The tax that began in 1998 is a continuation of the current penny tax, which runs for seven years. The new Capital Projects Sales Tax will be the fourth round of the tax and will begin in 2017.

Revenue from the tax will go toward building infrastructure and improving the quality of life in Orangeburg County.

“I’m excited about that,” Orangeburg County Council Chairman Johnnie Wright said upon learning of the tax’s passing.

“The people realize the benefit that we have derived from (it),” Wright said. “Everybody will benefit.”

Wright said the tax has already helped the county move forward tremendously with infrastructure projects.

“I think that reflects the effectiveness of what we’ve been doing over the past few years,” Councilman Clyde Livingston said. “There’ll be jobs for some people moving up and there’ll be jobs for some people who haven’t had jobs.”

Livingston said it is a good sign that the growth experienced over the past five years is going to continue.

“We want to try to continue to promote economic development in this county and improve the quality of life,” Councilman Harry Wimberly said of the tax passing.

Wimberly said it gives the council projects to work toward in the coming years. He is glad to have seen it passed by a majority of the county’s voters.

Though he was pleased with the tax referendum, Wimberly said he was “a little bit disappointed” to see the Sunday alcohol sales passing by such a large margin.

“What little bit of revenue it’ll bring in, it will probably create more problems in the way of alcohol abuse and accidents,” Wimberly said.

Livingston believes the Sunday sales will be a benefit to the people of Orangeburg County.

“I think it’s going to increase sales,” he said. “I don’t think it’ll bring any more people here but I think the people that come here, they’ll spend more money.”

Livingston said it speaks well that there was a fair amount of differing opinions, but “the majority of the folks in Orangeburg County prefer that we have liquor sales available on Sunday.”

“It’s a new opportunity,” Wright said. “That too will be something that will help us in raising funds to help move our county forward.”

Orangeburg County saw a turnout of 67 percent, with 39,168 of the county’s 58,756 registered voters casting ballots.

In other races:

• Orangeburg County voters overwhelmingly supported Hillary Clinton in the presidential race. Voters cast 26,258 ballots for Clinton and 11,909 for Donald Trump.

Libertarian Gary Johnson received 307 votes; Independence candidate Evan McMullin, 119; Green candidate Jill Stein, 124; Constitution candidate Darrell Castle, 63 and American candidate Peter Skewes, 44.

• In the U.S. Senate race, Republican incumbent Tim Scott received 12,233 votes in Orangeburg County to Democrat Thomas Dixon’s 24,743.
• In the U.S. House District 2 race, Democrat Arik Bjorn received 4,119 votes in Orangeburg County to Republican Congressman Joe Wilson’s 4,028.
• In the U.S. House District 6 race, Democratic Congressman Jim Clyburn received 22,438 votes to Republican Laura Sterling’s 6,802 votes.
• Incumbent John Mark Gilmore and challenger Robert Thrower Anderson defeated incumbent Sheryl Patrick for two seats on Santee town council. Gilmore received 189 votes, Anderson with 143, and Patrick with 124 votes.

Fort Motte Partners, a partnership of Century 21 The Moore Group and C.F. Evans Construction, is working to develop the 57-acre tract of land adjacent to the North Road Walmart.

The development is expected to include restaurants, retail outlets, an entertainment complex with possible movie theater, as well as a hotel and residential areas.

Green space to include walking paths, ponds and open spaces is also planned.

Moore said he and Johnny Evans, C.F. Evans president and chief executive officer, are bullish on the property and have been for the past 10 years when plans were first announced to develop it.

Construction was to begin around the middle of 2006 but due to the economic downturn, plans to develop the property were put on hold. The target date was pushed into 2009 or possibly 2010.

By September 2016, the property remained untouched.

Until now.

Crews have spent the past few weeks felling trees on the property starting early in the morning and working into the afternoon hours.

Clearing will continue for about the next three months, but in order to maintain the uniqueness of the property, the magnolia trees will be preserved.

The name of the property, which was formerly owned by the Wannamaker family from which the magnolia tree had its origins, will most likely be Magnolia Village.

“We still believe it is to be the best or most well-suited property to be developed for multi-uses in the county,” Moore said. “We see a little bit of an uptick in the economy mainly in major cities in South Carolina, but we feel like it is certainly going to get us to some degree. We hopefully will be able to ride that wave.”

Currently, the work is focused on infrastructure such as roads, sewer, water, engineering and traffic.

“We have not yet put together a full-fledged marking plan,” Moore said, expressing his hopes the plan will be available in December. “We have had some interest in the property.”

Moore declined comment on the specific interest but he foresees construction on retail to begin by late 2017.

Moore said the plans will coincide and tie in with the city’s plans to build a recreational center behind Orangeburg Preparatory School.

The recreation complex project calls for baseball and softball fields for children and adults. It would also include picnic tables, some playgrounds and walking trails with exercise stations.

“I don’t think Orangeburg understands what these ball fields will mean to the community,” Moore said. “They will be state of the art, first class, brand new. A lot of tourists will want to come to that.”

Moore said the property has significant traffic flow and is considered in the best “economic demographic point in Orangeburg County.”

“If they can stay there, they can eat there, they can play there, they can do it all,” Moore said.

Moore praised the work with the city as the two have combined resources to build one road going to the ball fields initially before eventually looping back to North Road near the IHOP restaurant.

“The idea of a public-private partnership doing something that will benefit the entire community,” Moore said. “We feel like it is going to create a really good new place for the entire community.”

Moore and Evans are no strangers to Orangeburg development.

The men have partnered to build the Carolina Regional Park off U.S. 601 near Interstate 26 and also built the Willington Lakes apartment complex off North Road.

The slow-moving nature of the North Road project has been challenging.

“It has tried my patience,” Moore said.”Johnny and I are excited about the whole thing because we believe Orangeburg is poised to grow. There is no reason for us not to take steps forward. We will put our heart and soul into it and give it our best shot.”

All establishments would need to obtain a license from the Department of Revenue in order to sell on Sundays.

Businesses with a six-day license for beer and wine would need to apply for and purchase a seven-day license for over-the-counter sales of beer and wine, which are presently forbidden in the county.

The sale of hard liquors on Sunday via “red dot” stores would remain illegal. Young explained that hard liquor is regulated under a separate state law and is not affected by the referendum.

Approval of the Sunday sales would allow restaurants, bars and hotels that obtain an additional local-option permit from the Department of Revenue to sell liquor by the drink in their establishment.

The local-option permit for a year costs a non-refundable $3,050. A weekly permit is available for $200, which is refunded if the application is denied.

If voters OK the sale of alcohol on Sunday, the new rules will affect all towns and unincorporated areas in Orangeburg County.

Any incorporated area of the county would have the ability to present a future referendum if a city or town’s leaders seek a return to outlawing beer and wine sales on Sunday within the municipal limits.

Counties in South Carolina that allow Sunday beer and wine sales are: Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester, Georgetown, Horry, Jasper, Kershaw, Marion, Newberry, Oconee, Richland, Saluda and York.

In Greenwood, Lancaster, Lexington, and Spartanburg counties, only local-option permits for restaurants or hotels are allowed. Seven-day sales of beer and wine at convenience and grocery stores are not allowed.

Wellford in Richland County passed its own referendum excluding the town from allowing Sunday sales.

Cities in South Carolina that allow Sunday sales are: Aiken, Chapin, Chester, Columbia, Edisto Beach, Elgin, Fountain Inn, Greenville, Irmo, Lake City, Lexington, Mauldin, North Augusta, Pendelton, Seneca, Simpsonville, Travelers Rest, Walterboro and Yemassee.

In Anderson, Clemson, Florence, Greer, Hardeeville, Sumter and Santee, only local-option permits are allowed.

Santee is the only town in Orangeburg County currently allowing Sunday alcohol sales. Voters in 1992 decided to allow sales of liquor by the drink at restaurants and clubs.

The present requirement for restaurants in Santee to sell alcohol is they must be able to seat at least 25 and serve hot food.

Go here to read the article on the OCDC and municipality mayors effort to boost economic development.

Orangeburg County Council member Janie Cooper-Smith said approving Sunday alcohol sales will help Orangeburg County.

“It will bring additional revenue into the county and provide additional jobs,” Cooper-Smith said.

The county is losing out on potential revenue from travelers, she said.

“They ask for a drink, they cannot purchase it, so they get up and leave,” she said. “I don’t think we should run tourists away.”

“People are going to do what they want to do,” Council Chairman Johnnie Wright said. “We’re giving people the opportunity because you can’t legislate morality.”

Wright said he is in favor of allowing the alcohol sales because of the revenue that can be generated.

“A lot of it comes from people that don’t even live in our county,” he said, adding that the funds can then go toward building infrastructure.

Linda Free, manager of the Orangeburg FATZ restaurant, said she supports Sunday sales.

“We lose a lot of our travelers,” Free said. “They don’t want to stay.”

Free said the restaurant could see an increase in revenue on Sundays by “at least 10 percent.”

She said Sunday is the biggest selling day for alcohol because of football games, and the FATZ locations where sales are allowed “have an advantage on sales.”

Free said Orangeburg is behind the times and she has spoken with customers who dislike the current ban.

“Even the guests were like, ‘I don’t see why not,’” Free said.

Not all of the council is in favor of Sunday alcohol sales.

“I’m totally against it,” Councilman Harry Wimberly said.

Wimberly was one of two who voted in 2011 against the elimination of the blue laws, which prohibited stores from selling certain products before 1:30 p.m. Those included clothing and accessories, except for souvenirs and underwear; housewares; home and office furnishings; tools; jewelry; electronics and sporting goods.

The second member who opposed eliminating the blue laws was Councilman Heyward Livingston.

Livingston said again he will be choosing the unpopular position.

“Sundays always been a family day for me,” he said. “Just the way I was brought up.”

Though he opposes the Sunday sales of beer and wine, Livingston said it is important for voters to have a choice.

“I believe the voters should a have a chance,” he said.

“I’m happy that we put it in the hands of the citizens,” Councilman Johnny Ravenell said. “Just give the citizens a choice.”

Ravenell said he is not a big advocate of alcohol sales on Sundays but sees the positive effects voter approval could have on the county.

“Keep the tax dollars in Orangeburg County,” he said.

Bonnie Swingle, public information director of the Department of Revenue, said that as soon as the department receives notification of an affirmative vote from a county and is able to update its systems, businesses are able to apply for permits.

Young said establishments would still need to follow other county rules such as the ordinance prohibiting the sale of alcohol at commercial establishments after 2 a.m.

If voters approve, Sunday alcohol sales in Orangeburg County are expected to begin in January 2017, Young said.