Buildings get money to fix up facades

“We’ve done several years of facade improvements and it’s really starting to make a difference in our downtown in the appearance of the buildings,” City Administrator John Yow said.

“I think it would make a big impact on the downtown if we could do 10 grant apps and 10 building improvements this year,” he said.

A total of ten projects were approved by council. A maximum $10,000 can be awarded to individual projects.

A facade grand application review committee consisting of citizens appointed by council suggested five priority projects.

The priority projects are Palmetto Office Supply, Acacia Flower Shop, George Amash, Wes & Freda Summers and AYS Holdings. The five will share almost $48,000.

An additional five proposed facade grant fund requests were approved for a total of $33,323.These facade projects are for Ann E. Epps, One Source Dist., the Rev. Sammie Gordon, The Music Doctor and New America.

While council initially planned to fund only $50,000 in grants this year, Yow said the additional money will not be hard to cover.

“That is one that will not be a strain to do,” he said.

Councilman Bernard Haire asked if the owners of the old newsstand are aware of the available grant money and eligible to apply.

“They have not applied but we’ve talked with them through each cycle,” Assistant City Administrator John Singh said. “They’ve decided this time to go ahead and get the code areas that they needed to get done first done.”

Singh said there may be some additional areas that they will be making improvements on.

“We want buildings that we know are not deteriorating where the facade would start deteriorating in a couple short years,” Yow said.

When the building gets the other issues addressed, it would then be eligible for a facade grant.

“I just think it’s a great idea that people would like to upgrade their properties,” Councilwoman Liz Keitt said. “It’s really looking good.”

Keitt said more people are visiting the downtown area because of building improvements.

Also in the meeting:

• Council approved first reading of an ordinance adopting amended electric and gas rates for the Department of Public Utilities, effective Feb. 1, 2017.

Department of Public Utilities Interim Manager Warren Harley proposed changes in the net metering rates for customers with a solar panel system.

“The staff is recommending that we amend the rate to reflect what is industry standard of crediting customers only for the power generated and not for the cost of distributing the power,” Harley said. “What we’re doing is we’re only going to be crediting them for the amount that they essentially put back on the grid.”

Currently, DPU credits customers with a solar panel system a one-to-one ratio for energy cost from SCE&G at approximately 10 cents per kilowatt-hour. The change will be to $0.0309 per kilowatt-hour.

This cost is reflective of what SCE&G charges DPU for energy generation, making the ratio of customer-generated energy and SCE&G-generated energy a one-to-one ratio.

“We won’t credit them for distribution charges of the transportation to get power there because that’s our infrastructure, not theirs,” Harley said.

Changes in gas rates for gas transportation services were also proposed.

“This is a rate that is available to larger customers using a certain amount of gas every month,” Harley said.

The rate is important for those companies that have large gas loads and economic development opportunities.

“As their gas load goes up, their cost will decline,” Harley said.

The first 60,000 dekatherms per month would be $0.95 per dekatherm, $0.60 per dekatherm for the next 60,000, and $0.40 per dekatherm for all dekatherms over 120,000 per month.

• Council approved first reading of changes to the city purchasing ordinance.

Changes include a more uniform way of purchasing IT equipment, the addition of equal opportunity policies and procedures prohibiting discrimination, competitive solicitation processes and equal opportunity for women/minority business enterprises in all aspects of the city’s contracting and procurement programs.

“Those are things that we typically always practice anyway but it’s something that needs to be in the ordinance,” Singh said.

• Council passed second reading of an ordinance adopting state and national building codes as the state of South Carolina has adopted during the legislative session.

• The character trait for the month of December was declared to be “compassion.”

• The Jan. 3 city council meeting was cancelled due to holiday travels. Council could call a meeting if matters require it.

• Council went into executive session to discuss contracts for insurance and reinsurance as well as a legal matter regarding a street closure.