Author: Paul Gable

HCSWA Board Hubris Round Two – Update

Update

The HCSWA board voted 5-2 to recommend to Horry County Council to vote to remove Dan Gray from the board.

As I’ve said before, this is one of the most arrogant decisions made by a public body in the 32 years I have been living in Horry County.

The five board members who voted yay – Lance Thompson, Pam Creech, Norfleet Jones, Mike Campbell and Sam Graves should be ashamed of themselves and they should immediately resign from the board,

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Another discussion to recommend removal of HCSWA board member Dan Gray is listed on the agenda for the Thursday December 10, 2015 solid waste authority board meeting.

An attempt to force such a vote was unsuccessful at the November 24, 2015 meeting of the HCSWA board. The board voted unanimously to defer the issue.

It does not appear that a vote Thursday night will garner the necessary super-majority margin of board members for the recommendation to pass.

However, even if it does, the vote by the HCSWA board only serves as a recommendation to Horry County Council to vote on the issue.

In the case of Mr. Gray, there is an added level of consideration as he is a nominee of the League of Cities to the HCSWA board.

The HCSWA board is comprised of seven members. Four of those members are nominated by Horry County Council. Three of the members are nominated by the League of Cities. All seven members of the HCSWA board are appointed by vote of Horry County Council.

According to several Horry County Council members I have spoken with, there will be no vote by council on the issue unless the League of Cities supports the HCSWA board vote.

According to Aynor mayor and League of Cities chairman, Keb Johnson, the League of Cities remains solidly behind Dan Gray remaining on the HCSWA board.

Therefore, it appears the HCSWA board discussion Thursday night is a waste of time. Even if a super-majority of board members vote to recommend removing Gray from the board, it appears this will nothing more than an attempt to publicly humiliate him because the League of Cities will not support the HCSWA board decision.

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SC House Pre-filed Bills

Looking over pre-filed bills for the upcoming legislative year is always a fun exercise and this year is no different.

Most pre-filed bills never make it out of committee because they reflect a member’s personal agenda or message they want to send to the voters in their district.

Some, however, won’t make it out of committee because they would alter the power structure in Columbia.

Several bills filed by Rep. Chris Corley (R-84) fall into this second category. Corley pre-filed several bills to change the way judges are elected in the state. Corley wants the judges on the Supreme Court, Appeals Court, Circuit Courts and Family Courts to be popularly elected by the voters of South Carolina replacing the current system of election by the General Assembly.

In addition, Corley wants to prohibit any member of the General Assembly, their family and those of certain other relationships with members to be prohibited from eligibility for a judgeship for five years after the member leaves office.

I believe the question of popular election of judges should be debated on the floor. The current system of electing judges by a number of members who will be practicing before them has led to a legal system that brings anything but fairness for the general public.

Corley also pre-filed a bill to submit the question of whether the Confederate battle flag should be returned to its place by the soldier’s monument on statehouse grounds to the people in the form of a popular referendum in the 2016 general election.

Other pre-filed bills that caught my eye during a scan of pre-filed bills in the SC House:

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Skydive Myrtle Beach v Horry County

Horry County’s ongoing litigation with Skydive Myrtle Beach isn’t as clear cut as county staffers would have you believe.

In fact, the matter is so conflicted that Aero News Network, an online aviation industry publication, did a rather extensive investigation of the ‘so-called’ facts of the case.

Their conclusion: “The matter is convoluted, contains a number of questionable statements (including charges of hazards and safety issues by county officials that appear to be highly suspect and based on less than expert knowledge of skydiving operations/hazards)…”

ANN editor in chief Jim Campbell, a veteran skydiver with USPA jumpmaster and instructor ratings, conducted a series of telephone interviews with Skydive Myrtle Beach staff and customers as well as Horry County officials.

Campbell’s conclusions from those interviews: “So far; no major safety issues have been corroborated and a number of respondents with significant skydiving credentials report few credible safety issues of any note — and nothing of significant import. However; the alleged safety issues noted by Horry County staffers, as well as some FAA bureaucrats (but not reported to SDMB staff or management until long after the alleged incidents occurred), seem questionable in both credibility as well as context…”

Campbell was so moved by his findings that he filed requests for investigation of the entire issue with the SC Attorney General, US Department of Transportation Inspector General and US Justice Department.

Horry County Department of Airports has a history of contradictory treatment of airport, especially general aviation, businesses. It put up with over 10 years of unfulfilled promises by AvCraft, reducing the rent on the hangars AvCraft leased at least three times, before deciding enough is enough.

In a letter dated February 19, 2014, Horry County attorney H. Randolph Haldi accused an attorney representing Skydive Myrtle Beach with either a “misunderstanding or misuse of criminal law.”

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Loris City Elections

The unofficial December 1, 2015 general election results for Loris mayor and three city council seats are:

Mayor

Michael Suggs 186

Henry Nichols 175

George Protz 105

Loris City Council

Jerry Hardee 255

Joan Gause 245

Michael Dozier 205

Jan Vescovi 193

Thessolonia Graham 182

Kimberly Rudelitch 122

The city election commission will certify results at 10:30 AM tomorrow at City Hall.

There are 10 provisional ballots to be considered by the election commission.

Based on the above results, if certified, the top three vote getters in the city council race, Jerry Hardee, Joan Gause and Michael Dozier, have won election to city council for four year terms.

There will be a runoff election for mayor between Michael Suggs and Henry Nichols on December 15, 2015.

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Mia McLeod Requests Better Protection for Clinics

Rep. Mia McLeod calls on Gov. Haley to increase security at women’s health centers in South Carolina

Columbia, SC – On Monday, State Representative Mia McLeod called on Governor Haley to increase security at women’s health centers in South Carolina following the deadly shooting of three people at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Rep. McLeod (D-Richland) said Governor Haley’s personal politics should take a backseat to the safety and wellbeing of health professionals and patients at South Carolina clinics.

“It doesn’t matter whether you’re pro-life or pro-choice, our focus right now should be to make sure what happened in Colorado Springs doesn’t happen in Columbia or Charleston,” said Rep. Mia McLeod. “The anti-Planned Parenthood rhetoric has been more prevalent in South Carolina than anywhere else in the country, and Governor Haley would be wise to tone down her own rhetoric and instead beef up security at our clinics. The safety and wellbeing of patients and those who work at women’s health centers in our state should be our top priority.”

Rep. McLeod said Governor Haley should take seriously the FBI’s warning in September that attacks on women’s health centers were likely.

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The Donald Trump Experience

I went to the Donald Trump campaign rally Tuesday night at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center in order to experience the current Trump phenomenon first hand.

I came away less than impressed.

Whoever did advance, if anyone, for the Trump visit blew it by ultimately choosing the convention center. Neither the advance team nor the convention center staff had any idea how to set up the site for a political rally.

The Mitt Romney event of 2012 at Horry Georgetown Technical College on the old air force base, while much smaller was much better put together with only one day notice.

To any candidate looking to hold a rally in Myrtle Beach in the future, don’t choose the convention center.

Now to Trump.

His speech, if you can call it that, he proudly said was without teleprompters. Of course, it would have been hard to put it on a teleprompter because even he, apparently, did not know what he was going to say before he got up to the microphone.

The first 20 minutes was a recitation of what great crowds attend his events, polling numbers from many of the early primary states that show him in the lead and how great he is compared to the other candidates.

He felt the need to introduce all his family members who had accompanied him to Myrtle Beach and gave the microphone to his current (third) wife, Melania, for a few comments about what a great president Trump would be.

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HCSWA Board Hubris Update

By unanimous vote, after a long discussion, the HCSWA board voted to defer consideration of a recommendation to Horry County Council to remove Dan Gray from the HCSWA board until the Thursday December 10, 2015 regular board meeting.

It requires a super majority vote of the seven board members to pass such a recommendation. It was obvious the vote would split 4-3 at best for the board members seeking Gray’s removal. The votes were not there.

Possibly, the HCSWA board is beginning to come to its senses, although I would find that shocking.

We will have more to discuss on this matter prior to that meeting.

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FREE SPEECH OUTLAWED AT HORRY COUNTY SOLID WASTE AUTHORITY

Mention the HCSWA board and hubris is generally the first word that pops into my mind.

Hubris is a word that has evolved from ancient Greece. In ancient times it generally referred to violent or abusive behavior that shamed or humiliated the victim for the gratification or pleasure of the abuser.

In more modern times, hubris generally refers to extreme pride or self-confidence associated with a loss of contact with reality and an overestimation of one’s own competence, accomplishments or abilities.

In 21st century America, hubris routinely rears its ugly head in the political arena. One could say it’s the number one reason the federal government in Washington doesn’t work.

We are Horry County. We don’t care how they do it in Washington. So why do we insist on copying them?

Late yesterday afternoon, the HCSWA sent out an amended agenda for its 5:30 p.m. board meeting today.

One item was added under new business, “Discussion of Board Member Conduct (Regarding Mr. {Dan} Gray) and Consideration of Recommendation from the Board to Horry County Council of Removal of said Board Member.” (The caps are theirs not mine.)

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HCSWA Charleston Recycling Review

The HCSWA recycling processing of Charleston County trash is now three months old and the results are not what were projected, at least yet.

Through the process to get Horry County Council approval of a contract between the Horry County Solid Waste Authority and Charleston County to allow the HCSWA to process Charleston County recyclables, a projected profit from the contract of $1 million per year for the HCSWA was often repeated.

According to numbers presented by HCSWA officials to the Horry County Infrastructure and Regulation Committee, through the first three months that the authority has processed Charleston County recyclables, the HCSWA material recovery facility (MRF) operations have lost approximately $133,000.

It’s been 50 years since I took Calculus I, but a $133,000 loss in the first quarter of operations did not then, and does not now, project out to a $1 million profit at the end of the year.

HCSWA executive director Danny Knight spoke of the necessity to replace three belts and 30 rollers in the recycling equipment. Knight said the maintenance replacement of this equipment was overdue and now became necessary because of the increased load of recyclables being processed at the MRF.

The HCSWA also obtained a new, larger front end loader for the MRF because of the increased material.

Those costs appear to be amortized over the life of the equipment so no large, upfront cost is included in the above numbers.

The excess cost problem appears to be in the amount of residuals being experienced.

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International Drive Court Date Set

The International Drive project will have its day in court beginning February 16, 2016.

The scheduling order came down a few days ago from the Administrative Law Court. Three days have been set to hear the case.

The Administrative Law Court was established by a 1993 state law to allow citizens affected by the decisions of certain state agencies to challenge those actions. Previously, challenges were heard by hearing officers of the respective state agencies.

The lawsuit to be heard by the ALC was filed by the Coastal Conservation League and the SC Wildlife Federation. It challenges a decision by the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control to issue a water quality permit for construction and paving of International Drive to Hwy 90.

Think about this process for a minute.

The ALC was set up to allow citizens affected by decisions of state agencies to challenge those decisions.

The voters of Horry County passed the Ride II referendum, which listed International Drive as one of the projects on its list, in November 2006.

The citizens most affected by the International Drive project, those of Horry County, especially in the Carolina Forest and Hwy 90 residential areas, approved the construction project by referendum vote.

The Coastal Conservation League, which bills itself as working to protect the natural landscapes, abundant wildlife, clean water and quality of life in South Carolina, is not directly affected by the decision to go forward with International Drive.

In fact, I would submit the continued delaying tactics used by the CCL and its allies on the International Drive project works to reduce the quality of life of the citizens of Carolina Forest and Hwy 90.

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Ignoring Problems in Myrtle Beach

I saw a Facebook post by former Myrtle Beach mayor Mark McBride yesterday that highlights why the city will continue its downward slide.

During the recent Myrtle Beach City Council elections, McBride was targeted by a third party group with hit pieces to keep him from being elected.

The Myrtle Beach Mafia was successful in its attempt to keep McBride from gaining a seat on city council.

The problem is the message was false, as is normal with hit pieces on a candidate. One said “Mark McBride is back and preying on voters.”

Actually, it’s the Myrtle Beach Mafia that preys on voters, at least those in the south end of the city.

During the campaign when challengers for city council seats were talking about rising crime in the city, Mayor John Rhodes donned his rose colored glasses and looked north to claim that crime was at its lowest level in 20 years.
It probably is in the Dunes Club and Pine Lakes areas. The south end is a different story.

McBride quoted some crime statistics collected by neighborhoodscout.com, which is really a real estate resource website to help those searching for homes.

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