2026-11-09 - City Council Formal Meeting

Miss Mayor council, privilege once again to come for you folks and talk about a parcel that we would like to have annext into the city along with a reason. GCRA is very excited to partner with you folks to create affordable housing. Obviously affordable housing is a priority for this council, for this city as.

To hold, and certainly for GCRA and we look forward to bringing this project to you. A lot of times I hope you're talking about different aemi's and different one hundreds, one twenties and all these things.

This time we're doing a deep dive. We're gonna go way down below 50 % and we have some excellent partners with this project. A shout out to city staff who has worked with us, to provide insight guidance and all of that. It's always a pleasure to come to work with the city and to put forth a project like this. And so we're excited about it. I know several of you folks have probably seen.

The property out there and where we're talking about and you have our pledge as well to continue with community outreach and to make sure that this fits into where we needed to fit and do the things it's supposed to do. So that's my spill. If anybody's got any questions, I'll be glad to take a shot at it from your question standpoint. If not, I'll move us long.

Okay. 15 B. Thanks. Very good. [name]?

[name], [affiliation omitted]. Thank you mayor. Council members here to support the 6th Street annexation and do not need to add anything to the presenter's presentation. Thank you. That was brief, thanks. Yeah.

[name].

Yep. Sure. A call for the city to purchase Greenville Culture Exchange Center. Mayor and members of the council. I am asking the.

Green City of Greenville to seriously consider purchasing the formal Greenville culture Exchange Center at Arlington Avenue from [company]. This request is about more than purchasing a building. It is about preserving our history, protecting our heritage, and recognizing the contra.

Distributions of African Americans who helped shape Greenville into the city it is today. In 1887 1987, the Late [founder] had a vision. She recognized the Greenville's African American history needed a permanent home through her determination.

Dedication and personal commitment. She established the Grainville culture Exchange Center. For decades, she collected further graphs, documents, artifacts, and stories that might otherwise have been lost to future generations. Her work represents something larger than one individual. It represents general.

Operations of families, educators, business owners, community leaders, veterans, and ordinary citizens whose contribution deserve recognition. Gravel continues to grow and invest in its future, but growth should never come at the expense of forgetting our past.

I believe the city has an opportunity to turn this property into a permanent African American history and cultural Heritage Center. Imagine a place where our children can learn about the people who came before them, where families can research their ancestry, where historians can access.

Access important documents and where visitors can discover the African American history that helped build Greenville. This would not simply be a museum, it would be an educational institution, a cultural resource, a historical landmark, and a place of community pride.

The city should also work with [founder]'s family and the community leaders to ensure that the historical collections and her visions are properly protected. We cannot just keep talking about preserving energy history while allowing the opportunities to preserve it.

To pass us by. [founder] recognized the importance of preserving our history. Now it is our responsibility to protect what she worked so hard to establish. Let us make sure that future generations will not have to ask.

Where their history went. Let us give Greenfield's African american history off permanent home.

Grammable is growing and developing and attracting national attention, but as we grow, we must be careful not to build a city that looks impressive while forgetting the people and the history that made it what it is. Okay, thank you.

[name].

Hi, good evening, everybody. Good evening mayor. Good evening council. I was asked to speak here or to come here and speak by [name]. This is the the sister of the late [founder]. I've lived here with.

Be in my family for about eleven years. I don't have any prepared notes. I just came to speak to you guys directly, a friend of the butther family, and I have three children, right? I raise my children here in Greenville county. I love the parks, the recreation, the history, right? And this is something that we need to preserve, ok? The history of the legacy of the people, the pioneers that help build this city.

This is something that we need to protect. This is something I'd like to take my children to so they can experience and learn and understand where they come from so we understand where we're going. I'm gonna keep it short. I just came back I just wanted to speak with you guys really quick. I think it's a NO brainer, you know, and I hope you guys vote accordingly. Thank you.

[name]?

Okay good evening, mr. Mayor, council members and others present. I am speaking on behalf.

Of the family of Miss [founder], and on behalf of the items on unfinished business, eleven G and new business resolution, 16 B My name is [name].

And I'm a distinguished professor America of nursing at the University of South Carolina upstate. And I've resided in Bermuda. Excuse me, I'm from Bermuda. I've resided in the nickel Town community since 1984. My husband's son, and I are speaking.

Being in favor of the purchase and preservation of historic property located at Arlington Avenue. The late Miss [founder], a former fellow member of Alan Temple, African Methodist Episcopal Church was the curate.

Data Creator Founder of the Greenville Cultural Exchange Center at Arlington Avenue. The Center opened in 1987 serving as a cultural museum and facility for education and research for four.

40 years. It was a beacon in the community. I was much saddened when the center went into decline and closed. I have two key points, our son, who's back there, big guy, participated.

In a quanza celebration when he was five years old, including historical and cultural learning activities, games, and socialization. Miss [founder] took him to the Reverend Jessie Jackson room, where he morveloled at Reverend Jackson's bust, history, speeches, and written.

Materials. At 33 years old he still remembers this experience. This is a perfect example of the need to ensure that the curated artifacts are kept culturally culturally relevant and updated. I am a.

Member of Kai H five sorority incorporated a professional nursing organization. We met at the cultural Exchange Center to have our chartering initiation and monthly meetings. We conducted professional nursing business and planned community service.

To fulfill our mato service for humanity. Using the kitchen and eating area, we were also able to fellowship with with each other. Very important. The purchase and preservation of historic property is necessary to con.

Continue to update, continue and preserve the rich cultural heritage of Greenville. For children, high school and college students, professional and social organizations, and the community in general. Thank you very much, yeah. Thank you. Whoever.

[name]. Good evening Mayor and and council. My name is [name]. I have the privilege of serving as senior pastor at Mountain View Baptist Church in downtown Greenville. I also have the privilege of serving as.

President of Pastors United for Action here in Greenville, my colleagues are standing with me. Tonight I come to stand and echo the sentiments of those who have gone before me regarding the purchase of Arlington Avenue for preservation of the Greenville Cultural Exchange Center and all that it means to our community.

In 1997 when I came to Greenville to pastor Mountain View Baptist church, one of the 1st orders of business was to find an administrative assistant, and our personnel committee convened at Arlington Avenue to go through all of the applications that had come, and we had a failed.

Search and then [founder] stuck her head in the door and said, Listen, I can help with that. She is a legacy of African American pastoral leadership in this community. Not only did she join me in my 1st efforts to lead Mountain View Baptist church.

But she told me what to do and she told me who to connect with and today I have been serving for 29 years in Greenville as senior pastor at Mountain View Baptist Church. Without that work, beyond the collection, it is a place of convening, it is a place of legacy transfer.

And I urge you tonight other voices from our community to positively adopt this resolution to purchase the Greenville Cultural Exchange Center. Thank you very much. [name].

Okay to have the minute and a half from [name]. Good evening, mayor of White members of the city council. This is a good try though. My name is [name] and I am a lifelong resident.

Out of a nickel town neighborhood in Greenville. I am here this evening to speak in favor of the city, providing funds to purchase the Arlington Avenue building for the return and new beginning of a South Carolina Empowerment history museum. On Christmas Day in 1943a.

[Personal family remarks about the founder's childhood omitted.]

[Further personal family remarks omitted.]

[Further personal family remarks omitted.]

[founder] then chose to be an overcomer, and it was with that overcoming spirit and God's grace. After great personal sacrifice, she founded the greenable Cultural Exchange Center has already been foreseed in August of 87. With her vision for preserving.

And sharing African American history. She stood on the shoulders of many community leaders who believed in and supported and endorsed her passion that led to the reality of a community resource center rich in history. As I switch lanes.

Tooth is expressed to the urban League of Greenville for protecting the artifacts memorabilia, his historical information, in fact, the entire collection doing the closing and renovation of the building. Thank you for the league.

In reference to that entire museum collection, I thought of [name] and the wizardo laws. I could almost hear the collection say, we're homesick. We want to find our way back home and returning home is a utmost importance.

On that yellow brick road, there we will find the nation's largest memorabilia collection of bus and a legacy of Greenville's owned Jesse Jackson and piglic base. But.

Importantly, to the council we want to say on that yellow Brick Road, as [name] said, she wants to find her way back home. The collection wants to find its way back to Arlington Avenue and we hope your both will in. Thank you.

Yeah, that's very good. Okay, Grady or you can't talk that, so I'm not sure you want. You better really be good. Okay, alright. Well, I don't know. Though I can't. But I can see what I'm going to say. My name is.

I am the senior member of the [family] and the older brother of the late [founder]. I will not take a lot of time to go over some things that have already been said, but I'd like to say some things that I think are very important and are heavy on my heart.

The [family] has been active in this city for over a hundred years.

I was born in Nicholtown on actory road on a dirtch street. Well, there was a lot of cows, wagons, chickens, whatever. But anyway, my family, my brothers, my sister, my father, who's the late [family], and many others.

So this family of my family has contributed quite a bit to the city of Greenville. But tonight, [founder], my baby sister, gave so much of her life to the city and to the state, and probably beyond.

She had a passion for, for history. She had a passion for helping people. She had a passion for doing things, and she did it and did it well. With little help, as my sister has already said it, [founder] did most of probably most of all she did.

Get with one hand because she could not use her left left side very well. But she was strong and she had five older brothers who helped to make her stronger. When she couldn't catch a ball, we would fuss at her and fuss at her. But she would come right back.

Most of you, some of you in this place know about her. She had a spirit, a strong spirit that you couldn't break.

And, she went on and did many things that some people thought she could never do. But we come tonight to say to you, we feel like that putting that museum, back in place when Arlington Avenue would be a great step forward for Greenville and for us.

For our family who feels so, so deeply about what she has done for, for us, for many churches. She has written so many histories, she's done so much for so many families, and she's done it at great sacrifice. [founder] never asked for a whole lot. As a matter of fact, she gave.

Some of the things that she needed to keep for herself in order that she could help some other people. So I closed by saying to you tonight, please do the right thing because it's the deserving thing. It will help, it will help greenfield. It will help all of us, and definitely it will help our family.

Because we feel we have given on so much.

And we would like to see some things carried on in her on in her memory. Thank you for your effort. We hope you will devote positively. Thank you. Thank you. Okay, on another, on another topic, we have one more, I guess here, [names].

Okay, good evening, everyone. Mayor and the city of council members? My wife and I are here regarding the enforcement notice concerning the stage at our property at [address omitted].

Where we had invested cynetal but personal resources to create a safe, attractive outdoor event. On 3 March of 2025, the city staffed an approved site plan 20 four-fourteen 98. Identifying a tempt by 20 ft stage in a few.

To ten by 10 ft television screen. The approval plans contemplated a stage with audio visual equipment, adding a roof to protect the equipment performance and stage from weather was a particular improvement to an already documented feature. On August the 21st 2026.

[name] confirmed a writing that our property complied with approval site plan.

24 1498. On 23 September, we met with city representative [names] from building engineering. We presented our improvement proposals, including rendering the cover stage lighting touch the finish screen as part of other.

Amenities. Our plans were openly presented and were specifically sort city guidance. We also apply for city percent improvement grant. To our understanding, NO objection to the group stage or warning a possible demalicious were communicated during that meeting.

We continue in investing our resources in good faith. Believe me, we were working with the city, had these concerns been communicated.

We had addressed them before making any additional investments. We recognized the importance of permits in public safety. However, the total cost of our stage, including materials and label was less than $10000. We respectfully make three requests. 1st, we consider the stage removal extend the.

15 day compliance deadline and suspend enforcement while we complete the permit application and review the process. Second, we asked maintain electricity service during the permit processing, and 3rd allowed us to continue other improvements to the property while the stage permit is under review.

Alright, thank you for your consideration. Yeah. Okay. Thank you. Okay, council further. Oh, ok, sure. Go ahead. Oh, are we working on this? Yeah, that was the we had the consent agenda up front to have a motion a second, please?

Question second Clerk Paldoroel. Council member to work in? Council member Flemming. Sorry. Council member Gibson? I, Councilmember Brasington. I Councilmember Belge. I, Councilmember Dowe. I mayor White. I, that's the consent agenda. Before we get a new business, if it's, if it's if it's alright with.

The council for unanim's consent. Could we move 16 B up for the next consideration? Sure. In respect for the fun folks who came here tonight and the fact that this room is still very cold, we'll So we'll take up item 16 B right now, which has been a subject to a bunch of discussion by all of us for some time.

16 B A resolution to authorize the purchase of property located at Arlington Avenue from [owner entity].

So second motion, second. This is a resolution that that you guys came from and I really, really appreciate you guys coming out and showing your support part. The, the [family] is, is as as [family] said, they have been a, a, a pillar of.

Not just the African American community but but the community in general in Greenville for for well over a hundred years. [founder] was an icon in his community. In 1959 when Jackie Robinson was told that he had just to go to a colored waiting room at the airport.

She marched. The year later she sat in wool worst counters and to to integrate the the counters. In 1987, she decided that that Greenville needed a cultural exchange center that would preserve the history of African Americans in this, in this town and all they went through it.

And she dedicated every fiber of her being to creating it and sustaining it for the entirety of her life. The, the, the collection and the work that she did, that is her legacy.

The legacy of an icon, and it is imperative that we do everything that we can to make sure that we preserve and honor that legacy, as we see fit. Also the 1st African American to sit on the library school court.

Absolutely. Now after she passed, there was some concern as exactly what would happen with, with that sir. But I want to say that there was a member of our community who stepped up, [name], stand up, please. Yeah.

We didn't have your team stand up as well, please?

So after, after the founder passed, [name] stepped up and he purchased the building and he put hundreds of thousands of dollars into remodeling it and restoring it, not just to the residential standard that it was before, but to a commercial standard. If you have not seen the bill.

Building he has done an absolutely fabulous tremendous job on that. In my mind, I think that, that, that he is.

I have to give him credit for saving that building. I mean that that is just the the mere factors. So, so I want to make absolutely certain. I asked him to come sure and I absolutely I can't asked him to come here and bring his team with him so that they could get the flowers that they deserve for the work and the commitment and the.

Sacrifice that they did to this community, so if you would please join me in a round, in a rousing ovation for [name] and it's too.

Now w with that said, [name] has agreed to sell the property to us and he is, in the process not recouping all of the money that he spent into it and is making at least a six figure donation to the city in in order for us to be able to get this building and to be able to preserve the legacy of [founder].

This is the the agenda that we have tonight is actually filled with a number of good things. This to me is just the the icing on the cake. So I would ask all of you as council members to join, join me, join all of us in, in approving this and preserving this important.

Really important part of of Greenville's america African American history. You're here. Thank you. And, I want to recognize [a state representative] who's here tonight and we wouldn't without the state money and being a part of this that we wouldn't be here is that.

It made our fundraising a lot easier, always helps. All in favor CI? Okay. Resolution. So.

Thank you all for coming afternoon. Okay.

You can feel free to depart if you wish to tonight. We have a few more items, but thank you for the buffer family, particularly for being here tonight. It means a lot to us too, to have you have you here. Absolutely. I always walk through that. The temperatures get a little bit more in here, I do think.

Yeah. Okay council a regular agenda 14 A Okay. At ordinance to appropriate $768350 from the city manager development project and the capital projects fund.

For a settlement payment to the Parker Sewer and Fire sub district. So move second. Motion second. Council, Clerk will call the roll, I can't see the clerk anymore. Clerk call the roll. Okay. You're over there somewhere I know. Councilmember DeWorken. Councilmember flemming? Councilmember Gibson. I

Councilmember Brasington. I, councilmember Belge. Hi council member Dowe.I, Mayor White. I. a 15 A new business 1st reading. An ordinance to annex approximately 1.66 acres of real property located on A Street B Street, Second Avenue, 3rd Avenue, and 4th Avenue.

In 1.02 acres of adjacent ride of way and to provide the zoning designation of RNA neighborhood A district. So I moved second. Let's pull the map up anyway why I'd like to do this, ok? It's always over that side of town, it seems like we're picking here, picking there. A clerk will call a clerk will call the roll.

Councilmember DeWorken? I Councilmember Flemming. I Councilmember Gibson. I. Councilmember brasington. Councilmember Belge. I councilmember Dowe. I mayor White. I. 15 B An ordinance to annex approximately 6.12 acres of real property located on.

North 6th Street and 6.63 acres of adjacent right of way and to provide the zoning designation of RC two community to district. So moved. Second. Okay, when we heard the folks on that? Yeah, there we go. There, there's the piece. Okay, there it is. All right. Okay.

Clerk will call the roll. Oh, open discussion? Yeah. Oh I'm sorry, go ahead. Okay. Yeah, I just wanted to commend this property I'm really excited for this annexation. This, this was the item for affordable homes that we were, have some visitors on today. Funny story, this, I'd go back on this property, I don't know if you know this mayor. Yeah, so when I was at.

County, long range planning, we identified the site as potential for some affordable housing maybe in the future that kind of worked its way up I think over to Joe actually at some point at GCRA.

There were I think at the time a few different issues with it. We cleaned it up environmentally. I mean this is a great addition for reaching some deeply affordable, products serving our community members who are in the most need, some those experiencing homelessness, we've got United ministries.

Partnering I mean this really is, I think a unique concept if you've been able to see some of it, there's case management on site, there's all these wonderful things that surround this development, so I'm very excited to see what will come in the.

Okay, thank you Clerk. Oh, sorry.

On this particular property the dimensions, the RC-two etcetera. How big are the are the are going to be the individual line? This this for the middle housing or a small. Sure, so this would accommodate everything from C.

No family detached to townhomes, to smaller scale apartments, the particular model of affordable housing that they're looking at fits well within the zoning district. Okay, so all it'll encompass all of them, so then each one of them will have their own sizes and we'll talk about that at that time. Yes ma'am. Thank you so much. I appreciate it.

Okay, now Clerk will call the role. Oh, ok, sorry. Councilmember DeWorken? Hi council member Flemming. Councilmember Gibson. I, council member brazing time. Council Member Belge. I, councilmember Dowe. I, ok. Thank you. 1st reading 15 C.

An ordinance to NX approximately 0.17 acre of real property located at [number] Lake Circle Drive, and 0.05 acre of adjacent ride of way and to provide the zoning designation of RNA neighborhood A district. So moved second motion second over there. All right. There we go. There we go.

Alright, Clerk will call the role. Councilmember DeWorken? I councilmember Flemming. I. Councilmember Gibson. I. Councilmember Brasington. I councilmember Belge. I, councilmember Dowe. I Mayor White Hi. 15 D.

In ordinance to annex approximately 0.19 acre of real property located at [number] Lake Circle Drive and 0.05 acre of adjacent right of way and to provide the zoning designation of RNA neighborhood A district. So move second. Motion second, and let's zoom in.

The same area, yeah. On this one too. Councilmember DeWorken? I, councilmember Flemming. I. Councilmember Gibson? I. Councilmember brasington. Councilmember Belge. I. Councilmember Dowe. I mayor White. I. 15 E.

In ordinance to annex approximately 0.18 acre a real property located at [number] Lake Circle Drive and 0.06 acrere of adjacent ride of way and to provide the zoning designation of RNA neighborhood A district. So moved. Second. Or some second.

Do we know what are the plans for each of these little pieces of lane? Have you seen for each of them? There'll be a single family detached terms, and it's the last or the last two annextations and this 3rd one are all side by side so and they're being permitted through the county, but the separate.

Ordinances will allow us to complete the annex station as each home receives its CO. Oh, ok. All right, but but you do have the plans, I'm saying we can see those plans. Well, they're being permitted through the county, so all their construction will happen and then it comes into the city once it's finalized.

Okay. Councilmember DeWorken? I, councilmember Flemming. All right. Councilmember Gibson. I councilmember Brasington. I Councilmember Belge. I. Councilmember Dowe. I mayor White. All right. Okay, 15 F.

In ordinance to adopt the 2024 international building codes into amend chapter six building and building regulations of the Code of ordinances of the City of Greenville. Wow, that's [name] is up here. He must be very important. Whenever [name] shows up, it's kind of important.

Go ahead and make some preparatory comments. Mostly I'm here just answering questions that you might have about the adoption, specifically it's left up the jurisdictions to adopt chapter one of the building coach, which contains all of the administrative provisions for building department. Everything else is adopted at the state level.

Three year cycle. We're looking at the adoption of the 2024, code series 1 January of the upcoming year. A little thing, one thing's a little different. I did a lot of clean up this year in the ordinance, a lot of old things that were in there that we don't need anymore. We did add two codes to this.

Adoption. One is the swimming pool and SPA code. The other is the existing building code. In previous years, we've used the references in the building code to use to to allow us to use those codes, but a ruling by the building codes council earlier this year basically said that we had to adopt.

Come out by name. So that's the reason we brought those in in this adoption cycle. Right. Okay, question yep. So it's 2024. The Is it normally kind of that lag of the every few months or every year you have to come back and do that? The national code adopts on a three year cycle. Once the the books.

To publish like the 2027 codes are now coming out with international codes by the international code council. And those will go through a process with the state. It's a one year review period, and then there's an 18 month adoption period, so you can make modification requests to the state, the building.

Notes council and then they were reviewed and approved and then the legislature approves it. Are we in the review right now for the ones in January coming? I haven't started yet. Okay. The review for the process has already been completed on the 2024 code. It'll probably start pretty soon on the 27th code. Do you know if they've are going to aim for five.

For for sprinklers or for stairway issues residential code, the sprinklers are pretty much exempted by state law, I doubt we'll ever see residential sprinklers as a requirement. Now they're an option that were put back into the code allowed to stay as an option, but it's, you get some advantage for.

Remember like there was some like townhome issues in terms of once we get into larger structures past single family and then at the state level they were debating this but I guess. There there are options for residential sprinklers which would have, so for a townhouse for instance, it has a 2 h.

Firewall separation you can drop that down to a 1 h fire separation given a residential D sprinkler system. But [name] is better than AI on this kind of thing so we can we can be yeah truly. Ask him anything you want to ask him. You ready for the vote? Okay Clerk and call roll. Thanks.

Councilmember Gibson. I, councilmember Brasington. Councilmember Dowe. Mayor White. All right. Now we have the ordinance.

In ordinance to appropriate $579500 per the state of South Carolina fiscal year 2026 2027 Supplemental Appropriations Act and 70500 from the local accommodations tax fund for the purchase and preservation of historic.

Property located at Arlington Avenue. So moved second. Council member DeWorken. I. Councilmember flemming. I councilmember Gibson. I. Councilmember Belge. I, councilmember. I'm sorry council member Brasington. Councilmember Belge. I, thank you. Council Member Dowe.

I mayor white. Alright.

Okay, can I get formal. 15 H In ordinance to approve a public infrastructure improvements agreement between the City of Greenville, South Carolina and Verdae Properties LLC relating to redevelopment projects within the Lawrence Road redevelopment project area. So second.

Councilmember DeWorken? I. Councilmember Flemming. I. Councilmember Gibson. I councilmember brasington. Council Member Belgie. Hi. Councilmember Dowe. I, Mayor White. I. You can get up anything.

Okay, 16AA resolution to declare the results of a referendum held on 3 November 2026. So move. I Move on.

I mean, I will say again, I think we've all said things about this, but a 10000 vote margin on anything is just absolutely extraordinary. Residents of the city of Greenville that would vote understand it and vote like that. It's just absolutely amazing so we.

We're just down it, but we'll have a lot more to say about this in the coming months. Thank you. Look at that, look at look look at Shannon's looking. I've got more, more to do, more to get good things. 16, what do you miss C? Yeah. A resolution to consider.

We're amending the Greenville development code to provide for infill lot width standards for certain zoning districts and matters related and matters pertaining there too. So move. Second.

Do you have discussion on that or NO? Is that notch resolution? Oh I thought we oh sorry I probably did rush. So we able to have discussion or just comment on that or NO? Yeah, go ahead. Oh yeah. I mean, I just wanted to say thanks to the council for realizing we have a lot of work still to.

Do you want our info a lot with standards? We've got a lot of issues especially massing. We talked about this over a month ago, but this allows staff, we're giving staff the time and to really consider looking what changes to info impact. There are lots of unintended consequences, and so we're given.

This gives us a stop gap. This gives us some time to at least the resolution until we come back to us, of course. But I just want to say thanks to this council for I would call, so I appreciate the time. Yeah, one thing when you get near toward the end of the agenda, the mayor is gonna, he's you know you gotta.

Really gotta get in learning. You gotta get in there. I remain, I am so proud to serve on this body. I cannot tell you how many governmental bodies that.

Though may have disagreement, those disagreements remain and there's NO solution seeked, and I I after seven years I am astounded at how much this body listens to each other and tries to come to a solution and I'm so, so proud to serve on this.

Oh, this body, so thank you very much. I am fine. Yeah manager. Yes mr. Mayor and members of council. Thank you. Well, speaking of the.

TRA, I thought that just for the public that maybe watching in tonight, I wanted to provide an overview of what the next steps would be, and I think we have a slide that shows that, obviously to the mayor's point earlier, the city worked for over a year to be able to see that that legislation was passed through the state of South Carolina many thanks to.

Our legislators in Columbia for all their work to make sure that it passed on the last day of session, and, and it's a game changer for the city of Greenville and I think that the overwhelming margin of basically two to one in favor of the municipal tax relief act showed the support of the city.

Community for those items and so I wanted to make sure that people understand the timeline about what's coming next related to the MTRA. That's what we, that's what we refer to it as. We will not begin collecting any information on this until our collecting the tax until May one. So nothing goes.

Into effect until May one and then we will not actually see any remittances from the Department of Revenue until at least July or August, and we'll receive those on quarterly pro quarterly installments. We are paying as we go. We as a community have a very low debt ratio of about five.

.6 % and so we have, we keep our debt low and we are paying as we get, we are not bonding or taking any debt to be able to take over, to be able to do this program. So what that means is that we have shovel ready projects and we will spend the next nine months putting together all of those shovel ready projects so.

That we are ready to go on day one. Clint Link says to me that we have two and a half years worth of shovel ready projects to go on day one where is Clint Link? There he is. Is that right sir? That's right. So, but I wanted to make sure that everyone knows that you won't, it's not, we're not gonna start projects tomorrow. That mean this will really start in earnest next fall. And so I.

Don't want anyone in our community to be disappointed when if we're not starting, you know, next week. I would start next week if we could, but we will we will be starting in about nine months. And so that's really important as we lay the groundwork and the foundation for that. Obviously this would be an eight year tax, and what happens in 2035 where we will see.

Great, but we have this tax for eight years. We are expecting to collect 50 million at least annually. That's a conservative estimate. As a reminder, a lot of our taxes are generated inside the city come from outside of the city. And so, there are estimates that, you know, we, we generate $5 billion of cell taxes.

Is every year for the state of South Carolina, and up until this point, the city of Greenville does not receive any portion of that.

We do not receive any portion of that. So this is what we will now be able to collect that 1 % to be able to move forward. At your retreat in February, we plan to bring you our twelve month plan of what is going to happen with the MTRA so that we can make sure that council is approving.

Of that plan that you support the projects that we're bringing forth that you are that have already been approved by ordinance obviously but that you agree with our plan and our timeline, we'll be seeking your feedback on that and then we'll be sharing that with the community. But I just thought it would be important to kind of go ahead and start laying the groundwork tonight for what to expect over the next 3691218 months.

And we're very, very excited about the ability to be able to move forward with these projects. Shannon, you, you, the, a key piece.

Of this act and this, this tax is the property tax relief. That's correct. And, you know, I I'm so glad you mentioned that it goes into effect 1 May and we will only have a couple of months in the 1st year since our, our city runs on a fiscal year of July one to 30 June. So that property tax relief, the estimates done by the city that 1st.

Next year when they get their bills in the fall of 2027 will be not the full benefit of year to year. So I I'd love for us to be very clear on that. I also think in talking with constituents.

You know, people, I think people supported this tax, they recognize our needs and infrastructure. I think it it goes without saying that it is a trust, that they even trusted us to be good stewards of the money and to deliver and I have NO doubt that we will. A big piece of that started with our web.

Page. So I really commend the staff who pulled together a lot of this in a very short period of time and I would encourage us to keep that web page dedicated to our tax progress.

You know what what's up there? What's the timeline for us? All those things, because communicating what the tax was, I think allowed the voters to get to a yes on it. They understood it and they supported it and that's largely due to the work of the staff and just keep it up. Thank you very much. Our staff work has been working on this for over a year. We started this in august.

August of 2025. And so we I think did did our best to make sure that we communicated to the community what was in front of them, tried to keep it as, as simple as we could, provided the dedicated website along with the map of every single project that is the and those are the only projects authorized that can be spent with the money. That we can't just.

Go and add a project or anything like that. There's specific rules related to the ordinance about how we can spend it. We have to spend 70 % of tier one projects before we can even move into tier two. So I appreciate all the work of my incredible staff here at the city of Greenville. I have an incredible team and we've been working together on this for a long time.

And again, but it was a partnership. We could not have done it without our, our, the support of the legislature in Columbia and just all of the, the work they did. And so, you know, this is an exciting opportunity for us to really be able to do real meaningful infrastructure work within the city.

Thank you all very much. I would like to commend councilman Dr. at neighborhood meetings that I that I was with him. He explained to people exactly saying that I know I'm talking for the county, but the city named the cities had one. And most of you people live in the city green.

You need to vote for that because it's always.

But they are not even allowed to do this with with without the county doing it and that's not fair to me, etc. And I appreciate him cause he stated three, three different meeting locations to people in the city and I thanked him for that, helped us out great and a lot of people understood it and.

Thank you Councilmember Flemming and for anyone who's watching it home, I would just encourage you, you can go find all the information out about all the projects that are included on our city web page. It's featured on our front page and you can go directly to the website that has been referenced, and you can look at an interactive map of all the projects that are included in the ordinance for the city.

Of Greenville, and with that mr. Mayor, all the only other thing I have tonight on our staff reports is just a thank you to our many veterans on Wednesday it is Veterans Day. We have a large number of veterans that serve here at the City of Greenville. We have a large number of veterans within our community, and our city will be celebrating that holiday and recognizing that.

Holiday on Wednesday for all of the service of our many veterans in our community. So to any of our veterans that maybe listening tonight, we hope that you feel honored, thanked, and appreciated every day, but especially on Wednesday a day that's dedicated and devoted to you. Exactly. I gotta go to corralph and go to coral book.

May I have an adjournment, please? With mayor? A mayor, you gotta personally adjourned. You gotta what? You need to mayor.

Alright, for the record, there was an adjournment. Yes.