Pelzer Mayor Will Ragland responded this week to the passing of a resolution last week by Pelzer Town Council limiting the mayor’s spending to “one cent”. He also announced that he does not intend to run again for the office of mayor.
The unanimous vote on spending was held at an “emergency” meeting of Council held last Wednesday (June 18). Ragland said he was not at the special called meeting because he was “working that night”.
Ragland serves as executive director of the Mill Town Players and was at a rehearsal for the current production. “I could not meet. I was working that night,” he said. “I will follow the council’s wishes.”
The resolution was in response to spending on the “wild flower” project which came to light when a spreadsheet of expenses for the project was made available to Council at the June 3 meeting.
Ragland justified the spending, stating that Council “budgeted money for that purpose” as part of the 2024-25 budget and admitted that payments for the removal and relocation of dirt, which totaled (($26,000)) (at the time of the printout for council) was done “in a way that I normally don’t do because I was short on time.”
He said he rushed the process because it was Spring and the flowers needed planting. “We were already late”, he said. “It was the last chance to get the project underway.”
Ragland said he followed the Pelzer spending code, which allows the mayor to approve expenditures of $1000 or less and that there was $70,000 budgeted from the Town’s Hospitality Tax fund for “special projects”.
The funding is budgeted from the Hospitality Tax which brings in $167,000 in revenue. Budgeted amounts from Hospitality Tax fund for 2024-25 were: $73,000 for parks, $6,000 for events, $73,000 for special projects and $15,000 for maintenance and equipment.”
The “wild flower project” fell under the special projects allocation.
Ragland said Council had approved other similar expenditures in the past, including $30,000 for tree cutting. He said he had gotten three quotes for every single job site and had council vote on them. That process takes three months, he said.
Ragland clarified that the 15 accounts which were combined “were not combined into one” but were either closed because there was no money in them, or moved back into the general fund or hospitality fund. The COVID account was left alone, he said.
“I followed all the rules. It will come out,” he said. “They limited me to one penny and that’s ok”.
From now on, Ragland said he will bring all outside expenses to council to be voted on each month.
Ragland also said that he will not be running for the position of Mayor of Pelzer in the upcoming November election. “I have been working every morning, every day, and buying dirt with my own money to finish the “wildflower project”. My agenda was to improve the town any way I could. I will finish up my term and do all I can for Pelzer.”
Ragland said he plans “To do what I do best and focus on bringing joy to a lot of people” through the Mill Town Players.
Regarding the vacant Clerk position, the Mayor said one candidate will be interviewed this week for the position and the town will continue to interview “until we find somebody qualified and who wants to work for Pelzer.”
Though he is not running again, Ragland said he hopes to see people sign up to run for office in November.
Two council positions are up for re-election, Eddie Waits and Donna Ide. A third seat on council will also be open due to the announcement this week by Councilman Cruz West that he is resigning for personal reasons. It is not clear yet whether West’s seat will be filled with a special election or included on the November ballot.
Ragland said he hopes the current restoration projects that are in process, including the community building and the old hospital building, will continue as planned.
“The hospital building is a one-of-a kind building and money is available for the projects,” he said. The town can also get forty-five percent back for their investment through special state historical tax credits.
