COUNCIL MEETING

MEGGETT TOWN HALL

January 28, 2008

7:30PM

Mayor Grange Coffin called the meeting of the Meggett Town Council to order. Present were Pro-tem Josh Garvin, Councilmen Tom Hutto, Keith McCarty and Buster Herrington. Also present Attorney Sally Rhoad, Administrator Ellie Prentiss and Town Clerk Gail Seabrook. Ellie Prentiss led the prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance.

Approval of minutes

The minutes from the last meeting held in November, 2007 were reviewed and approved. Pro-tem Josh Garvin made the motion to accept the minutes as read and Councilman Keith McCarty second the motion.

Annexation: TMS #160-00-00-044 (4082 Legacy Lane)

The second reading for the annexation of the property located at 4082 Legacy Lane, TMS 160-00-00-044 owned by Lawrence and Irene Green was held. Pro-tem Josh Garvin made the motion to approve the annexation. Councilman Tom Hutto seconded the motion and all voted in favor.

Old Business

Audit

Councilman Tom Hutto asked for an update in finding an auditor. Administrator Ellie Prentiss said that Jerry Killian had informed her, he would not be able to start the audit until after April 15, 2008. Ms Prentiss said she contacted Jennifer Henson and hopefully she will be able to do the financial statements for the Town. Ellie asked Tommy Butler if Ms Henson was hired to do the financial statements could she do both 2006 and 2007 before the audit was done or would she have to wait for the 2006 audit to be completed before she could start on 2007. Tommy said he thought she could move on to 2007 without waiting for the audit to be completed on 2006.

1925 Project

A special meeting was held to open the bids for the second phase of the street scaping project. It was decided by Council at this meeting to hire Steve Johnson to do a set of drawings of the street scaping and give the five applicants a set of these drawings so they can be able to submit a more accurate submittal for the project. This will enable Council to be able to make a better determination of the lowest bidder. Steve Johnson indicated that he hope to have the drawings ready by the end of January for review.

New Business

Presentation of Picture by Bill Searson

Mayor Coffin said that Mr. Bill Searson met with him and offered to donate a picture taken of the S.C. Produce Association Meeting in 1927 for display in the Town Hall. Mayor Coffin said he was thrilled that Mr. Searson would share this with the community.  He asked Mr. Searson to please come forward and do the presentation.  Mr. Searson then came forward and share with the residents the history of the picture. Mr. Searson said that when his mother was placed in a nursing facility, they were going through some of her belongings and came across this picture of the 13^th annual S.C. Produce Association Meeting taken in 1927. The picture was taken in front  of the old St. Paul's School and many of the ancestors of our residents are in the picture. Mr. Searson said it was laid aside and it wasn't until Ellis Porter called him looking for pictures to put on the quilt that she was making for the Christmas Festival when he remembered the picture. He then presented the picture to Mayor Coffin so it could be displayed and enjoyed by all the residents as part of the Town's history. The picture was graciously  accepted by Mayor Coffin on behalf of the town.

Garden Club Sign

Mayor Coffin said that the St. Paul's Garden Club would like to place a sign in the front area between the Town Hall and the SCPA Building to show their contribution of maintaining the flower beds for the Town. He indicated that the sign was very nice and made of wood. Administrator Ellie Prentiss also made the suggestion for placement of the sign would be by the picnic table and bird bath.

Trident Technical College Campus

Mr. Lloyd Kling, Director of Manufacturing, Industrial and Construction Trades, with Trident Technical College was introduced to speak on the start of a new facility where  residents in this area will be  able to attend classes offered by Trident Technical College. Trident Technical College, with assistance from grant funding, has embarked on a project to remodel a building in Hollywood and set up a small campus to provide educational classes for residents in this area.  This will provide an opportunity for individuals in the area, who are not able to attend courses on the main campus, to have the opportunity to expand their education or learn a trade that will enhance their career to a higher level.  This will help them to be qualified to apply for better paying jobs  in the job market and help better their way of life.  At present the renovation of the building that will house the classrooms is scheduled to be completed by March. The aim at first is to offer courses that are short term and target individuals to be able to get into jobs as soon as possible. Basically we are looking at courses that will provide training in about 90 days that will prepare them for jobs where the income range will be in the $14 to $16 range. Mr. Kling continued by indicating that they work with companies in the area provide the necessary training needed for positions that these companies have need for.  Some  of the courses offered in the beginning will include training in professions such as glass technician, home inspections, CDL licenses training, and a continuation of their welding program training, which is already in operation in relationship with Metal Trades.  In addition to these types  of courses, computer classes will also be held.  This campus in the future hopes to expand to offer courses such as real estate  and electrical wiring.  At this point he asked for questions or recommendations from the residents.

Question: Christy Miller asked if any type of art courses would be offered such as commercial graphics.

Response: Mr. Kling indicated that it may be added in the future if there was enough interest from individuals in this area in a program of this type.

Comment: Ellie Prentiss said that so many of the courses that were mentioned were geared more towards males than females. Perhaps this could be looked at and additional courses could be added to help females with more job opportunities.

Other suggestions were to offer programs pertaining to agriculture, since this is a rural community.

Qustion: Mrs. Millie Flippen inquired if this campus would expand to offer main courses that are  presently offered on the main campus.

Response: If there is enough response it is possible that we could expand to offer primary courses.

Mayor Coffin thanked Mr. Kling for coming to the Council meeting and sharing this valuable information with the community. He emphasized that a lot of the kids in this area will not have the opportunity to attend a college and this project will provide an opportunity to impact their professional lives in a very positive way. He asked how we as a Town could offer support to help this very worthwhile project to move forward. Mr. Kling indicated that at this time they are not asking for money but hope the Towns will work to put forth the information to the community.

Geenbelt Funding

Councilman Tom Hutto, asked that a parcel of land  located in Archfield Subdivision and bordering land owned by the Town be looked at for the possible purchase by Greenbelt Funding. It borders on Meggett Creek and a small dock could possibly be built. He indicated that he had spoken with the owner and he may be interested in selling the parcel for a fair market value. He asked Council if they thought this may be worth pursuing. It would be a great lot to provide a small community dock for residents to use. Councilman Josh Garvin made the motion to get the appraisal and move forward with the required application for Greenbelt funding to purchase the property. Keith McCarty seconded  the motion and all voted in favor.

Charleston County UDO

Councilman, Tom Hutto said he had drafted a short letter stating support of what  Charleston County was  proposing in their comprehensive plan and supported their efforts. He thought it would be a good idea if the Mayor and Council would either sign his letter or write a letter in support on their own. Pro-tem Josh Garvin said that he had attended one of Charleston County's meetings in December for Mayor Coffin and after hearing some of the discussion, he thought some of their entries needed to be looked at and changed to be more in tune with Meggett's needs.

Miscellaneous Reports

A request has been made for the town to grant permission for St. Paul's Country Day School to hold their annual Walk for Education scheduled for March 15, from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM.  The route will be from  the school  to Town Hall and then back. They have also requested to have the road closed to through traffic, the same as last year.  Councilman Keith McCarty made the motion to for the Town of Meggett to give permission for the walk. Josh Garvin seconded the motion. All voted in Favor. Resident Lea Ladue mentioned that they were also looking for sponsors.

A request was made by resident Matt Zender to have a representative from Verizon to attend our next council meeting to answer some concerns that residents are having with their phone service.

Scheduled Meetings:

Public Comments:

Councilman Keith McCarty advised Council that, regarding the issue of the docks  proposed on Flounder Lake and Waring Creek, he is aware of one law suit to be filed and possibly others so we need to closely watch this and stay up with what is going on.

With no further comments, Mayor Coffin asked for a motion  to go into executive session to discuss a legal matter.  Josh Garvin  made the motion and Tom Hutto seconded the motion.

Submitted by Town Clerk: Gail Seabrook