To SC Supreme Court
By Stan Welch
More than three months after a contentious decision to authorize county attorneys to pursue the appeal of the decisions rendered in the County’s case versus Joey Preston, the legal documents to move that appeal to the South Carolina Supreme Court were filed last week.
During their meeting Tuesday night, Anderson County Council approved major economic and infrastructure incentives realated to Duke Energy’s intentions to upgrade the Lee Steam Station near Williamston. The company is considering plans to build and run a natural-gas-fired plant at the site which will include a $600 million investment.
Anderson Council officials are still calling the project by the code name “Project Mystery Green,” though published reports have identified it as the Lee Steam Station project.
If the company proceeds, the new plant would take up to 18 months to build and add an estimated 500 construction jobs. The plant will employ 25 people making an average of $30 per hour a Duke Energy spokesperson said.
According to reports, the company has not made the final decision on whether to build the new natural gas plant but could make a final decision this spring. Duke Energy has stated plans to retire two of its coal-burning generators at Lee Steam by 2105 and convert a third one to natural gas.
By Stan Welch
Anderson County Council unanimously passed an inducement resolution identifying a power generating project of a company identified only as Project Mystery Green Tuesday night. Since there are only so many power generating companies in the area, and only one that District Six Councilman Ken Waters works for, his request to recuse himself from the discussion and vote narrowed it down to one. That would be Duke Energy. (See related story)
The resolution expresses the Council’s intent to offer certain tax and infrastructure incentives at the appropriate time. Economic Development Director Burriss Nelson told the Council that the existing site, i.e. the Lee Steam Plant, currently generates $2.64 million in annual ad valorem taxes. That amount will increase to $4.1 million in the first year of expanded operations. In addition, inclusion of the property in a multi-county industrial park will generate an additional $1.8 million, bringing the annual amount to $5.69 million.
During their meeting Tuesday night, Anderson County Council approved major economic and infrastructure incentives realated to Duke Energy’s intentions to upgrade the Lee Steam Station near Williamston. The company is considering plans to build and run a natural-gas-fired plant at the site which will include a $600 million investment. Anderson Council officials are still calling the project by the code name “Project Mystery Green,” though published reports have identified it as the Lee Steam Station project.
By Stan Welch
After nine months of public input, controversy and tweaking, Anderson County Council finally passed an ordinance regulating the commercial sale of dogs. The ordinance seeks to regulate the so called puppy mills and insure that breeders/sellers are legitimate and ethical concerns.
By Stan Welch
Tuesday night’s Anderson County Council meeting included a presentation by Councilman Francis Crowder in support of a proposed major economic development initiative.
Crowder made a visual and audio power point presentation acknowledging Anderson County’s job creation efforts during 2013, pointing out that almost nine hundred jobs resulted from the expansion of ten existing businesses, and the decision by three new companies to locate in the county.
Dunn elected Chair
By Stan Welch
For the second year in a row, a bid to make District Seven Councilwoman Cindy Wilson the chairwoman of the Anderson County Council failed Tuesday night.
Wilson’s longtime allies on the Council Eddie Moore and incumbent Chairman Francis Crowder led the effort. Moore said he was proud and honored to place her name in nomination, pointing out that except for District Two Councilwoman Gracie Floyd, Wilson has the longest term of service.
Questions detailed language
By Stan Welch
The Anderson County Council held an unusually brief meeting Tuesday night, running through a short agenda of items largely related to economic development projects.
Before they could get to the actual legislative portion of the agenda, however, the Council listened as District Two Councilwoman, during her regularly reserved ‘news you can use’ portion of the agenda,
By Stan Welch
In a split vote Tuesday night, a deeply divided Anderson County Council decided to pursue its appeals in its case against former county administrator Joey Preston all the way to the state Supreme Court.
The decision came after a fractured and fractious session, which began with Councilwoman Gracie Floyd challenging the presence of the resolution to pursue the appealsono the agenda. She stunned the crowd when she challenged Councilwoman Cindy Wilson’s right to place the item on the agenda, citing portions of the ruling to be appealed; sections which disqualified the votes of Wilson and former Councilman Bob Waldrep because they were being sued by Preston at the time.
Motions denied in Preston case
By Stan Welch
In the latest rulings by Judge Roger Crouch in the case of Anderson County vs Joey Preston, issued Friday, November 8, the judge denied all three motions filed by the County to reconsider previous rulings in the case. Those rulings were unanimously in Preston’s favor, and were related to his $1.2 million severance package, awarded him by the 2008 lame duck county council.
