County Council Gives UDO Final Approval

Lancaster County Council approved the new Unified Development Ordinance Monday night by a vote of 5-1. Councilman Jack Estridge cast the vote of opposition.
“Lancaster County has changed, and this is an effort to try to manage that growth,” said Councilman Larry McCullough. “I fully support the UDO and applaud all who worked long and hard on this.”
The labor-intensive ordinance passed largely due to its built-in annual review process allowing changes and corrections in response to any unintended consequences. Its first such review will be next June.
Discussion about the height limitation on free-standing signs preceded the vote. Councilman Larry Honeycutt and Dean Faile, president of the Lancaster County Chamber of Commerce, said the restrictions might prohibit new businesses from locating here and might hinder the promotion of current businesses.
“This sign proposal is not new,” said county Planning Director Penelope Karagounis. “The current UDO has contradicting language. One section says it prohibits free-standing signs and another says it’s OK, but they can’t exceed 25 feet.”
Karagounis said 90 percent of the zoning department’s permits the past two years were for signs 10 feet or shorter. Signs taller than 10 feet require approval from the state in the form of an engineer seal, which costs more money, she said.
Council agreed the sign issue will be the first item tackled by the advisory council next June. Until that time, the 10-foot limitation stands. Businesses wanting a taller sign can appeal to the zoning board for a variance.
The new UDO’s passage automatically lifts the moratorium for rezoning north of S.C. 5, which has been in effect since July 13, 2015.
In other business, Avondale, the 189-acre mixed-use development located between Calvin Hall and Harrisburg roads, passed its final reading with a 4-2 vote. Council Chair Bob Bundy and Councilman Estridge cast the two no votes.
Resistance to the project has continued to fade over the past few months with the realization that the land will be developed. A single developer offering improvements to the county rather than a collection of neighborhoods with different developers seems the better option to those who had opposed the project.
“I’ve seen this developer work with those in favor and even those against this project,” said Indian Land resident Nick Kerzman.
He pointed out that traffic woes will continue with or without Avondale, but the developer’s proposed realignment of Calvin Hall and Harrisburg Roads should offer some relief.
He also said the financial contributions, $365,000 to schools and $730,000 to public safety, and the donation of land to the county offset the negative impact of the inevitable growth.
County council voted down the Avondale ordinance this past Jan. 11. Council member Charlene McGriff made a request after an executive session at the May 23 council meeting for a motion to rescind the five-month-old rezoning denial. The motion passed.
McGriff said at the time that this allowed the county some say in how the project would progress, and council member Brian Carnes described the developer’s offer to the county as “a much more robust and comprehensive package than prior developments.”

Haley Picked for UN Ambassador

Trump’s selection means McMaster ascends to governor’s job

President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday nominated S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
“Gov. Haley has a proven track record of bringing people together regardless of background or party affiliation to move critical policies forward for the betterment of her state and our country,” Trump said. “She will be a great leader representing us on the world stage.”
Haley, 44, is the first woman and first minority appointed for a cabinet-level position in Trump’s administration.
Haley, in her second term as governor, said she has mixed feelings as she accepts the challenge.
“I always expected to finish the remaining two years of my second term as governor,” Haley said Wednesday. “Not doing so is difficult because I love serving South Carolina more than anything.”
Haley said she accepted the position out of a sense of duty and was satisfied with what her administration has accomplished for the state.
“When the president believes you have a major contribution to make to the welfare of our nation, and to our nation’s standing in the world, that is a calling that is important to heed.” Haley said.
Haley will remain governor until the U.S. Senate confirms her nomination.
“We still have much to do in South Carolina, and my commitment to the people of our state will always remain unbreakable, both while I continue to hold this office, and thereafter,” she said.
Haley was elected in 2010 as the first female and minority governor of the state. She is the daughter of Indian immigrants and grew up in Bamberg.
Haley served three terms in the S.C. House before being elected governor.
Praise came quickly Wednesday from fellow Republicans. State GOP Chairman Matt Moore, House Speaker Jay Lucas, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott and S.C. Sen. Greg Gregory all applauded the choice.
“Gov. Haley’s appointment as U.N. ambassador shows how far our state has come and how far our nation can go in the 21st century,” Moore said.
“I couldn’t be more proud that the whole world will get to see Nikki Haley’s strong, principled leadership in action. It’s a great day to be an American!”
Lucas said: “President-elect Trump has made a tremendous and most capable choice by selecting our governor to represent the United States in the international community.”
Gregory sees the appointment as a loss for the state, but a gain for the country. “Gov. Haley is the most authentic, optimistic and competitive person I know,” he said, “and she’ll need those qualities in what will be a very challenging job.”
He applauded her climb “as a second-generation immigrant from little Bamberg, S.C.” and called her rise “a great example of what is possible to those who apply themselves in America.”
The appointment of Haley is a departure from Trump’s recent appointments of loyal supporters. Haley’s support came slowly after a couple of contentious exchanges.
As a child of immigrants, Haley was in opposition to Trump banning Muslims from entering the country.
“No one who is willing to work hard, abide by our laws, and love our traditions should ever feel unwelcome in this country,” Haley said in her Republican State of the Union response last January.
Trump shot back with a nasty tweet, “The people of South Carolina are embarrassed by Nikki Haley.”
“This election has turned my stomach upside down,” she said in October. “It has been embarrassing for both parties. It’s not something that the country deserves, but it’s what we’ve got.”
Haley endorsed Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for president, but just before the election made her support of Trump public.
“This is no longer a choice for me on personalities, because I’m not a fan of either one. What it is about is policy.”
Haley’s lack of foreign-policy experience has already prompted criticism and will draw much attention during the Senate confirmation hearings. If confirmed by the Senate, she will be the first U.N. ambassador without previous foreign policy experience.
Haley has worked with other countries in her efforts to attract businesses to South Carolina. Under her leadership, the state’s jobless rate hit record lows, the state announced 58,000 jobs and more than 25,000 state residents moved from welfare to work.
Haley has been recognized for her calmness and confidence in several crises she handled during her terms as governor. She was praised for her handling of the mass shooting at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston in 2015 after a white gunman, Dylann Roof, killed nine black members during Bible study.
Less than a month later, Haley signed a bill to remove the divisive Confederate battle flag from the S.C. Capitol grounds.
Haley also led the state through the historic floods in October 2015.
Haley will be replaced by Lt. Gov. Henry McMaster.
Steve Willis, Lancaster County administrator, said McMaster’s position might have influenced Trump to pick Haley.
“An interesting set of circumstances will be set in motion,” he said, “because if she is approved by the Senate, she will vacate the governor’s office and the lieutenant governor will move up.
“That likely played into it, because Lt. Gov. McMaster was a huge Trump supporter, and that gives Trump another sitting governor to support him, whereas Haley was not.”
Follow Reporter Mandy Catoe on Twitter @MandyCatoeTLN or contact her at (803) 283-1152

Catawba Indians Celebrate - 6,000 Years of Culture

It’s the season of fall festivals, and the one last weekend had familiar sights, sounds and smells – tables full of art and crafts, the aroma of sweet potato pie and hot stew, a full parking lot on a sunny Saturday afternoon.
But upon entering the glass doors of the long house on the Catawba Indian Reservation, it was clear that something was different here.
Natives in traditional buckskin and feathers were walking among the jeans-and-sweatshirt crowd. Most visitors were headed for the food until they heard a woman’s voice wafting in through the open doors.
“Step high. Step high, we teach our little girls,” said a Catawba woman in a traditional buckskin dress. Captivated, people began entering the round room.
As they settled in, Kristine Carpenter repeated her words.
“Step high. Step high, we teach our little girls,” she said, then began the solemn, sacred march.
“We teach them to first respect themselves,” she said. “You can’t expect others to respect you if you don’t respect yourself.”
Catawba lineage is handed down through the women who have held the tribe together for centuries.
“The dance of the woman is a dance to honor all women,” she said.
Before the first drum beat, Carpenter asked the audience to not photograph or video the sacred dance.
“The only way to see this dance is in person,” she said.
A mixed crowd of more than 100 people sat spellbound and silent in a circle as she danced the Women’s Honor Song. Her son drummed and chanted a sacred soul-touching tribute.
People sat with their cell phones and cameras in their laps, mesmerized by a moment that had to be experienced rather than recorded for later. No one made a sound until the last drum beat and the dancer’s feet were still.
More dances followed. They celebrated life, healing and hunting.

Silver-haired Catawba women watched from their chairs as young Indians danced on the stage below. The youthful natives pranced and strutted with all their might, determined to keep the 6,000-year old Catawba heritage alive at this annual event on the banks of the Catawba River. 





Return of a craft
One of the tribe’s elders, Faye George Greiner, sat behind a display of handwoven baskets.
Greiner, 81, shared how she played a part in bringing basket weaving back to the Catawbas. Almost 70 years ago, her parents sent her to the Cherokee Indian boarding school to learn to weave baskets. No basket makers had been on the Catawba Indian Reservation for more than a century until she brought it back.
For a while, she lived away from the reservation, but returned in the early ‘90s to pass the craft on to the younger generation.
“I’m so happy to see so many baskets on the craft tables,” she said.
Greiner continues to teach basket weaving on the reservation and is teaching Beckee Garris, who works at the Native American Studies Center.
“I don’t want it to get lost again,” Greiner said.
People moved slowly from table to table in the round room gazing at the pottery, jewelry, baskets and artifacts.
Madison Fellows, 8, stopped at a table with a basket of arrowheads. She ran her fingers over the smooth stones.
 
“I enjoy looking at the different kinds of rocks that were used in making these arrowheads,” she said.

Travis Blue, 43, dressed in brown leather adorned with feathers, performed a  dance to honor hunting, showing how to track and catch the scent of an animal. Two large feathers rose high from his headdress while a large circular set of tail feathers fanned out like a strutting wild turkey. He squatted, stalked and searched for prey.


A healing dance
Cheyenne Beck, 19, danced the Jingle Dance, a healing jig, in a skirt with five circular rows of dangling metal cones about 2 inches long. They clanged as she moved to the beat of the drum.


The legend is the dance came in a dream to a heartbroken father of a sick young girl whose illness was worsening and not responding to traditional medicine. When he awoke, he gathered the women and described the dance to them. They performed it, and his daughter was made well.
Beck has been dancing since she could walk and feels it is a way to preserve the tribe’s culture.
“I want to give back because the heritage is dying out,” Beck said.
Chief Bill Harris, surveying the circular room, said the day was about sharing the culture and having a good time. Attendance was up by about 30 percent over last year, he said.
“Fall festivals are about progression from the beginning of the year through harvest and giving thanks as we get ready for the earth to go to sleep,” said Harris. “So we review our year and make plans for the coming year.”
Beckee Garris, seated next to a Christmas tree, greeted people as they entered the long house. The round hallway led to a long line of people holding empty paper plates and dollar bills.
People were trading their dollar for a small smorgasbord of native delights including Cherokee Brunswick stew, blackberry cobbler, and various breads made from sweet potatoes, black beans and carrots. A table of sweets included peach spice preserves, blackberry preserves, banana nut cake, pecan pie.
“One dollar and you can sample everything,” Garris said. “I did.”


Hoop Dance

 Finally, the show-stopping dance began. A young brave, Jonathan Thomas, dressed in bright yellow, took center stage to perform the athletic Hoop Dance.
Before he began, he spread 15 colorful hula-hoop-style rings on the floor in piles of three.
Historically, this dance was performed for members of the tribe who were unable to travel. Upon returning from his adventures, the young warrior danced to illustrate what he had seen. Using the hoops and his body, he created animal shapes including birds, butterflies, alligators, and snakes.
Thomas began with three hoops and ended with all 15, a task accomplished with four on each leg, two on each arm, a couple around his waist and one in his mouth. His dance celebrated youth, strength and gratitude. He ended the acrobatic display by kneeling with his head bowed and a single hoop raised in honor.
Thomas, 21, works at a nearby factory, but continues to pass his native heritage of archery, hoop dancing, beadwork and pottery to the kids on the reservation.
“I stay close to the roots of the Native American tradition,” Thomas said. “Anytime anyone requests me to perform, I will gladly take the time out of my day to do that.”


The festival ended with the Friendship Dance. With open arms and hands, the Catawbas called everyone down to the floor to dance with them.
Their message: We are one. We are connected.

Follow Reporter Mandy Catoe on Twitter @MandyCatoeTLN or contact her at (803) 283-1152

New UDO Limits Signs to 10 Feet Tall

The signs, they are a changin’.

Or they will be if the proposed Unified Development Ordinance passes its third and final reading at the next county council meeting Nov. 28.

The new UDO, which is finally almost finished after 20 months of reworking, limits most freestanding business signs to 10 feet in height and 40 square feet in area. It’s an effort to reduce visual clutter along the county’s roads.

That provision hasn’t gotten a lot of public attention during the UDO process. 

“They are trying to make us look like Hilton Head Island,” said an aggravated Mark Baker, owner of Rapid Signs in Lancaster.

Baker feels the UDO is geared more toward aesthetics than the needs of business owners. His customers tell him they fear they are losing their creative expression and the ability to identify their businesses.

Baker fears he will lose customers and that some businesses might decide to locate in places with fewer restrictions on their signs.

The biggest concerns to Baker are the height and square-footage restrictions that make signs less visible. The new UDO will limit the height of most signs to 10 feet. Some signs need to be taller than that to be seen, Baker said.

“Tourists traveling through might not see a restaurant sign, and they will keep right on driving,” Baker said. “The last thing a sign maker wants to hear from his customer is ‘I can’t read the sign or see it from the road.’”

The UDO will also prohibit the popular feather flags seen outside local businesses. The flags are long, narrow and colorful. 

“They swear by them and say it gets business in the door,” Baker said. 

Four such banners were flapping in the wind Friday afternoon at ArrowPointe Federal Credit Union at 100 Monroe Highway.

“Traffic is increased because of the high visibility of the flags that seem to say ‘there is help here!’” said Felicia Pope, ArrowPointe Vice President of Marketing and Business Development.

“I need those flags,” Pope said.

Baker recently installed a 15-foot-tall sign for South 200 Imports on Great Falls Highway, a sign he would not be able to put up after the UDO passes. 

Most signs on Great Falls Highway and the Highway 9 Bypass would not be allowed under the new UDO, according to Kenneth Cauthen, zoning director.

Those two roads have rows of multicolored signs of varying heights vying for attention. Most are well over 10 feet high. 

Existing signs will be grandfathered in. Any changes to current signs would have to conform to the new UDO, said Elaine Boone, county planner. 

Baker appealed to county council Nov. 14 and said several council members spoke to him since then. He feels he has their support, but added “time is running out.”

County officials are quick to point out that the UDO is a living document and will be shaped as time goes by.

“Every single year, the document will be reviewed and revised as times and technology change,” said Steve Willis, county administrator. “As Lancaster becomes more urban, it will be reviewed.”

Cauthen said the first UDO advisory committee meeting to consider changes will be next June.

“Sign ordinances are very hard to write to please everybody, and I am sure we will be changing it some at the first review meeting,” he said. 

Cauthen said the restrictions are more likely to be opposed south of the Panhandle because the county already has been limiting signs in Indian Land.

In September 2014, county council passed the 521 corridor overlay district, which places limits on signs. It runs along U.S. 521 from S.C. 75 north to the state line, and S.C. 160 from 521 west to the Lancaster/York county line. 

Nov 20, 2016

 

Follow Reporter Mandy Catoe on Twitter @MandyCatoeTLN or contact her at (803) 283-1152

Pulte Rejects County's Offer on Sun City Roads, Drains

Sun City Carolina Lakes’ developer has rejected Lancaster County’s demand that it secure a $3 million line of credit to handle storm-drain repairs before the county will take responsibility for all of the development’s roads.
In a Nov. 15 letter, Atlanta-based Pulte Group contends that under its 2005 development agreement, the county is clearly responsible for both the roads and the storm-water system at the massive Indian Land project.
The letter gives the county 10 days to accept the company’s position or face legal action.
Last month, County Attorney John Weaver sent a letter to Pulte Vice President Cisco Garcia, offering a five-year plan to resolve the decade-long dispute over the county taking on financial responsibility for the roads.
Under the development agreement, Pulte was required to construct the roads to meet county standards, after which the county would adopt them into its system. The county has already accepted more than two-thirds of the nearly 30 miles of roads.
The developer’s attorney, Daniel Ballou, responded in a letter dated Nov. 15. He said the remaining roads in Sun City have passed numerous inspections and Pulte “has gone to extra effort to demonstrate… that the roads meet applicable standards.”
“The county has not provided any evidence to support its concerns about the quality or condition of the existing roads, relying instead on speculation and unsupported accusations,” Ballou said.
He said the county has not informed Pulte of any repairs not made, nor has it indicated that the type and number of repairs has been excessive for a  residential community.
The county says otherwise. The debate over the roads started not long after construction began in 2005. As the 3,200-home development nears completion, county officials and Sun City residents want assurance that they won’t be left with unsatisfactory roads and without funds to repair them.
Each side interprets the development agreement differently.
“The agreement is what the agreement is,” said Steve Willis, county administrator. “If they say no, they say no.”
Willis said the roads are going to be the county’s responsibility, but if the underlying problem causing a road failure is a storm drain, the county is not going to fix the storm drain. That is up to Pulte or the homeowners’ association.
“That is someone else’s problems,” Willis said. “We are in a position to barricade the road, in effect saying when you get the storm drain fixed and repack the ground, let us know and we will come in and repave.”
But Ballou contends that the storm-water infrastructure is the county’s responsibility. His letter quotes the development agreement: “Public revenue bonds may be issued by the County to offset the cost of maintaining the storm water infrastructure that is publicly owned.”
“There would be no reason to allow the County to issue bonds for maintenance obligations the County does not have,” Ballou said.
Willis said the key words in that section are “may be issued.”
“The development agreement makes it absolutely clear that the county has no responsibility for storm-water whatsoever,” Willis said.
“The agreement was drawn up by the Pulte attorneys,” he said.
Willis pointed out this wording from Section 4.08 paragraph D, Storm water management: “Pulte will construct or cause to be constructed all storm water runoff and drainage improvements within the Property… and such infrastructure will be maintained by Pulte or a homeowners’ association.”
And further into the paragraph: “County is not responsible for any construction or maintenance costs associated with the storm water runoff and drainage for the property.”
Pulte agreed to stand by the terms and conditions of the development agreement as they understand them. That is, they will perform any outstanding repairs and qualifying future repairs during the one-year warranty.
Ballou gave the county 10 days from Nov. 15 to provide a list of required repairs and an official confirmation that the county will accept all roads.
If the county fails to do so, Pulte threatened to move forward with legal action, demanding also that its attorneys’ fees be paid by the county, a provision granted in the development agreement.
11-18-16

Follow reporter Mandy Catoe on Twitter @MandyCatoeTLN or contact her at (803) 283-1152

Leavin' on a Jet Plane - Animal Rescuers Saving Pets

Six cats and four dogs from the Lancaster County Animal Shelter got a private flight Nov. 9 to their new home in East Hampton, New York.
The trip was a coordinated effort by animal rescue groups, a charitable pilot, the shelter and two Lancaster County Council members.
Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons (ARF) rescues pets from shelters of Southern states that don’t have strict spay and neuter laws, which results in an overpopulation of animals.  Lancaster Area Shelter Supporters (LASS) coordinated the recent trip with ARF. LASS member Arlene McCarthy organized the effort and has already planned another one for early 2017.
Lancaster shelter director Alan Williams praised the groups’ work.
“I think anytime we can get animals rescued from this shelter is great,” Williams said. “We are so small with space that the lives of these animals depend on rescue groups to move them out quickly.”
Animals at the shelter go through a holding period and are evaluated before being considered for adoption. Animals that come into the shelter are checked for a microchip with a universal scanner, for a rabies tag or ID tag on a collar. If the animal has identification, the owner is contacted. If no identification is found, the animal is held at the shelter for five days. Once the shelter receives its maximum capacity of 30 dogs, it begins euthanizing animals. Thanks to animal rescue groups, about 75 percent of dogs leave the shelter for a new home.
ARF was started in 1974 in New York to deal with the overabundance of loose and unwanted pets. All pets are spayed or neutered before leaving ARF’s adoption center. As a result of strict laws requiring owners to sterilize their pets, the Northern states come south to rescue pets from states with no such laws.
LASS supporters loaded pets into their personal vans at the shelter early Wednesday morning and a convoy including Councilman Larry Honeycutt, Councilman-elect Terry Graham, the pilots and two ARF members headed west to the Lancaster County Airport.
“This is our third time pulling pets from the Lancaster shelter,” said Michele Forrester, ARF director of operations. “In October 2015, we emptied the shelter when we rescued 30 dogs in our transport van.”
Wednesday’s rescue included fewer pets, but for the 10 given a new lease on life it was just as big a deal. ARF, a no-kill shelter, took every available pet, saving them from possible euthanasia.
Shelter regulations require a five-day hold on pets before they can be released to the public. But that rule doesn’t apply to owner-surrendered pets.
Just before the convoy left the animal shelter parking lot, a woman drove up and surrendered her small brown dog. He turned out to be a crowd favorite and flew to New York in the arms of one of the ARF rescuers. He enjoyed a window seat, and there was talk he would be named Lanny in honor of his hometown.
The pilot, Bob Gordon, flies his own plane for two organizations, Angel Flight and Patient Air Lift, that provide free medical transportation to patients needing medical care.
Gordon provided the same free flight for the 10 pets on board his plane.
“I’m just glad to give back,” Gordon said.


Councilman Larry Honeycutt has been vocal in his support of the shelter this past year.
“We need to do better than we are doing. We need to make this a top priority, and we are going to do something about it,” Honeycutt said.
Honeycutt hopes to encourage council to hire another part-time staffer by the first of the year to ease the burden on current staff who are working many 10-hour days.

Nov 18, 2016

Follow Reporter Mandy Catoe on Twitter @MandyCatoeTLN or contact her at (803) 283-1152.

Aunt Lillian

Aunt Lillian
Nov 2015

For the past few days, I’ve been thinking about Aunt Lillian. She passed away last Thursday at the age of 91. She was my Daddy’s oldest sister. She was the most like him of his four sisters and seven brothers. They were gentle, humble, quiet, kind, intelligent and shared a love of books, ideas and learning. They looked a lot alike. She was slow to judge and even slower to criticize. Oh, those birthday cards and that handwritten note that would come in the mail late every September announcing the family reunion. It’s interesting, but I don’t think I have been to a family reunion since those invitations stopped being penned by Aunt Lillian. With her, there was total acceptance of who we were. She taught us girls that our worth was not in our fertility, but rather in our character. I’m not sure if Aunt Lillian was childless by choice or not, but I know her lifework was her gift to the world and what a gift it was! After grandma died, Aunt Lillian became the matriarch of the Catoe clan – giving all us “orphaned” grandkids, (all 33 of us), room to grow and always inspiring us with her words of encouragement.

I now have two material possessions that are linked directly to Aunt Lillian. One is a mirror that hung in her home – which is perfect because Aunt Lillian “saw” us and helped us to see ourselves – our real selves – who we were inside. Now when I look into that mirror, I imagine Aunt Lillian looking back at me with a knowing smile, twinkling eyes and that nod of approval. I’m going to keep a photo of Aunt Lillian tucked into the corner on that mirror. The other thing I have that came from Aunt Lillian was a gift she gave my Daddy when he left the farm headed to Clemson. It’s a Parker 51 pen/pencil set. Mama gave it to me after Daddy died in 2004. It is sitting by my side as I write this. I have treasured this pen set and what it represents my entire life. It represents my link to two people who loved me, valued my words and encouraged me to put pen to paper.
Tomorrow my family will say our earthly goodbye and give thanks that we were blessed to walk in the shadow of someone who always pulled us into the light.
http://www.bpafuneralhome.com/obituaries/Lillian-Galloway/…

CB's Tux & Tech

Step into Craig Mathis’ store on Lancaster’s Main Street, and you’ll see a business shedding its old skin and becoming new again. 

A shrinking clearance corner with stilettos and sequined gowns is being overtaken by a larger selection of tuxedos and a growing assortment of computers, cell phones and tablets awaiting repair.

The business is in its fourth incarnation since Craig’s father opened its doors as a hair salon in 1968. C.B. Mathis took the tiny specialty store into the national fashion spotlight, even coaching one of his clients to a Miss America title.

“We had been at a worldwide level before, and it was a struggle to let that part go,” Craig Mathis says. “But my spirit yearned for more. I finally felt the confidence to do what I love, or what I’m good at…. It’s about learning and having fun.”

In the store, two blocks south of Lancaster’s historic courthouse, a steady flow of teenage boys and their prom dates shop for the perfect tux. A few feet away, customers with broken cell phone screens and crashed computers wait their turn as Mathis explains tuxedo styles to young men suiting up in this formal way for the first time.  

He allows space for them to consult with their girlfriends, feel the fabric and daydream. He remains nearby to answer questions and make suggestions based on years of experience.

Mathis, 44, learned fashion from the best around. He grew up watching his father, Claude Bailey Mathis, known as C.B., transform uncertain and awkward young girls into beauty queens.  

Between prom customers, Mathis switches gear to answer computer questions from panicked callers. If he can’t walk them through the solution on the phone, he tells them to bring the computer in. 

Mathis knows technology the way his dad knew fashion. He bought the formalwear business from his father in 2000, and for a successful decade he ran it pretty much unchanged. 

Then the upheavals started. C.B. Mathis died unexpectedly May 25, 2011. Craig began to wonder about the business model, as the rising cost of gowns priced more customers out of the market. 

In October 2013, a broken water line flooded the store with over 65,000 gallons of water and fuel oil from a furnace in the basement, ruining everything inside.

“Business came to a standstill, and we had to start over,” Mathis said. “That turned out to be a gift, a turning point. It was God’s timing.”

The business that emerged after the flood included a new wrinkle. Mathis began quietly repairing computers on-site. As word spread, that business began growing.

This past Jan. 1, Mathis made it official. He rechristened the store C.B.’s Tux & Tech, phased out the gowns, kept the tuxedos and put his technology skills on full display.

“Technology isn’t going anywhere. It’s here to stay, and so am I,” he said.

Mathis looked around at the newly designed macho logo and the mannequins decked out in tuxedos worthy of a Hollywood red carpet. “We are going from girly girly to man cave,” he said.

That kind of transformation is often essential to business survival, says Dean Faile, Lancaster County chamber president and former small-business owner. 

“Typically when you see a business with that kind of longevity, you are looking at an amazing ability to adapt,” Faile said. “C.B.’s has adapted to the market and reinvented themselves with the changing times.”   

Version 1.0

C.B.’s Version 1.0 began in 1968 as The Peach Tree, a hair salon and clothing store in the same block as the current store.

C.B. Mathis grew up on a farm in the Elgin community, graduated from Lancaster High School in 1962 and spent the next six years searching for a fit to satisfy his creative spirit. College and the local textile mill stifled his artistic cravings.   

A little side job of fixing his sister-in-law’s hair began to take center stage in his life. He loved how it made her look and feel. So the young man with a flair for fashion took a chance and headed to Camden Beauty School.  

When he returned to Lancaster, Version 1.0 started with a commitment to bring out the best in the client. C.B. cut hair on the lower level and sold clothes upstairs. He developed a following among pageant contestants with his uncanny ability to transform aspiring young women into beauty queens.    

By the late 70s and early 80s, Version 2.0 began with a new store selling just sportswear, though he kept his pageant business going at the same time.

That version succeeded for a decade. Then the big-box stores and malls of the late ‘80s lured shoppers away from the downtown specialty shops. Mathis changed his business model again, dropped sportswear and focused on formal wear. 

Version 3.0 evolved with a new look and by the early ‘90s, C.B.’s Limited was the place to go for tuxedos, bridal gowns and designer evening dresses. For the next decade, the ever-evolving businessman focused on formal wear and pageant coaching and judging.

Young women with beauty queen dreams traveled from all along the Eastern Seaboard to C.B.’s on Main Street in Lancaster. One of his young ladies, Kimberly Aiken of Columbia, was crowned Miss America in 1994.   

By that time, Craig was in college at Winthrop, working part-time and summers at C.B.’s. But he didn’t picture himself taking over the family business.

One summer, another part-timer caught his eye. April Adams was working at C.B.’s and attending USCL. He and April fell in love almost at first sight. They graduated in May 1996 and married five months later.  

After graduating with a biology degree, Craig worked at a medical lab in Rock Hill, but boredom started creeping in. His interest in computers and technology held his interest.

“I bought a computer and had to finance it,” he said. “I didn’t have extra money for repairs, so if something broke I had to fix it. I taught myself to maintain, upgrade and troubleshoot.”

Friends and family started bringing him computers to clean and fix.     

A job at C.B.’s

A manager left C.B.’s in 1997, creating a vacancy at his dad’s store. Craig seized the opportunity as a way out of the lab, but he wasn’t thrilled about selling clothes. He told his dad that he wasn’t going to sell anything but he would help modernize the business, which at that point did not have a computer.     

In 2000, C.B. retired and went into real estate. Craig and April bought the business as equal partners.

“I had to learn it all,” he said, “the product, customer service, and yes, even the sales part.” 

His father remained for a couple of years during the transition. C.B.’s Limited continued to be successful selling and renting formal wear, Craig said. He enjoyed interacting with the customers but craved more challenge and continued teaching himself technology in the evenings and during breaks at the store.

Craig and April settled down and had two kids. Clay and Hannah are now 11 and 8. His wife returned to work in medical technology after a few years helping out at C.B.’s.  She is an assistant lab director and blood bank supervisor at Springs Memorial Hospital.     

C.B., always proud and impressed with his son’s computer skills, advised Craig to follow his passion.

“My dad would always say to me, ‘Son, why aren’t you working with computers? That’s your passion,’” Mathis recalls. “It just took me a while to get it. I didn’t think I was ready for it. I wasn’t confident enough.”   

After C.B. died in 2011, Mathis recalled his dad urging him to follow his heart, just as C.B. had always done. 

“Something just clicked after the flood. I knew I was going to take a chance with computers,” Mathis said.

At the start of this year, he added the tech to the tuxedos and kept the name C.B.’s. as a tribute to his father. “This place will always be C.B.’s,” he said.

His sister, Crista Blackmon, five years his junior, says he reminds her of their dad.

C.B.’s greatest quality was his love for people, “no matter their race, gender, sexual preference, whether rich or poor,” she said.” Craig, a bit of an introvert, is growing into the same people person, she said. 

Their mom, Carolyn Pendergrass Mathis, says Craig is a younger version of C.B., with talent, passion, drive and energy. 

“My husband and son see the best in everyone,” she said. “The technology addition to the business is a perfect fit for Craig and this area.”

‘It’s the C.B. way’

It’s prom season, the busiest time of year for formal wear. The tech side is also buzzing, with nonstop calls about complex computer questions. Mathis answers them all, without much technical jargon.  

“My strength is trouble-shooting. There has never been a problem I couldn’t figure out, whether it took two minutes or two weeks. I don’t give up until I figure it out,” Mathis said.  

The new C.B.’s offers price-conscious upgrades, malware and virus removal, tuneups,  operating system installations, full system builds and tech support. They replace batteries and broken screens.

Mathis calls himself a “frugal technologist.” 

“People call thinking they need a new computer when the one they have is only a couple years old,” he said. “They think it’s broken, because it’s slow.”

Usually it’s just a matter of removing viruses.  

“My home computer is 10 years old. It’s fast and clean,”  Craig said, crediting what he calls defensive surfing. “You can’t just get in a car and drive. You need some basic understanding. It’s the same with computers.”

Like C.B., he focuses on customer service, never overlooking a detail.

“I can’t stand leaving a customer with an unfinished product, whether it is a tux or a computer…. I just love to call the customer and hear the satisfaction in his voice. It’s the C.B. way.”

The Charlotte Observer interviewed C.B. Mathis in 1997. He said he had three wishes for his clients: “A better understanding of themselves, that they’re pleased with what they’ve done, and that they don’t look back and say, ‘Why didn’t I?’”

It seems his son took notes.

 

4-17-16

Contact reporter Mandy Catoe at (803) 283-1152 or mcatoe@thelancasternews.com.

Relay for Life: a celebration of the fighters, the memories

Hundreds filed into Lancaster County Memorial Stadium Friday night to celebrate another day of life and to march in defiance of a dreaded disease that shows no mercy.  

The annual Relay for Life event had so many survivors and so many stories. Luminaries, two-wide, formed a circle within a circle, making a lighted path for survivors, caregivers and loved ones to walk, to remember and to hope. 

Nearly 60 teams with 545 members joined together in friendly fundraising competitions with a theme of “paint your world purple.” Lancaster’s Relay for Life had collected $2,000 shy of $100,000 before the big night. Onsite fundraising should easily push the effort past its $143,000 goal.

The night began with the survivor’s lap. The parade of purple-clad survivors included people of all ages.

The sun set on the warm night, and the dark blue sky of night even looked purple as people continued walking laps. The band Mister Pleaze sang Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing.” 

Catherlean McIlwain spent a few minutes of silence on her knees next to one luminary among many.

 Each survivor painted a section in what would become a tapestry of survival.

From a distance all the luminaries look the same. But this one held special meaning for her. Her daughter’s name, Latoya McIlwain Wright, was handwritten in black, with the dates 1974-2010.

Until 2009, she and Latoya came to Relay together to celebrate her daughter as a survivor. That year Latoya lost her fight. This was her mother’s first trip back since 2009, and she came alone. 

Tracing her daughter’s name with her finger on the luminary lantern, McIlwain said she had wanted to come back before now, but had found it too hard. 

Hand in hand and smiling ear to ear, Mary and Frank Papp of Indian Land walked around the luminary-lighted track in their first Lancaster Relay for Life event. 

Speaking at the same time, Frank said, “She’s my hero.” And Mary said, “He’s my caregiver.” 

The Papps looked more like honeymooners than a couple about to celebrate 43 years of marriage. They never let go of each other’s hands while walking and sharing their story. 

Mary is a breast cancer survivor. Her battle began in 1989 and returned in 1996. In 2006 and 2009, the cancer returned in scar tissue left from the mastectomy. 

“They can’t give me anymore chemo or radiation, so I’m on my own and enjoying life every moment,” Papp said.

Cancer survivor Betty Still stopped by The Lancaster Woman’s Club tent to fill in a section of a paint-by-number canvas.

Still, a one-year survivor, said it was wonderful to see the outpouring of community support. “I never realized how important this was until I needed it myself.”

Lancaster native and five-year survivor Barbara Haile said, “Life is wonderful. God is good.” 

Speaking through tears, Haile said, “This event is breathtaking. I have to be here. I can’t explain it. My brother died three years ago of pancreatic cancer, and my mother is a breast cancer survivor. I’m here for them.”

First cousins Kristina Humphries and McKenzie Medlin knelt side by side next to a luminary burning in honor of their grandmother, Gladys Humphries, a breast-cancer survivor. She passed away last year at the age of 73.

For 14 years, their grandmother attended Relay and celebrated as a survivor. This year she was with them in spirit.

First-year team Gold Hill AME Zion Church of Indian Land was enjoying the night and learning from the experience. 

The Rev. Linda Hill said they might just raise the price of those ice cold bottles of water next year. “We’ve been selling them for a quarter!”  

The veteran team Relay Rally Cats from Mane Street Hair Designers led the fundraising effort with more than $10,000 collected.

Their neighbor Team Dustin Carnes, a fifth-year team, was just dollars behind. Everyone feels like a winner because all the money goes to fight cancer. 

Relay Rally Cats team captain Debbie Crenshaw, who has seen 21 Relays come and go, said she was very pleased with the night. “More survivors were here this year, and that’s wonderful because that is why we do this.”

The first-year team of Jaxon’s Army marched on in honor of 6-year-old Jaxon Ingram of Buford community, who was just diagnosed with leukemia this past October. He was home recovering from a treatment earlier in the day. John Blackmon, Jaxon’s uncle, said the team’s Army camouflage and logo was inspired by Jaxon’s love of Army men. 

Indian Land’s Harrisburg Elementary joined the Relay fight for the first time this year. Team captain Lauren Thomas stood smiling in a Wizard of Oz inspired tent with a banner proclaiming “There is no place like hope.” Thomas said she was sure they would surpass their $5,000 goal.

Attending for the first time was Buford resident and four-year survivor of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma Cecelia McAteer. She said her cancer had been in remission for four years, but it just came back. 

If you don’t fight it, you won’t be here long, she said. 

“This kind of cancer is treatable, but not curable,” she said. McAteer enjoyed the night and called the balloon guy over yelling, “I want a purple one.” 

She got that balloon. These are fighters, remember. 

Contact Mandy Catoe (803) 283-1152 or mcatoe@thelancasternews.com

WWII Hero - Johnnie Wright

Johnnie Wright walked to Charlotte from his family's Lancaster farm in August 1940 to join the Army. He was 19 years old, had one dime in his pocket and two buddies with not a cent in theirs.
The 5-foot-10 Wright weighed 137 pounds and was dressed in his Sunday suit, the only clothes he had that weren't overalls.
"I spent my dime to buy pencils to fill out the papers," he said. "So then all three of us were flat broke."
The three men served during World War II. Two made it home alive.
The Army had a shortage of uniforms, so Wright wore that same Sunday suit for a month.
"I would pull it off every day and wash the pants in the bathroom sink and hang them to dry overnight and put it all on again the next morning," he said.
Asked if he was proud to finally put on his Army uniform, he
repeated the question, "Proud?"
After a pause, he let out a laugh. "It felt good to have on clean clothes," he said.
Last week, Wright, 95, reflected on his Army days.
"I saw a lot of young men die," Wright said. "It was ugly."
That is about the extent of Wright's words on World War II. He did what he had to do and came home in 1945 with no physical wounds.
"I got knocked down one time by a clod of frozen dirt after a shell landed near me," he said.
He served in Company B, the 83rd Field Artillery and operated an M7 tank with a 50-caliber machine gun mounted on top.
"I went overseas to England and Normandy, and wherever the fight went, I went," he said.

5 Bronze Stars
Wright served for five years between the German Blitz on England and the Battle of the Bulge. He was in when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and when the U.S. dropped the nuclear bombs on Japan.
He earned five bronze stars for service in five different battles. He was awarded the American Defense Service Medal, and the Campaign Medal.


Once back home, he put his medals in a shoe box in a closet, tucked his memories away and focused on the here and now. He married a few years later and began his family. He had four kids, three daughters and a son, and would spend his career working as an auto mechanic.
While the kids were toddlers, a fire destroyed the family home along with his military awards. His wife died before the children reached their teens. Wright raised them alone and remained single until the last one married.
"He made a big sacrifice for us kids," said Sue Lucente, 68, his second born. "He put us first, before finding him a second wife."
Wright would never say he put the happiness of his kids ahead of his own. He would say their happiness was his happiness.
His family knew nothing of his honors until about two years ago, when Lucente went to the Veterans Administration seeking medical care for her father. The VA informed her as they looked at his record.
She began working with the VA to replace the lost medals and filled a shadow box with the ribbons, stars and awards earlier this year.
Lucente talked about her father last week.
She said he was the kind of daddy every kid wanted.
He danced hand-in-hand around the living room with them when music played and would leave work early when winter weather brought snow.
"If school let out early, Daddy would always come home early to play with us in the snow," Lucente said.
Wright loved to hunt and fish and shared adventures with his children.
"He gave us all a love of the outdoors," Lucente said.  "And a sense of humor."




Hand in hand
Wright found love again and when describing his wife of nearly 45 years, he says, "She's tops."
He remained active into his 80s. A heart attack and several strokes slowed him down and weakened his left side. He drags his left foot a little. The light in his eyes remains bright, like he is about to smile. He will only admit to being tired.

"I don't believe I could get out there and plow all day," he says with the laugh of a man who has walked behind a horse tilling the earth from dawn to dusk.
Johnnie and Margie Wright, 86, shared memories last week as they held the shadow box  between them on their laps. Margie tapped on the glass as she gazed at the black-and-white photo of the young soldier and said, "Wasn't he handsome?"

The two of them sat holding hands while they reminisced. His usually weak left hand came to life in hers. His fingers curved around and clasped hers.
Wright spends most of his days in a recliner with a clear view of the shadow box to his right and the TV straight ahead. Margie scours the programming guide for news and nature shows and sets the television accordingly. 
The Wrights make a few trips each year to the Rock Hill VA office. Sometimes, Margie will take him for a sight-seeing ride around the countryside in her silver Buick.
She won't let anyone else take care of him. She has a bad knee, but has only given in to some housekeeping help.
"I have help for me so I can help him," she said. "That's my job."
Wright squeezed her hand and smiled.


Follow Reporter Mandy Catoe on Twitter @MandyCatoeTLN or
contact her at (803) 283-1152

My Mama

When I get tired of the grind and the long hours of my job which sometimes leave me weary and feeling sorry for myself, I feel a bit of guilt. At the same time, my gratitude and admiration for my Mama grows. As a child, I was provided with everything I needed and most of what I wanted. Not getting everything I wanted was good and I learned to work for the frills. I watched her get up every day without complaining to go to work for me, my brother and Daddy. She was sole breadwinner because Daddy had a massive disabling heart attack when I was about 12. They made sure I went to college and when times got hard for me afterwards, she paid my student loan payments for a year. When it was time to come home (as an adult) during a divorce, she provided a soft landing with no guilt. She bought a trailer and put it on her land and my son and I were able to catch our breath and he witnessed the great love and devotion of my parents. And as for my Mama, he says, "Grandma gives 'Christian' a good name." In fact, when my now adult son found life hard, he found the same loving, soft landing. Just what I am feeling this morning. I love that woman you all know as Bobbie with the sweet smile and tender eyes. God blessed me good.

'I Can't Even Put This Into Words' - adult ed graduation

Twenty-two adult-education students wearing different colored caps and gowns graduated Wednesday night at Lancaster High School.
They represented 22 different ways to get to their destination.
Holding up a cell phone during his speech, keynote speaker Rev. AnThony Pelham told the graduates, “Without an address, GPS is no good.”
These adult graduates definitely had this destination dialed in, and it led them through life’s backroads and detours. For some, the journey took a few months. For others, a few years.
Before the ceremony, Adult Education Director Kim Linton said, “Life happens, and they made a decision to change their lives and complete this part.”
“They are exceptional for making a decision to come back and for pushing themselves and striving to get to this point,” she said.
The graduates received many hugs and handshakes, and it was hard to distinguish between family and adult-ed staff during the celebration. The night was about collaboration and the value of community support.
As Pelham said after the ceremony, “This is such a heartwarming moment for me. Jykevius Hayden, one of the young men we work with at Community Powerhouse, is here graduating. It shows what collaboration can do.
“No one holds all the pieces, but when we each contribute our part, this is what happens,” Pelham said.
Renee Cooper, 47, had this night in sight for 10 years. Cooper received a diploma through adult education and South Carolina virtual high school. Cooper said she is heading to nursing school.
Raylee Caskey, 19, overcame more diversity and heartbreak than most adults twice her age. Both her parents and grandfather died in the past six years. She became a mother this past March. She lives with her grandmother, Terry Veal.
Caskey was supposed to graduate from high school in May 2015, and despite the challenges she earned her high school diploma through adult education just seven months later. And Wednesday night, she marched across the stage as her grandmother held her baby in the audience.
“It’s a miracle that this has happened. It could have gone the other way so easily. She could have given up. All of us could have. But we keep going. The Lord has kept us strong,” Veal said, choking back tears.
Veal said she has big hopes for her granddaughter. “Sometimes we look at each other and ask, ‘Are we really still sitting up after all that has happened?’ We are. And we are going to make it,” Veal said.
Both looked at Caskey’s 2-month-old son, Kason, and Caskey said, “He is the reason I keep going.”
Graduate Joseph Coleman, 19, said he took the day off to graduate, but he was pretty sure Home Depot didn’t mind. Coleman said vision problems prevented him from keeping up with his studies at Andrew Jackson High School.
“I came here, and now three years later, I’m graduating,” Coleman said.
Graduate Linda Tinney stood nervously while Kathryn Tiller adjusted her cap and tassel.
“I have been working on this for a really long time. I am in my early 30s now. I dropped out when I was 17. Without Mrs. Tiller, I would not have made it through,” Tinney said.
Educator Kathryn Tiller said Tinney deserves all the credit for her hard work. Tiller said she called Tinney after receiving her test results this past December.
“After she told me,” Tinney said, “I was whooping and hollering, and people looked at me like I was crazy.”
 

While most students enjoyed a few months knowing they would march Wednesday night, Alex Hall, 18, had less than six hours to enjoy the anticipation.
“I found out at 1:05 today. I can’t even put this into words yet,” Hall said. “I have been working on this for a year and a half.”
Hall said he dropped out of Buford High School because a learning disability made it hard to focus.
Adult-ed teachers surrounded Hall as he put on his cap and gown. Struggling with the collar of his gold and burgundy gown, he asked Tiller how to wear it. She said, “With pride, Alex. With pride.”
The entire staff celebrated when the email came in six hours earlier that Hall had passed.
“We didn’t even print the programs until after we heard he passed his test,” adult education administrative assistant Kay Atkinson said.
Hall’s plans include attending USCL to study medicine, business management or engineering. Hall said he already has two semesters paid for in advance through assistance from YouthBuild, part of Communities in Schools.
After the ceremony, Communities in Schools Executive Director Reggie Lowery was outside in the courtyard standing next to Hall, arm extended with cell phone in hand, taking a selfie.
“Alex is one of the hardest-working young men we have, and he never complains,” Lowery said.
Linton told the graduates just before handing them their GEDs, “This is the beginning of your destiny. This is not the end. This is just the first step in the next phase of your life.”
Pelham told the grads that their GED, General Education Diploma, was worth as much as a high school diploma and was “the same key, just a different color. Both unlock the same doors.”
He told a parable about a farmer’s mule that had fallen into an old dry well. Unable to get the mule out of the well, the farmer decided to throw dirt on top of the mule. As he began shoveling, the mule began to panic.
After a few shovels of dirt hit his back, the mule decided to shake it off and step up. As more shovels of dirt rained down, he did just that. Finally, battered and bruised, the mule stepped out of the well.
“What seemed like it would bury him, actually blessed him, all because of the manner in which he handled his adversity,” Pelham said.
“Shake it off and step up to the criticism and adversity you will face,” Pelham said as he ended his speech.
The 2016-17 adult-education graduating class had 49 members. Less than half chose to march, but with the blessing of long-time adult-education teacher, Pat Threatt, each one was celebrated with applause.
“We are not going to tell you to hold your applause. We are inviting you to applaud. Please give each graduate applause, not just yours,” Threatt said.
The audience did just that. Each graduate received a loud tribute.


2015-16 Adult Education Graduates
Xavier Avery
Jasmine Blair
Kirkland Boykin
Danielle Cabrera
Veronica Campos
Raylee Caskey*
Carl Cole
Joseph Coleman
Meghan Collins*
Renee Cooper*
Tyler Demby
Raekwan Evans
Samantha Frank
Sarah Haile
Alex Hall
Richard Hammond
Jykevius  Hayden
Hannah Helms*
James Hilliard
Jamisha Hood
Jennifer Hopkins
Trey Jett
Shane Laney*
April McClain*
Kendyle McClain*
Jeffrey Miles
Kerry Miller*
Kevin Miller*
Shakerai Miller
Bradley Missildine
McKenzie Ormand
Alston Osborne
Juan Palacious
Mariah Patrick
Baylee Popoff
Briana Richards
Larry Robinson*
Jason Roddey
Allison Shehane
Kristin Shurley
Dennis Shropshire*
Kevin Smith
Dusty Wayne Snipes
James Snipes III
Alexandria Starnes
Kayce  Sutton
Linda Tinney
Phillip Tucker
Marissa Whitslar
* denotes High School Diploma

MANDY CATOE/The Lancaster News

Contact Mandy Catoe at (803) 283-1152

Catoe Joins TLN

March 24, 2016

by Mandy (Yeah, I wrote this:))

Mandy Catoe has joined The Lancaster News as a general assignment reporter and photographer. She covers the county and education beats.
Mandy has lived in Lancaster since 2005 and has a varied background in human services, organic farming, sports and music festivals and is a registered yoga teacher.
She graduated magna cum laude from Winthrop and has worked as a freelance writer and photographer throughout her life.
Her start in journalism began early, when she was about 5 years old and tagged along with her father to The Pageland Journal, where he was the printer and manager. After college she worked as a stringer for the Pageland paper.
Her interests include yoga, hiking, animals, reading, photography, movies, concerts and discussing National Public Radio topics in depth with her son, Daniel Rollins.

Photo courtesy of Mandy Catoe

The Lancaster News welcomes new reporter Mandy Catoe.

Elgin Residents' Concerns Stall UDO Rewrite by Several Weeks

Public concerns over the county’s new Unified Development Ordinance and Official Zoning Map has resulted in at least another month being added to the already 19-month-long rewriting process for the UDO.
More than 75 people, most from the Elgin community, attended the UDO public hearing Tuesday night to voice their concerns about the ordinance’s Environmental Hazardous Overlay District, which they fear will restrict their land use. Many addressed the Planning Commission during the citizens’ comments portion in the four-hour meeting.
Members of St. Luke United Methodist Church and the surrounding community had heard rumors that if their church burned down they would not be allowed to rebuild it in the same location. County officials assured them that was not the case.
“There is a genuine concern about the establishment of the rail-pipeline overlay affecting their property values and their ability to use their property as they choose,” said County Council Chair Bob Bundy.
He said most residents had questions about property values, insurance costs, and limits on rebuilding if disaster strikes.
“These are all legitimate questions, and I hope some were answered the other night,” Bundy said.
According to the proposed UDO, the Hazardous Pipeline/Rail Overlay is  “established to protect the general public from unnecessary risk, promote public health, safety and welfare associated with transmission pipelines and rail corridors by providing a margin of restricted use within close proximity to both hazardous pipelines and rail.”
The Hazardous Pipeline/Rail Overlay has a 550-foot zone from the center of the railroad tracks prohibiting “high-consequence land uses.” Those are locations where a train derailment or pipe leak could have the most significant adverse consequences. such as near a church, school or nursing home.
St. Luke Methodist sits within the zone, while the parsonage is just beyond the zone, according to St. Luke pastor Bill McCown.
“The unintended consequences are my greatest concerns,” said McCown. “The change in zoning may affect insurance rates.”
McCown’s worries include the possible restrictions on St. Luke with regards to future growth, the recreation field and a structure that may be used for a future Boy Scout hut or day-care center.
Elgin resident Rudy Carter, owner of Do It Printing, said his main concern is the economic impact on the Elgin community. He said he feels property values will decrease as a result of the overlay district.
“I told them I thought it was total zoning overkill and that I didn’t see any reason for the overlay to be put into place and that it would negatively impact property values all along that line. It’s not just Elgin, but it is also Pleasant Hill, Heath Springs and Kershaw.”
The railroad runs parallel to U.S. 521 all the way to Kershaw.
Carter said he got conflicting answers from several members of the planning commission about the overlay-district zoning’s effects on property.
“It makes me a little leery of what is going on,” he said.
 Overall, Carter said he felt the planning department listened to the citizens and feels they will take their concerns into consideration.
Planning Director Penelope Karagounis said the planning commission will hold its next public hearing at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 3. In the interim, the commission will be working on possible changes to the proposed UDO.
“We are taking a look at the revisions from the workshop held Monday night with county council, state and county agencies’ comments and the public hearing comments,” said Karagounis. “We are regrouping and we will make some revisions.”
Eight percent of the comments and concerns were about the pipeline and rail overlay, Karagounis said.
“The purpose of the overlay districts is to limit the number of people who could be in harm’s way if an event happens,” said Patrick Helms of the county emergency management office.
“In the past, there have never been policies in the county that said you can’t build a structure because of safety reasons,” Helms said.
Emergency management’s concerns focus on hazards in pipeline and rail corridors that might place people in hospitals, churches, schools and nursing homes within close proximity to hazards. In particular the concern focuses on high-density populations that cannot evacuate themselves.
The pipeline/rail overlay does not prevent single-family homes, businesses or any routine uses of land, but it would prevent places of assembly, Helms said.
Helms addressed the concerns regarding the recreation field at St. Luke and he said the overlay places no restrictions on the ball field.
Many cities build developments around pipelines and use the land for green spaces and parks, Helms said.
There were some misunderstandings about whether a home or church could be rebuilt if it burned down, but they absolutely can, Helms said.
“It’s never been our intention to cause harm to anyone or any property,” Helms said. “Emergency management’s intention is to protect the public and especially those who can’t protect themselves.
“We are being proactive to prevent possible tragedy,”  Helms said.
Past disasters such as the 2013 explosion of the fertilizer plant in West, Texas, have served as a lesson for emergency management officials. The fertilizer plant was near a school, a nursing home and an apartment building, which created havoc for emergency personnel.
Prior to the UDO rewrite, Lancaster County had no zoning laws preventing building structures near hazardous pipelines or railroads.
The new UDO has certain zones within a certain number of feet from the center of the pipeline or railroad tracks which restrict new habitable structures, another that restricts new structures with vulnerable populations, and a third that requires notification to the rail or pipeline about these new structures, Bundy said.
He said the county has tried not to change the land-use options of property owners through the establishment of the new zoning classes. The new overlays are likely the main cause for confusion, Bundy said.
“The concerns will be considered and the document refined to reflect some of the concerns,” Bundy said.
After, the planning commission’s special meeting and public hearing Oct. 3, the UDO will be submitted to the Lancaster County Council for approval.

courtesy of Lancaster County

Railroad rights-of-way and hazardous liquids pipelines are treated as an overlay district by the UDO due to the risk to human life and surrounding land that railroads and pipelines pose.

8/26/16

Follow Reporter Mandy Catoe on Twitter @MandyCatoeTLN or contact her at (803) 283-1152