? YES, SIR. THAT'S FINE. OKAY. QUESTION. FRED, HAS, UH, CAN YOU GO BACK TO, TO THE 750,000 READY TO GO? YES SIR. GIVE SOME EXAMPLES OF HOW THAT FUNDS HAVE BEEN USED OR COULD BE USED. THOSE ARE FOR PROJECTS THAT YOU HAVE DESIGNED ALREADY. YOU'VE GOT EVERYTHING, ALL THE ENGINEERING DONE, AND IT'S READY TO BID. SO YOU'VE GOT ALL THE, THE PREP WORK DONE. WE DO HAVE TO DO A, UM, ENVIRONMENTAL BASED ON CDBG REGULATIONS, WHICH IS VERY EXTENSIVE. THAT TAKES ROUGHLY FOUR MONTHS DEPENDING ON IF IT'S IN WETLANDS OR NOT. UM, AND THEN THAT CAN BE APPLIED FOR AT ANY TIME DURING THE YEAR. THAT'S NOT A, A FALL OR, OR SPRING. THAT'S MORE OR LESS TO FILL A GAP IF YOU GET STARTED ON A PROJECT AND FIND OUT YOU NEED, YOU NEED MORE MONEY THAN YOU HAVE AND UP TO HALF A MILLION DOLLARS IS AVAILABLE. WHERE HAVE THOSE FUNDS BEEN USED IN? UM, FOR EXAMPLES OF HOW WE CAN UNDERSTAND THE MAGNITUDE OF THIS, UM, GRANT? UM, IT'S NOT USED VERY OFTEN. THE ONLY ONE I CAN RECALL IS A BOOSTER PUMP STATION THAT WE HAD FOR A CITY. AND ONCE THEY GOT THROUGH THE ENGINEERING, THEY FOUND OUT THAT THEY NEEDED MORE MONEY THAN THEY HAD ALREADY COMMITTED. MM-HMM . UM, THEY HAD ALL OF THE ENGINEERING DONE AND HAD HAD PLANNED IT TO BE A-C-D-B-G, BUT BECAUSE IT CAME IN AT AN ODD TIME, IT WAS NOT SPRING OR FALL. I THINK IT CAME IN LIKE RIGHT AFTER THE FALL HAD CLOSED AND IT WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS GONNA BE NEEDED BEFORE THE NEXT ROUND WAS AVAILABLE. THANK YOU. YES, SIR. AS FAR AS THE THRESHOLD, YOU CAN HAVE, UM, THREE OPEN GRANTS AT A TIME. NO TWO CAN BE IN THE SAME UM, CATEGORY AND NONE OF THEM CAN BE OVER 30 MONTHS OLD AT A TIME. NOT, BLUFFTON DOESN'T HAVE ANY RIGHT NOW. YOU CANNOT HAVE MORE THAN ONE STREET SCAPE PROJECT OR MORE, MORE THAN ONE READY TO GO PROJECT. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO SAY THAT THE NEIGHBORHOOD REVITAL REVITALIZATION PROGRAM THAT WE HAD HERE SEVERAL YEARS AGO DOES NOT EXIST ANYMORE. SO YOU CAN DO STREET STA STREET SCAPES, WHICH IS, UM, LIGHTING, TRAFFIC LIGHTS, CROSSWALKS, SIGNAGE, THAT KIND OF STUFF, OR A STREET SCAPE. UM, BUT THE NEIGHBORHOOD PROJECTS HAVE DISAPPEARED OUT OF THE FUNDING. JUST AS A REMINDER, FAIR HOUSING IS THE LAW AND IT IS DEFINITELY APPLIED TO THE THE CDBG PROGRAM. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT OR IF YOU THINK YOU'VE BEEN WRONGED BY FAIR HOUSING, YOU CAN CALL OUR OFFICE (843) 473-3990 [01:15:05] FOR ANY OF THESE AREAS THAT WE CALL LOW INCOME. IF IT'S NOT A CENSUS TRACK OR TOWN LIMIT, WE HAVE TO GO OUT AND DOOR KNOCK TO GET SURVEYS. UM, BUFORT COUNTY'S LOW INCOME WOULD BE ONE PERSON IN A HOME MAKING LESS THAN $61,700. IF YOU HAD FOUR PEOPLE IN A HOME, IT WOULD BE MAKING LESS THAN $88,100. SO WE WOULD HAVE TO GO OUT EITHER OUR STAFF OR US IN THE TOWN AND GO OUT AND GET THOSE SURVEY. IT'S COMPLETED BEFORE THE APPLICATION IS DONE. WE ALSO MANAGE THE BEAUFORT COUNTY LOW COUNTRY HOME RE REGIONAL HOME CONSORTIUM OUT OF OUR OFFICE. THAT'S FOR ALL FOUR OF OUR COUNTIES AND ALL THE MUNICIPALITIES. AND THE PURPOSE OF THAT IS TO REHAB THE SUBSTANDARD HOUSING AND MAKE MORE ADEQUATE AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING. THIS IS DONE THROUGHOUT THE, THE COUNTY AND, UM, SINGLE FAMILY REHAB AND NEW CONSTRUCTION USING DEVELOPERS AND NONPROFITS SUCH AS HABITAT FOR HUMANITY. THERE IS AN ACTION PLAN ON THAT THAT IS SUBMITTED TO HUD AT THE END OF APRIL. ALL RIGHT. THIS LAST SLIDE, I THINK THIS IS USING SOME PREVIOUS INFORMATION AND IS A SUGGESTED RANKING. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO APPLY FOR A GRANT IN THE SPRING OR THE FALL, IT MUST BE IN YOUR TOP THREE PRIORITIES, BUT YOU ARE WELCOME TO HAVE AS MANY PRO PRIORITIES AS YOU WOULD LIKE. I'D LIKE TO SEE IF YOU'D LIKE TO RANK THOSE TONIGHT OR IF YOU'D LIKE TO COME BACK AND DO IT NEXT MONTH. SO THE, THE RANKING THAT'S HERE IS WHAT Y'ALL APPROVED LAST TIME, WHICH I THINK WAS TWO YEARS AGO. 24 20. 2024. WE HAVE TRANSPORTATION AND PEDESTRIAN SAFETY AS NUMBER TWO. BUT WHAT OF, WHAT CAN WE DO TO IMPROVE TRANSPORTATION AND PEDESTRIAN SAFETY ON OUR OWN? I THINK THAT'S, OTHER THAN UH, TRANSPORTATION, THE ONLY THING WE HAVE IS THE BREEZE, RIGHT? CORRECT. BUT WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT PEDESTRIAN SAFETY, THAT COULD BE UM, INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS, CROSSWALKS, LIKE THE RAPID FLASHING BEACONS WE PUT IN STREETSCAPE PROJECTS, STUFF LIKE THAT. ALL FALL UNDERNEATH. PEDESTRIAN. YOU STILL HAVE MORE WORK TO DO IN PEDESTRIAN SAFETY? YES SIR. NEXT YEAR, UH, WE'RE LOOKING IN THE CAPITAL PROJECTS FOR NEXT YEAR. THERE'S SOME BIGGER PROJECTS. OKAY. 'CAUSE WE'RE STILL LOOKING AT, UM, CERTAIN THINGS LIKE GETTING PEOPLE ACROSS THE NEW RIVERSIDE PARK OVER THERE. UM, ADD EXPANSION OF THE BEACON, THE RAPID FLASH AND BEACONS. WE'RE PUTTING OUT SOME ADDITIONAL CROSSWALKS AND STUFF. OKAY. GOOD ANSWER. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. THAT AND AS WELL, IT COULD BE LIKE BUS ROUTES OR SOME SHELTERS FOR THE BUS ROUTES. STUFF LIKE THAT I THINK WOULD WORK IN THAT CATEGORY AS WELL. OKAY. I THINK WE JUST LEAVE IT AS IN THE ORDER THAT IT SENT. YEAH, I THINK THAT RANKING STILL APPROPRIATE. DO YOU, I THINK IN THE PAST THEY'VE VOTED ON THAT. DO YOU NEED THEM TO MAKE A MOTION AND APPROVE THAT? YES. MAKE MAKE A MOTION AND PASS THAT IF YOU DON'T MIND. SO I MOVE TO THE FIRST THREE, UH, RANKING. REMAIN THE SAME. SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE. AYE. AYE. I LOOKED AT EMILY, EMILY LOOKED AT ME. . SO THAT'S IT, RIGHT? THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. YES MA'AM. THANK YOU. OH, [VI. PUBLIC COMMENT] NEXT WE HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT AND UH, FIRST BE MS. SHARON BROWN. AM I ON THE ONE, THE ONLY ONE DURING PUBLIC COMMENT? EACH SPEAKER IS LIMITED TO A TOTAL OF THREE MINUTES PER MEETING, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE PERSON IS SPEAKING ON THEIR OWN BEHALF OR AS AN AGENT FOR OTHERS. MEETING ATTENDEES MAY NOT DONATE, TRANSFER YIELD, OR GIVE ALL OR ANY PORTION OF THEIR SPEAKING TIME TO ANOTHER PERSON. ALL PUBLIC COMMENTS ARE TO BE CONDUCTED FROM THE PODIUM AND DIRECTED TO THE TOWN COUNCIL AS A WHOLE AND NOT TO ANY MEMBER THEREOF. ALL SPEAKERS SHALL BE MINDFUL AND RESPECTFUL OF THOSE PARTICIPATING IN OR PRESENT [01:20:01] AT THE MEETING. SPEAKERS SHALL BE EXPECTED TO BE CIVIL IN THEIR LANGUAGE AND SHALL REFRAIN FROM COMMENT OR BEHAVIOR THAT INVOLVES DISORDERLY SPEECH OR ACTION, NAME CALLING, PERSONAL ATTACKS, THREATS, OBSCENE OR INDECENT REMARKS AND OR DISRUPTIVE ACTIONS. ALL SPEAKERS SHALL CONFINE THEIR COMMENTS TO ISSUES UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF THE TOWN COUNCIL. SPEAKERS SHALL NOT USE THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD TO PROMOTE OR ADVERTISE AWARDS, BUSINESSES, SERVICES, GOODS, OR CANDIDATES FOR PUBLIC OFFICE. ANY SPEAKER THAT VIOLATES THESE RULES AND PROTOCOLS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT MAY BE RULED OUT OF ORDER BY THE PRESIDING OFFICER. ANY PERSON WHOSE COMMENTS HAVE BEEN RULED OUT OF ORDER SHALL IMMEDIATELY CEASE AND DESIST FROM FURTHER IMPROPER COMMENTS. THE REFUSAL OF AN INDIVIDUAL TO DESIST FROM FURTHER IMPROPER COMMENTS MAY SUBJECT THE INDIVIDUAL TO REMOVAL FROM THE MEETING AND OR A CITATION UNDER SECTION TWO DASH FOUR NINE OF THE TOWN. HAVE YOU COME NOW? YEAH. I LIKE IT BETTER WHEN Y'ALL, Y'ALL READ THAT. THAT MEANS SOUND GOOD. GOOD EVENING TOWN COUNCIL. MY NAME IS SHARON BROWN AND I'M AT 1 6 3 BUCK ISLAND ROAD. HOW'S EVERYBODY BEEN DOING? DID Y'ALL MISS ME? I MISSED YOU GUYS. SO I'M HERE TO TALK ABOUT THE BUCK ALLEN PARK. UM, PAT ROONEY AND HIS STAFF DID A WONDERFUL JOB TALKING TO US AT THE OSCAR FRAZIER PARK, BUT WE DIDN'T HAVE A GOOD TURNOUT. UM, ONE THING THAT HE MENTIONED MENTIONED, HE SAID THAT THERE WAS AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE THAT HAD SOME INPUT ABOUT THE PARK. I EMAILED HEATHER AND ASKED HER, WELL WHO WAS THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE? 'CAUSE THERE SHOULD BE SOME TRANSPARENCY THERE BECAUSE IF WE ARE TALKING ABOUT BUCK ISLAND ROAD, AND WE REALLY APPRECIATE WHEN YOU GUYS HAD THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR BUCK ISLAND, SIMPSONVILLE NEIGHBORHOOD, THAT WAS AN ACTUAL COMMITTEE THAT CAME IN AND MET TO TALK ABOUT BUCK ISLAND AND SIMMONS ROAD. WELL IT SOUNDS HERE TO ME FROM HEATHER'S, UM, EMAIL THAT THIS WAS JUST A PUT TOGETHER, UH, COMMITTEE FOR ONE TIME, TWO TIME. I DON'T KNOW. BUT I DO FEEL THAT WE NEED AN OFFICIAL COMMITTEE FOR THIS PARK THAT IS VERY RELEVANT TO OUR NEIGHBORHOOD. THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT STAPLE PIECE OF PROPERTY THAT WE WILL BE DEVELOPING. AND THOSE FOLKS ON THOSE ROADS SHOULD HAVE AN INPUT. IT'S NOT LIKE IT'S JUST SOMETHING THAT YOU GUYS ARE GONNA DECIDE WHAT GOES IN THERE. THAT PARK NEEDS TO BE EQUIPPED WITH THINGS FOR PEOPLE WITH SPECIAL NEEDS. AND WE HAVE ELDERLY PEOPLE AS WELL AND OF COURSE GREEN SPACE. SO I WANT YOU ALL TO CONSIDER PUTTING TOGETHER AN ACTUAL COMMITTEE. I DON'T KNOW WHO WAS ON THIS TRANSPARENT, THIS NON-TRANSPARENT COMMITTEE AND I DON'T KNOW WHY I WAS NOT CHOSEN. YOU KNOW, I'M UP HERE BY EGO NOW BECAUSE I AM A PART OF THE COMMUNITY AND I DO FEEL THAT I PUT A LOT OF INPUT AND I MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN MY COMMITTEE IN MY COMMUNITY. SO WITH THAT SAID, I DID EMAIL ON MAY THE SECOND, MARCH THE SECOND. I HAVEN'T HEARD FROM HEATHER YET. I'M CERTAIN THAT SHE'S VERY BUSY. BUT SOME QUESTIONS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO ENTERTAIN WHEN SOMEBODY DOES EMAIL ME BACK IS THE TRANSPARENCY OF WHO IS ON WHO WAS ON THAT INVISIBLE COMMITTEE AND ALSO IN REFERENCE TO THEIR INPUT. WHAT DID THEY INPUT, WHAT DID THEY SAY ABOUT WHAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE OUT IN THAT PARK? UM, A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE SPOKEN TO ME ABOUT WHAT'S GOING TO GO OVER THERE. SO THAT MEANS IT MATTERS TO PEOPLE IN MY COMMUNITY. AND SO I WANT YOU GUYS TO CONSIDER HEATHER, CHRIS, YOU LOOK NICE OVER THERE TO HAVE AN ACTUAL COMMITTEE THAT MEETS AND MEET WITH THE RESIDENTS AND MY COMMUNITY TO KNOW WHAT WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE. NOT WHAT YOU GUYS WOULD WANNA PUT IN THERE. EVERYBODY'S GONNA USE IT, THAT'S FINE. BUT IT'S A STAPLE PIECE OF PROPERTY THAT FROM THE BUCK ISLAND SIMMONS ROAD ADVISORY COMMITTEE, WE WERE THE ONE WHO ASKED STEPHEN THEM TO LOOK FOR GREEN SPACE FOR OUR COMMUNITY. KUDOS. THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED. SO NOW WE SHOULD NOT BE REMOVED FROM THAT, FROM HAVING CRUCIAL INPUT ON WHAT GOES ON IN OUR COMMUNITY. I WANNA THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH AND YOU GUYS LOOK BEAUTIFUL. GOD BLESS YOU. HAVE A GREAT EVENING. OKAY. THANK YOU TIME AND I'M GETTING GOOD. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT, UP NEXT [VII. COMMUNICATIONS FROM MAYOR AND COUNCIL] WE HAVE COMMUNICATIONS FROM MAYOR AND COUNCIL. I'LL START WITH YOU. FRAZIER. NO, I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING. I HAVE NOTHING. UM, THE ONLY THING, AND IT JUST GOES WITH WHAT MRS. BROWN SAID, BUT I'D LOVE TO KNOW WHO IS ON THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE AT SOME POINT. THERE IS NO ADVISORY COMMITTEE. OKAY. WE HAD, UH, SOME RESIDENTS THAT COUNCILMAN HAMILTON THOUGHT WOULD BE GOOD FOR US TO SIT DOWN WITH AND GET SOME INPUT FROM. AND SO WE SAT DOWN, I THINK THERE WERE TWO OR THREE AND HEATHER WILL BE REPLYING. SHE WAS OUTTA TOWN LAST WEEK, SO SHE'S GOOD. SHE'S ALREADY GOT THE REPLY DRAFT TO THE MS. BROWN AND WE'LL SEND THAT TONIGHT. THANK YOU. AND OUTLINE THAT AND SHE CAN SHARE THAT WITH ALL OF COUNCIL. THANK. AND I WOULD JUST [01:25:01] SAY THAT WAS A MISS. UH, THAT WAS A MISSTATEMENT BY PAT AND THE COMMITTEE AT THE MEETING THAT THERE WAS AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 'CAUSE THAT'S NOT WHAT IT WAS. IT WAS, UH, MEMBERS THAT MR. HAMILTON WANTED US TO MAKE SURE WE GOT INPUT FROM THAT MAY NOT BE ABLE TO BE AT THE MEETING. THANK YOU. OKAY, UP NEXT WE [X. FORMAL AGENDA ITEMS] HAVE FORMAL AGENDA ITEMS, CONSIDERATION OF AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE TOWN OF BLUFFTON FISCAL YEAR 2026 BUDGET TO PROVIDE FOR EXPENDITURES OF CERTAIN FUNDS AND TO ALLOCATE SOURCES OF REVENUE FOR THE SAID FUNDS. THIS WILL BE SECOND AND FINAL READING. MS. NATALIE. GOOD EVENING MAYOR COUNSEL. UM, YES, THIS IS SECOND AND FINAL READING FOR MOTION AMENDMENT TWO FOR FISCAL YEAR 2026. THERE HAVE BEEN NO CHANGES SINCE THE FIRST READING. I'M HAPPY TO GO THROUGH THE PRESENTATION, UM, IF YOU'D LIKE TO RECAP, BUT IF NOT, I CAN. I HAVE THE MOTION AVAILABLE MOTIONS FOR NATALIE FROM COUNCIL. YOU WANNA HEAR ALL ABOUT IT AGAIN OR? OH GOSH. I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE AS PRESENTED ON THIS. THANK YOU. ALL IN FAVORS SAY AYE. AYE. AYE. CAME JUST UP JUST TO SPEAK. YEAH. ALL UP NEXT WE HAVE A RESOLUTION EXPRESSING SUPPORT FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA BEAUFORT SAND SHARK 2020 PROJECT, CREATING A MULTIPURPOSE ARENA AND SPORTS COMPLEX. MR. PAUL FROM MADON RYAN CENTER, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. GOOD EVENING. I'M HAPPY TO INTRODUCE JUSTIN RICE. JUSTIN IS THE AREA EXECUTIVE FOR THE LOW COUNTRY DIVISION OF FIRST CITIZENS BANK AND IS THE CURRENT BOARD CHAIR OF THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA BEAUFORT EDUCATION FOUNDATION, WHICH HAS BEEN SUPPORTING THE UNIVERSITY'S EFFORTS SINCE 2020. JUSTIN IS HERE TO PRESENT THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA BEAUFORT SAND SHARK 2020 PROJECT AND IS SEEKING A RESOLUTION OF SUPPORT FOR THIS PROJECT. THANK YOU PAUL. THANK YOU, UH, MAYOR AND COUNCIL THIS EVENING. APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. UM, AND TONIGHT, AS PAUL MENTIONED, I'M GONNA TALK TO YOU ABOUT, REAL BRIEFLY ABOUT OUR UNIVERSITY DOWN HERE IN OUR BACKYARD. UM, UM, THE SAND SHARK 2020 PROJECT PHRASE. UM, I WANNA MAKE SURE WE DON'T FORGET ABOUT THAT FIRST 20 OF IT, WHICH IS THE HISTORY OF OF USCB. UH, NOT MANY PEOPLE KNOW THAT HAVE MOVED HERE RECENTLY, BUT USCB IS ONE OF THE YOUNGEST UNIVERSITIES IN THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA. WE STARTED A LITTLE OVER 20 YEARS AGO, AND WHEN YOU DRIVE DOWN 2 78 TOWARDS EXIT EIGHT INTO HARDY VILLAGE, YOU'LL REALIZE THAT'S A BEAUTIFUL CAMPUS AND IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S BEEN THERE FOREVER, BUT IT'S ONLY BEEN THERE FOR 20 YEARS. UM, AND DR. PNU AND HIS TEAM, UH, IN THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION, THEY'VE DONE A FANTASTIC JOB GROWING THAT UNIVERSITY TO A LITTLE, UH, RIGHT AROUND 2,500, UM, STUDENTS. SO IT'S BEEN A GREAT HISTORY TO TALK ABOUT, BUT NOW WE'VE GOT REALLY FOCUS ON THE NEXT 20 YEARS. WE GOTTA GROW THAT UNIVERSITY BECAUSE EVERYONE KNOWS IF YOU'RE NOT GROWING, YOU'RE DYING. UM, AND THAT'S WHAT THE SAND SHARK 2020 PROJECT IS, IS ALL ABOUT, IS THE GROWTH OF USCB IN THIS REGION. UM, SO WE DO FEEL THAT THERE'S GONNA BE SOME SIGNIFICANT REGIONAL IMPACT WITH THE SAND SHARK 2020 PROJECT. AND I'LL GO INTO THE SPECIFICS OF THE ACTUAL, UM, PHASE ONE OF THIS PROJECT A LITTLE LATER IN MY, MY CONVERSATION. BUT ONE THING I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE'S AWARE OF IS THAT THIS SAND SHARK 2020 PROJECT, IT REPRESENTS A STRATEGIC AND FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTMENT THAT WILL STRENGTHEN THE CULTURAL, EDUCATIONAL, AND ECONOMIC AS WELL AS EMERGENCY RESPONSE CAPABILITY OF BEAUFORT AND JASPER COUNTIES. AND IT'S ALSO EXPECTED TO GENERATE SUSTAINED ECONOMIC BENEFITS IN ATTRACTING REGIONAL EVENTS AND VISITORS SUPPORTING LOCAL HOTELS, RESTAURANTS, AND SMALL BUSINESSES, AND BUILDING UPON USB'S DEMONSTRATED RECORD OF RESPONSIBLE PLANNING AND RETURN ON PUBLIC INVESTMENT. SO WHERE'S THE MONEY COMING FROM? UM, THAT'S PROBABLY THE BIGGEST, UH, QUESTION EVERYBODY'S BEEN ASKING. AS OF THE LAST YEAR, UH, THANKS TO OUR LOCAL STATE REPRESENTATIVES, UH, THEY HAVE A, UH, ALLOCATED $47 MILLION FOR THIS PROJECT. NOW, I WISH WE WOULD'VE STARTED SEVEN YEARS AGO 'CAUSE THAT WOULD'VE BEEN RIGHT AROUND THE COST OF THIS PROJECT. BUT WITH, UH, WITH INFLATION, COVID INFLATION TARIFFS, EVERYTHING, UH, THAT'S NOT THE COST OF THIS PROJECT. SO OUR TEAM AS WELL AS, UH, THE TEAM AT THE UNIVERSITY, WE'RE WORKING DILIGENTLY WITH COUNTY COUNCILS, UM, TOWN COUNCILS, PRIVATE AND PUBLIC PARTNERSHIPS TO HELP FUND THAT DELTA GAP. UH, AND, AND WE'RE NOT A HUNDRED PERCENT COMFORTABLE WHERE WE'RE GONNA LAND ON THAT GAP, BUT WE DO THINK IT'S ATTAINABLE WITH THE GENEROUS SUPPORT OF THE STATE, UH, OF SOUTH CAROLINA. SO WHAT IS THE, WHAT IS THE CAMPUS GONNA LOOK LIKE? UM, HOPEFULLY EVERYONE'S BEEN BEHIND THE HARD GRAY BUILDING. UH, IT'S A GORGEOUS BUILDING, BUT THERE'S A LOT GOING ON BEHIND IT. SO IF YOU INITIALLY LOOK AT THAT BOTTOM RIGHT CORRIDOR OR QUADRANT, YOU'LL SEE UM, BOX NUMBER TWO, THREE, AND FOUR, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE GONNA CALL OUR SPORTS [01:30:01] COMPLEX THAT IS GOING TO HAVE SOFTBALL, BASEBALL, AND TRACK AND FIELD. CURRENTLY, THOSE FACILITIES ARE, ARE NOT ON CAMPUS RIGHT NOW. UH, NOT MANY PEOPLE KNOW THAT. UH, I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT ONE, THE ONE THAT GETS A LOT OF BUZZ IS THE ACTUAL CONVOCATION CENTER, WHICH IS BOX NUMBER ONE, WHICH IS JUST SOUTH OF HIGHWAY 2 78. UH, AND THAT WE'RE, WE'RE STILL VALUE ENGINEERING THE, THE SEATING CAPACITY IN THERE TO TRY AND COME IN, UH, A PARTICULAR BUDGET NUMBER. BUT, UH, AS, AS OF RIGHT NOW, I THINK WE'RE GONNA LAND ANYWHERE FROM 34 TO 3,700 SEAT CAPACITY, WHICH IS SIGNIFICANT FOR THIS AREA. UH, AND WHAT THAT'LL ALLOW US TO DO, THAT'LL ALLOW US TO MOVE THE BASKETBALL TEAMS OVER INTO THE CONVOCATION AND ARENA. IT'LL ALSO ALLOW US TO HAVE, UH, BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTS, VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENTS. UH, IT'LL ALLOW US TO HAVE, UM, TRADE SHOWS, VENDOR RELATED TYPE OF SHOWS, AND ALSO BE A LANDING ZONE FOR THE EMERGENCY RESPONSES IF, IF WE DO HAVE ANOTHER HURRICANE. UM, ANY QUESTIONS ON THE LOCATION OR THESE FACILITIES? PERFECT. UH, RIGHT NOW I REALLY WOULD LIKE TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT OUR CURRENT OPERATIONS. UM, AS I BRIEFLY MENTIONED, A LOT OF THIS IS, IS OFF, OFF CAMPUS CURRENTLY. AND FOR THOSE OF US, UH, THAT WE'RE ABLE AND, AND BLESSED TO GO TO A A, A UNIVERSITY, SOME OF THE JOINT EXPERIENCE IS STAYING ON THAT UNIVERSITY, WALKING FROM YOUR SCHOOL OR FROM YOUR, UH, FROM YOUR HOUSING TO A BASKETBALL GAME TO A SOFTBALL GAME. I MEAN, THERE'S JUST SOMETHING ABOUT THAT. AND TO HAVE TO GET IN YOUR CAR AND DRIVE TO HARDY, ALTHOUGH THEY'RE FANTASTIC FIELDS, WE DO ENJOY AND, AND, AND THINK WE'RE BLESSED TO, UM, HAVE THAT ABILITY TO, TO PLAY OUT THERE AND PRACTICE OUT THERE. IT'S JUST, IT'S NOT THE SAME. IT'S NOT USCB. UH, CURRENTLY OUR BASEBALL AND SOFTBALL, LIKE I MENTIONED, PLAYS OUT IN HARDY BILL. WE DO HAVE A COST ASSOCIATED WITH, WITH GOING OUT THERE. AND WE ALSO DON'T HAVE PRIORITY, WHICH IS A FRUSTRATION. UM, WE DO, WE ALSO HAVE TO HAVE SECURITY OUT THERE, UH, FOR CERTAIN GAMES. AND AGAIN, IT'S JUST NOT THAT CAMPUS LIFESTYLE. WE'RE LOOKING FOR TRACK AND FIELD. UM, YOU MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW THIS, THIS, THESE, THESE ARE HELD AT OUR LOCAL HIGH SCHOOLS. UM, WHICH AGAIN, I'M, I'M GONNA CONTINUE TO REITERATE, IS NOT THE EXPERIENCE THAT OUR, OUR STUDENT ATHLETES NEED. UH, AND, AND BASKETBALL, UH, WE DID CONVERT ABOUT THREE YEARS AGO, OUR, OUR REC CENTER FOR THE STUDENTS INTO A BASKETBALL ARENA. UM, AND IT HOUSES APPROXIMATELY 600 PEOPLE. HOPEFULLY EVERYONE'S HAD A CHANCE TO GO TO A GAME. IT IS INVIGORATING, IT'S FANTASTIC IF YOU WIN IN YEAR ONE. IT'S NOT THE SAME AS GOING IN YEAR THREE BECAUSE THERE IT IS ALMOST THAT CAPACITY. UM, IT'S LOUD, IT'S VIBRANT, IT'S A LOT OF FUN. AND WE KNOW WE CAN TRANSITION A LOT OF THAT INTO PAIN, UM, UH, PAIN INDIVIDUALS OVER TO THE NEW ARENA. SO THAT'S WHERE WE'RE AT CURRENTLY RIGHT NOW WITH THE CURRENT FACILITIES. UM, YOU KNOW, IN, IN, IN CLOSING, I THINK THE NEXT 20 YEARS CAN'T REST ON THE SHOULDERS OF, OF DR. PANNU, MYSELF OR THE UNIVERSITY. IT DEFINITELY HAS TO BE A COMMUNAL, UH, COMMUNAL APPROACH. YOU KNOW, AS THEY SAY, YOU KNOW, IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO RAISE A CHILD. I THINK THIS IS OUR CHILD. UM, AS A REGION, BEAUFORT AND JASPER COUNTY, THIS IS, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT I'M, I'M VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT. I HAVE THREE YOUNG CHILDREN AND IF I COULD DO ANYTHING TO KEEP 'EM IN MY BACKYARD, I'M GONNA DO THE SAME. UM, NOW IT'S UP TO THEM IF THEY WANNA STAY OR NOT, BUT I'D LOVE TO IF PAT AS MUCH AS I CAN INTO USCB TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY, UH, THEY SEE THAT AS A VIABLE OPTION. AND, AND TWO, THIS PROJECT WILL NOT ONLY BENEFIT, BENEFIT THE SCHOOL, BUT AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, IT'LL BENEFIT THE REGION. UM, AND, AND, AND TAX BENEFIT AS WELL AS BRINGING, UM, UH, SPORTS, ATHLETIC TOURISM AS WELL AS CORPORATE TOURISM TO, TO BLUFFTON. UM, AND THIRD, I WANNA THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND THE CONSIDERATION AND VOTE FOR THE SUPPORT OF THE RESOLUTION EXPRESSING SUPPORT OF THE SAND SHARK 2020 PROJECT. ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS FROM COUNSEL? I, I HAVE ONE. DO YOU PLAN ON RENTING OUT THE FACILITY? YES. SO, UH, YES AND WE, WE WOULD PLAN ON, YOU COULD RENT IT OUT FOR CERTAIN EVENTS, BUT WE'RE ALSO LOOKING TO HAVE CONCERTS THERE AS WELL. AND I THINK I MIGHT HAVE BREEZED OVER THAT, WHICH IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT AND EXCITING THING FOR THE AREAS. HAVING, HAVING SMALLER CONCERTS, YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT GONNA GET THE CAPACITY OF, UH, THE CHARLESTON ARENA OR THE, THE INMAR CENTER, BUT HAVING SMALLER CONCERTS AND THOSE WOULD ACTUALLY BE MANAGED BY AN OUT A THIRD PARTY. SO WE WOULD BE RENTING THE FACILITY OUT PRI THE PRIMARY OBJECTIVE OF THE FACILITY THOUGH, HOWEVER, IS FOR USCB ATHLETICS. OKAY. AND THEN WHAT ABOUT, DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY PLANS OR HAVE YOU TALKED ABOUT A PERFORMING ARTS CENTER OR WILL THAT BE INCORPORATED? LIKE WILL THAT FACILITY BE USED FOR THAT AS WELL? WE DO THINK IT WOULD COMPLEMENT, UM, COMPLEMENT WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO THERE. YOU KNOW, THE PERFORMING ARTS FACILITY WOULD NOT, IT'S WHAT, 640? WHAT'S THE CAPACITY OF THE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER? WE HAVEN'T MOVED ANYWHERE CLOSE TO FINALIZING ANY OF THAT. OKAY. LET'S SAY IT'S 600. YOU WE'RE MOVING FORWARD WITH THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'S A DIFFERENT VENUE, YOU KNOW, WE WOULD BE MORE OF, YOU KNOW, LIGHTS, SHOWS A LITTLE BIT MORE ROCK AND ROLL I GUESS. UM, SO WE THINK IT WOULD ACTUALLY COMPLIMENT, UM, SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU GUYS ARE DOING AS A TOWN WITH THE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER. THANK YOU. OKAY. SOMEBODY WOULD LIKE TO, WE HAVE A MOTION AVAILABLE TO, TO [01:35:10] AGENDA. WHAT'S THAT? I HAVE A PAPER ONE. KEEP GOING, KEEP GOING. NO, THERE WAS THE PROPOSED MOTION. WOULD SOMEBODY LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION? I MOVE TO APPROVE THE RESOLUTION AS INDICATED ON THE SCREEN. SECOND. SECOND. ANY DISCUSSIONS? ALL ANY FAVORS SAY AYE. A AYE. THANK YOU SIR. OKAY, UP NEXT WE HAVE CONSIDERATION OF ACCOMMODATION TAX ADVISORY COMMITTEE FUNDING RECOMMENDATION FOR QUARTER ENDING DECEMBER 30TH, 2025, SHANNON RO. SO THIS EVENING WE HAVE TWO APPLICATIONS THAT WERE RECEIVED FOR THE CONSIDERATION. ONE BEING FROM THE REGULAR CLUB OF LUPTON FOR THE 2026 MAKE ESTIMATE AND THE OTHER FROM BUFORT WATER SEARCH AND RESCUE TO ASSIST HIM WITH THE PURCHASE OF A BOAT REPLACEMENT. OUR FOLKS AND DISTRIBUTION ARE $346,809. THAT'S AFTER COLLECTIONS FROM THE STATE FOR LAST QUARTER. AND OUR STANDARD ALLOCATIONS TO THE GENERAL FUND, OUR DMO, OUR HOUSING INITIATIVE, WE DID NOT HAVE ANY LAPSED GRANTS FROM LAST QUARTER TO ADD BACK INTO FUND BALANCE. SO THAT LEFT OUR REMAINING FUNDS AT 3 46 8 0 9. AND HERE IS THE OF HOW THE SCORING SHEETS WERE FOR BOTH OF THOSE APPLICANTS. SO OUR FIRST APPLICATION IS THE ROTARY CLUB OF BLUFFTON. FOR MAYFEST. THEY'RE REQUESTING $25,000 FOR ADVERTISING. SOME FACILITY SUPPORT THE RENTALS OF TABLES, SHARES, TEMPS, THAT KIND OF THING. AND THE COMMITTEE VOTED UNANIMOUSLY TO RECOMMEND AN AWARD OF $25,000. OKAY, WELL, UM, MAY ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS ONE OR SOMEBODY WANNA MAKE A MOTION? I'D JUST LIKE TO KNOW WHAT, WHAT WAS THE REQUEST LAST YEAR? DO YOU KNOW THAT IT WAS SENT, IT WAS ACTUALLY 24,000, SO THEY WENT OUT A THOUSAND DOLLARS THIS YEAR. OKAY. ANYTHING FROM ADMINISTRATOR? THERE'S A MOTION TO BE MADE IF SOMEBODY WANTS TO MAKE IT. I MOVE TO APPROVE, UH, THE 25,000 GRANT TO THE ROTARY CLUB OF BLUFFING IN SUPPORT OF THE 2026 MAYFEST EVENT. SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE. AYE. AYE. UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU'ALL. THANK YOU. OH FOR THAT ONE. WE STILL GOT THE OTHER ONE. YEAH, ONE MORE. THE SECOND ONE WAS FROM THE DEEPER WATER SERVE AND RESCUE ORGANIZATION. THEY REQUESTED $20,000 TO GO TOWARDS THE PURCHASE OF THE REPLACEMENT APPROACH WOULD BE USED IN LEFT AND AREA WATERS. THE COMMITTEE FELT THAT IT WAS NOT AN APPLICABLE USE OF ACCOMMODATIONS TAX DOLLARS, SO THEY RECOMMENDED NO AWARD QUESTIONS FROM COUNSEL. IS THERE A MOTION MOVE TO SUPPORT THE MOTION ON THE SCREEN? HERE'S TWO OF 'EM. THE TOP ONE. THE TOP ONE. . OH, IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE. AYE. AYE. AYE. THANK YOU MA'AM. YOU UP NEXT WE HAVE APPROVAL TO AUTHORIZE A CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT WITH SEA ISLAND LAND DEVELOPMENT LLC FOR CONSTRUCTIONS OF BRIDGE STREET, STREET SCAPE, PHASES TWO AND THREE, PHYSICAL IMPACT OF $1,000,512 92, I MEAN 5 9 92. GOT A LOT, 29 CENTS. 29 CENTS. GOOD EVENING, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. PRETTY CLOSE FIGURE IN THERE. YEAH, , I'M HERE AGAIN TO, UH, OFFER UP ANOTHER CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT FOR YOUR REVIEW AND CONSIDERATION. THIS ONE IS FOR THE BRIDGE STREET STREET SCAPE PHASES TWO AND THREE. UH, THIS IS THE LOCATION OF, UH, IN THE DASH RED LINE STARTING AT CALHOUN STREET AND MOVING WESTWARD DOWN BRIDGE STREET ALL THE WAY TO THOMAS HAYWARD. SO WE'RE BASICALLY PICKING UP WHERE WE LEFT OFF OF PHASE ONE, AND [01:40:01] WE'RE GONNA DO THE SAME THING IN PHASE TWO. NOT QUITE AS MUCH IMPACT OF CONSTRUCTION, BUT, UM, DRAINAGE AND STREETSCAPE. SO OUR, UH, THIS STREETSCAPE SCOPE OF WORK INCLUDES, UH, A LOT OF DRAINAGE ON EITHER SIDE OF THE COVE. WE'RE TRYING TO REDUCE STORMWATER RUNOFF AND IMPROVE WATER QUALITY THAT ENTERS INTO THE MAY RIVER THROUGH THE COVE. SO THAT'S ONE OF THE MAJOR COMPONENTS OF IT. UM, ALSO INCLUDES SOME ADDITIONAL ON STREET PARKING ADJACENT TO THE MONTESSORI SCHOOL AND SPARK LIGHT. AND THERE WILL BE A SIDEWALK ON THAT SIDE OF THE ROAD AS WELL. UM, FROM, FROM CALHOUN STREET TO SARAH RILEY HOOKS, WHICH A CROSSOVER BOARDWALK ACROSS THE COVE THERE AT THAT LOCATION. BUT BASICALLY IT'S A PAVING, UH, REPAVING AND IT'S A STREET LIGHTING PROJECT. SO WE, UM, BID THIS PROJECT WITH AN INVITATION TO BID BACK IN JANUARY, AND WE RECEIVED, UH, FOUR BIDS. ALL THE WORK WAS PERFORMED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE TOWN'S ORDINANCE, UH, PURCHASING ORDINANCE. SO THESE ARE THE FOUR BIDS WE'VE RECEIVED ON FEBRUARY 5TH. SEA ISLAND LAND DEVELOPMENT WAS DETERMINED TO BE THE LOWEST PRICED, QUALIFIED, RESPONSIVE, AND RESPONSIBLE OFFER. UM, WE HAD A RANGE FROM 2 MILLION DOWN TO 1.2 MILLION, AND WE HAD TWO BIDS THAT WERE VERY CLOSE TO THAT 1.2 MILLION RANGE. SO WE FEEL LIKE IT WAS A GOOD COMPETITIVE BID. SO OUR REQUEST TONIGHT IS, UH, FOR TOWN COUNCIL TO AUTHORIZE THE TOWN MANAGER TO EXECUTE A CONTRACT WITH SEA ISLAND LAND DEVELOPMENT FOR $1,210,393 AND 83 CENTS. ADDITIONALLY, WE'D LIKE TO REQUEST A 25% PERCENT CONTINGENCY. AND THEN, SO THE TOTAL FISCAL IMPACT FOR THE STREETSCAPE CONSTRUCTION IS $1,512,992 AND 29 CENTS. AND THAT'S WITHIN THE BUDGET WE, THAT Y'ALL APPROVED FOR THIS PROJECT. SO NEXT STEPS, UM, IF Y'ALL APPROVE THIS PRO, THIS, UH, CONTRACT, THEN WE WOULD SUBMIT THE, UH, THE CONTRACT FOR SIGNATURES WITH THE TOWN MANAGER AND THE CONTRACTOR. UH, WE WOULD INITIATE A PRE-CONSTRUCTION MEETING, AND AT THAT PRE-CONSTRUCTION MEETING WE WOULD SET THE, UM, NOTICE TO PROCEED. AND WE EXPECT THAT TO BE SOMETIME IN LATE APRIL, AND WE EXPECT THE CONSTRUCTION TO TAKE TILL, UM, THIS FALL OF 2026, UM, YOU KNOW, CONDITIONALLY ON THE WEATHER CONDITIONS. SO WITH THAT, I'LL ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. UM, IN ADDITION, THERE'S A PROPOSED MOTION FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. ANY QUESTIONS? YES, SIR. GO BACK A COUPLE OF SLIDES PLEASE. RIGHT THERE, RIGHT THERE. UM, HAVE WE DONE BUSINESS WITH SEA ISLAND LAND DEVELOPMENT BEFORE? I DO NOT THINK WE HAVE. WE HAVE DONE, WE'VE DONE REFERENCE TRIPS ON THEM. THEY'RE DOING WORK IN THE AREA. THEY'RE DOING SOME WORK, I THINK FOR THE SCHOOL DISTRICT. I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT, BUT I KNOW THEY ARE WORKING IN THE AREA, UH, PRIMARILY LOCATED IN, IN CHARLESTON, BUT THEY HAVE OTHER WORK. THEY'RE, THEY'RE WORKING IN THIS AREA RIGHT NOW. WHAT ABOUT GERALD BROTHERS? THEY'RE OUTTA HARDY V AND THEY'VE KIND OF TAKEN OVER SOME OF THE OPERATIONS, UM, FROM JS CONSTRUCTION. THEY TOOK A LOT OF THAT OUT, BUT, UM, THEY'VE BEEN CLOSE IN A LOT OF BIDS THAT WE'VE HAD RECENTLY. I KIND OF EXPECT THEM TO WIN A BID EVENTUALLY, BUT IN THIS CASE THEY WERE, UH, $6,000 MORE THAN THE LOW BIDDER. AND THIS IS AN INVITATION FOR BID. SO WE HAVE TO HAVE A GOOD REASON TO AFFECT SOMEBODY THAT'S NOT THE LOW BIDDER. AND WE DON'T, GERALD CONSTRUCTION IS A LITTLE NEWER COMPANY, BUT THEY'RE LOCATED OUTTA HARVILLE. OKAY. WE, WE DID HAVE A RECOMMENDATION, UH, SOMEWHAT OF A UNDERSTANDING, UNDERSTANDING THAT WE WOULD TRY TO GIVE BUSINESS TO THE LOCAL CONTRACTORS AT ONE POINT. YEAH, NEITHER ONE 'EM, BEFORD COUNTY. UM, AND, AND GULFSTREAM, SAME WAY. THEY'RE, I DO NOT KNOW ABOUT JHC CORPORATION. THEY'VE BID ON A COUPLE PROJECT, BUT THEY'VE BEEN WAY HIGH ON ALL OF THEM. SO I DON'T THINK ANYBODY THAT FIT THAT WITH BLUFFTON BUSINESSES, BLUFFTON BUSINESS, THEY'RE ALL OUT OF COUNTY. THE SEA ALLEN IS OUTTA CHARLESTON, RIGHT? YES. THAT'S THEIR BASE OPERATIONS. NEXT, NEXT, UH, GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE. LET'S SEE WHERE WE ARE. RIGHT THERE. 25% CONTINGENCY THAT NUMBER KEEP RISING. WHO DOES, WHOSE DECISION IS THAT? IS THAT THE CONTRACTOR'S DECISION OR OURS? THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE REQUESTING ON THIS. [01:45:01] AND IT'S, IT IS BASED ON TWO CRITERIA. BASICALLY IT'S THE COMPLEXITY OF THE PROJECT AND THEN IT'S ALSO WHAT WE HAVE WITHIN THE BUDGET. UM, WHEN I SAY COMPLEXITY OF THE PROJECT, IF WE'RE EXCAVATING DOING A LOT OF EXCAVATING AND, AND HISTORIC BLUFF, THEN WE ALWAYS SEEM TO RUN INTO COMMUNICATION LINES OR UNKNOWN LINES THAT ARE OUT THERE. IT HAPPEN WITH, UH, WITH THE SEWER PROJECT. WE JUST CAME BACK FOR SOME ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR THAT BECAUSE OF SAME KIND OF REASON. SO, AND THEN THE SECOND ITEM IS HOW MUCH DO WE HAVE IN THE BUDGET AFTER WE RECEIVE THE BIDS? UM, IF IT'S HIGHER THAN WE EXPECTED, WE MIGHT NOT HAVE 25% THAT ACTUALLY ASKED FOR A CONTINGENCY. WE MAY HAVE 10% OR 15%, BUT IN THIS CASE, WE HAVE IT WITHIN THE BUDGET. UH, AND WE'RE CONCERNED ALWAYS WHEN WE'RE EXCAVATING IN THE HISTORIC DISTRICT OF WHAT WE MIGHT FIND. IT'S HAPPENED ON A LOT OF PROJECTS. IT'S HAPPENING ON MAY RIVER ROAD. YOU CONVINCED ME. YOU, YOU COULD STOP. YOU CONVINCED ME. . EXCUSE ME. YOU CONVINCED ME. OKAY. THANK YOU. OKAY, SO IS THIS, UH, ANY QUESTIONS FROM YOU BRIDGE? I HAVE ONE QUESTION. I JUST WANNA CONFIRM THAT YOU DID HAVE A COMMUNITY MEETING REGARDING THIS PROJECT LONG TIME AGO. IT'S BEEN A WHILE, BUT WE HAVE, YES. OKAY. IT MAY BE GOOD TO DO ONE, JUST TO LET PEOPLE KNOW THAT THE PROJECT'S GETTING READY TO START ONCE IT'S AWARDED. I THINK THAT'S A GOOD IDEA. I DID SEE THE SIGNS UP, SO I KNOW THAT Y'ALL ARE MAKING PEOPLE AWARE, BUT I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THEIR INPUT WAS TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION WITH WHATEVER. I DON'T THINK I SAW, WE SAW A PICTURE OF THE FINAL PROJECT TONIGHT, BUT WITH WHATEVER THAT FINAL PROJECT ENDED UP. SO, SO MY ONLY QUESTION IS THIS, ARE WE MAINTAINING THE SAME LOOK THAT WE HAVE EVERYWHERE ELSE? YEAH, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, WITH THE, THE BREAKDOWN, YES. THE SIDEWALKS OR WHAT WE HAVE NOW ARE YOU, YOU KNOW, 1920 SIDEWALKS. SO THE FIRST 200 TO 300 FEET FROM CALHOUN STREET TO THE COVE WILL LOOK IDENTICAL TO THE OTHER SIDE. BUT THE, THE PROJECT FROM WESTWARD OF SARAH RILEY HOOKS IS PRIMARILY JUST REPAVING AND STREET LIGHTING. THAT'S WHAT THAT, SO THAT'S NOT REALLY GONNA CHANGE MUCH. SO THERE'S NO NEW SIDEWALKS DOWN BY OYSTER FACTORY PARK? NOT ONCE YOU GET PAST SARAH RILEY HOOKS, IT'LL, IT'LL TIE BACK INTO THE EXISTING SIDEWALKS THAT ARE THERE. WE WILL REPLACE SOME THAT ARE BROKEN UP. WE HAVE THAT IN THE CONTRACT. IF WE HAVE, UH, SIDEWALKS IN POOR CONDITION, WE'LL REPLACE THOSE. WHY DID WE DECIDE TO NOT MAKE THAT LOOK LIKE THE REST OF THE AREAS? UM, SINCE IT IS A WELL WALKED AND TRAVELED, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF TIMES PEOPLE PARK THERE AND GO TO CALHOUN STREET OR WHATEVER. WAS THERE A REASON FOR THAT OR JUST I THINK IT IS. I MEAN, I THINK IT IS. IT'S THAT FIRST A HUNDRED, 200 FEET OR SO WILL LOOK IDENTICAL TO WHAT'S ACROSS THE STREET IN PHASE ONE. THE PARKING'S THE SAME PAVERS, THE SIDEWALKS ARE THE SAME. I MEAN, IT'S ASPHALT'S ASPHALT, UM, BUT ONCE YOU GET PAST THE COVE, THE PROJECT REALLY JUST NEEDS TO BE REPAVED AND WE NEED TO REPLACE TORN UP SIDEWALKS. THAT'S WHAT, AND ADD STREET LIGHTING OF COURSE, DOWN THE WHOLE STREET. SO THAT PORTION OF COURSE WOULD BE CONSISTENT WITH THE OTHER SIDE AS WELL. OKAY. ANYTHING ELSE FROM COUNSEL THAT MOTION'S NOT SHOWING FOR US HERE? THIS FRED TOOK ME BACK. WE WANNA MAKE A MOTION. I MOVE TO APPROVE THE MOTION ON THE SCREEN EVEN WITH THE 25% CONTINGENCY. SAY AYE. AYE. MOTION. IF HE COULD SAVE THAT 25%. MAKE IT PRETTY ALL THE WAY DOWN THERE YESTERDAY, . OKAY, UP NEXT WE HAVE RESOLUTION TO ACCEPT THE UPDATED HISTORIC RESOURCE SURVEY. MR. GLENN. GOOD EVENING, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. I BRING A GIFT TONIGHT. THIS IS THE SURVEY THAT WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT. UM, SO YOUR ITEM FOR ACTION TONIGHT IS TO ACCEPT THIS DOCUMENT, UH, ALL 381 PAGES, UM, WITH GRAPHICS AND COLOR PHOTOGRAPHY. UM, THE BACKGROUND UNDER OUR UDO IS SECTION 2.2 0.6 E. UM, THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION HAS THE AUTHORITY TO ESTABLISH AND MAINTAIN A SYSTEM FOR CONDUCTING, UM, SURVEYS AND INVENTORIES OF ALL HISTORIC STRUCTURES WITHIN THE TOWN LIMITS. UM, THIS IS A REQUIREMENT BY THE SOUTH CAROLINA STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE AS A SOUTH CAROLINA CERTIFIED LEGAL OR, UM, CERTIFIED [01:50:01] LOCAL GOVERNMENT. UM, WE ARE REQUIRED TO PERIODICALLY DO THE SURVEYS. UM, WE'VE HAD SEVERAL SURVEYS IN THE PAST THAT WE'VE DONE, UH, 1994, 2001, 2008 AND 2019. SO THIS IS ACTUALLY OUR FIFTH SURVEY, UM, THAT WE'VE UNDERTAKEN. TO GET A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND, THE PURPOSE OF THE SURVEY IS TO IDENTIFY AND DOCUMENT ALL HISTORIC PROPERTIES. AND IN THIS PARTICULAR INSTANCES, WE LOOKED AT EVERYTHING THAT HAS REACHED THE AGE OF 40 YEARS OLD, WHICH IS CONSTRUCTED OF 1986 OR EARLIER. UM, AS PARTICULAR NOTE, THIS IS JUST DATA. IT'S ALL IT IS. UM, AND THIS WILL SERVE AS A ACCURATE BASELINE FOR OUR HISTORIC PRESERVATION ACTIVITIES, UM, CURRENTLY, AND IT MAY SERVE AS A GUIDE TO FUTURE PLANNING DECISIONS SHOULD YOU ALL DECIDE TO DO THAT IN THE FUTURE. WHEN I TALK ABOUT DATA, I'M SHOWING YOU WHAT THE DATA LOOKS LIKE. UM, ALL THESE, UH, RESOURCES WERE PHOTOGRAPHED. HERE'S A SEMBLANCE OF S SOME OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS THAT WERE TAKEN AND EACH COMES ATTACHED WITH A TWO PAGE, UM, FORM. UM, I'M ONLY SHOWING YOU THE FIRST PAGE OF THAT FORM. UM, THAT'S WHAT THE DATA LOOKS LIKE. OUR TIMELINE, UH, WE BEGAN THE PROCESS BACK IN APRIL OF THIS, OF LAST YEAR WHEN WE SIGNED OUR CONTRACT WITH STANTEC INC. AS OUR CONSULTANTS. UM, THEY PRESENTING THE PROJECT TO HPC AS A KICKOFF IN SEPTEMBER. UM, THEY DID THE FIELD WORK HERE IN BLUFFTON, UM, THE LATER PART OF SEPTEMBER. UM, THEY PROVIDED THEIR FINDINGS TO HPC FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES, THE BEGINNING OF FEBRUARY. AND THEN WE BR I'M BRINGING IT TO YOU TONIGHT FOR ACCEPTANCE. UM, AT YOUR MEETING, UM, I'M HAPPY TO TAKE QUESTIONS. I'M NOT GONNA BORE YOU WITH 381 PAGES OF DOCUMENTATION, THOUGH I WILL OFFER YOU A OPPORTUNITY IF YOU HAVE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS OR IF YOU WANT TO VIEW THE DOCUMENT WITH ME, YOU'RE CERTAINLY WELCOME TO, UM, COME INTO TOWN HALL TO DO THAT. ANY QUESTIONS? I MIGHT BE GOOD READING. IF, UH, YOU'RE STRUGGLING SLEEPING ONE NIGHT, WELL THERE WAS A TIME WHERE WE'D ALL GET A COPY. UM, WE CAN FURNISH COPIES, UM, FOR YOU IF, FOR YOUR READING PLEASURE, IF YOU'RE HAVING TROUBLE SLEEPING AT NIGHT, THIS WILL DO THE TRICK. ALL RIGHT, ANY QUESTIONS FROM COUNSEL? IS THERE A MOTION TO ACCEPT THE SURVEY? I MOVE TO ACCEPT THE 2025 BLUFFTON HISTORIC RESOURCE SURVEY UPDATE THERE? SECOND. SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE. AYE. AYE. UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU GLEN. THANK YOU. BRUNCH. UP NEXT WE HAVE THE CONSENT [XI. CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS] AGENDA. IS THERE ANY OF THESE ITEMS THAT COUNSEL WOULD LIKE TO REMOVE OR DISCUSS? OR IF NOT, WOULD SOMEONE LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO ACCEPT THEM? SO MOVE A SECOND. SECOND FAVOR, SAY AYE. AYE. THAT'S UNANIMOUS. [XII. EXECUTIVE SESSION] SO NEXT WE HAVE EXECUTIVE SESSION AS WE'RE MOVING RIGHT ALONG SESSION. OH YEAH. I GOTTA TELL YOU WHY. SORRY. BETTER A MOTION. AGREE SIR? YEAH. IS THERE A MOTION TO GO IN EXECUTIVE SESSION FOR DISCUSSIONS RELATING TO POTENTIAL CONTRACTUAL ARRANGEMENTS BETWEEN THE TOWN AND OTHER PARTIES RELATED TO GRANT APPLICATIONS AND AGREEMENT PURSUANT TO SOUTH CAROLINA? FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 30 DASH FOUR DASH SEVEN ZERO A ONE A TWO. IS THERE A MOTION TO TO MOVE? SECOND THERE A SECOND. NOW WE'RE IN EXECUTIVE SENATE. NO VOTES WERE TAKEN. NO ACTION TAKEN HERE ON MOTION TO ADJOURN. SO MOVE SECOND. WE ARE THANK THANKS FOR WATCHING BEAUFORT COUNTY TV. I AM REMEMBER CAMPBELL AND THIS IS BEAUFORT COUNTY MOMENTS. I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT FOOD TODAY. THE FOOD HAS BEEN A GREAT PART OF OUR LIFE IN [01:55:01] TERMS OF GATHERING FOOD AND PREPARING THEM. OUR FOOD IS BASED ON THE LAND AND THE SEA. THE LAND FOOD HAS ALWAYS BEEN RICE. WE DON'T FEEL WE HAVE EATEN DINNER UNLESS WE'VE HAD RICE. RICE WAS MIXED WITH VARIOUS ITEMS FROM THE SEA, LIKE OYSTERS OR SHRIMP. AND WHEN THEY'RE COOKED WITH RICE IN ONE POT, WE CALL IT A RICE OR A SHRIMP OR AN OYSTER PERLOW. AND THEN WE HAVE THE WATERMELONS AND THE SWEET POTATOES. SWEET POTATOES WAS ALWAYS EATEN WITH FISH AND FRESH FISH WITH GRAVY AND THE SWEET POTATO. THERE IS NOTHING BETTER. OKRA HAS ALWAYS BEEN A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF OUR FOOD WAYS WE, WE, WE RAISE THEM AS WELL AS WE PREPARE THEM WITH SHRIMP AND TOMATOES. AND SOME PEOPLE WOULD CALL THAT A GUMBO. AND THAT'S WHAT EXACTLY WHAT IT IS. OKRA, GUMBO. AND SO ENJOY THE FOOD OF THE LOW COUNTRY BECAUSE IT'S BEEN VERY MUCH A PART OF OUR HISTORY. THIS IS EMORY CAMPBELL. THIS HAS BEEN YO 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.