Latest / Saluda County Unplugged / Recap of April 13, 2026 County Council Meeting and Update on EMS and Detention Center Projects
Transcript
- Josh Morton: Well, that's a wrap on this week's episode of Saluda County Unplugged. As always, our goal is to take what happens in county government and make it easy to understand and relevant to everyday life here in Saluda County. And just a reminder, the EMS headquarters ribbon cutting is May the 1st at 1pm and it's open to the public. Thanks for tuning in and we'll see you next week. Have questions or an idea for an upcoming episode? Email us at publicinfo at salutacounty.sc.gov. And remember, only you can prevent forest fires. We'll see you next week. Budgets, reassessments, stolen road signs, an ordinance proposed by a citizen, economic development, all topics discussed at the April 13th, 2026 Saluda County Council meeting. We're going to recap that meeting for you and we've got exciting updates on the progress of the new EMS headquarters and the Saluda County Detention Center. All that and more on this week's episode of Saluda County unplugged. Welcome back to Saluda County Unplugged, shining a light on Saluda County government. I'm Rachel. And I'm Josh. And today we're walking through the April 13th County Council meeting and highlighting the decisions made and conversations that matter most to the residents. And for a meeting that lasted just over half an hour, there was a lot packed into this one. So at Monday night's council meeting, both the school district budget and the county budget were presented for first reading. And just as a reminder from previous episodes, first reading is really just the starting point in the process. It's where everything gets placed on the table. This includes all of the departmental requests, our priorities, projected needs. so it's pretty much the full picture There were several speakers during the public comment period Up first was Amy Potts, chair of the Saluda County Republican Party. Mrs. Potts focused on clarification around public representation, specifically noting that unless someone has been clearly identified as speaking on behalf of the Republican Party, their comments should be understood as their own personal opinion. All right, well we are here with Assistant County Administrator Heather Griffin, who is going to be giving us an update on the new EMS headquarters and the new county detention facility. So Heather, congratulations. You're the first ever guest on the Saluda County Unplugged podcast. So welcome. I am so honored to be here and to be the first guest on Saluda County Unplugged. I cannot tell you how excited I am about this new venture. And I really hope that all the citizens will take time to listen to this podcast. I think that this podcast before the council and administrator begin making adjustments and balancing everything out over the coming weeks. the budget proposed by Saluda School District 1 came in at $30,617,053 and about $6.87 million of that is proposed to be funded through ad valorem property taxes. She stated that at times members of the party may provide comments to council on their own and that their membership in the party should not be taken as representing the official position of the party. Her comments were really about making sure that there's no confusion over how those remarks are interpreted. Two speakers, Paul Gilbert and Will Williams, spoke from an economic development perspective and their remarks were both centered around the challenges rural counties face when competing for industry. The proposed county operating budget at its first reading is $19,215,848. with the plain and simple to understand information could bridge the gap between the citizens and the local government. And that theme song, who wouldn't want to listen to that? Hey, we're pretty proud of the theme song. We walk around singing it in the office every day. I keep having people ask me if we can put the theme song on Spotify. So we might do that soon. knows? It could be our ringtone. There you go. So Heather, again, thanks for being here. ⁓ Josh said, things like infrastructure limitations, workforce, and lack of interstate access. But one of the biggest things that came out of the comments made is just how much the perception that these companies have of the community plays into their decision ⁓ to here or not. These companies don't just look at land or incentive packages. They're also paying attention to how the community talks about growth. One of the first things that came up was public safety. During his report, Councilman Beaton Bow recognized National Public Safety Week and took time to acknowledge EMS, dispatchers, law enforcement, and county employees who support those services every day. There was also a reminder that the new EMS headquarters ribbon cutting is scheduled for May 1st at 1 p.m. and it's open to the public. That's a major milestone project that's been in development for quite a while, and we'll talk about that more a little later in the episode. They look at what public meetings sound like, what the sentiment looks like, and whether there's alignment around development. They look at things like conversations on social media, and they assess whether the community has a positive or negative outlook whenever it comes to growth and development. And the point wasn't about Right now, there is a gap of about $504,891 between projected revenue and proposed expenditures. But one of the key takeaways is that this gap is actually smaller than what we've seen in ⁓ other budget cycles. So while there's still work ahead, the county is starting this process in a better position than we have historically. But again, as we said on last week's episode, first reading is really just the wish list. going to jump into a little bit on the detention center and the new EMS headquarters. Would you want to start talking a little bit about the EMS headquarters that hopefully will be up and going soon? ⁓ I'll just say in the beginning, EMS and the detention center are two buildings that the county has been in need for for so many years. It's been huge undertaking and I understand why it's taken so long to get the project started. Councilman Daniel also provided a brief update on residential growth in the county. New housing construction was mentioned as a positive sign. Nothing dramatic, but an indicator of positive growth in the area. area that stood out in particular was Chairman Moore addressing the theft of road signs across the county. Missing signs create a significant risk hindering the ability of emergency responders to find locations quickly, which can delay response times. discouraging discussion. It was really about recognizing that perception is a big part of the decision making process for companies considering investing in our community. Another speaker, Reverend Wanda Jackson, who has spoken at other recent meetings, came back to discuss a nonprofit called House Provisions. It's a resource and development organization focused on addressing homelessness and supporting low income residents. and the budget will be adjusted and revised over the next several weeks prior to adoption. Following the first reading of these two budget ordinances, Council did address a few more items. April was designated as Fair Housing Month, reminding us all that everyone should have access to safe and sound housing. Council also approved the purchase of a 10-ton HVAC unit to replace the broken 20-year-old unit at the County Administration Building Their program includes things like housing assistance, job support, food and clothing resources, and longer term services like leadership development and workforce readiness. Reverend Jackson also discussed interest in potentially partnering with the county or someone else to secure a facility locally so that they can provide services here in Saluda County. Stevie Herron was the last speaker in the public comment section of the agenda. He provided information about the Seniors Farmers Market Nutrition Program. and approved the issuance of a request for qualifications for engineering and planning services at the Saluda County Airport. Finally, Council appointed a member to the Steps Board and two county employees to the County Grievance Committee before adjourning the meeting. There was no executive session this month. And that's your recap of the April 13th County Council meeting. But don't go anywhere. There were a lot of hurdles, but ⁓ with hard work and dedication we've been able to make it to almost completion with both buildings. And I have to say the detention center employees and the ⁓ EMS EMS employees provide to our counties that are vitally important and they deserve facilities that will serve them back for many years. Yeah, absolutely. ⁓ so I guess, looking at the EMS headquarters, what's the status of that project? ⁓ So EMS is which provides eligible seniors with vouchers to purchase fresh locally grown produce. Distribution is scheduled for early June and because funding is limited it will be first come first served. Mr. Herron stated that he would be providing more details on how to get the vouchers in May. After public comments, council held the public hearing and second reading on ordinance 2-26 a one-year post payment of the county's five-year reassessment due to a staffing shortage in the tax assessor's office. because coming up next, we sit down with Assistant County Administrator Heather Griffin for an update on two building projects in the county that are nearing completion. and got the certificate of occupancy. ⁓ employees have been trained on the building and how to use it ⁓ they're moving in. There going to be a ribbon cutting on May ⁓ 1st one o'clock. We're very excited about that. So the plan to have them all moved in and set up by that date. ⁓ Awesome, awesome. then what about the detention center? the detention center is a little bit more complicated. substantial on that building is set for the end of March. But there a lot of moving pieces with that building. There's a lot of inspections that have to happen. And as you can imagine, with the detention center, it would be a little bit more complicated, but they're working every single day and we're excited about seeing that come into completion too. Yeah, absolutely. you for those you listening, maybe don't know where our office is located. We're actually right behind the new EMS After that, council moved on to old business, which started with a topic that everyone is always interested in, and that's the county's budget. On top of the risk, the cost of replacing signs adds up quickly. The county unnecessarily spends thousands of taxpayer dollars each year replacing these signs. Road signs are not souvenirs and when you take them, you're putting your community at risk and wasting taxpayer dollars. So if you happen to find any of these signs or know where any of them are, please return them. At the end of the council member reports, there was also a brief discussion about a proposed ordinance that came from a citizen regarding how the county handles the sale of publicly owned land. Chairman Jim Moore stated that members of council had reviewed the proposal and consulted with the county attorney. He stated that the county does follow state law regarding these transactions. The concern was that the proposed ordinance would be too restrictive, not necessarily in intent, but in practice. and across the street from the detention center. So we have actually watched these buildings from the moment that they started clearing the land through grading and bringing in dirt and building the facilities themselves. So we are, excited ⁓ to see those buildings ⁓ up and ⁓ there two facilities that county can be very proud of. Yes, absolutely. In fact, when I leave here just a few minutes, I plan to stop by because I just want to see it And Heather, I have a quick question. That ribbon adding too many steps or requirements can slow the county's ability to respond when economic development opportunities arise. ⁓ And in the development world, the ability to move things quickly can be the difference between attracting a business or losing out to a competing jurisdiction. And again, this was as part of the council report, not as an item for action on the agenda. cutting that you mentioned is that open to the public on May the 1st? Yes absolutely we'd love for the public to come and see what what we have. Yeah fantastic awesome well Heather thank you so much for joining us today. Thank you. From there, council moved into public comments, which covered a pretty wide range of topics.