During their Sept. 9 meeting, Pelzer Town Council took no action on a contract for renovations to the Community Building and failed to pass first reading on a 2025-26 budget proposal.
Council tabled a vote on the contract for renovations to the Community Building after Mayor Will Ragland said that Daniel Builders was still putting together details.
Council did approve the low bid by Daniel Builders for the project, subject to the Council’s ability to make changes before final approval. The bid was approximately $300,000 more than expected and came in at $937,138.
Council met with a representative of Daniel Builders in a work session held a day before the council meeting to discuss the renovation project but something had come up and details of the contract were not finalized.
Mayor Ragland said, “There were no surprises at the meeting on Monday with Daniel Builders. Everything communicated was consistent with what Kyle Campbell of Preservation South and Billy Zion of Zion Architects has communicated with us.”
Mayor Ragland also presented a $2.66 million budget which failed to receive a second and was tabled. The budget reflects $2,542,986.40 in revenues and expenses and includes Hospitality Revenue and Expenses of $120,500.
Ragland said they are still interviewing candidates for the Town Clerk position and there is a position open on the Planning Commission.
During public comments portion of the meeting, several residents, including mayoral candidate Chase Smithwick and council candidate Beth Sellers, questioned the Community Building being designated Historic and not being on the National Register and the tax credits that will come to the town to offset the renovation cost.
There were also some comments about the cost of restoring the old Hospital Building and questions raised about the financial status of the Town.
In a followup to the meeting, Mayor Ragland told The Journal, “I intend to ask the state for assistance in funding the hospital restoration for a third time, especially if the bids that come in at the end of this month exceed $1 million.
Ragland said council worked together on the budget at their last meeting and that it reflects everything they currently know. “I have done the research, asked the questions, have been open with the council about the numbers, and was surprised last night that they didn’t even second the motion for discussion. I’m not sure what they want changed because nothing was communicated to me about it by them.”
Responding to questions about finances of the Town, Ragland said, “The Town of Pelzer is in excellent financial shape. As I communicated to our council yesterday, Town accounts reflect: Town Account – $1,603,329.25; Hospitality – $73,976.54; COVID Relief – $567,273.13 for a total of $2,244,578.92.”
According to the South Carolina Department of Archives and History, the nomination by the State Historic Preservation Office of SC for the community building, also known as the Pelzer Roller Skating Rink, has been submitted to the National Park Service as of Aug. 22, 2025 and the Keeper of the National Register at the National Park Service has 45 days to take action on the nomination.
The first draft was submitted in May of 2024 and has undergone multiple reviews and revisions.
Additional details on the Pelzer Community Building renovation project will be addressed in a future article in The Journal.
Photo: Ready for renovation to begin – Pelzer Town Council recently approved a low bid by Daniel Builders for renovation of the Community Building, subject to the Council’s ability to make changes before final approval of the contract. The renovation project will include space for a kitchen, ADA restroom and storage. According to Mayor Will Ragland, the Hospital Building renovation project is “almost ready for bids.”
