The City of Aiken Recreation Commission’s High Absenteeism Rate

Three members of the City of Aiken’s Recreation Commission violated the attendance policy for city boards, commissions, and committees in 2021 by missing more than forty percent of their meetings. Yet, no members were automatically removed, as required by city ordinance. Two of the three voted on February 1, 2022 to dramatically raise city recreation fees, a vote later inappropriately presented in a memorandum to City Council as a legally valid approval of the major fee increases. Without these votes, the meeting would have lacked a quorum, and no vote could have occurred.

Boards, Commissions, and Committees

Aiken City Council appoints citizen volunteers to three boards, seven commissions, four committees, and the Aiken Housing Authority—which operates as an independent body. According to the Aiken Handbook for Effective Boards, Commissions, and Committees (Handbook), these advisory volunteer bodies are essential for crafting city policies that can have profound effects on the lives of citizens:

“In keeping with Aiken’s philosophy of citizen involvement, the City Council appoints  citizens to commissions, committees, and boards to assist it in formulating city policy.  The strength and success of the Aiken City Government is to a large degree reflective  of the quality of service performed by volunteers to these entities.”

Most volunteer bodies fall under the advisory category, but several have broader powers over the citizenry:

• The Design Review Board and Board of Zoning Appeals are “quasi-judicial” bodies similar to administrative courts of law; and their decisions can only be appealed to District Court.
• The Planning Commission provides the first round of review and approvals or disapprovals for requests for annexations, developments requiring zoning changes, and city services for developments outside city limits.  City Council rarely overrules their recommendations. 
• The Municipal Development Commission is independently incorporated, but remains almost entirely funded through the City budget; and its resolutions, recommendations, and plans still must be approved by City Council.
• Among other duties, the Community Development Committee is legally authorized to approve or disapprove the disbursement of federal housing assistance funds, choose contractors, and rule on Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) programs.

Rules of Attendance

Chapter Two, Article Four of the city’s municipal code governs the requirements of the various boards, commissions, and committees.
The lead requirement, Section 2-141, involves attendance:

“Any appointed member of a board or commission created by an ordinance of the city council who during a calendar year is absent from 40 percent or more of the regular meetings or three or more successive regular meetings of the board or commission shall automatically be removed therefrom and shall not be reinstated to the remainder of his term except by a resolution adopted by the city council.”

According to the Handbook, each volunteer body is assigned a paid city employee as a contact. The function of the contact is similar to that of the City Manager’s role during Council meetings; they are responsible for working with Chairpersons and members to provide leadership and support, prepare and review agenda material, and offer expert advice.

Another primary responsibility of the staff contact is to monitor the attendance policy:

“Reviews the attendance policy with the Board, Commission, and Committee members and ensures that they understand and are following attendance rules by attending at least sixty percent (60%) of all regular and special meetings. Maintains records of attendance and reports to the city manager the need for potential removal of any Board, Commission, or Committee member who is absent three successive regular meetings in a year and/or who is absent a total of forty percent (40%) or more in a year. “

Attendance Problems Receive a Public Airing

At its November 14, 2022 meeting, Aiken City Council debated the merits of reinstating Design Review Board member Josh Stewart; who missed forty percent of all regular meetings in 2021. In 2022 he has missed three of eight meetings, two workshops involving the Hotel Aiken and Beckman Building demolition discussion, and the legally mandated continuing education workshop.

Council eventually tabled the motion to reinstate by a vote of 4-3, but not before City Planning Director Marya Moultrie made a false claim to Council that Stewart had attended every meeting in 2022. Details of the contentious debate were reported in the Sunday, November 20th edition of the Aiken Standard.

Recreation Commission Attendance Problems

According to its city website, the Recreation Commission’s mission is to “serve as a liaison between the city residents and program participants and the Aiken City Council to ensure the development and provision of appropriate, quality recreation facilities, services, and programs.”

Because programs are open to nonresidents of the city, the commission is one of three organizations that allows nonresident volunteers to serve; the other two being the Aviation Commission and the Equine Committee. The group also holds the distinction of having non-voting “youth commissioners,” and in 2021 introduced the concept of “youth influencers.” The commission is currently involved with crafting the proposal to build a multi-million dollar soccer complex at Citizens Park.

A review of Recreation Commission meeting minutes revealed an even deeper attendance problem than the Design Review Board. In 2021, three members of the commission missed fifty percent or more of the meetings (1); and in 2022 two of those members continued to miss more than fifty percent of meetings (2). Although city ordinance mandated the members be removed from their appointed office, no action was taken.

In addition, up to three meetings in 2022 were cancelled due to a lack of a quorum (2), indicating a deeper attendance issue. Overall, the Recreation Commission is plagued by a lack of participation. Even its youth commissioners are absent well over fifty percent of the time.

As reported in Taking $2 From a Child to Play a Game, on February 1, 2022 the Recreation Commission held a special-called meeting that lacked proper public notification. The only agenda item involved a proposal to substantially increase recreation fees. The 5-0 vote to approve the fee increases occurred despite the fact the commission lacks the authority to change fees—it is only authorized to provide advice and recommendations to City Council.

By city ordinance, two of the voting members should have been automatically removed from their positions and ineligible to vote. Even if the vote had only involved a resolution to recommend fee increases, the presence of only three legitimate members and subsequent lack of a legal quorum would still have rendered such a vote invalid.

Troubles with Volunteerism in Aiken

2022 has been a difficult year for Aiken’s volunteer commissions and boards. A lawsuit filed against the demolition and redevelopment effort known as Project Pascalis revealed that three members of the Municipal Development Commission and two members of the Design Review Board were appointed despite not living in the city—a major oversight by City Council. At one point the three person election commission was reduced to a single member.

Now, the issue of overlooked attendance violations has emerged for the Design Review Board, the Recreation Commission, and possibly other committees, commissions, and boards. For example, while not at the forty percent level, Planning Commission Chairman Ryan Reynolds has missed nearly a third of the meetings of the most powerful commission in the city in 2022. Equine Committee member Courtney Conger missed four of seven meetings in 2021, and two of three in 2022; although that committee is deemed ad-hoc.

Aiken City Council has consistently delegated more of its authority to city staff in recent years. For example, as reported in Taking $2 From a A Child to Play a Game, Council discussed delegating the approval of the hanging of banners to city staff. While this sounds innocuous, a single incident of a controversial banner will likely return the issue back to Council approval.

In the case of the Recreation Commission, recreation fees were raised despite the fact it was not authorized to do so, in a meeting that lacked proper notification, and by members who legally should have been removed for attendance policy violations.

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Footnotes

(1) Recreation Commission Minutes for 2021.

Tuesday, January 19, 2021 Aiken, South Carolina 
Present: Chairperson Suzy Haslup, Vice-Chairperson Mike Beckner, Commissioners Lori Comshaw, and Ricky Brown. 
Others Present: City Staff Sam Radford, Rasheka Gaines, and Alex Meyers, Fellow Lead for America.
Absent: Commissioners Melissa Viola, Susan Schifer and John Wallace, and Youth Commissioners Bailey Edwards and Grey Larlee 

Tuesday,, March 16, 2021

Present: Chairperson Suzy Haslup, Vice-Chairperson Mike Beckner, Commissioners Lori Comshaw, Susan Schifer, and Ricky Brown. Others Present: City Staff Sam Radford, Rasheka Gaines, and Breanna Jackson Absent: Commissioners Melissa Viola and John Wallace, and Youth Commissioners Bailey Edwards and Grey Larlee 

Tuesday, May 18, 2021

Present: Chairperson Suzy Haslup, Vice -Chairperson Mike Beckner, Commissioners Melissa Viola, John Wallace, and Ricky Brown. Others Present: City Staff Rasheka Gaines Absent: Commisoners Susan Schifer and Lori Comshaw; Youth Commissioners Grey Larlee and Bailey Edwards.

Tuesday,August 17,2021

Present: Chairperson Suzy Haslup, Vice-Chairperson Mike Beckner,Commissioners SusanSchifer, Lori Comshaw and Ricky Brown. Others Present: City Staff Samantha Radford. Absent: Commisoners Melissa Viola and John Wallace

Tuesday, October 19, 2021

Present: Chairperson Suzy Haslup, Vice-Chairperson Mike Beckner, Commissioners Susan Schifer, Lori Comshaw, John Wallace, and Ricky Brown. Others Present: City Staff Samantha Radford & Rasheka Gaines; PRT Influencers Kaia McMullen, Mika Mayo, Kaeleigh Seigler Absent: Commissioner Melissa Viola 

RECREATION COMMISSION 

Tuesday, November 30, 2021.
Present: Chairperson Suzy Haslup, Vice-Chairperson Mike Beckner, Commissioners Lori Comshaw, Ricky Brown, and Melissa Viola (Zoom). Others Present: City Staff Jessica Campbell, Samantha Radford & Rasheka Gaines. Absent: Commissioner John Wallace, Susan Schifer 

Summary of Recreation Commission Attendance, 2021.
50% Absentee Rate: Commissioners John Wallace and Susan Schifer. 67% Absentee Rate: Commissioner Melissa Viola.

Member	1/19 (Z)	3/16 (Z)	5/18 (Z)	8/17 (Z)	10/19	11/30
Haislup	P	P	P	P	P	P
Wallace	A	A	P	A	P	A
Comshaw	P	P	A	P	P	P
Schifer	A	P	A	P	P	A
Viola	A	A	P	A	A	P (Z)
Beckner	P	P	P	P	P	P
Brown	P	P	P	P	P	P

(2) Recreation Commission Minutes, Calendar Year 2022.

Tuesday, February 1, 2022 Aiken, South Carolina 

Present: Chairperson Suzy Haslup, Vice-Chairperson Mike Beckner (Zoom), Commissioners Lori Comshaw, John Wallace, and Melissa Viola (Zoom).  Others Present: City Staff Jessica Campbell, Seth Holley, Rasheka Gaines, Alex Myers, and Alison Cribb . Absent: Commissioner, Susan Schifer 

Tuesday, March 15, 2022

Present: Chairperson Suzy Haslup, Vice-Chairperson Mike Beckner, Commissioners Lori Comshaw, and John Wallace. Others Present: City Staff – Rasheka Gaines, Austin Rippy, Alex Myers, and Alison Cribb. Absent: Commissioners Susan Schifer and Melissa Viola.

Tuesday, August 16, 2022

Present: Chairperson Suzy Haslup(Zoom),Commissioners John Pettigrew,Lori Comshaw,  Susan Schifer, and John Wallace. Others Present:City Staff-Rasheka Gaines,Sara Harvey, and Alison Cribb. Absent: CommissionersMelissa Viola.

Summary of 2022 Recreation Commission Attendance 
67% Absentee Rate: Susan Schifer and Melissa Viola.

Member	2/1	3/15	5/18	8/16	10/18	11/21
Haislup	P	P	C	P	NQ
Wallace	p	P	C	P	NQ
Comshaw	P	P	C	P	NQ
Schifer	A	A	C	P	NQ
Viola	P (Z)	A	C	A	NQ
Beckner	P (Z)	P	C	NA	NQ
Brown	Resigned	NA	C	NA	NQ
Pettigrew	NA	NA	NA	P	NQ

P = Present, A = Absent, C = Cancelled Meeting, NQ = No Quorum. NA = Not Applicable, not a member.
Shifer and Viola each missed two of the three meetings held with a quorum thus far in 2022.