Sangaree Connection

Last night, the Sangaree Special Tax District held their quarterly public meeting. The General Manager delivered his report and three items of new business were discussed, including Little League practices, a new building for the tax district and commissioner nominations.

General Manager’s Report

General Manager Chuck Chears gave his quarterly report. Currently, the Tax District’s budget approval process is in the first phase. On May 29, the Berkeley County Council will read and discuss the budget. On June 25, there will be a public hearing at the Council regarding the budget.

There is an opening at the Tax District for an administrative assistant and they are currently in the hiring process.

The Tax District’s street sweeper is now in operation. It was purchased used in December and required some repairs to get it up and running. Originally $85,000 was budgeted for a new street sweeper. However, this one was purchased used from the city of Lexington for $12,000 resulting in a large amount of savings for Sangaree. Other equipment was recently purchased, including new pickup trucks and a new woodchipper for collecting yard waste.

The County Transportation department is currently putting together a list of streets to be paved in Sangaree.

Waste Industries, a company located in Sangaree, has won the bid for the trash collection in Sangaree. Suburban’s contract will end on June 30, and Waste Industries will begin collection on July 1.

As of April 1, there are 66 vacancies in Sangaree.

Memorial Day, May 28, and Independence Day, July 4, are county holidays and there will be no trash pickup on those days as the landfill will be closed.

The Sangaree Library opened on March 1. On April 19, a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held. Also, the Don Harbert Memorial Reading Garden was dedicated.

New Business

1. Little League Practice in Sangaree Green Spaces - presented by General Manager Chuck Chears
   General Manager, Chuck Chears, informed the commissioners that he has received a number of complaints from Sangaree residents regarding Little League teams holding practices in Sangaree’s green spaces. The complaints involve cars being driven on the grass, parking on the grass and in the streets, children running into the street to retrieve balls, littering and noise.

   The complaints are not related to Tom Conley field (adjacent to the library), which is private property.

   Mr. Chears pointed out that the green spaces were not designed to support that type of activity, and proposed discontinuing allowing practices following this Little League season.

   During discussion of Mr. Chears proposal, it was brought to the commissioner’s attention that in the past the Little League coaches were required to sign a document to get permission to hold practices in Sangaree. The document also including regulations for holding the practices, including parking, litter and noise. According to Mr. Chears, this document was no longer in use.

   Also, it was brought to the commissioners’ attention that many of the coaches do not seem to be residents of Sangaree.

   A motion was put forth to continue the status quo on the Little League practices, and to work on reinstating regulations for next season. The motion passed unanimously. (Discuss this topic here)

2. New Tax District Administrative Building - presented by Commissioner Marty Richards
   For the past three months, Mr. Richards has been working with Mr. Chears to find a new building for the Sangaree Special Tax District. The current offices are too small to support the administrative and maintenance staff. Mr. Richards, who is a volunteer firefighter, also wanted to find a building that could support a substation for the C&B Volunteer Fire Department that serves Sangaree.

   C&B Fire Department serves all of Sangaree, with the exception of the Tabby Creek and Highland Village subdivisions. The current location of the fire department on Royle Road has poor access to the I-26 freeway and Sangaree Parkway. This is contributing to the delays residents have noticed in receiving fire protection and EMS services.

   Mr. Richards and Mr. Chears found a building that is currently being built at 195 Farmington. It is designed to hold six office suites. However, if the Sangaree Special Tax District acquires the building, it would be refitted to two office suites for the Tax District administrative staff, a large meeting area, and a substation for the C&B Fire Department.

   The location on Farmington is close to the I-26 on-ramp, plus it has excellent access to Sangaree Parkway. The substation will be able to hold two pumpers, including a truck dedicated to serving only Sangaree. According to an insurance institute that Mr. Richards spoke with, the improved fire protection services would decrease Sangaree homeowner’s fire insurance premiums by $200-$300 per year.

   The two office suites would be large enough for the Sangaree Tax District’s administrative staff. The meeting area as proposed would include a kitchenette and other facilities to be a public meeting space for the Tax District and other organizations who need it, such as local homeowners’ associations and the crime watch. In the case of a natural disaster, such as a hurricane, the meeting area would be used for equipment storage.

   The existing Sangaree Special Tax District offices will continue to be used, but only by the maintenance department.

   The building’s developer, Mr. Edward Oswald, has presented to the Tax District a few options for obtaining the building. Mr. Richards recommended a two year lease-to-purchase option, pending approval from the Berkeley County Council.

   A motion to proceed with the two year lease-to-purchase option was passed unanimously.

   Following the meeting, Mr. Chears said that he would be sending Sangaree Connection the preliminary plans for the new building. We will post them when we receive them! (Discuss this topic here)

3. Commissioner Nominations - presented by Maria Schick

Maria Schick will vacate her seat on June 30. Two property owners were nominated to replace her. The commissioners will interview the nominees and submit their recommendations to Ms. Davis, the Berkeley County Council representative for Sangaree. (Discuss this topic here.

The next meeting of the Sangaree Special Tax District will be on August 7 at 7:30 p.m. in the Sangaree Library meeting room.

The Fine Print: This is not the official minutes of the meeting. This report was prepared based on the notes that I took at the meeting. Thanks!