City Council Regular Meeting Agenda - December 12 2017

CITY OF BEAUFORT 1911 BOUNDARY STREET BEAUFORT MUNICIPAL COMPLEX BEAUFORT, SOUTH CAROLINA 29902 (843) 525-7070 CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AGENDA December 12, 2017 NOTE: IF YOU HAVE SPECIAL NEEDS DUE TO A PHYSICAL CHALLENGE, PLEASE CALL IVETTE BURGESS 525-7070 FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION STATEMENT OF MEDIA NOTIFICATION "In accordance with South Carolina Code of Laws, 1976, Section 30-4-80(d), as amended, all local media was duly notified of the time, date, place and agenda of this meeting." REGULAR MEETING - Council Chambers, 2nd Floor - 7:00 PM I CALL TO ORDER A II Billy Keyserling, Mayor INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE A Mike McFee, Mayor Pro Tem III PROCLAMATIONS/COMMENDATIONS/RECOGNITIONS IV PUBLIC COMMENT V PUBLIC HEARING VI MINUTES A B Worksession and Regular Meetings November 14, 2017 Worksession November 21, 2017 VII OLD BUSINESS VIII.NEW BUSINESS A Ordinance authorizing the City Manager to enter into contracts for Sale for Properties in Commerce Park - 1st Reading IX REPORTS City Manager's Report Mayor Report Reports by Council Members X ADJOURN CITY OF BEAUFORT DEPARTMENT REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM TO: FROM: AGENDA ITEM TITLE: MEETING DATE: DEPARTMENT: CITY COUNCIL DATE: 12/7/2017 Worksession and Regular Meetings November 14, 2017 12/12/2017 City Clerk BACKGROUND INFORMATION: PLACED ON AGENDA FOR: REMARKS: ATTACHMENTS: Description Minutes Type Backup Material Upload Date 12/7/2017 A work session of the Beaufort City Council was held on November 14, 2017 at 5:00 p.m in the Beaufort Municipal Complex, 1901 Boundary Street In attendance were Mayor Billy Keyserling, Councilwoman Nan Sutton, Councilmen Mike McFee, Phil Cromer, and Stephen Murray, and Neal Pugliese, director of public projects and facilities In accordance with the South Carolina Code of Laws, 1976, Section 30-4-80(d) as amended, all local media were duly notified of the time, date, place, and agenda of this meeting CALL TO ORDER Mayor Keyserling called the work session to order at 5:00 p.m PRESENTATION: TECHNICAL COLLEGE OF THE LOWCOUNTRY (TCL) – NEW CULINARY INTERPRETIVE CENTER Mary Lee Carns said the initiative started 2½ to years ago Regional job growth analysis predicts 500 new food service jobs annually, she said, and a third of them require a post-secondary culinary degree or certification These are jobs that pay well, Ms Carns said, so graduates will earn good jobs here, and this will ensure stability in the industry and in tax revenues Ms Carns gave details of the culinary school, which will be located in Bluffton and will cost $11.243 million It will be 26,000 square feet and have the capacity for 300 students in programs with associates’ degrees and certificates, or they can go into the USCB hospitality management degree program Ms Carns said TCL is “state-assisted, not state-supported,” with 18% of its operating funds coming from the state of South Carolina; the majority of funds come from students’ tuition and fees She showed a layout of the culinary school and described various rooms in it, including a “teaching restaurant.” This is the second culinary school TCL’s president has built, Ms Carns noted Part of students’ training will be in the business of operating a restaurant “back to front,” she said, and the restaurant will be open for lunch Ms Carns showed pictures of the Culinary Institute of Charleston to give an idea of “what the baking labs and cooking labs would look like.” A culinary arts interpretive center will be integrated to bring “to life Lowcountry food with exhibits you can taste,” she said Among the center’s goals are to educate the public and to encourage an appreciation of Lowcountry culinary historic and culture There are only other food museums in the country, Ms Carns said, which makes this a “marketing opportunity.” Ms Carns described exhibits in the museum and programs that the center could offer, including cooking classes and dinner theater The interpretive center would comprise 2,000 square feet of the Lowcountry Culinary Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page Institute and would be at the entrance to the school, Ms Carns said, adjacent to the teaching restaurant There will be an event space of 3,000 square feet for events for TCL and the public Ms Carns discussed the impact of the Lowcountry Culinary Institute and the interpretive center: It would attract “cultural and culinary tourism” to Beaufort County, elevate culinary as a profession and career choice, attract students, and contribute to economic growth in the Lowcountry by promoting tourism, education, and workforce development Ms Carns said TCL’s current culinary program is small “because we don't have the facilities” and are “borrowing” them She gave out packets of information from TCL Dr Rich Gough said they believe they now have the needed funding for the culinary institute in place from the county, the school district, and Bluffton They hope to use the same construction company and developer that are building a new Kroger where the school will be, which would offer “a significant savings,” he said Dr Gough pointed out the priorities for TCL, including the culinary school and TCL College Online programs, which allow Marines who are transferred to another location to continue their studies online, he said, and give TCL the ability to attract students from outside the area The Regional Workforce Training Center is “primarily a technology building” for the TCL New River campus for “aerospace [and] high-tech programs,” for example Dr Gough said TCL also hopes to expand the health sciences programs (e.g., additional nursing graduates) The Beaufort campus will be focused primarily on general education and health sciences, he said, and he discussed plans for this Councilman Cromer said the need for physicians’ assistants’ programs is growing Dr Gough said TCL is limited to 2-year programs, but they could have a “feeder program” in that field Ms Carns said 60% of TCL students go on to 4-year programs at other schools, often to USCB Dr Gough said out-of-pocket costs for TCL students are no more than $800 per semester Dr Gough said there are internships and apprenticeship programs at TCL, which he discussed Dr Gough said when he came to TCL years ago, he felt there was a lack of outreach to military and their dependents, so in that time, TCL has taken the population from less than 20% active duty military and their dependents to 30% There was a program using state funding for aviation maintenance training for Marines and soldiers preparing to transition, and all of those in that program are employed, he said, most at Boeing or Gulfstream They also secured $500,000 from the state to buy equipment to “provide free training” (e.g., in CDL and welding), Dr Gough said Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page Ms Carns said TCL is trying to be a “better local partner” (e.g., with the Pat Conroy Literary Center) by making space available to groups that need it The Mather Interpretive Center was recently dedicated at the campus, and she discussed the two remaining buildings on the TCL campus from the Mather Junior College and recommended visiting that interpretive center, which is open to the public Dr Gough said next year is the combined 150-year anniversary of TCL and the Mather Center Councilwoman Sutton asked if there is also training for plumbing, etc planned for the workforce training center Dr Gough said he plans to keep those programs in the facilities where they are for now, though they have improved the facilities, and have light construction and engineering classes in a recently improved building TCL has difficulty getting students into the programs, he said; “we have to keep talking about how important the trades are.” Councilwoman Sutton feels TCL should have a program with the high schools to let students know how important training in the trades is There was a discussion about the difficulty of finding workers in contracting, plumbing, and other trades, and the need for workers to show up to jobs, etc Mayor Keyserling asked what could be done to “work on the soft skills.” Dr Gough said they try to incorporate that into “all of our training.” UPDATE ON HISTORIC PRESERVATION ARCHITECT SURVEY FOR ARSENAL Linda Roper said Deborah Johnson had found a possible grant for work needed on The Arsenal Ms Johnson said the grant is called “Undiscovered South Carolina,” which is “based on building tourism products.” Beaufort is “close to the threshold” of being eligible for those funds, which are based on state accommodations taxes (ATAX), she said The Beaufort History Museum is growing and changing; if the building were in better condition, it would be more attractive to visitors, Ms Johnson said Repair of the windows and restrooms at The Arsenal have been on the city’s capital improvements list for some time This grant, “if we can get the information needed,” would be good to apply for, she said, but the deadline is the first week of December Ms Johnson said the city needs “historic preservation expertise” from the South Carolina Department of Archives and History for The Arsenal to ensure that the structure and fabric of the building are not affected by what is done to it Ms Roper said they reached out to preservation architects to give them “what we need for the grant” within the short timeframe Meadors is a firm in Charleston that has architects who have “done a lot of preservation work in the state,” she said, and they feel like they can get what the city needs for the grant within the timeframe The city has expanded what they asked for to “a plan for a scope of work,” Ms Roper said, including construction drawings, so if the grant isn’t obtained, the city will still know what it can and can’t at The Arsenal The city will know what the budgeted amount would be for the windows and restrooms and could divide the projects into “pieces,” Ms Roper said Meadors will also assess the Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page building and “give us a priority list,” she said; this will be “a preservation plan for that building for the next to 10 years,” so the city can maintain it better than it has been maintained in the past Ms Johnson told Councilman McFee that the windows have to be replaced with historic glass, and some of the work done under another grant, which ended in 2009, has “already started to fail.” There hasn’t been a maintenance plan “put into effect” in the past, she said, but the city is committed now to taking care of the building and doing the work it needs Contractors who work on the building will also be asked to provide a maintenance plan for the work they do, Ms Johnson said Ms Johnson said they might be able to combine the grants into one project and have the wall funding (which is federal money) be the match for the Undiscovered South Carolina grant, but she described problems encountered with this plan Mr Pugliese said the timeline for the exterior wall restoration is “tight.” Historic Preservation gave a 72-hour turnaround for the RFP, which they accomplished There will be bids by January 5, he said, and the city will select a contractor and commence work on February They hope it will be completed by May Councilman Cromer said Beaufort History Museum wants him to see about the city painting the interior Ms Johnson said for the Undiscovered South Carolina grant, the work the museum is doing on its exhibits will be helpful The grant is “still highly competitive,” because there is “a big group of folks applying,” she said She thinks knowing what the costs are will be helpful and will keep the city in good stead with Archives and History Councilman Cromer said the museum brings a reenactment group to The Arsenal annually, in the last week of April, and he wondered if the walls would be complete by then Ms Johnson said for grants, they say this is an educational opportunity for people to know how important the maintenance of this type of historic structure is Mr Pugliese said they could probably work with the reenactment, given the timeline for the work on the wall Lamar Taylor said he’d read the proposal, and it’s very reasonable, including the 2month testing period Ms Johnson said they’d gotten materials from Historic Beaufort Foundation, which did the last major restorations of The Arsenal She described suggestions of a masonry expert consulted for the Historic Preservation grant for the wall Councilman Murray asked if they would come back to council with the scope of work and maintenance plan so council can authorize funding Ms Roper said yes Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page There was a general discussion of some of the maintenance needs already observed at The Arsenal Councilman Murray suggested the city coordinate with the museum and other groups that use the space when the scope of work and timeline are known Ms Johnson said now that the city knows it’s going forward on this grant, the next step is to get with the Chamber of Commerce and Beaufort History Museum about their side of this, because the grant is to encourage tourism, not “to save this building.” She said it’s exciting that this funding is out there Save America’s Treasures grants are coming back, but they will not give the city money for The Arsenal again, Ms Johnson said Few foundations fund this type of work, so she is hoping this goes forward Councilman Murray asked if the work has to be on restrooms and windows Ms Johnson said those are the city’s priorities If Meadors says other priorities should be first, she told Councilman Murray, they could change the grant to make it for those There was discussion of the roof and water damage Ms Roper said Meadors didn’t feel the roof is failing, but “there’s something [else] going on.” Councilman Murray asked if the Chamber of Commerce and Beaufort History Museum “share any of the financial responsibility to help us with repairs.” Councilman Cromer said the museum has “no money,” and the funds to renovate the museum are from a private donation Mayor Keyserling said that money was left to the museum, and the case went to court Councilman Murray said the city is “holding money” for the museum; Councilman McFee said he believes half of that has been released Mayor Keyserling said “a long assessment” has to be part of what is done at some point Ms Roper said they plan to what is necessary for the grant, and then “we will come back” and ask Meadors to assess “the entire building and give us a preservation plan.” Mayor Keyserling suggested they could get help from the historic architect at the Reconstruction Era monument office Ms Roper said she was very impressed by the team from Meadors because of their interest in The Arsenal and their expertise in its history Ms Johnson said there are sections of the interior wall at The Arsenal in which people can see its development; those will be cleaned up as part of the work, but they will be left open Ms Roper said the city has already set aside money for the wall improvements, and since this is on the capital improvements list, City Manager Bill Prokop thought there should be money available for that to go forward There being no further business to come before council, the work session was adjourned at 6:20 p.m 
 Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page A regular meeting of the Beaufort City Council was held on November 14, 2017 at 7:00 p.m in the Beaufort Municipal Complex, 1901 Boundary Street In attendance were Mayor Billy Keyserling, Councilwoman Nan Sutton, Councilmen Mike McFee, Phil Cromer, and Stephen Murray, and Neal Pugliese, director of public projects and facilities In accordance with the South Carolina Code of Laws, 1976, Section 30-4-80(d) as amended, all local media were duly notified of the time, date, place, and agenda of this meeting CALL TO ORDER Mayor Keyserling called the regular council meeting to order at 7:01 p.m INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Councilman McFee led the invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance CHARACTER EDUCATION PROCLAMATION Councilman McFee made a motion, second by Councilman Murray, to proclaim Corey Smith as Lady's Island Middle School’s student of the month The motion passed unanimously Councilman McFee read the proclamation, which Mayor Keyserling presented to Mr Smith Greg Hall, the principal at Lady's Island Middle School, read a statement about why Mr Smith was chosen for the award PROCLAMATION OF NOVEMBER 25, 2017 AS SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY 
 Councilman Murray made a motion, second by Councilman McFee, to approve the proclamation The motion passed unanimously Councilman McFee read the proclamation, which Mayor Keyserling presented to Jason Ruhf, Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce, who read a statement about the importance of shopping locally PROCLAMATION OF DECEMBER 1, 2017 AS ARBOR DAY 
 Councilman Murray made a motion, second by Councilman Cromer, to approve the proclamation The motion passed unanimously Libby Anderson discussed the plans for PTAC’s Arbor Day tree planting PRESENTATION: MATHER SCHOOL SESQUICENTENNIAL CELEBRATION 2018 Fred Washington said he’d been asked to make a presentation by Mather Alumni Association, though he is “an associate,” not a Mather alum He said this is a year-long celebration of the Mather School, the purpose of which is “to preserve and promote” the school’s “legacy.” Mr Washington described the unique focus of the school and said the celebration will have a different focus each month for alumni and the community The kick-off is in January 2018, he said The school was founded in 1868 for the education of freed slaves after the Civil War; Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page students came from around the U.S and other countries, Mr Washington said The quality of the education was extraordinary, and the school closed in 1968 Mr Washington invited people to be sponsors of the sesquicentennial or to show support by purchasing tickets to the events He asked people to see if they might have items that are related to the Mather School that they would like to have at the interpretive center He described the schedule of events for each month in 2018 Mr Washington said this celebration is “very timely” because of the upcoming Reconstruction Era monument He asked for help from council and the city to market and promote the sesquicentennial Councilman Murray suggested that the group talk to Robb Wells at the Chamber of Commerce for help with that MINUTES Councilman Cromer made a motion, second by Councilman Murray, to approve the minutes of the council work session of October 17, 2017 Councilman Cromer said on page 4, in the 4th paragraph, “Saxon” should be “Saxton.” On page 5, “levies” should be “levees.” The motion to approve the minutes as amended passed unanimously Councilman McFee made a motion, second by Councilman Cromer, to approve the minutes of the regular council meeting of October 24, 2017 Councilman McFee said, on page 1, what Mr Henderson referred to as his concern about “irrigation issues” should be “drainage issues.” Councilman Murray abstained from the vote because he was not at the meeting The motion to approve the minutes as amended passed 4-0 REQUEST FOR CO-SPONSORSHIP FOR USE OF WATERFRONT PARK FROM HOSPICE CARE OF SOUTH CAROLINA FOR “SHINE ON” EVENT Councilman Murray made a motion, second by Councilman Cromer, to approve the request for the November 28, 2017 event Megan Radcliffe said this is a statewide event Ms Anderson said staff supports the event The motion passed unanimously REQUEST TO HOST 37TH ANNUAL MOTORCYCLE TOY RUN IN BEAUFORT Councilman Murray made a motion, second by Councilman Cromer, to approve the request for the December 17, 2017 event 
Councilman Murray asked why this event requires council approval He was given various answers The motion passed unanimously HOLIDAY PARKING 2017 Councilman Murray made a motion, second by Councilman Cromer, to approve the holiday parking plan Ms Roper said council had requested a different plan created with the Parking Advisory Committee that would be less confusing than holiday parking plans of the past Park Beaufort enforcement officers shared the frustrations of visitors Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page downtown, and the consensus was that the plan needed to be simpler, she said Ms Roper said they decided to propose all-day free holiday parking in the marina parking lot, and to “market it well.” They brought the recommendation to the Downtown Merchants’ Association twice, and both times the merchants supported the idea She said the city had received no request for 2-hour holiday free parking, so she is bringing forward this proposal Councilman McFee asked the projected amount of revenue loss; Ms Roper said they think it will be the same as in previous years, which is “negative $18,000.” Park Beaufort will not have to monitor the marina parking lot, she said, so she hopes they can be “ambassadors” on the street to tell people that they can park free at the marina Councilwoman Sutton asked about people who have paid for monthly parking places in the marina parking lot Ms Roper said they would still park there Councilwoman Sutton asked what happens if someone parks in a space that belongs to someone else Ms Roper said no spaces are reserved in the marina parking lot Councilman Murray said there could be concerns about “capacity” for monthly parkers in that lot There are 183 monthly parking permits, Ms Roper said Councilman Murray asked how many spaces were designated for those monthly pass-holders Ms Roper said there are more than 200 spaces for them in various locations downtown Councilman Murray said he feels this idea is “worth a trial run this year.” He told Mayor Keyserling that only the trailer and bus spots are designated in the marina parking lot Councilwoman Sutton asked how people would be kept from parking in the bus spots Ms Roper said they are marked spaces, and as at any other time, people who park in them would receive tickets She said Park Beaufort would still be monitoring the lot If there is available space, people can park free and shop, eat, etc for up to hours during the holiday period, Ms Roper said Councilman Murray asked if Ms Roper has a budget for marketing Ms Roper said no, but if council approves this plan, she would determine what the marketing would be; she knows it needs to be a “multi-faceted” approach, and she gave some examples of her ideas Mayor Keyserling said marina tenants who bought parking spaces that are near their boats are his concern He suggested that they might be able to put up temporary signs for those spaces Councilman Murray said during festivals, “they put up fencing,” and monthly permit-holders use their permits as a “pass” to park in that area John Dickerson said he thinks the concept is great He asked about downtown employees taking the spaces in front of the shops on Bay Street Councilwoman Sutton said this plan is better than when there has been free parking on Bay Street and employees parked there, though some employees might “take advantage of” this free Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page bag from home and reuse it at a store, or he could package 50 handled ½-mm bags and sell them to consumers, “it bypasses your ordinance,” and “we’d have the same problem that exists today.” Venaye McGlashan, Beaufort Indivisible’s environmental team leader, said she appreciates the hard work of county and city councils on this matter Beaufort Indivisible has had an educational booth at the Port Royal Farmers’ Market once a month about plastic bags, she said, and she presented a petition on which the group has collected 814 signatures since June Ms McGlashan feels banning plastic bags is “a good start,” but all “plastic, period.” needs to be addressed at some point Beaufort Indivisible’s environmental team would be glad to help in any way it can, she said Edie Rodgers said she doesn’t care whether she has paper or plastic bags, but she’s bothered by local governments adopting bag bans because she believes government at the city and county levels “have been stampeded to a degree” because the state legislature is said to be planning to “ban the ban.” However, she believes the legislature favors “home rule.” Ms Rodgers said, “The data is out there,” but she doesn’t believe anyone “in government has done the research.” She said when the comment has been made that “the huge majority” of people agree with the ban, it is because people and groups that are advocates of this issue make sure that supporters show up at public meetings Ms Rodgers said, “That’s fine, but let’s the research.” She read from an article about other forms of litter that are “greater marine litter challenges” than plastic bags Ms Rodgers said charitable shops “rely on us to bring plastic bags” for their use She said it’s “absolutely not correct” to call these bags “single-use plastic bags.” She feels the retail association and “the rest of the community” haven’t come to the public meetings and aren’t “getting their position out there,” so “the other side of the story” hasn’t been told Ms Rodgers doesn’t feel council should “fear the ban of the ban” by the state legislature; she said she wants “to tell the county the same thing.” Ms Parker said the Chamber of Commerce “has done a great job of distributing information from both sides of the argument in their emails.” Also, Ms McGlashan hadn’t said it, but Ms Parker wanted council to know that Beaufort Indivisible has been giving out free reusable shopping bags at the farmers market Ms Parker briefly discussed the problems with single-use plastic bags, including the difficulty of recycling them, and why there is a movement to ban their use She thanked council for its support of the environment, especially because she had come to this area from another state where that support wasn’t there Ms Parker acknowledged that a plastic bag ban would not solve all litter problems, but banning the single-use plastic bag “is a start.” This ordinance would also send a message to the state legislature that “we are in the best situation to deal with our environmental problems.” Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page 12 Councilman Murray asked Ms Parker to comment on the matter of “us potentially rushing as a jurisdiction to approve” the ordinance, when there are more than “200 jurisdictions across the country” with similar bans put in place over the last decade Ms Parker said that’s correct: “About 20 million Americans live in jurisdictions that are subject to a plastic bag ban or a plastic bag fee.” Councilman Murray agreed with Ms Rodgers that “the General Assembly’s attempt to ban our ability to ban bags has caused a brighter spotlight to be shown on the issue.” The local delegation was “an important part of solving that [in the] last session,” he said, but they are only “a very small part of the overall General Assembly,” so they are not likely to be as successful if the matter comes up again, which it probably will Councilman Murray feels there have been a number of ways for people to participate in the debate about this issue through the county, municipalities, and the Chamber of Commerce, and when giving their opinions, “the overwhelming majority” of them favor the ban He said he supports the ordinance and doesn't feel “we’re rushing to judgment,” because there are many other places in the country that have successfully implemented this ban Ms Rodgers read about the safety of “American-made plastic retail bags.” She said she is concerned about turtles but is more concerned about consumers who will have to absorb “the extra cost” of paper bags Councilwoman Sutton said she feels “there are going to be a large number of unintended consequences” from the plastic bag ban She thinks the issue “is very complicated,” and she agrees with Ms Rodgers that “there needs to be more research.” Councilwoman Sutton said she is also concerned about the cost to retailers; Ms Rodgers said that cost would be passed on to consumers Mayor Keyserling said he had experienced stores offering paper or plastic bags, and those stores don’t charge their customers more Councilman Murray said there is a lack of citizen engagement on many issues council deals with; people may come out to speak about plastic bags when they hear that this ordinance has passed on first reading by city council Mr Dickerson said he supports “eliminating the plastics from the environment,” but he encouraged council to “come back to the chemistry involved in making these plastics,” and suggested “a broader perspective.” Mr Ruhf said the Chamber of Commerce’s members “didn’t show a lot of interest” in the issue “A comprehensive county-wide commercial recycling program” is “ranking much higher” in terms of the Chamber’s members’ interest, he said Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page 13 Councilman McFee said “lobbyists for the bag companies” were at the Bluffton public meeting Ms Parker said they were also at a public meeting in Beaufort She told Councilman McFee they did not “offer alternatives.” The motion as amended passed unanimously on first reading APPROVAL OF THE FY 2018 TDAC RECOMMENDATION ON ATAX GRANTS 
 Councilman Murray made a motion, second by Councilman Cromer, to approve TDAC’s recommendations Larry Holman, Black Chamber of Commerce, said he wanted to make a statement about “the ATAX committee and what took place.” He read an email he had sent to each of the councilpeople about “confusion in the application” for ATAX [A copy of the email was submitted for the record and is attached to these minutes – steno.] He was told that TDAC “denied” the Black Chamber of Commerce because it “did not have private funds.” He said the criteria for scoring the applicants was not shared at workshops and posed several questions Mayor Keyserling said there were applicant workshops Mr Holman said, “We were never told about the scoring” and they haven’t seen “the platform for scoring.” He “had no idea” there was “a scoring process.” Mayor Keyserling said Mr Holman would be provided with the scoring worksheet Mayor Keyserling said council’s understanding was that TDAC went through the process they would use with the applicants at the ATAX workshops Mr Holman said TDAC “denied” the Black Chamber of Commerce because of not having private funding, but the organization does have it Councilman Murray said the public is welcome to see the scoring sheets He said that at the last work session, council had asked that staff give the applicants their individual scoring sheets Councilman Murray asked Mr Holman why he hadn’t brought up these issues at council’s work session October 31 Mr Holman said when he got there, the discussion was about “conflict of interest.” Councilman Murray said that Mr Holman had made comments or asked questions about the process during that work session Mr Holman said the only comment he made was about the city getting a share of ATAX off the top when the money comes from the state Councilman Murray said the recommendations and scoring sheets had been released and could be found in the information packets for council for its October 24 meeting Mr Holman said he had only attended the council work session, and he “did not even know that we weren’t awarded until this past weekend,” or he would have said something to council sooner Susan Sauer, a TDAC member, gave a copy of the scoring sheet to Councilman Murray She said the scoring sheet is posted on the city’s website, as are the minutes of TDAC’s discussion about each applicant “What didn’t get answered” on an application would lower the score, Ms Sauer said Each application was “graded,” based on what the applicants did and didn’t provide of what was required, and on whether they could Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page 14 answer TDAC’s questions (e.g., “Did you track this?”, “How many room nights you book?”) The “thousands of questions” the committee asked of the applicants are all in the minutes, she said, which are posted on the city’s website Mayor Keyserling asked if the applicants had “the grading sheet” before the presentation Ms Sauer said they did not Jonathan Sullivan, the TDAC chairman, was not present, but she said he has “all of the sheets.” The committee hadn’t released them “as a whole” because of concerns about groups comparing themselves to others, she said Councilman Murray said he thinks “the rules” need to be very clear to the applicants Ms Sauer said that applicants were told that TDAC would use a scoring system, and that it was essential to fill out the application very carefully and completely She said Chairman Sullivan constructed the scoring sheet based on the sections of the application The form “parallels” the information that was asked for in the application, she said, so when an application was incomplete, that would be reflected in their score Ms Sauer said other questions TDAC had asked the applicants are detailed in the meeting’s minutes Mayor Keyserling said he’d read the TDAC minutes and recalled that there was an issue of the Black Chamber of Commerce not having a “private match,” and also that the outline of the organization’s program was “vague or not nearly as specific as [TDAC] expected.” Ms Sauer said a main concern for TDAC was with the number of “heads in beds” the Black Chamber of Commerce brought to the city, and the committee could not get an answer about how the number was derived and where in the City of Beaufort the people the organization said it had brought had stayed Mayor Keyserling said he’d like to recommend that there be “some sort of process” for applications that TDAC didn’t recommend funding He thinks they “should continue the conversation about this particular grant” but approve TDAC’s other recommendations Erica Dickerson said there is a line in the city’s application for ATAX where applicants are to indicate that they’ve applied for county ATAX funding; the Black Chamber of Commerce had been to the county’s ATAX meeting, which took place the day before the city’s, but the amount the organization asked for from the county “was not reflected in the application There was no mention of it at all,” though that is “part of the process.” Ms Dickerson added that making the recommendations “was a really hard choice, and it was a very small pie.” Mayor Keyserling and Ms Sauer agreed that it was “very small.” Councilman Murray said he felt the ATAX process had “made tremendous gains this year,” but there are still issues with “the way we educate and communicate with applicants afterwards A lot of that burden falls on staff and on the city.” He said TDAC’s “recommendations have been published a couple of times now,” and “the Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page 15 demonstration of heads in beds has always been” a requirement of the ATAX process, as has listing on the application any county ATAX funds that were applied for, but on the Black Chamber of Commerce’s application, this “was left blank,” so he is comfortable with passing TDAC’s “recommendations as presented.” Mr Holman said the Black Chamber of Commerce application did not leave “accommodations taxes from other sources” blank Councilman McFee said that information was not on the Black Chamber of Commerce’s application, and he asked if the organization had requested ATAX from Beaufort County Mr Holman said they did Councilman McFee said the application says to provide an amount “requested or received.” Mr Holman said the amount is given “on another line” elsewhere in the application Councilman Murray said Mr Holman had brought “up important questions about process,” but there are technicalities in the Black Chamber of Commerce’s application that “warrant” not recommending funding The motion passed unanimously MAYOR’S REPORT Mayor Keyserling said he is continuing “on my rising sea level journey” and described some meetings he’d attended about the issue It is not going to happen overnight, he said, “and there is much that we can do,” including improving stormwater drainage REPORTS FROM COUNCIL Councilman Cromer said that he would be attending the South Carolina Association of Regional Councils conference Councilman Murray said the new executive director of the Economic Development Corp had started work, and there is new office space in Okatie Southern Carolina Alliance has accepted Beaufort County into it, he said, and the alliance is doing a site survey that will be back in a couple months There being no further business to come before council, Councilman Cromer made a motion, second by Councilman McFee, to adjourn the regular council meeting The motion passed unanimously, and the meeting was adjourned at 9:19 p.m Council work & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page 16 CITY OF BEAUFORT DEPARTMENT REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM TO: FROM: AGENDA ITEM TITLE: MEETING DATE: DEPARTMENT: CITY COUNCIL DATE: 12/7/2017 Worksession November 21, 2017 12/12/2017 City Clerk BACKGROUND INFORMATION: PLACED ON AGENDA FOR: REMARKS: ATTACHMENTS: Description Minutes Type Backup Material Upload Date 12/7/2017 A work session of the Beaufort City Council was held on November 21, 2017 at 5:30 p.m in the Beaufort Municipal Complex, 1901 Boundary Street In attendance were Mayor Billy Keyserling, Councilwoman Nan Sutton, Councilmen Mike McFee and Phil Cromer, and Bill Prokop, city manager Councilman Stephen Murray was absent In accordance with the South Carolina Code of Laws, 1976, Section 30-4-80(d) as amended, all local media were duly notified of the time, date, place, and agenda of this meeting CALL TO ORDER Mayor Keyserling called the work session to order at 5:00 p.m INTERVIEWS FOR PARK & TREE ADVISORY COMMITTEE (PTAC) City council interviewed Blake Austin for the open design professional position on PTAC, and Stacy Applegate, Carol Corbin, Kimberly Ann McFann, and Gordon Fritz for the open citizen representative position Kitty Wolfe was not able to attend the interview, but she is also a candidate Councilman McFee told the candidates the vote on the positions would probably take place at the November 28 council meeting Mr Prokop noted that parks as well as trees are PTAC’s responsibility, and he gave examples of questions that PTAC would consider about the city’s parks There was a general discussion about the city’s parks, and then Mayor Keyserling discussed the idea of “regional parks” and an effort to establish a countywide fee to maintain them This had been abandoned, but he said he would be interested in hearing what the thoughts are of these candidates for PTAC on a “conservancy,” such as Charleston has There was a discussion about the city owning and maintaining cemeteries that Mr Fritz said are sometimes used as parks Mayor Keyserling discussed past plans for – and the current agreement with – a cemetery as part of the Boundary Street project There was also a discussion of the Battery Saxton vista project on Boundary Street, and Mayor Keyserling described the plans to expand that passive park Neal Pugliese discussed plans to clean up the vista CITY GOALS QUARTERLY UPDATE Mr Prokop offered a summary of what has been accomplished with the goals established at the annual retreat Goal 1: Create sustainable economic growth • Commerce Park prospects have been courted, Mr Prokop said, and Dust Solutions will be moving into a new facility in the park This will bring 12-15 new jobs to the city, and perhaps or soon after They are also planning to expand Council work session minutes November 21, 2017 Page • • • • • • • immediately from an operation in New Jersey Negotiations are underway with other Commerce Park prospects, he said The city has a $300,000 grant from Hargray that it is using to fund infrastructure improvements at Commerce Park Hargray will be running high-speed Internet service through all of Commerce Park, Mr Prokop said He described how the city’s share of this would be funded Progress is being made with college and university partners to build student housing on Boundary Street for 96 students An additional 100 – 200 rooms may be added after the first year Other plans are also underway to grow the USCB campus, he said The planning department is working on projects with various developers on a variety of new projects Mr Prokop provided different examples of this Initiatives by the Redevelopment Commission (RDC) include a new start-up in Beaufort Digital Corridor (BDC), which now has 24 members, partners, and investors He reviewed other measures taking place at BDC The Don Ryan Center has talked with a few potential innovators, Mr Prokop said, though it has not yet taken off as was expected He added that in Commerce Park, there is an agreement with SCE&G for street lighting provided at SCE&G’s cost Mayor Keyserling asked “how much solar” it would “take to power those lights.” Mr Prokop said he has no idea, but that it the kind of question “we want to look at.” Goal 2: Comprehensive communications plan • The city hired an intern who was working full-time until September on improving the website and writing press releases, Mr Prokop said, but she is working now only as she is needed • He said the city hired SK Designs to manage the city’s Facebook page and to stream meetings live, which has dramatically increased the number of followers on the city’s page and the police and fire departments pages • The city needs to be “more proactive” with its press releases, Mr Prokop said; “we’ve improved, but we’re nowhere near where we want to be.” • “Additional reporting tools” have “increased transparency” for internal and external city customers, he said • The staff synchronization system prioritizes projects and informs various audiences about 39 ongoing city projects, Mr Prokop said Goal 3: Attract businesses to relocate through tourism • Mark Dawson of Sasaki Associates has made a proposal for the next phase of the Waterfront Park and the marina, Mr Prokop said • High-speed Wi-Fi is being installed in Waterfront Park Mr Prokop described technical difficulties with this project, but it should be running as it should within a week Council work session minutes November 21, 2017 Page • • • • • • New banners have been installed downtown, he said, and a hanging basket test project is underway There will be a marketing blitz about free holiday parking in the marina, Mr Prokop said Staff is reviewing ordinances to ensure they are up-to-date and reasonable Staff continues to plan to stabilize and enhance the city’s network infrastructure on a multi-year basis, Mr Prokop said The RDC has made progress in “defining/improving” relationships between the Chamber of Commerce, Main Street Beaufort, and the city, he said The RDC conducted a focus group on downtown, Mr Prokop said, and a new merchants’ association was founded Goal 4: Initiate a plan for significant growth through infill in the Northwest Quadrant and parts of the Old Commons • The Duke Street initiative will conclude December 31, Mr Prokop said, and a similar project on Washington Street is kicking off The effects have been very positive, he said Councilman McFee said the Washington Street letters have gone out, and “we’re continuing to work on Washington Street Park” and improvements to it as “an anchor for the neighborhood.” Goal 5: Create and coordinate opportunities for affordable housing in the City of Beaufort Mr Prokop said an informal partnership with Habitat for Humanity and Beaufort Housing Authority has been initiated, and there was a closing recently for parcels of property that the city donated for the construction of affordable housing The projects are to be under construction by the end of 2018, he said Also, the sale of “the old fire station” will close next year, and it will become a 2- or 3-unit affordable housing apartment building Deborah Johnson said there would be 13 affordable housing units among the various projects Mr Prokop said the city has made good progress on affordable housing and “on all of our goals.” Communications still need to be improved, and the ambassador program downtown needs to get going The key is to create jobs with a wage level of at least $15/ hour, Mr Prokop said Mr Prokop said staff is “pretty much on track” and will deliver another report in the second quarter He feels relationships with institutions of higher education in the area have been strengthened Mayor Keyserling said he and Mr Prokop are working on an economic development initiative that can’t be discussed yet; it will focus on “unemployable people.” Council work session minutes November 21, 2017 Page Mr Prokop said there is now a countywide economic development director, John O’Toole He is also working with the Southern Carolina Alliance to ensure that economic development “stays at the top of our list.” Councilman Cromer said he would ask Lowcountry Council of Governments to initiate planning on the impact of the port in Port Royal Councilman McFee said the Lowcountry Area Transportation Study (LATS) “is touching a lot of that.” There has been discussion of the environmental impact studies, he said Mr Prokop said the Hardeeville city manager had sent an email about a new development of 9,500 homes that is coming in Councilman McFee said of the port project, “The Army Corps of Engineers and the required permitting” is “about years off,” and in the meantime, “a lot of these impact studies are being conducted with reference to the consultants between the ports of Georgia and South Carolina.” Councilman McFee asked about the marketing for free holiday parking; the program starts this weekend There was a video, Councilwoman Sutton said, on the Beaufort Gazette website, and Park Beaufort passed out information sheets to the downtown merchants today Mr Prokop said there are posters, newspaper ads, and more There was a discussion of the video, which Mayor Keyserling shared with Councilwoman Sutton and Councilman McFee Mr Prokop said staff knows they need to start marketing this program sooner next year There was a general discussion of LaNelle Fabian, who has left Main Street Beaufort/the Chamber of Commerce Mr Prokop said the Chamber of Commerce is not hiring anyone to replace Ms Fabian Councilwoman Sutton said she feels the Chamber is “going to let” Main Street Beaufort “die.” She thinks the city should continue to pay dues to the national Main Street organization, and send Linda Roper to its annual meetings Members get a lot of important free information, she said Councilwoman Sutton doesn’t think the Downtown Merchants Association is going to be able to replace Main Street Beaufort and suggested the city could “just find somebody to the” nonprofit “events” that Main Street did in the past Mayor Keyserling said the Chamber of Commerce got $20,000 from the city for events, and he asked what that is “buying if they don’t have anyone in charge.” There was a general discussion of the Christmas parade Mayor Keyserling said Main Street is a good organization and a “good affiliation,” but it “lost its way,” and the group was “self-perpetuating” and unable “to look beyond the events.” Much about the Main Street model is worthwhile and good for the city, he said Council work session minutes November 21, 2017 Page Councilwoman Sutton said the city has hired Ms Roper as the downtown director, so maybe the city could pick up part of Main Street’s functions There was a general discussion of the role of the Downtown Merchants Association and the possibility of hiring a consultant Ms Johnson said Main Street Beaufort had a merchants’ group within it at one point Councilwoman Sutton said the merchants’ association doesn’t “look at the big picture” that Main Street Beaufort is supposed to look at She also believes the Chamber of Commerce won’t communicate with the city Councilman Cromer suggested that the money the city gave to the Chamber could be pulled Ms Johnson said Main Street Beaufort has a board of directors, whether it has staff or not, and that board is also the Chamber of Commerce board Though the Chamber’s board and Main Street’s are legally different entities, the same people sit on both, she said, plus people from the old Main Street Beaufort board Councilwoman Sutton feels the City of Beaufort could pull Main Street Beaufort out of the Chamber of Commerce “as easily as the Chamber pulled Main Street in,” and could “stand Main Street Beaufort back up.” Councilman Cromer said the Chamber won’t want to give up Shrimp Festival, for example, and there would need to be someone to run the organization if the city took it over Mayor Keyserling said council had given money to the Downtown Merchants Association that would have otherwise gone to the Chamber of Commerce Councilwoman Sutton said council has to make a decision, and she feels the city or the Chamber should pay the $1,200 annual dues to Main Street America Councilman Cromer said Main Street was set up to be run by municipalities; he knows of no other Main Street organizations that are run by a municipality’s Chamber of Commerce Ms Johnson said legally the city would “need to work with [the Chamber of Commerce] board.” Councilman Cromer said they could get in touch with Beppie LeGrand, the manager of Main Street South Carolina, for suggestions Mr Prokop said the city is working on another project with Lise Sundrla, and he could talk to – and possibly hire – her for to weeks, to ensure that “everything’s in place” for this program He said he would have to check to see if there is money in the ATAX (Accommodations Tax) reserve fund, but that money could be used to hire Ms Sundrla as a consultant “because this is really for tourism.” Councilman McFee said he has a reservation about using ATAX money for this Mr Prokop said he could look elsewhere for it because it would not be a large amount of money Councilman Cromer asked if the bulk of the parking money goes to the RDC Mr Prokop said it does, but it’s been going to Commerce Park and to purchase “new equipment for parking.” Councilwoman Sutton said Kathy Todd had shown her “all the line items of the Council work session minutes November 21, 2017 Page RDC,” and the money had all been used for economic development, “a big chunk of money for the Digital Corridor and Don Ryan Center downtown waterfront Wi-Fi,” and infill Councilman McFee said the incentives for Duke and Washington Street infill “are on there, but they’re not a very large portion” of the Redevelopment Fund “It was completely gone,” Councilwoman Sutton said She believes “a portion” of the parking money “should be helping us fund this issue that we’ve got” downtown “The money should be spent, I believe, where the money comes from,” she said Mayor Keyserling said council would like Mr Prokop to “find someone with Main Street experience” to come up with a strategic plan in the next “30 to 60 days, max.” Mr Prokop suggested that this “might be a relief to the Chamber, as well.” There was general agreement about this among the councilpeople and Ms Johnson Mr Prokop asked if council has “anything major” for the regular council meeting on November 28 There was a general discussion about council meetings on December 12 and 19 Mayor Keyserling said council could use the meeting time for work sessions, since that is what council needs to catch up on It was agreed that the council meeting on December 26 would be cancelled There was then a general discussion about dates for the council retreat in February Mr Prokop told Councilman Cromer he would follow up on scheduling another meeting with the Town of Port Royal council Councilman Cromer said he’d also like to invite the local legislative delegation to meet with council Councilman Cromer asked Mayor Keyserling if Dick Stewart was using tax credits for the student housing project Mayor Keyserling said he didn’t know Councilman Cromer said there is a lawsuit about that in Columbia, and Mr Prokop said that “was for an MCIP” (multi-county investment plan), which Mr Stewart’s project is not There being no further business to come before council, the work session adjourned at 6:38 p.m Council work session minutes November 21, 2017 Page CITY OF BEAUFORT DEPARTMENT REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM TO: FROM: AGENDA ITEM TITLE: MEETING DATE: DEPARTMENT: CITY COUNCIL DATE: 12/8/2017 William Prokop, City Manager Ordinance authorizing the City Manager to enter into contracts for Sale for Properties in Commerce Park - 1st Reading 12/12/2017 City Managers Office BACKGROUND INFORMATION: PLACED ON AGENDA FOR: REMARKS: ATTACHMENTS: Description Ordinance Type Backup Material Upload Date 12/8/2017 ORDINANCE Authorizing the City Manager to Enter Into Contracts for Sale for City Properties in Commerce Park WHEREAS the City owns property in the Commerce Park located in the City limits; and, WHEREAS, the City has been approached by DSI Properties, LLC to purchase acres shown as Lot A on the plat attached hereto; and, WHEREAS, the City has been approached by Oliver’s CleanBurn, LLC, to purchase 16 acres of Lot 27 (TMS R100 024 000 0408 000), the exact dimensions to be determined by survey; and, WHEREAS, the purchase price for both parcels shall be $20,000 per acre, less job creation and other economic development incentives to be determined by Council, and agreed upon by the parties; and, WHEREAS, these are the types of industry, job creation, and economic development for which Commerce Park was purchased and developed by the City; and, WHEREAS, City Council finds that it is in the best interest of the City, and its citizens, to enter into contractual arrangement for the sale of these properties; and, WHEREAS, Section 1-3021 of the City Ordinances requires an Ordinance for the sale of lands of the City; NOW THEREFORE, be it ordained by the City Council of the City of Beaufort, in chambers duly assembled, and by the authority of the same, that the City Manager shall be authorized to enter into contractual arrangements to sell City property as follows: To sell acres shown as Lot A on the plat attached hereto to DSL Properties, LLC, at a price of $20,000 per acre, less job creation and other economic development incentives to be determined by City Council, and agreed upon by the parties, the final terms and conditions of which shall be determined and presented prior to final adoption of this Ordinance; and, To sell 16 acres of Lot 27 (TMS R100 024 000 0408 000), the exact dimensions to be determined by survey, at a price of $20,000 per acre, less job creation and other economic development incentives to be determined by City Council, and agreed upon by the parties, the final terms and conditions of which shall be determined and presented prior to final adoption of this Ordinance This Ordinance shall be effective upon adoption _ BILLY KEYSERLING, MAYOR ATTEST: IVETTE BURGESS, CITY CLERK 1ST Reading _ 2nd Reading & Adoption _ Reviewed by William B Harvey, III, City Attorney .. .CITY OF BEAUFORT DEPARTMENT REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM TO: FROM: AGENDA ITEM TITLE: MEETING DATE: DEPARTMENT: CITY COUNCIL DATE: 12/ 7 /2017 Worksession and Regular Meetings... November 21, 2017 Page CITY OF BEAUFORT DEPARTMENT REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM TO: FROM: AGENDA ITEM TITLE: MEETING DATE: DEPARTMENT: CITY COUNCIL DATE: 12/ 8 /2017 William Prokop, City Manager... & regular session minutes November 14, 2017 Page 16 CITY OF BEAUFORT DEPARTMENT REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM TO: FROM: AGENDA ITEM TITLE: MEETING DATE: DEPARTMENT: CITY COUNCIL DATE: 12/ 7/2017