Some say the pandemic was to blame for the closed doors and the lack of public scrutiny. Could be. But it was ultimately the absence of sunlight that created fertile ground for Project Pascalis to take root.
It was the absence of a critical media eye that allowed this public-private development scheme to grow into a $100 million boondoggle so riddled with wrongdoing that — once finally brought into the open — it drew an immediate and well-organized citizens’ opposition that culminated in two lawsuits alleging wide-ranging violations of ethics and state law, with the larger of the two naming the City of Aiken, the Mayor, the developers, and over two dozen members of City Council, the Economic Development Commission, and the Design Review Board, among others.
In the absence of media spotlight over the past two years, it was ordinary people, not local media, who ultimately brought this story to the public this spring. It was ordinary people who raised questions of ethics and law. It was independent writers who volunteered their time and skills to research and to independently publish their findings about Project Pascalis, reducing the Aiken Standard’s coverage to irrelevance and mere fodder for criticism.
To be fair, the Aiken Standard has been flailing against its own demise for years, between declining circulation, falling ad sales, worker shortages, and even carrier shortages, which left many daily papers, including ours, frequently undelivered for a string of months last winter. We kept our subscription, but others no doubt didn’t. Those looking for ways to cut corners in this difficult economy likely welcomed the excuse to cancel their subscriptions.
The evidence of the newspapers’ struggles is plain to see. The State newspaper out of Columbia, for instance, has resorted to high pressure sales tactics not unlike those used by car-warranty robocallers. The Aiken Standard in recent months appears to have resorted to using budget ink, or to thinning the ink to the extent it’s all but invisible some days.
So who’s left to afford the price of sunlight these days?
Keeping an eye on government, business and industry takes money. Keeping qualified staff takes money. Keeping the presses running takes money. Producing quality, investigative journalism isn’t cheap, and the cost of ink to uncover corruption in high places can run especially high — all the more when a newspaper’s revenue flow depends on the very wrongdoers in need of scrutiny and investigation.
So how are newspapers to afford sunlight, when it’s a challenge just to keep the lights on in the newsroom?
My 94-year old mother, who’s lived long enough to know a few things, recently told me she started donating to the Post and Courier’s ”Uncovered“ project, which funds investigative journalism. I initially pooh-poohed the idea, arguing, ”Why should we pay newspapers to do what they’re already supposed to be doing?”
“Corruption festers when people aren’t looking, when the spotlight doesn’t shine. Without fair scrutiny, public officials with weak ethical backbones bend the rules. They help themselves to public money. They help their cronies instead of people they represent. Like a virus, corruption mushrooms, and so do the costs to you and other members of the public. Sunlight can disinfect, but South Carolina has lost some light.”
So maybe my mother is right. Even as the local newspaper persists in ignoring or downplaying the groundswell of public opposition to Project Pascalis, the answer is not to turn out the lights, but to make sure they stay on. Those of us who have been working in the vacuum left by an absent media are hoping the Aiken Standard, The Post and Courier, and their parent company, Evening Post Publishing, will give some thought to our local newspaper’s role in Project Pascalis.
A good place to start would be the front page article, “Impact of Pascalis,” in today’s Sunday paper. Somewhere between the hollow efforts to put a positive spin on this project, and the wall of photographs of the buildings slated for the wrecking ball looms the question, ”Whose interests are served by this article?”
Recently obtained documents reveal the City of Aiken has declared no insurance value for the historic Hotel Aiken, and is paying an annual insurance premium of only $441 on the hotel. (1) The City of Aiken has provided no reason for the decision to leave the hotel nearly uninsured.
Hotel Aiken: No Value, Barely Insured
The City of Aiken’s Municipal Development Commission (AMDC) purchased seven properties at a cost of $9.5 million in early November, 2021. The purchase was funded by a bond issuance approved by Aiken City Council three months earlier. (2). Two of the properties, the Hotel Aiken and the adjacent Holley House Motel, were vacant at the time of the purchase. The combined purchase price for these two properties was $4.25 million.
Photos from 5-star reviews of Hotel Aiken in 2017
The properties form a substantial portion of the proposed, but evolving, demolition and redevelopment endeavor in downtown Aiken called Project Pascalis. The project is promoted and led by the AMDC, which was formed in 2019 and has no prior, largescale institutional development experience.
After the original developer GAC, LLC (agent: Weldon Wyatt) exited from the project in May, 2021 for unknown reasons, the AMDC eventually selected RPM Development Partners, LLC (agent: Ray Massey) as its replacement in December 2021. The AMDC signed a conditional purchase and sale (PSA) agreement for the seven properties, pending a final master cost-sharing and development agreement. That PSA remains confidential and exempt from a Freedom of Information Act request. The AMDC has stated that it will offer “a discounted price for the property upon which they will build the hotel and apartments.” (3)
A request for proposals (RFP) leading up to RPM’s selection occurred in May, 2021 and was not publicly advertised as required by South Carolina Community Development laws. A legal advertisement for RFP’s was placed ten days after the selection of RPM. As a result, the legitimacy of RPM’s status as the developer has been challenged in court. (4)
The Hotel Aiken was placed on the city’s historic register in 2018. The designation remains despite the city’s Design Review Board (DRB) approval on March 1, 2022 of a demolition application from RPM for the hotel and the adjacent building titled 106 Laurens St, SW. The permission to demolish, approved by a vote of 6-1, is conditional, and demolition will not occur until RPM has a final agreement to purchase the property, has a final master agreement with the AMDC, and final designs are approved by the DRB.
In a document titled “Property Schedule,” attached to the first page of the property declarations portion of the city’s property insurance policy, no value is assigned to the Hotel Aiken. This zero value was assigned months prior to the demolition application being filed.
The annual insurance premium for the hotel is only $441, less than the premium for the average 1200 square foot home. The total insurance value is only $284,060, even though in 2021 the Aiken County Assessor appraised the market value of the land at $562,000 and the hotel improvements at $987,000 for a total appraised market value of $1.549 million.
Another way of looking at the value of the Hotel Aiken is by examining the offers the AMDC received in 2021. According to a redacted review of bidders (5) involved in the May, 2021 RFP process, one developer was rejected for only offering $1 million for the hotel property, described in the review as a “deeply discouted (sic) price.”
Cropped to show $1 million offer
In contrast, the adjacent Holley House motel, which is also vacant and part of the Project Pascalis demolition zone, has an assigned value of $2.25 million and an annual policy payment of $3493. Every other building in the demolition zone also has an insurance value matching the AMDC’s purchase prices. (See Property Declarations Table).
Property Declarations Table
When asked about the lack of insurance value for the Hotel Aiken, city officials declined to comment. The question as to why the AMDC spent more than $2 million on land and improvements, describe a $1 million offer as a “deeply discounted” value, and then chose not to insure the improvements against fire or other losses also remains unanswered.
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Coming Soon: Part 2: Less Protected: A before and after comparison of fire protection programs for downtown AMDC properties.
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(1) A Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request was filed on July 11, 2022. The request was for:
“Copies of the Property and Building Insurance Policies for the following AMDC owned properties 121-21-09-001: 106 Laurens St 121-21-09-002 : Hotel Aiken 121-21-08-001 Holley House 121-21-08-002: Taj Restaurant + 121-21-08-003: Old Johnson Drug Store 121-21-08-004: Warneke Cleaners 121-21-08-004: Newberry Hall. These commercial property and building insurance policies should be readily on hand and retrievable within fifteen minutes.”
The City of Aiken responded on July 18 with a $16 charge for 1.25 hours of search and retrieval labor. After receiving payment on July 18th, the city waited until July 21st to release three documents:
The insurance policy is titled “SOUTH CAROLINA MUNICIPAL INSURANCE and RISK FINANCING FUND COVERAGE CONTRACT 2022.”
Only a portion of this document, the “property declarations” chapter, was provided in the FOIA response. The city claims that the remaining portions do not apply to AMDC owned properties. Chapters detailing coverage declarations for liability, crime, and casualty coverage were considered unrelated to the request for entire insurance policies.
The issue is presently under appeal to Aiken City Manager Stuart Bedenbaugh.
by Don Moniak Originally published July 21, 2022 Updated April 13, and April 15, 2023
(Update 4/13/23: Mayor Rick Osbon did recuse himself from the proceedings of the sale of the City of Aiken’s Laurens Street Building. Not known at the time was that this recusal was recommended by the State Ethics Commission in response to a request for an information opinion from City Attorney Gary Smith. In the response, found here, the Ethics Commission wrote:
“Here, it is the opinion of Commission staff that the Council Member has an economic interest in the sale of the property because the value of his property would increase by more than fifty (50) dollars if the property is sold….Accordingly, it is staff’s opinion that the Council Member should recuse himself from voting on the sale of the property.”
Summary
In early 2020 the City of Aiken sold property located at 135 Laurens Street SW and 130 Pendleton Street SW to WTC Laurens, LLC,(agent: Thomas Goforth) for $1.3 million. WTC Laurens, LLC is a firm owned by local investor and developer Weldon Wyatt and managed by his son, Attorney Tom Wyatt. In April of 2020, WTC Laurens, LLC sold half of the property for $1.3 million to SRP Credit Union; and in May 2021 sold the remaining parcel to R and O LLC (Agent Rick Osbon) for $500,000.
This is the story of how the transaction proceeded, all but one city council member defied good advice from knowledgeable citizens, and Weldon Wyatt managed to turn a half million dollar profit at the city’s expense in just over a year’s time.
The Finance Building
In December, 2011 the City of Aiken purchased the former First Citizens Bank and Trust property for $735,000. The 0.63 acre property was composed of two parcels, the two story building at 135 Laurens Street and a parking lot with a drive through outbuilding at 130 Pendleton ST, SW. (see inset)
The City then spent just over $900,000 on renovations and improvements to the building, which had sat vacant for six years. By the time finance and administration offices were moved into the building in January, 2013, the total investment was more than $1.6 million. Other departments remained at the old municipal building at 214 Park Ave, West.
In 2017 the city embarked on the controversial “Downtown Renaissance” effort. A proposal to consolidate city offices into one location was in the works, although the specifics were not yet planned. According to a question and answer on the Renaissance, “The hope is to recoup much of the investment in 135 Laurens as possible through its sale to the private sector and to proceed with the original plan voters were briefed on prior to the 2010 vote.” The appraised value of the Finance Building at that time was $1.04 million. (1)
The Wyatt Offer
Although the “Downtown Renaissance” failed to proceed, the city moved forward with plans to consolidate, and continued to receive offers for the 135 Laurens St. complex. First a plan to expand the municipal building at 214 Park Avenue emerged, but was dismissed due to costs and lack of feasibility. That was followed by a final plan to purchase and renovate the former Henderson Hotel (most recently a Regions Bank Building) and consolidate into a new City Hall. (2)
In mid October, 2019 WTC Laurens, LLC, a Wyatt family firm, approached the City of Aiken with a $1.2 million offer on the property. At the time the Wyatt family’s WTC Investments, LLC (agent Ray Massey) was seeking final rezoning approval from city council to allow the demolition of the historic Aiken hospital at 828 Richland Ave, E; and convert the surrounding nine acre property to a complex of apartments, 100-room hotel, conference center, and parking garage. This plan was deemed by Tom Wyatt as a “home run for the city.” (3)
This was not the Wyatt’s first offer to buy 135 Laurens St property, and undisclosed offers from other parties had also been made. To prepare for a probable sale, the city had procured J. Marshall Vann of Vann Appraisal Services, Inc. of Augusta, GA in 2019 to conduct a new appraisal of the property. Vann had nearly forty years of real estate experience and been licensed by the State of South Carolina since 1993. He submitted his appraisal of the property on September 23, 2019, delivering a bottom line “fee simple ‘as is’” $1.3 million appraisal of the property. (4)
Photos courtesy of Terry CooperThe building and parking lot in the parcel at 135 Laurens St SW and 130 Pendleton St SW
Vann described the building as “well maintained” and in good condition. His comparison to other sales included the Wells Fargo Building at 111 Laurens Street, which had sold for $750,000 in 2018 to another Wyatt family firm, WTC of Aiken, LLC (agent: Ray Massey). The Wells Fargo property was also divided into two properties and also occupied two-thirds of an acre. That property sold at a considerably lower per square foot value than six other area properties analyzed.
Discussion and Advice: The First Hearing
Note: Text in bold print below is sourced from meeting minutes.
City Council held its first hearing on the proposed sale at its November 25, 2019 public meeting. City Attorney Gary Smith announced Mayor Rick Osbon was recusing himself from participating in any discussions or votes, because:
“Mayor Osbon’s family operates the business which is located adjacent to the building that is being considered for sale. He is recusing himself to avoid the appearance of any impropriety that may be involved in the transaction since he owns property adjacent to 135 Laurens Street SW,”
According to meeting agenda and minutes (5), the key issues included the possible future value of the property, selling below both the appraisal value and investment costs, the lack of additonal bids, and the possibility of paying rent if plans to move into a new, consolidated City Hall were delayed by more than two years. In regard to the prospect of paying future rent, the City Manager’s supporting memorandum read:
“Until that time or any time earlier when the City is ready to relocate to the Chesterfield Street building, the City will continue to own the building. Should the City not be ready to move into the new building rent would need to be paid beginning February 1, 2022 to WTC Laurens, LLC.”
During the meeting, Dr. Rocky Napier of Aiken asked about the city’s investment to date. City Manager Stuart Mr. Bedenbaugh responded that, between the 2011 purchase and subsequent improvements, the City “has $1,655,678 in the building,” and admitted the city “has put more money in the building than the appraised value.”
Dr. Napier raised concerns about the lack of specificity in the rental agreement, recommended the city not rely upon a single bid:
“Dr. Napier stated he would suggest since the Aiken City Council is stressed for funding to meet current obligations,that it put this property out for bid and see what the market will bear rather than taking at least a $100,000 loss on the front end of this agreement without getting any detailed due diligence as it relates to a transaction of this magnitude.”
Councilperson Kay Brohl, who was newly installed, spoke in favor of the sale after asking a series of questions about the Chesterfield Street building:
“Councilwoman Brohl stated she felt the proposal to sell the Laurens Street property is good because she feels the City owns too much real estate. She did not feel it is a healthy thing for a city to be in the real estate business, because the property is not on the tax rolls and not bringing in tax revenue for the city. She felt it is better not to have a huge inventory of real estate. She said she just wanted to be sure that we are doing the best for Aiken.”
Councilman Ed Girardeau also advocated for the sale on the basis of future uncertainty, stating he had “been a real estate appraiser for 35 years” and “was certified to review the appraisal.” However, he offered no insights on the appraisal other than “he did study” it; and proceeded to state:
“He said in his opinion we have already agreed we are going to buy another building and renovate it. He said theoffer to purchase the Laurens Street building is sort of a ‘bird in hand as to two in the bush.’ The risk we take is if we don’t agree to the sale of the Laurens Street building now, and we go forward who knows what will happen in two years. It may be worth more, or it may be worth less. It may not even be marketable.”
Councilman Ed Woltz provided the lone council dissent. He raised numerous issues associated with the prospect of future rent, accepting a sole bid, the uncertainties surrounding the proposed consolidation, and the lack of specifics in the purchase contract:
“He felt we are doing this too quickly. He pointed out that we are not paying rent now, so talking about not being charged rent is a ridiculous comment…. We would be entering into an agreement to sell something and then hope everything else works out well. We don’t know what our rent will be if we get stuck there.”
The “Two Year Plan:” Weldon Wyatt Makes His Case
The issue was important enough to discuss at a work session before holding the required second hearing and final vote. Council met for a work session prior to its December 9, 2019 meeting. Mayor Osbon recused himself from the discussions again.
Attending the work session was Weldon Wyatt. who described a two year plan for his proposed investment. According to the minutes (6) the “only comment he had” was an assertion of a two year plan for the property:
“They are looking at something two years out, and they do not know what will happen in two years, but they are willing to take that risk…He said he would not be looking at buying it if he didn’t think they could use it, but they do not know what they would use it for right now. He noted that he had bought the Wells Fargo property for$750,000, and does not have a use for it at this time. He said when looking at something two years out, it is difficult to figure out what you will do with it. He said he could not do anything with it for two years.”
He further made his case by stating “They have been around Aiken a long time; Council knows what he does and what he has done,” that “it is hard to imagine what the building will be worth in two years. It could be more or less. He said what he was agreeing to pay is something they are putting their faith in Aiken that it will be worth the $1.2 million two years from now.”
A few councilmembers sounded very deferential to Mr. Wyatt, with Mayor Pro Tem Lessie Price stating “Mr. Wyatt has been very considerate,” and that “Council appreciates the patience of WTC Laurens, LLC.” Council person Kay Brohl stated that “she knows WTC does good work,” while claiming “Council has not had a good track record with property.”
No record of any challenge or questions regarding Mr. Wyatt’s offer were recorded.
The City Sells Its Finance Building
On Sunday, January 12, 2020, The Wyatt family abruptly, and without a stated reason, exited its contract with Aiken County to purchase the old hospital, and the Wyatt’s “home run” proposal to reinvigorate the West entrance to the historic district ended.
The next day Aiken City Council proceeded with its second hearing to sell 135 Laurens Street to a family that had the day before cancelled a major project that had consumed hundreds of hours of county and city time. The meeting minutes provide no indication of knowledge or concern for this development.
The January 13th meeting was dominated by an annexation and apartment complex proposal on Owens Street off Daugherty Road. Another hearing with high interest involved the million dollar subsidy to the Steeplechase Foundation to purchase a new property. By the time the Finance Building reading arrived, only two citizens rose to speak.
The sale price was now at $1.3 million, matching the appraisal value. The same key issues raised during the first hearing lingered into this second reading. Mayor Osbon again recused himself from the discussion and vote.
Dr. Rocky Napier reappeared and repeated his numerous concerns and questions. The answer to his first question, was WTC Laurens, LLC registered with the state of South Carolina, was a sure sign that City Council was underprepared to handle all the sale issues. The answer from City Attorney Gary Smith was uninspiring:
“Mr. Gary Smith, City Attorney, stated he could not answer that question at this time. Before any transaction is made with him,the closing attorney would confirm their existence before closing takes place.”
(Update, 4/15/22: WTC Laurens, LLC incorporation date is shown as March 9, 2020 on the SC Secretary of State’s website, so it was not yet registered with the State of SC. The closing attorney for the sale was Mary O. Guynn, Mr. Smith’s law partner).
Napier went on for another eight minutes with questions and concerns, most of which the city could not fully answer. Among the issues was the presence of a concept plan for future use of the property. WTC’s representative stated there was no concept plan yet, this was “just a year end investment opportunity.”
Adding to Dr. Napier’s concerns was Dr. Taylor Garnett, a long time downtown landlord and investor. According to the meeting minutes, he touched on every key issue:
“Mr. Garnett said he did not feel that it was done in a very business-like manner. It should have been presented to the public and advertised for sale. He said he did not like taking the first buyer coming down the pipe. He said he did not think there was a solid plan for the Chesterfield Street building….there should not be a big rush to sell the Laurens Street building and worry about rent, late payment clauses, upkeep and maintenance, etc. It needs to be presented to the public. There could be a buyer out there who would pay more than$1.3 million for it. He said he understands the city has between$1.7 and $1.8 million in the Laurens Street building. If we take $1.2 million, we leave $500,000 on the table. He said he felt we need to back up. It needs to be done in a business-like manner.” (7)
Once again, Ed Woltz offered the only objections from Council, stating he “was opposed to the sale because it is a bad time and not in the best interest of the City.”
Councilperson Brohl admitted to a lesson learned, “that everything we do should go out for bids,” and then offered a motion to approve and voted with the 5-1 majority to approve the sale.
According to county records the sale to the Wyatts was finalized on March 26, 2020. Five days later Weldon Wyatt’s “two year plan” for the property ended. (Updated 4/15/23 to change “less than one month later to “Five days later” and March 9, 2020 to March 26, 2020)
Acccording to Aiken County records, on April 1st, 2020, WTC Laurens, LLC sold 135 Laurens St., SW to SRP Credit Union for $1.3 million, but retained the parking lot at 130 Pendleton St, SW. (Update 4/15/23: The closing attorney for the sale was City Attorney Law Partner Mary Guynn).
The unexpected sale to SRP Credit Union also cost the city at least $15,000 in moving costs when the finance department and city manager’s office temporarily relocated back to 214 Park Avenue, West in June of 2020. SRP Credit Union opened its new branch on November 20, 2020.
Dr. Napier’s and Dr. Garnett’s assessment that a higher value for the property was likely and imminent proved to be accurate. WTC Laurens, LLC would, in essence, realize a profit of $500,000 on the 130 Pendleton Street parking lot adjacent to Osbon Dry Cleaners.
Just over a year later WTC Laurens, LLC sold the 130 Pendleton St parking lot property.
On May 27, 2021 R and O, LLC (agent/owner: Rick Osbon) purchased for $500,000 the 0.37 acre property adjacent to Osbon Dry Cleaners. The closing signature is Weldon Wyatt, who had departed from another major development earlier that month, the nascent Project Pascalis, after signing contracts to purchase more than two acres of downtown property for $9.5 million.
(Update 4/15/23: Earlier in the month, on March 3, 2021, Mayor Rick Osbon had met with Weldon Wyatt and a hotel developer on another matter: the future of the Project Pascalis properties for which Mr. Wyatt had two contracts to purchase involving $135,000 in earnest money held in an escrow account by the law firm of Smith, Massey, Brodie, Guynn, and Mayes. The meeting was documented in a May 4, 2021 memo by Aiken Economic Development Director Tim O’Briant (excerpt below)
Conclusion
This story provides another example of Aiken city government officials making major financial decisions, involving large sums of taxpayer money, without a competitive bidding system. City Council disregarded the advice of knowledgable citizens looking out for the common good by insisting the city adhere to accepted and proven policies and procedures.
Yet, a year later the city embarked down an even more expensive road called Project Pascalis, even teaming up with the same developer who had burned them on the old hospital redevelopment and took them to the cleaners on the Finance Building.
(2) Between land and improvements, the City of Aiken eventually spent $11.1 million on the Chesterfield St property; officially purchasing it from the Aiken Public Facilities Corporation on December 12, 2021. The move was completed in June of 2022.
(4) “AN APPRAISAL REPORT of a Municipal Building Located at135 Laurens Street SW & 130 Pendleton Street SW Aiken County Aiken, South Carolina 29801.” September 13, 2021.
J.Marshall Vann, MAI, SRA Vann Appraisal Services, Inc.
Recently obtained emails between City of Aiken officials further reveal bias and irregularities in the legal process for the controversial Project Pascalis. The emails to and from City of Aiken Design Review Board Chairman McDonald Law were obtained via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request (1), and are dated between March 1st and June 22, 2022. They indicate:
a strong bias in favor of the entirety of the project, illustrated by a dismissal of dissenting viewpoints, and a disregard for public input. Most notably, Chairman Law wrote that local historic preservationist contractors Bill and Bernice McGhee “have unfortunately been activated to oppose the entire project based on misinformation about efforts to preserve the corner.”
back channel efforts to influence the project outside of the legal process.
a tendency to steer the process towards approval instead of conducting fair and open meetings and hearings.
Aiken’s Design Review Board
The City of Aiken’s Design Review Board (DRB or Board) reviews all applications for any architectural change and enforcing the zoning ordinances in the city’s historic districts. Essentially, it’s purview is to protect the historical integrity that makes historic district neighborhoods some of the most financially valuable in South Carolina and certainly in Aiken County.
The Board’s deliberations are described as “quasi-judicial,” meaning it functions as an administrative court of law in which fair, full, and unbiased hearings are expected. Since the Board’s decision can only be appealed in the courts, it is arguably the most city’s powerful arbiter regarding proposed changes to the historic district; making its Chairperson one of the more powerful appointed positions in the city.
This year the Design Review Board has reviewed a wide array of proposed property changes in the historic district, including the following modifications to private homes:
construction of a stone driveway,
removal of two chimneys,
window and garage door replacement
a front porch enclosure
construction of a pool guest house
replacement of a roof and windows
This category of seemingly minor requests dominates the Board’s proceedings, but larger projects are also heard. The two most notable this year were scheduled on March 1st and July 5th.
The final item on the Board’s March 1, 2022 agenda was “hearing for demolition of 235 Richland Avenue and 106 Laurens Street.” These are the vacant Hotel Aiken, long a subject of dispute, and the adjacent building, also of 1920 origin, to its south housing a trio of active businesses: Beyond Bijou, Vampire Penguin, and Ginger Bee.
The buildings were acquired by the Aiken Municipal Development Commission (AMDC) on November 9, 2021, following a complex and tangled web of transactions spanning eight months. (2) The AMDC is a redevelopment agency established by Aiken City Council in 2019.
106-108-110 Laurens St SW / Beyond Bijous-Vampire Penguin-Ginger Bee (Photo courtesy of Donald Moniak)
The March 1, 2022 hearing proceeded as planned, and the first demolition approval was made by a 6-1 vote, further inflaming an already contentious debate about the largest redevelopment project in downtown Aiken since the 1953 gas explosion. The DRB’s approval of that demolition request was an essential first step in the City of Aiken’s downtown demolish and redevelop endeavor called Project Pascalis, an effort involving more than three acres of a city block of seven and a half acres.
The Pascalis project will displace eight small businesses (3) and place Newberry Hall, the only business hosting and catering to large downtown meetings and conferences, on hiatus during the three plus years of construction. Large outdoor events will need to be relocated from the popular Newberry Street festival area that is also threatened with demolition.
A second hearing for demolition of the remaining four buildings owned by the AMDC, as well as a former State Farm Insurance office owned by Aiken Alley Holdings, LLC, was scheduled for July 5, 2022. The hearing was cancelled after the city’s chosen developer withdrew the application on June 30th. (4) Instead of a demolition hearing, a lawsuit seeking an injunction to halt the project was filed on July 5th, and prominently features the DRB among the many allegations of legal misconduct. (5)
Warneke Cleaners (Photo courtesy of Debbie Traves Brown)
The four buildings owned by the AMDC and subject to the cancelled demolition request are the Holley House motel (currently vacant), Newberry Hall (6), Warneke Cleaners, and the building known as the old CC Johnson Drug Store.
The corner business in the McGhee Block of buildings has housed a number of businesses over the past 100+ years, including the old CC Johnson Drug Store, (1920-1940), Cloud 7 Gift Shop (1960s-70s), and, most recently, Playoffs Sports Bar. (Photo courtesy of Michael Aiken)
The latter was built in 1920 by McGhee and McGhee general contractors to house the historic CC Johnson Drug Store. This business was an important Aiken feature in at least one edition of “The Negro Motorist Green Book.” More recently the building housed Pat’s Restaurant and lastly the Playoffs Bar.
Marginalizing A Popular Viewpoint
After the building was threatened with demolition during a previous downtown redevelopment proposal in 2017, Bill and Bernice McGhee expressed a desire to maintain the building.(7) Bill McGhee’s grandfather William McGhee, along with A.G. McGhee, owned and operated McGhee and McGhee, which also constructed the first Aiken Hospital in 1917, (no longer in existence), and notable Aiken landmarks including the Fermata Club and the iconic serpentine wall at Hopelands and Whiskey.
Newspaper clipping of 1918 advertisement for McGhee & McGhee Contractors and Builders of Aiken, SC
With a business motto of “restoring Aiken, one brick at a time,” the McGhee family remains prominently and deeply involved with historic preservation projects. The AMDC itself has proudly described them as partners in the commission’s Williamsburg Street redevelopment efforts. If you see an old house being moved on an Aiken street, it is likely to involve the McGhee family businesses.
In January 2020 Bill McGhee received The Aiken Award “for his restoration work of old residences on the city’s Northside.” After that honor, Bill and Beatrice McGhee also received the second lifetime achievement award ever bestowed by the Historic Aiken Foundation.
These efforts also made the McGhees regulars before the Design Review Board. For example, in January 2021 the Board unanimously approved their application to relocate and restore two historic homes to 222 Williamsburg, St, SE. One of the homes, at 147 Newberry Street, NW, had been previously approved for demolition, but the owner agreed to donate the structure to the McGhees.
The McGhees advocacy for preserving the CC Johnson Drug Store was not well received by Chairman Law. In a March 20, 2022 email exchange, Mr. Law wrote to Aiken Economic Development Director Tim O’Briant:
If the parking structure is rotated 90 degrees, the Richland Ave building frontage can remain its current length. Another advantage, and not a small one, is that the side of the McGhee and McGhee building can also be preserved. The McGhees have unfortunately been activated to oppose the entire project based on misinformation about efforts to preserve the corner.
This marginalization of the family’s concerns continued into April. On April 4th Mr. McGhee wrote to City Manager Stuart Bedenbaugh:
Sir
We have been in contact with Brent Leggs’ office of the National Trust African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund about the Dr. C. C. Johnson Drugstore/McGheeBuilding. We have provided Ms. Tiffany Tolbert, Associate Director, with information about the proposed demolition and the historic significance of the property to the City of Aiken. Ms. Tolbert has offered to examine options other than demolition and guidance from NTHP. When may we arrange a conference call with Ms. Tolbert, your office and members of the Concerned Citizens group?
Mr Bedenbaugh responded:
Bill,
The property is owned by the Aiken Municipal Development Corporation, which is governed by its own board. You will need to work through Tim O’Briant [cc’d above] to schedule a meeting with their officials.
Mr. O’Briant then asked Mr. McGhee:
Can your group and the Trust folks be available for the April 12 Commission meeting at 3:30 pm? Let me know and I can set it up.
A presentation slot was set up for the April 12th meeting. Normally presentations from outside parties are placed at or near the top of city council, board, and commission agendas. For example, at its November 9, 2021 meeting the AMDC placed presentations by consultants Joseph Minicozzi of Urban3 and Chris Brewer of AECOM at the top of the agenda and before commission business.
On April 12, the “presentation regarding CC Johnson Drug Store Recognition and Proposed Facade Preservation—Bill McGhee” was sixth on the agenda. An “Economic Development Master Plan Implementation Update” by $4,000-a-month consulting program manager Tom Hallman was at the top of the agenda. It was Mr. Hallman’s second update on the same master plan in six months.
The AMDC’s meeting minutes for that day are long on detail for Mr. Hallman’s presentation and devoid of detail for Mr. McGhee’s presentation. Six pages of minutes are devoted to Mr. Hallman’s update and associated commissioner questions and comments. It was at this meeting that the issue of the Hitchcock Woods arose, with Chair Keith Wood asking:
Mr. Wood noted that the Commission had talked about working with Hitchcock Woods to make the Woods more open for public use and for marketing. It is a huge resource for the city. He asked if anything had developed there yet, and if the Commission should revisit that.
The Hitchcock Woods are a large privately owned and managed “urban forest” mostly outside the physical jurisdiction of the AMDC, and entirely outside its legal jurisdiction.
In contrast a short paragraph was devoted to the McGhee’s presentation regarding the CC Johnson Drug Store.
The minutes merely read:
Mr. Wood stated the next item is a presentation from Mr. Bill McGhee regarding recognition of the CC Johnson Drug Store property on the corner of Newberry Street and Richland Avenue which is a part of the Pascalis Project.
Mr. McGhee stated he had been talking with the National Trust for historic preservation called Saving Places . He said he planned to have someone from that group to talk to MDC today , but he had not been able to make those arrangements. He is still working with them to see what they can do to help us save as much as we can of the Johnson Drug Store. He pointed out that presently the plan is to destroy the building and to leave a wall. He said he was looking to save the whole building.
If there were any comments or questions that day from Commissioners, they were not recorded in the minutes. McDonald Law was also at the meeting and received the email exchange leading to the presentation, but no other DRB members attended the event and it does not appear any other members were notified. According to the minutes, Mr. Law’s only comment that day, just a month after describing Mr. McGhee as “activated” by “misinformation” was:
McDonald Law stated following up on the comment about DRB input on Pascalis , they had a work session and received a good many comments from the public and Commissioners. The developers responded very quickly to DRB’s comments at their last meeting.
On April 20th, Project Pascalis developers presented their latest renditions. A compromise was proposed to repurpose the existing storefront facade as the entrance to the proposed luxury apartments, with the idea to “tell the story of of the CC Johnson Drugstore and and that’s really the most important thing.” (8)
On May 3rd, the DRB held its monthly meeting. On the agenda was another demolition proposal, this time for the house at 147 Newberry St, NW which the McGhees had been methodically salvaging and preparing to move. The applicant this time was the Aiken Corporation, which had a contract to buy the property and two adjacent vacant lots. According to the application:
The Board previously gave its consent to Bill McGhee to move the house to another location. Upon information and belief, Mr. McGhee was unable move the house due to the required removal and substantial trimming of a number of trees and abandoned all efforts to move it.(9)
The Board voted unanimously to approve. Bill and Bernice McGhee were not present at the hearing. Two months later Bernice McGhee was listed as a plaintiff in the lawsuit to stop the Pascalis project; and McDonald Law was named as one of thirty defendants.
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Next: Part 2: The Chairman’s Bias: A Demolition “Home Run,” evasion of the legal process, and the steering towards approval.
References
(1) On June 23, 2022 I submitted a FOIA request asking for “All email and paper communication between Design Review Board Chair McDonald Law Economic Development Director Tim O’Briant, and/or AMDC Chair Keith Wood between March 1, 2022 and June 22, 2022.” The intent of the request was to obtain information relating to Mr. Law’s advocacy for relocating the proposed conference center location to the recently vacated city hall building at 214 Park Avenue, West.
The city responded on July 8th with 15 email exchanges and 16 attachments.
(3) The businesses being forced to relocate or even close are Warneke Cleaners, Taj Restaurant, On Board Reality, Nationwide (already moved), Security Finance, Beyond Bijou, Vampire Penguin, and Ginger Bee.
(5) The Historic Aiken Foundation is one of nine plaintiff’s in the lawsuit. A book-style presentation of the lawsuit, as well as a summary of project issues, is at:
(9) FOIA request for correspondence since January 1, 2022 between the AMDC and the Aiken Corporation was met with a $112 cost estimate for more than seven hours of search, retrieval, and review of records. The estimate has been appealed.
At the beginning of the April 20, 2022 public meeting on Project Pascalis, the City of Aiken’s Zoom moderator wrote:
“TRANSCRIPTS WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE AT A LATER TIME.”
Three months after these meetings, the city has still not issued transcripts, nor has it fully answered the questions posed during those meetings. A Freedom of Information Act request for transcripts, Zoom call notes, and a compilation of questions and answers yielded a fragmented YouTube transcript of the first meeting, a transcript of the second meeting devoid of public comment, and no question and answer compilation.(1)
Today, Aiken resident and concerned citizen Tori McQuinn downloaded and posted the complete You Tube transcripts from both meetings in less than ten minutes.
Ms. McQuinn’s posting of the first meeting is posted here:
The YouTube translations are of low quality and could never be used as a deposition. They illustrate how difficult it is for real court reporters to capture the essence of testimony. But in this case they are better than the promised alternative of nothing, while still serving as a repository of oral history for present and future interpretations of events.
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(1) See “When No Info is Good Info: A City Not Listening, the Aiken Antique Mall, and Newberry Hall”
On April 20, Chamber of Commerce President failed to identify himself as an AMDC Commissioner. The first public comment on Project Pascalis. Note weaker quality of the city’s transcript.
