I just yesterday read the Aiken Chronicles guest editorial, April 10th City Council Meeting Recap, by Kelly Cornelius. It is depressing to see what has become of the relations between Aiken city elected representatives and the residents that are supposed to be served.
I remember, warmly, the days when comments from the public were not only welcome but requested by Mayor Fred Cavanaugh and council members Dick Smith, Jane Vaughters, Dick Dewar and Reggie Ebner. There were even occasions when the mayor and those council members walked through our neighborhoods to enhance their understanding of issues brought to their attention by concerned Aiken residents.
I hope the upcoming 2024 elections see the restoration of those happier more constructive days. If you share my hope, go vote and urge everyone you know to do likewise.
I’m smitten. My love interest? A plant that grows in my backyard: plantain — specifically, Plantago lanceolata.
Anybody with a lawn is most likely familiar with the plant. Insert your groans here if you’ve ever done battle trying to extricate it from your yard. Like so many introduced, non-native plants species, it favors disturbed land, which is why plantain seems to grow almost everywhere.
There are actually two types of plantain common to our area — Plantago lanceolata and Plantago major — both of which share the same purported medicinal benefits. P. major has broad, lance-shaped leaves with a lower, sometimes flat growth habit, whereas whereas the P. lanceolata has an upright, lily-like habit and long, flat, lance-shaped leaves with four or five ribs growing parallel to the leaf’s midrib. If these descriptions do not ring a bell, what is more familiar is the small rocket-shaped seed heads at the end of the plant’s long stems.
My first introduction to plantain was as a child. Playing in the yard, we fellows would pick the long stem with the seed head, then — after forming a V-shaped “catapult” with lower stem — we’d thread the upper stem through the lower and give it a quick yank to shoot the seed head toward the intended foe. War games were simpler in those days.
The flowering seed head of Plantago lanceolata at just the right stage for catapulting.
Fast forward to last week — Friday, to be exact — when I awoke with a painful gum infection. Having almost died 14 years ago from a runaway dental infection that required surgery and several days in the hospital, I was especially dismayed that this arose on the Friday. It would take days to get into a dentist’s office.
At the same time, I knew I had a patch of plantain in the yard — an herb that has spared me, on more than one occasion over the past several years, a trip to the dentist. Plantain has a long history of use with drawing out deep infections and reducing inflammation. I hoped that using it would at least carry me through the weekend.
Non-native plantain was brought to North America by the Puritans, who cultivated it for its highly regarded medicinal value. The leaves and plant extracts have historically been used for a host of maladies including bronchitis, coughs, burns, urinary tract infections, dermatitis, insect stings, poison ivy, eczema, and more. Some studies have shown potential for anti-tumor activity.
Here, I must insert a caveat. Some wild plants can sicken or kill you. It takes time, research and experience to become a knowledgeable forager. I’ve been doing this for many years. When I began, there were only a few that I could positively identify, and that was exciting. Others, I learned over time, sometimes taking a few years to thoroughly familiarize myself with their growth habits, timing, flower forms, etc. to make a positive identification. There are so many online resources to assist in this process. The assistance of a knowledgeable, seasoned forager is highly advised. Lastly, nothing in this post is intended to, nor should, replace the advice or care of a qualified medical professional.
I went out to the backyard late Friday and picked some choice leaves. After rinsing them off, I chewed them up (I’ve read that enzymes in the saliva assist in the activation of the helpful compounds in the leaf), then shaped the wad into a poultice and placed it onto the infected area, holding it in place with my cheek for two hours. That evening, the pain and swelling were much improved. The next morning, I picked some more leaves and repeated, holding it to the area for four hours. The pain and swelling were completely gone by Saturday evening. I have had no problems with that area since.
A healthy clump of Plantago lanceolata that sprouted in our backyard red clover patch.
There are many other properties that I have yet to explore (and hopefully won’t have the need to), such as the laxative effects of the seeds. Plantain seed heads contain psyllium, an ingredient in many commonly-used, over-the-counter preparations.
While I no longer catapult the seed heads toward friendly foes, I find it highly amusing to sit in my chair and watch the bees negotiate these plants in my backyard. The bumblebees alight on the tall flower stalks, which sink to the ground with the weight of the bees. Then, it’s on to the next. I read that birds also take advantage of their seeds, but this I have yet to witness.
As is the case with so many of the seemingly pesky weeds at our feet, there is much more to plantain that meets the eye. In addition to its history as a medicinal plant, plantain is edible and has high levels of vitamins C, A and K, beta carotene, anti-oxidants, calcium and magnesium. The younger leaves can be baked into nutritious kale chip-like snacks. They can also be cooked as a green, like spinach, or added raw to salads. Give this weed a chance, and you may find yourself falling in love, too.
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Minus its seed heads, Plantago lanceolate looks a bit like clumps of thick-bladed grass.
Contributor Burt Glover became an accidental naturalist during his earliest childhood days exploring the dirt roads, backyards, polo field and barns of the Magnolia-Knox-Mead neighborhood of 1950s Aiken. Birds are his first love, and he can identify an impressive range by song alone. He asserts that he is an observer, not an expert, on the topics of his writings, which range from birds, box turtles, frogs and foraging, to wasps, weeds, weather and beyond.
How Three Pages in a $250,000 No-Bid City of Aiken Agreement with the Aiken Corporation Were Missing from the Publicly Available Version.
by Don Moniak May 13, 2023
On March 13, 2023, Aiken City Council approved a $250,000, no-bid professional services contract with the Aiken Corporation.
The contract authorized the architectural firm of McMillan Pazdan and Smith (MPS) to pursue predevelopment work, under the supervision of the Aiken Corporation, for a proposed downtown Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) “Workforce Development” office complex. The proposed complex involves four properties originally obtained in 2021 by the Aiken Municipal Development Commission (AMDC)as the core properties in the failed Pascalis project.
The March 13th agreement cited a separate December 9th contract agreement between MPS and Aiken Corporation. Section E of the March 13th contract specifies:
“The parties acknowledge that the City previously contacted the Developer with the goal of having the Developer engage various experts to perform certain services. Pursuant to that request, the Developer entered into an Engagement Agreement with McMillan Pazdan Smith ( hereafter ” MPS”) dated December 9, 2022, a copy of. which is attached hereto and made a part of this Agreement.”
The December 9th agreement also contained provisions not found in the first eleven pages of the March 13th contract, and not divulged during the only public meeting to date. Specifically, the December 9th contract referenced scheduling a series of private meetings, and the Aiken Corporation both overseeing the construction phase and eventually owning the facility. (The December 9th contract is on pages 12-14 here.)
This is the second significant document pertaining to the SRNL project that had to be obtained via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. (1) As reported in Project Labscalis Operating Costs, the city’s “Savannah River Litigation Settlement Fund Request” described an undisclosed, $250,000 annual maintenance and labor cost to be borne by the city.
The Incomplete March 13th Professional Services Contract
On March 13, 2023, Aiken City Council approved a no-bid “Professional Services Agreement” (2) with the Aiken Corporation (3) worth up to $250,000. In it, Aiken Corporation is defined as “the developer.”
The funding is for “pre-development work” by the architectural firm of McMillan, Pazdan, and Smith (MPS). The agreement specifies that a 45,000 square foot, three-story “Workforce Development Center” for the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) will be built.
The planned location identified for the downtown lab project was identified as four properties that were formerly part of the failed Pascalis project (4), and purchased by the AMDC in November 2021. The AMDC was dissolved on May 8, 2023; with its assets and properties now defaulting to city ownership.
The contract includes a provision for the Aiken Corporation to pursue negotiations to lease properties—still owned by the AMDC—to unidentified “third parties” such as SRNL. If Aiken Corporation owns or is a long-term leaseholder of the project buildings, it could collect more than $5 million in rental revenues in the first ten years of facility operations. (5)
Missing from the March 13th agreement was a December 9, 2022 agreement between the Aiken Corporation and MPS that was referenced three times as part of the larger agreement.
The December 9th agreement turned out to be three pages at the end of a fourteen page contract. The publicly available meeting agenda packet only provided the first eleven pages, and the March 13th agreement was approved in spite of the missing three pages.
During public comment preceding the vote to approve the March 13th contract, the fact that provisions appeared to be missing was conveyed to Council, but no explanation for the absence was forthcoming.
The December 9th Contract Between Aiken Corporation and MPS
The December 9th agreement consists of a “Letter of Engagement” written by MPS “Principal” K.J. Jacobs on November 30, 2022, and signed by Aiken Corporation Board Chairman Arthur “Buzz” Rich on December 9, 2022.
The letter began with a project summary with specificity on size, shape, and location:
“Thank you for the opportunity to provide this proposal related to your proposed new, mixed-use building in downtown Aiken. We understand the proposed site is an +/- 0.55 acre, T-Shaped parcel bounded by Richland Avenue NW, Newberry Street NW, and Bee Lane. The project, which will be constructed and owned by the Aiken Corporation, is conceptualized as a mixed-use building containing 30,000 square feet of office space and a 10,000-15,000 square foot exhibition hall with associated meeting and support spaces.”
The original agreement between MPS and Aiken Corporation contains provisions not found in the incomplete, March 13th version provided to Council and the public.
First, it describes Aiken Corporation as both the developer during the construction phase, and the owner of the lab project properties. Whether this ownership would be outright or in the form of a long-term “ground lease” was not clarified.(5)
Second, it contained reference to a series of closed-door planning sessions with select “key stakeholders” that are never identified, a pattern reminiscent of the Project Pascalis invitation-only “influencer meetings.”
These meetings include:
“An intensive charette with key stakeholders to identify goals (and) confirm the scope of work and project schedule. These sessions will be conducted on-site so that we can facilitate meetings with various stakeholders with minimal disruption.”
“A handful of more detailed programming interviews with small groups of key project stakeholders.”
“A brief wrap-up with the leadership team to summarize our findings.” “Findings of the Programming Sessions…will be shared with the project leadership team for their review, comment, and approval.”
The March 13th contract approval was preceded by a series of events (6) that included a well-attended February 6th public forum—announced on January 28th as a City of Aiken event.
The forum was moderated by Aiken Corporation contractor representative K.J. Jacobs, who later described it as a “listening session.” The existence of the December 9th contract between MPS and Aiken Corp, and the scope of work described in it, was not disclosed during the meeting.
In fact, a slide showing a “Feasibility Study Milestone Schedule” omitted the timeline prior to the project announcement, and any private, closed-door meetings—although Mr. Jacobs did state the “report will be given to the City, the National Laboratory, and I suspect it’ll be made publicly available.” (19 minute mark of meeting)
Feasibility Study schedule presented on February 6, 2023. Unless it has not been made public, the preliminary study is now a month overdue. The final report and second public input session is now two weeks overdue.
During the forum, MPS created the impression that building size, shape, and location were yet to be determined:
“We have not been retained to design a building. We’ve not yet designed a building. We’ve done almost nothing so far okay. What we’re here to do what we’ve been hired to do is to do what amounts to a feasibility study to understand all of the opportunities and constraints around the Savannah River National Labs desire to build a new building downtown.”
“I’ve read a few things where it sounds like all the puzzle pieces have already (been decided),. This person’s moving here, this building’s getting torn down. Y’all none of that’s been decided, okay. Someone may have said that, but it’s really people just starting to talk and think about what what might happen. Nothing is going to be decided until we get to the end of this process and are able to put put these things together and find out what makes the most sense for the city of Aiken and the citizens of Aiken, the constituents, all the stakeholders, and the folks at the lab that are the reason we’re here in the first place .” (emphasis added)
In regards to the size of the building, “speculation is completely premature.”
“Only after (the) final report is issued does any real site planning whether it’s on this site or another site does any of that start. Then we’ll then we’ll have what is traditional site planning and blocking and stacking exercise where we start to understand how the program for the building might fit onto this site or another site. “
During Aiken City Council’s May 8, 2023 public meeting (19:00 mark), the missing December 9th contract provision was submitted to Council. No council members commented about its existence or its absence from the publicly available March 13th agreement.
Summary
Aiken City Council approved a resolution on March 13th to accept a no-bid $250,000 agreement with the Aiken Corporation that defined the latter as the “The Developer.” The agreement also authorized Aiken Corporation to negotiate leases with third parties.
Missing from the publicly available March 13th agreement a three-page, December 9, 2022, agreement between Aiken Corp and MPS that was incorporated into the legal agreement. It described Aiken Corporation as the future owner of the SRNL facility. The three-page agreement withheld from citizen review and scrutiny was only disclosed via a FOIA request.
The December 9th agreement contains provisions for private meetings of “key stakeholders” that were not conveyed during a February 6th public forum. In addition, forum attendees were told several times that no decision had been made on the size, shape, and location of the facility.
Like Project Pascalis, deliberations for the SRNL project began in secrecy and continued in secrecy for more than a year, ultimately resulting in a decision to locate it on Pascalis project properties following the failure of that $100 million project—thus the hybrid moniker of “Project Labscalis.”
Like Project Pascalis, “key stakeholders” do not appear to include the general public. Like Project Pascalis, it appears that public input will be restricted to the aesthetics of the project, and not its location, size, or shape. One way of describing this now common scenario is that “key stakeholders” choose the menu for the planning table, while the general public only gets to select the salad dressing.
Footnotes
(Footnote 1). The fact that the missing December 9th document was cited in the March 13th contract means the city was legally obligated to provide it in the absence of a FOIA request. However, a FOIA request was necessary after officials declined to provide it, and then it took more than a month to obtain— the request was filed on March 22nd following a failed attempt to obtain it via a simple request.
The request was not addressed April 5th—the statutory ten-day business day limit to respond. The first response was accompanied by a $593.99 bill (below) involving 11 hours of undefined “Economic Development” time at $48 per hour.
Initial $593.99 bill for a FOIA request involving fewer than ten short documents. After the only searchable item was removed the three page, December 9th contract was provided at no cost—-as mandated under FOIA for any records that are cited in any public meeting or meeting agenda packet for the previous six months.
The requested information was:
“Pertaining to the Professional Services Agreement with the Aiken Corporation approved by City Council on 3/13/23, as found in cityofaikensc.gov/cca :
a. Copies of the request or requests from the City of Aiken to Aiken Corporation, as reported in this statement in Section E of the agreement: “The parties acknowledge that the City previously contacted the Developer with the goal of having the Developer engage various experts to perform certain services.” This would include any emails to the Aiken Corporation’s Arthur “Buzz” Rich from any account from cityofsc.govduring the period September 29, 2022 to December 10, 2022.
b. The copy of the 12/9/22 agreement between Aiken Corporation and MPS referenced in that same paragraph.
c. A copy of the MPS document dated 2/27/23 referenced in the same paragraph.
d. A copy of the MPS engagement letter of 11/30/22 referenced in Exhibit A Part iv.
e. A copy of any draft lease agreement between City of Aiken and Aiken Corporation for properties cited in the agreement.”
Following receipt of the $599.93 bill, the request was modified to remove item (a). That left only items 2-5, suggesting the bill was primarily related to Item (a.)
On April 28th, the three-page, December 9th Aiken Corporation/MPS contract was provided, without any costs, by City Solicitor and FOIA officer Laura Jordan; with this accompanying statement:
“The attached agreement has all documents that you are looking for. The last three pages are on MPS letterhead and that is the Execution Agreement mentioned dated 12/9/22. The other document on MPS letterhead dated 3/8/2023 is actually the February 27, 2023 document. The wrong dates (were) used in the agreement.”
The $593 bill was for a several documents. After One was provided at no cost and one did not yet exist (lease agreement); meaning the $593 bill was for what is likely only a few records pertaining to the City’s initial contact with the Aiken Corporation.
Footnote (2) The “Professional Services Contract” provided to City Council on March 13th only included the first eleven pages in the document provided here. Three pages were missing. The city’s 250,000, no-bid contract with the Aiken Corporation includes frequent references to the Aiken Corporation as the “The Developer.” As already stated, the December 9, 2022 Aiken Corporation agreement with MPS was incorporated into the contract.
According to Pages 6-7, $75,000 is initially dedicated to paying MPS, via Aiken Corporation, to conduct public relations work. Among the provisions in the March 13th contract are requirements for MPS to:
Develop a strategic communications plan to identify a guiding strategy for the project.
Provide guidance to Aiken Corporation on website revisions.
Assist Aiken Corporation in the execution of communications plans.
Monitor project-specific email account to assist Aiken Corporation in accepting feedback, and providing appropriate comments back to members of the public
Graphic design services to help develop a project brand.
Footnote (3). The Aiken Corporation is a nonprofit organization created by, and serving at the discretion of, Aiken City Council; but acts in an independent manner. Its primary donor is the City of Aiken. Such an arrangement is known as “quasi-governmental.” All publicly available information can be found here in the City of Aiken’s document repository.
Footnote (4) The proposed location for the facility involves four to five properties on 0.55 acres of land. The properties were purchased by the Aiken Municipal Development Commission (AMDC) in November 2021 as part of a larger $9.5 million real estate deal that formed the demolition and redevelopment zone for the failed, $100 million plus Pascalis project, the latter of which also involved the Aiken Chamber of Commerce and developer and property-broker Weldon Wyatt.
The AMDC was dissolved by City Council on May 8th, meaning the properties will soon be conveyed by default to the city.
Specifically, the properties involved are:
The Holley House Motel, adjacent to the Hotel Aiken, which is inhabited only by a City of Aiken Public Safety fire cadet acting as a part-time monitor of vacant Pascalis project properties
The popular Taj Aiken restaurant that serves an authentic Indian cuisine.
The McGhee Building, consisting of the historic CC Johnson Drug Store, which as been vacant since 2018, and was previously occupied by the 21st Century by two popular venues—Pat’s Restaurant followed by Playoffs Bar and Grille. The building is currently only inhabited by Security Finance, as two other businesses—a Nationwide Insurance agent and On-Board Realty. The latter obtained a sole-source, no-bid property management contract from the AMDC in December 2021.
Warneke Cleaners, the oldest active business in downtown Aiken occupying a building constructed in 1935.
The formerly AMDC owned Pascalis properties omitted from the lab facility plan are:
The Beckman Building at 106 Laurens St, SW, which consists of Ginger Bee clothing store, Vampire Penguin dessert destination, and Cosmetics (formerly Beyond Bijou).
The Hotel Aiken, which as been vacant since 2018. A Request for Proposals is reportedly being prepared that will determine its future.
Newberry Hall
Footnote (5) The Aiken Corporation presently has a 99-year “Ground Lease”with the City of Aiken for the 20,000 square foot Amentum office building on Newberry Street. Because of the length of the lease, Aiken Corporation appears as the “owner” in county records and pays property taxes on the building—$29,805 for 2022–but not on the actual property.
The monthly rent paid to Aiken Corp by Amentum is $20,500, or $1 per square foot, and $246,000 per year.
If the same rate were charged for the 45,000 square foot SRNL building, the monthly rent would be $45,000, and annual rental income would be $540,000.
The ground lease for the Newberry Street office building required twenty years of rent paid by Aiken Corp to the City of Aiken to pay off a $3.5 million loan from the city to build the facility.
While the loan also helped finance construction of the adjacent, City-owned adjacent Performing Arts Center, most of that cost was covered by a major fundraising effort by the Aiken Community Theatre.
In the lab scenario, Aiken Corp may not have rental payments to the city. The SRNL property will be owned by the City of Aiken due to the $20 million in plutonium settlement funding, so no loans will be involved unless the project goes over budget. In the absence of the latter event, all rental revenues for the nonprofit Aiken Corp will be profits.
In addition, the City of Aiken has committed to $250,000 in annual maintenance and staffing contests for the SRNL facility, further cutting costs for Aiken Corporation.
December 9, 2022. AMDC Chairman Keith Wood and Chris Verenes resigned in protest due to the failure of City Council to meet with them regarding the causes of the Project Pascalis failure.
“Potential purchase of real property located in downtown Aiken.”
“A proposed contractual arrangement to lease property in downtown Aiken.
In regard to the latter topic, City Council was discussing, and probably negotiating for, rental of property owned by the AMDC and not the city.
Mayor Rick Osbon recused himself because the “discussion might involve one of his direct competitors.” (Warneke Cleaners is the competitor, and the property it leases is part of the SNRL project).
Attendees included Chamber of Commerce President and AMDC commissioner David Jameson, attorneys Daniel Plyler and Gary Smith, Tim O’Briant, Buzz Rich, SRNL Director Dr. Vahid Majidi, and SRNL Assistant Director Sharon Marra.
December 14, 2022. David Jameson resigned from the AMDC, citing South Carolina’s simple Community Development Law as the root cause of the Pascalis project failure.
January 9, 2023: City Council held another closed-door Executive Session involving the same property purchase and lease arrangements at the December 12, 2022, Executive Session. Absent from list of attendees is SRNL’s leadership and Buzz Rich.
The same day, at the regular City Council meeting, Council “continued” a motion to establish itself as the governing body of the AMDC.
January 17, 2023. Despite the expressed wishes of all but two citizens to dissolve the AMDC, City Council unanimously voted to appoint itself as governing body of the AMDC; in order to transfer AMDC properties and assets to the City of Aiken.
January 25, 2023: The SRNL lab project is announced at the “State of the City” jamboree. With Mayor Osbon continuing to recuse himself, Mayor Pro-Tem Ed Woltz described the project in identical terms as the December 9th Aiken Corporation/MPS agreement, and stated: “This is not a done deal.” (Cou
SRNL Director Majidi also addressed the crowd and assured them that no chemical or radiological operations would take place; but also described the facility as a “nonproliferation training center.” According to the SRNL website, this aspect of its mission involves U.S. intelligence agencies. (His transcribed comments are in footnote 2 here.)
January 28, 2023: The City of Aiken announced it would hold a public forum. No mention of the Aiken Corporation was in the announcement.
February 6, 2023: The “City of Aiken Public Input Session” was held at the African American center. Aiken Corporation CEO Buzz Rich opened the session and described it as “focus meeting.” MPS “Principal” K.J. Jacobs moderated the meeting, which he later described as a “listening session.” No mention was made of the existing agreement between Aiken Corporation and MPS.
Present in the audience, but not taking part in the discussion or answering questions, was the SRNL leadership. SRNL has yet to engage with concerned citizens in a public forum, and has been absent from discussions involving the parking garage proposed as a key part of the lab project.
The initial cost estimate of the parking garage, euphemistically referred to by city officials as a “structured parking solution,” is estimated to be $7 million. Two identified sources of funding are hospitality tax funds and plutonium settlement funds from the city’s $25 million share of the plutonium settlement allocated for “Downtown and Northside Redevelopment.”
The garage was not a part of the February 6th discussion.
In addition to the statements mentioned in the body of this article, Mr. Jacobs also provided an email address for comments and promised to establish a website to chronicle “appropriate” comments. The latter is also a requirement in the March 13th contract. The email addressed failed to work for five days, and the website has yet to appear.
February 8, 2023: The Aiken Corporation approved two items:
a. As reported in The Agenda Setting Aiken Corporation, signed an agreement with the City of Aiken to share in the cost of hiring McMillan, Pazdan & Smith Architecture.”
b. The hiring of attorney Tracy Green at a fee of $400 per hour to “look at the current by-laws, Freedom of Information Act issues, and other legal matters.” Other legal matters includes negotiating leases with “third parties” such as SNRL. (The by-laws were updated and approved in May 2023).
City Council members Lessie Price and Gail Diggs were listed as present in the attendee list, acting as “ex-officio” voting members of the Aiken Corporation.
March 7, 2023: The Design Review Board (DRB) held a public “work session” to discuss the design of a ~$7 million parking garage, termed a “structured parking solution,” proposed to accommodate the influx of lab employees. During the pre-decisional meeting citizen comments were prohibited—reducing them to spectators while developers and city officials were participants.
March 8, 2023: The Aiken Corporation approved a motion to “to accept the proposed Professional Services Agreement with the City of Aiken.” City Councilwoman Lessie Price was listed as an attendee.
March 13, 2023. Aiken City Council convened as the governing body of the AMDC. After the issue arose of potential conflicts of interest due to the status of the two Council members on the Aiken Corporation Executive Committee, Council as AMDC tabled the motion to transfer AMDC properties and assets to the City of Aiken. A decision was made instead for a Council public hearing to dissolve the AMDC as a means to transfer the properties and assets—-since dissolution would automatically trigger the transfer.
Later, during its regular meeting, Aiken City Council approved the $250,000, no-bid professional services agreement with the Aiken Corporation; which was deemed “The Developer” in the contract. As already stated, the December 9, 2022 Aiken Corporation agreement with MPS was incorporated into the contract.
Aiken City Council approved a contract for pre-development work on property the City of Aiken did not own, and which only controlled via its dual-role existence on the AMDC.
March 27, 2023. Aiken City Council approved, on First Reading, the dissolution of the AMDC. Both Councilman Ed Woltz and Mayor Rick Osbon recused themselves from the discussion—due to Woltz’s ownership of land adjacent to AMDC properties, and Osbon’s “friendly competitor” Warneke Cleaners occupying part of the lab project property.
After the issue of a potential conflict of interest involving that status of the two Council members on the Board of the Aiken Corporation, the two committed to resigning from the Board. Subsequently the motion passed unanimously on the First Reading.
March 28, 2023: Councilmembers Lessie Price and Gail Diggs resigned from the Board of the Aiken Corporation.
April 10, 2023. Aiken City Council deferred the Second Reading of the vote to dissolve the AMDC, with City Attorney Gary Smith stating he would request an informal opinion on the ethics issues regarding the
April 13, 2023. Smith submitted his request, and added a request pertaining to Ed Woltz and Rick Osbon.
April 27, 2023. The staff of the Ethics Commission issued its informal opinion, stating that no member of Council had to recuse themselves from the vote to dissolve the AMDC.
In regard to the Council members of Aiken Corporation’s board, the informal opinion cited formal opinions of the Commission from 2000 and 2001 that exempted elected officials from conflict of interest laws if they serve as members of Boards of organizations which were created by, and exist at the discretion of, the elected officials’ governing body. In the absence of this exemption, the March 28th resignations would apply to any future votes.
In regard to Mayor Osbon and Councilman Woltz, the staff’s informal opinion cited the lack of financial gain from dissolving the AMDC because vote to dissolve was not a direct vote to transfer AMDC properties and assets.
Meanwhile, little discussion of the lab project has occurred. It might be held up by the failure of Council to transfer the properties to city control, and/or the identified closed-door meetings with “key stakeholders” is ongoing.
Meanwhile, the date for the draft “feasibility study” schedule is now two weeks overdue. No website is up and running to share citizen comments.
A $256,400 Forgiven Loan for a $40,000 Property Purchase
by Don Moniak
May 10, 2023 Updated May 11, 2023 (2)
Aiken City Council’s real estate transactions record– past and present– were a factor in Monday night’s (May 8, 2023) Council meeting. One issue, involving forgiveness of a $256,400 loan in exchange for a $40,000 property purchase threatened to bob to the surface, until it was quickly quashed, leaving many in the audience wondering about details.
The loan forgiveness pertained to the City of Aiken rescinding a $256,400 loan balance (1) held by the nonprofit, quasi-governmental Aiken Corporation (Aiken Corp) in early 2020. In return, Aiken Corp purchased a $40,000 property essential to connecting the new Steeplechase venue to city limits; thus facilitating its eventual annexation into the city.
The issue arose during a contentious discussion regarding an ordinance to grant an 0.25 acre driveway easement through the city’s property north of its airport to a 16-acre property soon to Bear Mountain, LLC(2). The easement will cost $1.
In the midst of comments regarding the merits of the $1 easement, Aiken resident Luis Rinaldini cited another property transaction:
“The city went out of its way to buy a parcel for forty thousand dollars at the intersection of Park Avenue and Richland that is totally unusable, in the middle of traffic, just so it could annex the Steeplechase because that would make the Steeplechase contiguous. Sometimes you have to do that when you’re doing real estate, perfectly logical perfectly sensible. But the owner of that parcel didn’t give it to you for free.But the owner of that parcel didn’t give it to you for free.” (1:07:00 of meeting video)
After the comment period, City Manager Stuart Bedenbaugh stated:
“I would like to say that the city did not buy that parcel. That is not correct.” (1:11:24 of meeting)
Mr. Rinaldini returned to the podium to state:
“Shortly before that the city forgave a $250,000 loan,” before being cut off by Presiding Officer Mayor Osbon for attempting to comment a second time on the $1 easement issue.
Mr. Rinaldini then asked “Do you want to suppress this information?” and Mayor Osbon replied : “Yes, you have already spoken on this issue.” A half-minute discussion ensued regarding the semantics of the purchase.
Who Bought The Property?
The property in question is a 0.4 acre parcel at the southeast corner of East Richland Avenue and Park Avenue, across from the new Steeplechase venue. (Figure 1).
Figure 1: The 0.4 acre parcel at corner of Richland and Park Avenue. (Aiken County property database). The new Steeplechase property is north across Richland.
The property was purchased by Aiken Corp’s property management and purchasing arm, LED of Aiken, Inc, on February 20, 2020. Prior to the $40,000 purchase, the following events occurred:
December 9, 2019: Aiken City Council held the First Reading of an Ordinance (3) to “provide certain incentives to Aiken Steeplechase Association, Inc. to Encourage Tourism and Economic Development Benefitting the City.” The vote to approve was unanimous.
The proposed incentives (4) were a $1.0 million grant and a $0.5 million loan to assist the Aiken Steeplechase Assocation with a $2.12 million purchase of 140 acres.
The ordinance required annexation of the Steeplechase property once it became adjacent to city limits. According to the meeting minutes, a short discussion took place regarding annexation, in which Councilman Ed Woltz asked about the 0.4 acre property:
“(Councilman Woltz) thought the acquisition of the triangle piece of property to make the property proposed to be acquired by the Steeplechase Association a part of the city was part of the deal. Mr. Bedenbaugh stated that acquisition is being done through a third party realtor. He said he thought an offer was in the process of beingmade.”
January 8, 2020. A meeting of the Aiken Corporation’s Executive Committee was held.(5)
According to the meeting minutes a commitment was made by City Manager Bedenbaugh to forgive a $256,400 loan to Aiken Corporation if it bought the 0.4 acre property to facilitate the annexation (Figure 2) of Steeplechase:
“Chairman Buzz Rich asked City Manager Stuart Bedenbaugh to present the idea of the City of Aiken regarding the Steeplechase property. Mr. Bedenbaugh stated the City would like for the Aiken Corporation to purchase a small piece of property and annex it into the City limits to allow the Steeplechase property to be contiguous to the City limits. In so doing, the City of Aiken will forgive the Aiken Corporation’s loan of $256,400..”
Figure 2. The 0.4 acre parcel that provided linkage from existing Aiken city limits to the new Steeplechase property. White and black dotted lines indicate city limits. Blue arrows indicate connections to properties in city limits. (City of Aiken GIS Mapping)
January 13, 2020. City Council unanimously approved the Steeplechase incentive during the Second Reading of the ordinance (6) but not before amending conditions by removing the loan, but still granting $1.0 million. (7)
February 10, 2020. The First Reading of an Ordinance to “rescind the balance of the Aiken Corporation Consolidated Loan with the City of Aiken” was approved unanimously. (8) The ordinance reads, in part:
“WHEREAS, Aiken Corporation has recently purchased land associated with the recent purchase of land by the Aiken Steeplechase Association, Inc. and is now asking the City of Aiken to rescind the principal amount of this loan so that the loan will be considered paid in full; and…”.
February 24, 2020. City Council unanimously approved rescinding the Aiken Corporation loan balance during the Second and final Reading of the ordinance.
That is how the Aiken Corporation spent $40,000 to have its $256,400 loan balance forgiven by the City of Aiken. Technically, it is correct that Aiken Corporation bought the property and still owns it. But functionally, the City of Aiken funded the purchase with a substantial incentive. It was not the first decision that was predetermined at an Aiken Corporation meeting and then approved by Council.
Footnotes:
(1) The Aiken Corporation can be described as a quasi-governmental non profit, charitable organization whose primary donor is the City of Aiken. Donations are made via grants, land transfers, and interest-free loans. Aiken Corp also generates revenue by leasing the Newberry Street office buildings that it leases from the city under a 99-year ground lease.
Ordinances authorizing city property conveyances and interest-free loans housing development to Aiken Corporation occurred from 2003 to 2009. The actual amounts of the loans, compared to the amounts authorized, was not reported in any ordinances. The loans and associated property transfers include:
On May 9, 2005, and ordinance was passed transferring ten city-owned properties in the Toole Hill neighborhood to Aiken Corporation for $5 as part of the City of Aiken Northside Revitalization and Housing Program. Similar $5 conveyances occurred on McCormick and Morgan Streets over the next several years.
On November 14, 2005, an ordinance was passed allowing the city to borrow $870,00 from a special General Fund holding account to fund new home construction in North Aiken. The ordinance stated that no interest would be charged on $170,000 being loaned to Aiken Corp.
On January 6, 2006, an ordinance was passed authorizing an interest-free loan up to $250,000 to Aiken Corp; of which $170,000 was deemed immediately eligible for new home construction in the Toole Hill, Edgewood, and Crosland Park neighborhoods.
On February 23, 2009, an ordinance was passed authorizing an interest-free loan up to $250,000 to Aiken Corporation, of which $170,000 was deemed immediately eligible for new home construction in the Toole Hill, Edgewood, and Crosland Park neighborhoods.
On the same day, an ordinance was passed authorizing that a $67,500 interest-free loan originally made in 2003 to assist with redevelopment in the Chesterfield Street corridor be used instead for Toole Hill, Edgewood, and Crosland Park neighborhoods.
On August 8, 2011, an ordinance was passed consolidating three loans, for Northside housing development and painting the Willow Road/Beaufort Street “Spec Building,” into a single $328,800 loan.
There is no Bear Mountain, LLC registered with the SC Secretary of State’s office. There is a Bear Mountain Real Estate, LLC incorporated on March 7, 2023 and whose agent is Ray Massey of 210 Colony Parkway in Aiken. Bear Mountain, LLC is listed on both the ordinance legislating the ordinance, and the deed granting the ordinance. (below)
“Bear Mountain LLC” is in both the Ordinance and Deed.
(3) The ordinance information can be found beginning at Page 306 in the December 9, 2019 agenda, as well as in the January 13, 2020 agenda packet—which also contains the meeting minutes from December 9th. The final ordinance is here.
(4) The first incentive package consisted of;
a. A $1 million grant, consisting of $0.5 million was from the one-percent Capital Project Sales Tax (CPST) and $0.5 million was from the city’s Accommodations Tax. The CPST money was allocated to “green space.”
b. A $0.5 million, 20-year loan at 2.78 percent interest. The source of the funds was $0.3 million from the Accomodations Tax and $0.2 million from the city’s one-percent Hospitality Tax.
(5) Listed as present as ex-officio voting members were City Council members Lessie Price and Gail Diggs.
(6) The ordinance information can be found begining at Page 205 in the February 10, 2020 agenda packet. The supporting memorandum can be seen below. The February 24, 2020 agenda packet had the same information. The final signed ordinance is here.
(7)The source of the $1.0 million grant was changed to $0.5 million from CPST dedicated to green space, $0.3 million from accommodations taxes, and $0.2 million from hospitality taxes.
The $216,400 difference between the loan forgiveness and the property purchase was never added to the cost of the $1 million Steeplechase incentive.
(8) According to the 2/10/20 meeting minutes, the only discussion prior to the vote was as follows:
“Mayor Osbon stated he had asked City Attorney Gary Smith to explain why members who serve both on City Council and Aiken Corporation do not have to recuse themselves.
Mr. Smith stated there are specific provisions in the State Ethics Act that allow members of Council to also serve on the Aiken Corporation Board and doing so does not create a conflict of interest and prevent Council from doing their City Council business.”
Mr. Smith did not cite the provision. The SC Ethics Commission did rule, in 2000, that elected officials who serve on the Boards of organizations created by, and serving at the pleasure of, the body to which the elected official belongs are exempt from conflict of interest provision in state ethics law.
Monday evening’s (May 8, 2023) Aiken City Council meeting will feature a closed-door Executive Session for “A discussion regarding the provision of City utility services to encourage the location of a new business to be located near the intersection of Highway 19 and I- 20 providing city services for a major new business near Exit 18.” The new business or its location is not identified.
During the same meeting, Council will address two sewer line easements that together form a nearly 3.0 mile extension of the city’s sewer system. The easements begin in the Gregory Road and Interstate 20 area, and end a quarter mile north at Exit 18 on Hwy 19 North, also known as Edgefield Highway.
Exit 18
Exit 18 is four miles north of Aiken City limits (Figure 1A), but within the boundaries of the city’s water district, which was expanded in December 2020. It is six miles south of the Edgefield County line.
On the south side of I-20 is a small commercial district with two low-cost motels, two gas stations/convenience stores, and a Waffle House. (Figure 1B), all surrounded by forested properties. On the north side is a more open, rural, commercially undeveloped landscape with a few auto repair shops and a locally owned convenience store. The country is dominated by parcels ranging from three acres to several hundred acres, but with no subdivisions.
If a new major business like a Love’s, Buc-ee’s, or another Pilot Flying J, truck stop and convenience store is located on the north side of the exit, there is likely to be some controversy. If the major business is a truck stop or a renovated motel in the commercial zone, the development will probably be welcome by most area residents.
Figure 1: City of Aiken boundaries by Council districts. (City of Aiken GIS Mapping) (click to enlarge)Figure 1B. Aerial view of Exit 18 from Aiken County property database. The sewer easement will end in the upper left (NW) corner. (click to enlarge)
Water and Sewer System Expansion
The unidentified development at Exit 18 means the city is now seeking to expand its water and sewer system on both sides of Interstate 20 from Exit 18 (Edgefield Highway) to Exit 29 (Wire Road). In addition to this latest development there is :
The stated intention to expand the water system to Exit 29, which would require approval by County Council. The potential expansion was noted as a side benefit during a March 13th Public Hearing for extending a new million dollar, 9,000-foot water line to a Beazley Homes subdivision along Wire Road along the eastern boundary of Summer Lakes. The City of Aiken agreed to cover 2/3rds of that cost—resulting in a possible $600,000+ subsidy to Beazley Homes.(1)
The recent extension of the water system north of Exit 22 on Columbia Highway (US Highway 1), and approval to provide service to a new 7-11 convenience store and gas station.
A new “Northside” gravity sewer pump station for which the city has set aside $3.5 million of plutonium settlement funds. SCDHEC describes the project as beginnning “at the Verenes Industrial Park Pump Station near I-20, Exit 22, and running along Gregory Road, Norfolk Southern abandoned railroad property, Dominion Energy’s 120 foot utility easement, City of Aiken’s land northwest of Gregory Road and along Shaws Creek.” The lift station described as on the “Northside” is nearly five miles north of Aiken city limits and appears to be along the new sewer line extension.
In addition, the city intends to market the proposed Aiken Greenway bicycle and walking trail as a major amenity and tourist attraction. The 4.7 mile, $6.8 million trail is proposed to be entirely outside of city limits, running from Generations Park to the city’s 2254-acre Brunswick Tract north of Shiloh Baptist Church Road. The tract was purchased for $5.2 million in 2020 in order to protect a city surface water supply and watershed.
Connecting the Sewer System to Highway 19
On Monday night, City Council’s agenda includes two sewer line easement agreements for sewer system across from Verenes Business Park on Windham Boulevard to 0.25 miles north of Exit 18 on Edgefield Highway. (Figure 2, click to enlarge).
The extension and first easement begins on a 130-acre property, much of it in the Shaw Creek floodplain, owned by Tummekki LLC (Agent Lynnwood McMichael); and will extend ~0.45 miles north to a lift station that meets DHEC’s desciption for the Northside lift station.
From the lift station a short spur line will connect to Shiloh Baptist Church Road, less than a half mile from the ~320-acre portion of the city-owned Brunswick Tract targeted for sale to a developer to help defray the cost of the property purchase. (1) Access by developers to a portion of the 2,254-acre Brunswick tract to the north, land set aside to protect a source of the city’s water supply, would certainly add to developer unit sales values—like buying land bordering a National Forest.
The main line will continue from the lift station south, and then southwest across a 449-acre parcel owned by GANB LLC (Agent George Gratzick of St. Johns Island, SC). The endpoint is the northern boundary of a another GANB, LLC property—a 16-acre tract fronting HWY 19. The total length of the new main sewer line is approximately 2.9 miles.
Figure 2: The approximate location of the proposed sewer easements (in red). The existing sewer lines are in green. The spur line will run north to Shiloh Baptist Church Road. A 320 acre section of the Brunswick tract considered suitable for development (upper left) is 0.3 miles from the spur line. The majority of the line runs through a 445-acre tract owned by GANB, LLC, and ends at HWy 19 along the northern boundary of a GANB-owned 16-acre parcel fronting Hwy 19. ( Click to enlarge)
The 16-acre GANB, LLC parcel where the sewer line will end currently features a Great Southern Homes sign, and work is ongoing constructing a city water system extension into a probable large subdivision on GANB LLC’s 445-acre tract.
The Major New Business
Since the sewer line extends to a frontage location on HWY 19, the new major new business is more likely to be located on GANB LLC’s 16-acre parcel. (3)
For perspective on the possible businesses that qualify as major businesses, a June 22, 2022 Aiken Standard article identified a new Circle K and a reopened Waffle House as one of several “hot spots” along Hwy 1. State Representative Bill Taylor (R-Aiken) was quoted as saying:
“The new Circle K is a sparkling gem for the business cluster around Exit 22.”
A second possible location for a new major business opportunity exists on the south side of Exit 18, where in the past two years the area’s two low cost motels were sold to new owners.
The Deluxe Inn was sold to S & S Hospitality (Agent Ram Singh) for $700,000. The 13,000 square foot motel is on 2.5 acres of property fronting HWY 19. (Figure 3)
Figure 3. The Deluxe Inn on Hwy 19N sold in 2021 for $700,000. (Photo from Aiken County Assessor’s Office)
The Guest Inn (4) was sold for $750,000 to Y&S Hospitality LLC (Agent Narender Singh) on April 4, 2022. The motel is reported in county records as being on 4.3 acres and having three buildings with a total of nearly 60,000 square feet. An adjacent 9.8 acre partially forested parcel with a detention pond was also part of the transaction. Narenda Singh also is the agent for SRI Genesha LLC, one of the owners of the Shell Station adjacent to the Guest Inn and across from Circle K at 1924 Edgefield Hwy.
To say the Guest Inn, formerly a Holiday Inn, has seen better days is an understatement. But work appears to have begun to renovate and upgrade the motel to modern standards, as rooms on three sides are vacant with most furniture removed, and workers are onsite (Figure 4)
Figure 4. Back side of Guest Inn. May 8, 2023. (photo by Don Moniak)
Future Annexations?
Annexation is the primary growth model for Aiken, consisting of the elimination of inholdings called “donut holes” within the city’s boundary, and expansion into the unincorporated county. All agreements for city services by new developments in the county have an annexation clause that is triggered when the property becomes adjacent to land within the city.
It appears that expansion, as being planned, may tend to create new “donut holes,” which may further exacerbate emergency response and other jurisdictional issues.
Recent expansion plans conducted by The City of Aiken seem to have fallen short in the “planning” department. One such example is the annexation of the new Generations Park on Hwy 1 that is just under a mile north of city limits.
The first effort to annex along a SC Department of Transportation was overturned by DOT. A second successful annexation effort linked the park to the city via a 1.5 mile long, 10 foot easement. Though the park is adjacent to a sewer line on the northwest and a water line on the southeast, the city somehow decided to equip it with septic and a well. There is still no safe foot/bicycle access to the park from the city.
Unlike in the North Augusta area, where hundreds of residents from the Meriweather Community in Edgefield County met in 2016 to object to City of North Augusta annexation attempts within Edgefield County, there is no similar cohesive, well-defined, and united community north of the City of Aiken on either side of I-20.
To date, the City of Aiken has yet to hold any community meetings or a public hearing to gauge public sentiment about its expansion plans, or even inform county residents of its plans and aspirations.
On March 27, 2023, Aiken City Council heard a presentation on the Greenway project at its March 27, 2023 work session. During the subsequent regular Council meeting, the question was posed as to who will respond to emergencies along the Greenway (Figure 5). Mayor Rick Osbon replied, “it would be whatever fire district the area is in if there is a fire,” but did not address other emergencies. (5)
Figure 5 . Proposed City of Aiken Greenway. There is no access planned from within city limits. (Cranston Engineering conceptual map completed for the City of Aiken and presented on March 27, 2023)
(1) The February 27, 2023 supporting memorandum for the new water line stated, in part:
“The initial phase of 9,100 linear feet of 12-inch water line extends water service to the proposed residential development. The next phase extension of 8,625 linear feet water line provides an extension to existing facilities that the city has on Beaver Dam Road. Additional phases could extend water service to interstate 20 Exit 29. The availability of larger tracts and providing services to this exit could further expand the city’s water district and provide opportunities for further growth to the north of Aiken.”
“(Mr. Conger) will also talk about the 300+/- acres near the Shiloh Church Road which we envisioned would ultimately be developed in a way that would be in concert with what we want it to be in terms of protection of our water resources. The city would not do the development, but would sell the property for development. This was something that we pursued with the consultant because when we purchased the property there was some mindset that we wanted to have that option in the event that there were concerns from Council or the public that we needed to try to recoup some of the money that was spent to purchase the property. That was the primary purpose of looking at a Special Purpose District.”
Shortly after, the minutes reported on a statement by Brunswick Tract consultant Allen Conger:
“He said it was felt this area of about 326 acres could be developed. He said this is an opportunity for the City to look at. He noted some potential uses are: conservation residential community, greenway anchor community, equestrian community, retirement community, multiuse residential, office and light commercial, and a solar farm. He said it is felt that whatever uses are accommodated, there could be tie back into the greenway that is proposed for north Aiken.”
(3) Two local sources have identified a possible Buc-ee’s convenient store and truck stop. The Buc-ee’s website boasts a world-record 66,000 square foot convenient store and the world’s longest car wash at 255 feet can be as large as 60,000 square feet which often feature large car washes.
Since the City of Aiken is not talking about its plans in the pastoral landscape north of Exit 18, people can only guess.
(4) The Guest Inn was formerly a Holiday Inn.
(5) The North Augusta Greenway is regularly patrolled by North Augusta Public Safety, which also responds to any accidents, emergencies, or reported crimes. The City of Aiken has yet to commit to a means of patrolling the Greenway it plans entirely outside of city limits, and extending north of I-20 through some areas that will be difficult to access.
