Daily Archives: 03/01/2016
3 arrested in alleged mail thefts
EASLEY — The Pickens County Sheriff’s Office has arrested three people accused of being involved in a mail theft ring in the Dacusville and Easley area.
Charged in the case were 30-year-old Christina Marie Epps, 24-year-old Cheyanne Marie Holland and 26-year-old Joshua Paul Jackson.
According to chief deputy Creed Hashe, officers investigating several incidents of mail theft and suspicious activity at residential mailboxes identified the three as suspects, and the investigation is still ongoing, as information suggests others may have also been involved.
The incidents cleared up as a result of the arrests, according to Hashe, include a Jan. 21 incident in which mail was stolen from a mailbox on Old Dacusville Road and checks were forged, as well as thefts from mailboxes on Clear Dawn Drive on Feb. 14 and Hollywood Drive on Feb. 15.
Arrested Feb. 15, Epps, of 139 Silvery Lane in Liberty, is charged with simple larceny and receiving and possession of stolen property. She was being held at the Pickens County Detention Center on Tuesday on more than $10,000 bond for the two charges and three other unrelated counts.
Jackson, of 222 Thomas Mill Road in Easley, was arrested on Feb. 19 and charged with forgery. He was still being held Tuesday on a combined $8,000 surety bond for the forgery charge and a probation violation.
Holland, of 7707 Moorefield Memorial Highway in Liberty, was still at large when Hashe issued his first news release on the mail thefts last Friday. Late that night, deputies learned she was at a home in Norris, where she was found and taken into custody. She was released the following day on a $5,000 personal recognizance bond.
“We continue to encourage our citizens to avoid placing outgoing mail in a residential mailbox due to the risks associated with identity theft and the ability to forge checks,” sheriff Rick Clark said. “These thieves get up every morning and go to work just like you and I, except their job is riding around and looking for the checks that you have written to pay your bills.
“When you pull up that red flag to alert your postal person of documents for them to pick up, it is a signal for a thief to steal your mail. Please, if at all possible, protect yourself by hand-delivering your items to the postal carrier or simply using another method of mailing your correspondence.”
English teacher’s resignation causes uproar in Easley
EASLEY — The Easley community is up in arms about the resignation of an English teacher at Easley High School.
The resignation of literature and AP English teacher Greg Fish sent outrage through the Easley community as current and former students organized an online campaign through petitions, Twitter and Facebook to bring their beloved teacher back to the school.
School District of Pickens County spokesman John Eby confirmed the district had accepted Fish’s resignation on Friday, saying he “will assist the teachers who will instruct his classes for the remainder of the year, although he will not be returning to the school or the classroom.”
The resignation came after Fish allegedly read a poem containing graphic language while at a poetry roundtable with students at an Easley restaurant.
Eby said in a statement that Fish was put on leave initially because of complaints to administration that the teacher had shared inappropriate content and standard procedures were followed by placing him on leave while an investigation was conducted.
According to an online petition for his return that had accumulated more than 3,000 signatures as of Tuesday, “the students of Easley High School have been greatly impacted by Mr. Fish’s leaving.”
Fish’s AP literature students will struggle to prepare for the AP exam without him, the petition said.
In addition, Fish taught yearbook classes at Easley, and the publication will suffer in his absence, according to the petition.
“With Mr. Fish gone, there is no way to finish the yearbook without great cost penalties,” the petition reads. “This will greatly affect the yearbook staff, since it is a self-sustaining organization.”
According to the petition, Fish was “not only a teacher to his students, but also a mentor.”
“He has positively influenced every student he has come across in the past 16 years of teaching at Easley High School,” it reads. “The students need Mr. Fish to come back and teach — without him, many classes and organizations will fail.”
The petition can be found online at ipetitions.com/petition/let-mr-fish-teach-at-easley-high-school.
Eby said in a news release that students were expected to attend their classes and conduct themselves in a respectful manner on Tuesday.
“We are aware that some students may be planning a ‘sit-in’ in response to this issue,” Eby said. “The administration will handle any disruptions caused by a sit-in through normal procedures and policies.”
The sit-in was later reportedly canceled at the request of the Fish family.
“The primary focus at Easley High will continue to be the education and welfare of their students,” Eby said. “The administration and our 150 faculty and staff members at Easley High will continue do everything necessary to make sure students have the academic support that is needed for the remainder of the school year. One of the core beliefs at Easley High School is that we will ‘build character, then scholarship, in the pursuit of individual excellence.’ We want to thank our parents and community for working with us as we continue that pursuit.”
Clinton carries county on way to primary win
COUNTY — A week after Republican frontrunner Donald Trump swept to a resounding primary victory in the Palmetto State, Democratic leader Hillary Clinton did the same in her party’s South Carolina primary on Saturday.
Although Clinton won by a landslide across the state, garnering 73.5 percent of the 369,526 votes cast, vastly outpacing challenger Bernie Sanders’ 26 percent, the balloting in Pickens County was much closer.
In fact, Clinton’s slim margin of victory in Pickens County was the smallest in the state for the former N.Y. senator, secretary of state and first lady.
Clinton was one vote shy of 2,500 across the 61 Pickens County precincts, while Sanders racked up 1,988 votes. Willie Wilson also drew 10 votes, while Martin O’Malley, who suspended his campaign a month ago, earned eight votes.
Sanders had higher vote counts than Clinton in nearly 20 Pickens County precincts, while the two candidates tied in four other precincts.
Despite an expanding base of supporters, Sanders has fallen far behind Clinton in delegate counts, and Super Tuesday races this week had the potential to all but secure the party’s nomination for Clinton. Results from the 11 states holding Democratic votes on Tuesday were unavailable at press time.
A dozen states were voting for Republican candidates on Tuesday, with Trump also close to sealing his grip on the GOP nomination for November’s election.
Coal ash bill gets OK in SC Senate, House
By Greg Oliver
Courtesy The Journal
goliver@upstatetoday.com
COUNTY — It appears the controversy over coal ash entering Pickens County is over, as the South Carolina Senate last week approved final reading of a bill designed to keep it from being dumped in Class 2 landfills statewide.
State Sen. Larry Martin, who along with state Rep. Davey Hiott introduced bills that passed each of their respective legislative bodies, said Monday that only a signature from Gov. Nikki Haley is required before the bill officially becomes law.
A source close to the governor said Tuesday the signing was expected to take place the following day.
“All we talked about was getting her up here (in Pickens County) to sign it, but she had a very busy schedule and, regretfully, couldn’t make it,” Martin said. “We hope to have a ceremonial signing with the delegation later this week (in Columbia).”
The Pickens County Legislative Delegation has expressed opposition to out-of-state company MRR Pickens LLC’s application for a variance to DHEC. That variance, the delegation said, would allow the company to dispose of coal ash in the landfill they said is “much too close” to the city of Liberty and Pickens County Industrial Park.
Martin and Hiott’s bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee, with language added by Martin to the House version.
The Pickens County senator said South Carolina utilities use Class 3 landfills and doesn’t see why that also can’t apply to MRR Pickens. Martin’s legislation also includes a five-year “sunset” provision that would require the Senate to go back and revisit when the time comes.
“We made a few technical changes to make sure we were covering the issue as thoroughly as we needed to without imposing on DHEC’s existing regulations that were in place,” Martin said. “You have some areas in the lower part of the state that are disposing of lower-grade coal ash, but those areas have agreed to place their coal ash in a Class 3 landfill.
“In essence, we stopped all out-of-state items from coming in and (mandated) that anything that comes in would have to be placed in a Class 3 landfill.”
Martin said there are 67 Class D landfills across the state, which means there is more than one in each of the 46 counties — none of which are using Class 2 licenses to dispose of coal ash.
Unless legislation is passed, the senator said any of those landfills could be converted to coal ash by placing a liner inside.
Martin said he is appreciative of the 39-0 vote the Senate provided in passing the coal ash legislation.
“They realize that, without this legislation, they could face the same thing,” Martin said.
MRR Pickens had filed a $25 million lawsuit against Pickens County, claiming the county could not prevent them from using the Class 2 landfill for coal ash. Judge Robin Stillwell denied the motion and ruled MRR could not dump any coal ash while the case moves through the legal process.
New Twelve Mile River recreation area planned
COUNTY — Pickens County Council announced plans last week to develop a recreational area on the Twelve Mile River near Cateechee.
According to a news release, council has been working with Hulsey McCormick and Wallace Inc. (HMW) to design and secure funding for the project.
The Twelve Mile River is a tributary of the Seneca River within the Savannah River Basin in South Carolina.
The project will provide a river put-in for whitewater kayaking through the Twelve Mile River Gorge with a take-out five miles downstream. Visitors will be able to enjoy fishing along the river and lake, as well as picnic facilities. Hiking trails will allow visitors to appreciate the scenic beauty along the river and lake.
The project will consist of two parks: the Norris Highway Recreational Area, which will serve as the whitewater “put-in,” and the Madden Bridge Road Recreational Area, which will serve as the whitewater boating “take-out” and lake access for sport fishing and flat-water paddling.
Parks will be constructed with ADA-compliant facilities and access for the disabled.
“I am excited for the people of Cateechee, who were affected by the PCBs,” county councilman Trey Whitehurst said. “It is good that clean-up funds from the Lake Hartwell Natural Resources Damages Settlement will bring this project to the Cateechee area.”
The economic benefits of the project will be seen in the creation of a projected 80 jobs in the areas of natural resource guides, recreational outfitters, shuttle services and increased demand for retail sales employment in convenience stores, groceries and outdoor recreation stores. It is forecasted that more than 96,000 people, paddlers and recreational fishermen will visit the parks on an annual basis.
The Twelve Mile River Recreational Area project cost for survey, engineering design, bidding and construction of both parks is $1.89 million. The Lake Hartwell Natural Resource Trustee Council has committed $1.49 million out of the Lake Hartwell Natural Resource Damages Settlement. An additional $403,060 is requested from the Appalachian Regional Commission.
The public is invited to hear an overview about the project presented by Wes Hulsey of Hulsey McCormick and Wallace Inc. as part of next Monday’s county council meeting, which will begin at 6:30 pm in the auditorium of the administration building at 222 McDaniel Ave. in Pickens.
Music goes round and round
Music speaks to the heart. Sometimes I’ll hear a song on the radio that brings back a time from the past I’d forgotten all about. Thinking back on childhood, I realize what a big part of our lives music was. Grandmama loved music and was a really good pianist. She’d played the ukulele as a girl, and I think music played a big part in my Granddaddy’s courtship of her.
He was engaged to someone else when they met and had even completed a house and furnished it for his then-fiancee. But he met Grandmama, and that was the end of his engagement to “the other woman.”
He played the guitar until he lost his left hand in a hunting accident. Mama said he still played after the accident, because Grandmama chorded the neck for him.
She had a lot of sheet music. I can remember her playing “The Turkey Trot.” I still have the music. They loved to dance.
Mama sang. She sang in the car, the kitchen and the bedroom. She taught us all kinds of songs across a broad spectrum. She bought sheet music, too, and also played the piano. “Down in the Valley” and “You are my Sunshine.” She’d sing while she played the piano. We’d dance, too.
In the kitchen at night after supper, she’d have the radio on and would dance with a dish towel in her hand.
I remember “The Abba Dabba Honeymoon,” “The Little Brown Jug,” “Frankie and Johnny,” and there was always “Froggie Went A-Courtin’.”
Life just bubbled out of her.
Car trips were never dull. Even though the radio in the car was mostly static, we didn’t feel the lack because we had Mama driving.
We played word games and would sing “The Green Grass Growing All Around” song.
I remember standing in the backseat (this was before seatbelts), resting my head on the back of her seat and hearing her say, “Don’t smack that gum in my ear.”
If we were on a long trip, like driving to Norfolk to visit our other grandmother, we’d fall asleep in the backseat listening to the tires on the asphalt.
She’d be humming in the front, and it seemed as though she was harmonizing with the sound of the tires.
If it was summer, the car windows would be rolled down and the occasional moth would come in through the open window.
The next morning, the grill would be covered with dead insects and there’d be lots of bodies on the windshield where they’d “splatted.”
In the summer, after supper, we’d go out on the front porch and watch night come. We’d sit on the porch swing, and Mama and Grandmama Would sip iced tea in their rocking chairs and talk in low voices. Sometimes Mama would sing, and it was beautiful watching the light fade in the sky with Mama’s voice in the background.
When Matt and I would take the boat down the river, we’d sing as we paddled.
One of our favorites was “Onward Christian Soldiers,” because the time was just right with the paddle motion.
They gave us the gift of music, and I’m grateful for it, as it’s been an abiding joy to both of us throughout our lives. And because we love it, our children do. And so it will go on long after we are gone. This is a fact I derive a great deal of pleasure from.
Courier Letters to the Editor
Clearly a government breakdown
Dear Editor,
The school district building program had three financial requirements:
First, finance the $387 million program. That was done by passing the Greenville Plan in 2006 and approving a 39-mill property tax increase. Today, the annual bond payment is $24.5 million.
Second, the district had to cover the increased costs to operate the extra space and acreage. Those rising operational costs were covered with natural revenue growth from 2010 to 2014. When you look at the cost of operations, utilities, insurance and day-to-day repairs, it’s $12.8 million a year.
Finally, we have to cover capital maintenance items like replacing roofs, HVACs, repaving parking lots and computer refreshes. This year $4.6 million was spent on capital maintenance.
In sum, the district is spending $42 million on buildings this year.
Let’s focus on the capital maintenance budget for next year, which is the bone of contention. Refinancing the district’s construction loan is generating a stream of savings used to help fund that budget. This year that was $3.25 million. That figure is rising by $250,000 a year, so it will be $3.5 million in 2016-17.
As mentioned, $4.6 million is being spent on capital maintenance. A 10 percent increase would be $5 million.
For 2016-17, $5 million minus $3.5 million yields a $1.5 million deficit. This is manageable if the board takes the following steps.
I was the central figure in discovering Clemson was violating the TIF law and brought the case to our attorney and district administration. I hoped the money would go toward something that would make a notable difference. The annual in-flow of TIF money is $600,000. It should be earmarked for building maintenance. That gets us to $4.1 million revenue, so the capital budget would be $900,000 short.
Instead of having meetings to close schools or discuss another tax increase — both the public opposes, the board should:
1) Examine its $193 million in annual spending, rank expenses from necessary or most important to least important and reallocate let’s say $600,000 from the bottom to building maintenance. The last time the board combed through the budget like that was five years ago.
2) Allocate a couple hundred thousand of new revenue to building maintenance — revenue is likely to grow more than $4 million next year.
3) Sell surplus properties, and there are five or six. When one is sold, it can be used to help plug a small hole in the maintenance budget.
4) Consider spending some savings; the savings account has about $3 million.
That would balance the 2016-17 budget. In 2017-18 the refinancing savings should grow another $250,000. Ditto in 2018-19, and then the TIF revenue doubles to $1.3 million.
There isn’t a lack of money or inability to manage this — revenue growth is the highest in 10 years, and $1.5 million could be reallocated to building maintenance. Rather, the issue is the board and administration would rather spend the money on something else besides keeping those small schools open. Be it a $20,000 LED sign at the district office, extra pay raises, airplane tickets to some education conference or building another administration building.
With the opposition to closing schools so loud and unanimous, clearly there is a government breakdown here, between the will of the people and the actions of its elected body.
Alex Saitta
School board trustee
Pickens
Keep the schools open
Dear Editor,
One of the primary ways the state funds local school districts is through the Education Funding Act, which is supposed to follow a funding formula. When this act was passed in 1977, its base student cost (BSC) was set at $1,000 per weighted pupil unit. This BSC is to increase each year with inflation to help districts keep their programs current as prices and salaries increase.
According to the law, the BSC should be about $2,800. The state only funded it at $2,200 this year.
The House Ways and Means Committee announced it is giving public K-12 education an extra $375 million next year. One of the reasons is a generous boost in the BSC. Overall state revenue to school districts is rising at its highest rate since before the recession.
In Pickens County, the sum of the county government and county school taxes is 234.7 mills. Ten years ago it was 201.4. The increase is totally attributed to the school district. There has been a significant growth in the number of properties, and the tax rate has been raised, too.
Given all this, why doesn’t the school board of Pickens County have enough funding to keep all its renovated schools open? Some are saying the district is in a financial crisis. If there is a crisis, there shouldn’t be. There is enough funding. The school district must better manage their revenue coming in, and instead of 10 No. 1 priorities, there should be one. Keep the schools open.
Weldon Clark
Liberty
Gift quilt for service
As a way to say thanks and to commemorate their service to the country, Susie Flowers had an idea for a very special gift. The talented quilter wanted to make a special quilt for three men who she knew had served on the USS Saratoga. The men all served at different times on the vessel. Pictured are Wade Simmons, who served on the ship in 1967-1971, James C. Pace, who enlisted in 1943 and retired in 1973, serving in both the Pacific and the Atlantic, and Bob Flowers, who served aboard the USS Saratoga from 1975 until 1978. The quilt, which features a picture of the ship in the center, will become an eternal keepsake. The gift was especially special for Pace, who is celebrating his 90th birthday this week.
Bull riding set Saturday in Pickens
PICKENS — Rodeo fans around the area are in for a treat with bull riding planned for Saturday night, as Ernie Treadway will host an event at his indoor facility located at 422 Ann St. in Pickens.
The rodeo action will feature all the favorites, including calf riding, mutton busting, barrel racing and of course bull riding.
The event comes the Pickens every Saturday night and features excitement and an opportunity for wholesome family fun.
Tickets are available at the door the night of the event.
Pickens High to host concert
PCKENS — The Pickens High School Athletic Department will present the second annual Pickin’ in Pickens fundraiser concert to help support Blue Flame athletics this week.
Due to popular demand, renowned bluegrass band Balsam Range will return on Friday, March 4, at 7 p.m. in the PHS auditorium.
Balsam Range has been called the best bluegrass band on the planet. The group is made up of five outstanding acoustic musicians and singers who all hail from Western North Carolina.
Tickets will be $25 at the door, whil student tickets will be $10. A valid high school ID must be presented at the door for student pricing. All proceeds from the event will go to help the student-athletes at Pickens High School.
Call PHS athletic director Stan Butler at (864) 397-3702 for more information.
