2026-11-05 - Special Facilities Committee

00:05All right. And I think um you're ready

00:08to go. And I am actually um Donna's

00:11going to be hosting the remainder of the

00:14meeting and um the mayor should be

00:16joining shortly.

00:18>> Okay, sounds great. You

00:52Uh, chairman, would you like to would

00:53you like to start the meeting?

00:55>> Yes, I can do that. I'd like to call

00:57this meeting of the special facilities

01:01committee to order. Um, and I'd like to

01:04begin with a moment of silence, please.

01:15All right. Thank you. Uh, next up on the

01:18agenda is the approval of minutes. Is

01:20there a motion?

01:22>> So move.

01:24>> Is there a second?

01:26>> Second.

01:27>> All right. Has been moved and properly

01:29seconded. Is there any additions,

01:30deletions, subtractions?

01:33Hearing none, I'll call for the vote.

01:35All those in favor of approving the

01:36minutes, uh, please signify by saying I.

01:39I

01:40>> I.

01:41>> Any opposed? The eyes have it. The

01:43minutes are approved and the final thing

01:47on the agenda is the special facilities

01:49update. So, I'll turn it over to Roma.

01:52>> Thank you very much. Thanks everybody

01:54for joining. Um, this quarter has been a

01:57good one for uh special facilities.

01:59Everything was pretty much running very

02:01smoothly and and like normal, which is

02:04good. at the maritime center. Uh we're

02:07just doing um you know just regular

02:11repairs from wear and tear. Um we had a

02:13good hurricane season this year. Um not

02:16too much not any damage from storms or

02:19wind storms or anything. Um which is

02:22very good because we usually get a

02:23little damage a little too a lot. And

02:26this year we were we're just skating

02:28right through which is good. Um,

02:31>> don't jinx it, Roma.

02:33>> I'm sorry.

02:34>> Don't jinx it.

02:36>> Well, yeah. Well, November 1st is gone,

02:39so

02:40>> we're we're we're hoping that we we made

02:42it through without um any problems. Um

02:45the Spirit of South Carolina is in

02:47place. Um and they have started their

02:50educational program. They've um already

02:52brought a couple of hundred students

02:54through um already. So, they are um

02:57fulfilling that part of their um

02:59agreement with the city with doing

03:00educational um programs with schools. Um

03:03I think uh I was over there on Wednesday

03:06and I think they had uh 75 kids from um

03:10Ashley Hall. So, um and and I've been

03:13hearing they've been having uh good

03:15crowds uh since August. So, that's

03:19great. Um, the Powder Magazine. We're

03:23still doing well over there except the

03:26week of uh September 20th, the street

03:29closed in between um meeting and church

03:33for some uh underground work. They're

03:36doing we're told they're doing some

03:37wiring for the new um Four Seasons

03:41Hotel. And we were told that the work

03:43was going to take 90 days, but all of a

03:47sudden on Monday they were not there. We

03:49didn't get any um notification if

03:51they're done, if they're just taking a

03:53break or what they're doing. So, the

03:55foot traffic to the Powder Magazine was

03:58kind of slow because people thought that

03:59the um it was just the vehicle traffic

04:02couldn't get through, but you could

04:04walk, but with no vehicle traffic and

04:06with no um the horses going through the

04:09there was the traffic was kind of slow.

04:12But on the good side, they were making

04:14money uh with the few visitors that they

04:16had, they were making um good money in

04:19the box office. And we were really

04:21surprised um about that when they were

04:23getting, you know, a couple of hundred

04:25dollars a day. And I'm like, how are you

04:27getting a couple of hundred dollars a

04:28day from one or two visitors? But, you

04:31know, I'm I'm glad that they're spending

04:32the money and life is good. Um and and

04:37it seems to be working out um well for

04:39us. We hope that uh the street is going

04:41to remain open and traffic will pick up

04:44again. But um like I said, since

04:47September 20th, it was kind of slow, but

04:49we were still making in u money from the

04:51uh from the uh gift shop. Uh the old

04:55exchange um on their old exchange

04:58meeting on in October, they signed the

05:01management agreement that I told you was

05:03coming up. Um and I'm not sure where it

05:06is with the city. it should be coming

05:07before you um to the mayor to to sign,

05:10but it's um they agreed to everything we

05:13asked for and um they signed it and so

05:17we have another um yearly agreement with

05:20the uh five-year agreement with the old

05:22exchange. Um, and we also was just

05:26awarded a $250,000 check for um the

05:31modernization of the elevator um over

05:34there, which is um truly needed because

05:37um I think I've mentioned before um we

05:39we're always working on that elevator

05:41and there's always something um wrong.

05:44So now we get we got a $250 check and

05:47I'm told that it came into the city uh

05:49this week. Um, but we're excited about

05:53that. Um, nothing at the Old Slave Mart.

05:57Everything's running smooth over there.

06:01Uh, the Dock Street Theater, we're doing

06:03a little um changes around here. We

06:05added some digital signs to the indoor

06:07and outdoor for um concessions. And

06:10there are those um TV monitor screens

06:13that look like uh picture frames or

06:15whatever. So during a show it would show

06:18what we're selling, the prices and

06:20whatnot. And then to fit into the

06:22everyday decor, we have um a screen that

06:25shows just like a oil painting. So it

06:27kind of um during the day it just looks

06:30like it's a a oil painting on the wall

06:32and not a digital screen. Um and this um

06:36everybody seems to like it. the the

06:37people who come here normally um comment

06:40on it and they like it a whole lot um

06:42better than the um just the little

06:45boards that we had up and it's very it's

06:47actually very attractive. I like it. Um

06:51and with the busy schedule with

06:53Charleston Stage, we were able to sneak

06:54in a few things. We snuck in two

06:56weddings. Um we snuck in some mojo

06:59events. And right now they're setting up

07:03for the literary festival which starts

07:05um tomorrow. Um all of their shows are

07:09pretty much um sold out. At least 60% of

07:12their shows are sold out. They have

07:14worked out a deal with the French

07:15hugenat church across the street to do a

07:18live streaming um over there for the um

07:22overflow.

07:23And they have some really um great

07:26people this year. They have uh Misty

07:28Copeland, they have Jenna Bush. um

07:30Salman Rushy and um I think Salman Rushy

07:34is tomorrow night and I think he has as

07:37much security as the president. Um so

07:40it's pretty it's going to be pretty

07:41locked down um here tomorrow. Um I know

07:45that he has at least four security with

07:48him. Um and then I think the police

07:51department has another five while he's

07:54in the um building. So, um hopefully and

07:58then he has um he has his team also and

08:01I don't know how many people are on his

08:02team. So, um we're we're hoping that um

08:05nothing goes wrong with him. Um but the

08:08security is there and life should be um

08:11good. Um and that's pretty much it. This

08:15has been a great time and nothing's

08:17going wrong. It's just been business as

08:19usual and business has been going well.

08:21Oh, I'm sorry. Uh Angel Oak, I left off

08:23the Angel Oak. We are refreshing some

08:26signs out at the um Angel Oak. Um some

08:29of their signage out there is just um it

08:32it's just seen better days, wear and

08:34tear. So the new sign should be up

08:36probably by Tuesday. Um we're also told

08:41that they are waiting until they have at

08:44least 70% to um before they break down.

08:49I mean uh break ground. And I'm told

08:51that they only need about 5,000

08:55or 6,000 more before they start. Council

08:59McBride, have you heard anything else

09:01different?

09:03>> No, nothing super recently. um just that

09:07they had a really good fundraising

09:09campaign that ended about two months

09:11ago, raised a lot of money, but they

09:13still, like you said, they still have a

09:14little ways to go and cannot wait for

09:18that to happen because that uh the whole

09:20area, the plan they have is really

09:22really good. Um it's going to add

09:25parking and raised raised walkways.

09:29It'll protect the roots of the tree.

09:31It's really really going to be good. So,

09:33I can't wait to get the full funding for

09:34that to get started.

09:36>> Yeah, it's going to be beautiful with

09:37the um the

09:39the pavilion and the parks and it's

09:42Yeah, it's going to be really nice. I

09:43know they're cutting back on some of it,

09:45but I know the main um stuff is going to

09:48still stay in place. Um but yeah, I

09:51talked with them. I think it was last

09:52week and and that's where they were.

09:54They just need 70% before they break

09:57ground, but they still don't have an

09:59idea on when that's going to be. So, um,

10:02we're just waiting and seeing. Other

10:05than that,

10:06>> I'm sorry,

10:06>> just for the just so whoever's listening

10:08out there, we're talking about Low

10:10Country Land Trust. We're partnered with

10:12them and they're the ones that are

10:14trying to raise this money and just a

10:17little ways to go. So, feel free to

10:19donate to Little Country Land Trust.

10:22>> Yes. And there are QR codes on the new

10:25signs for them. Um, you know, so you can

10:27people who come to the park can uh

10:29donate. we we added that to our signs

10:31for them. Um along with our QR codes

10:34that they just want to donate to the

10:36city of Charleston. So,

10:38but uh other than that, everything is

10:41good and it's been um a good quarter and

10:43we're just happy.

10:47>> Well, that's excellent. Does anyone have

10:49any other questions about uh any

10:52facilities that remain mentioned?

10:58>> [clears throat]

10:58>> Not seeing anybody with their hand up.

11:01Um, if there's no other questions, uh,

11:03does anyone have anything else to come

11:05before this committee?

11:08>> Hearing none, I will call us adjourned

11:10at 4:15. Thanks everybody.

11:12>> Thanks guys. Appreciate it.

11:14>> Thank you. setting me from

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