During the July 18 North Myrtle Beach City Council meeting, Employee Longevity Awards were presented to Heavy Equipment Operator/Welder Jimmy Wilson (20 years of service), Crew Leader I Isaiah Livingston (20), Fire Battalion Chief Mike Davis (20), Custodian Jackie McCullough (15), Motor Equipment Operator Lamorris Gore (10), Permit Clerk Betty Viles (10), Maintenance Worker Robert Jackson (10), Motor Equipment Operator Danny Vereen (5), Firefighter/EMT Joshua Beck
(5). The City presents Longevity Awards in five year increments to
employees who provide consistently excellent customer service.
Police Sergeant Raymond Pollack was named Supervisor of the Quarter for his successful role in coordinating the 11th
Annual Palmetto Police Motorcycle Skills Competition held April 5-9 in
North Myrtle Beach. The North Myrtle Beach Department of Public Safety
was the host agency and the event brought together 51 motorcycle
officers and their families from towns and cities in the United States
and Canada. The annual competition helps to enhance motorcycle skills
and at the same time enhances safety.
The
event also raised about $10,000 for Camp Happy Days. Since 1982, over
1,500 children with cancer and their families have benefitted from Camp
Happy Days’ cost-free, year-round programs. Camp Happy Days welcomes all
children with cancer across South Carolina without charge. For more
information, visit
www.camphappydays.org.
The Humane Society of North Myrtle Beach offered City Council a presentation
on its accomplishments in 2015 and reviewed some of its future goals.
According to the Humane Society Executive Director Sandi Kendrick, in
2015 762 animals were adopted, 115 were reunited with their owners, 122
were fixed through S.N.A.P., and 699 were micro-chipped. 122 animals
were fostered and 1,061 homeless animals were provided shelter. 310
volunteers donated 10,155 hours of their time. 49,000 pounds of pet food
were donated.
In
2015, the Humane Society incurred $387,557 in total expenses for animal
care, employee payroll, insurance, supplies and other expenses. Total
income received during that year was $383,243 largely from adoption
fees, micro-chipping, donations, the City of North Myrtle Beach, events,
fundraisers and other sources.
The Humane Society is also focused on achieving a larger, more modern building in which to house pets and do its work.
Current
shelter conditions include kennels that have concrete floors that are
not sealed properly or at all, which can contribute to the spread of
disease. Chain link fencing exists between kennels, which allows nose to
nose contact and creates opportunity for the transmission of disease.
The kennels generally are in poor condition and require replacement. The
shelter is inadequate for current programs and not viable for new
programs. As the city has grown over the years, so has the need for more
shelter space.
The
Humane Society has begun the process of moving forward to build a new
facility, which will take the help of the entire community. Requests for
Information with conceptual building designs have been completed and
reviewed. Preliminary schematics and pricing have been received.
Preliminary materials and strategies for a capital marketing campaign
have been received.
A
new facility would provide a safe, efficient and sanitary environment
for animals and staff; an appealing place for residents to adopt pets
and volunteer; space in which to hold events and fundraisers; and space
to provide pet education programs.
Following
Kendrick’s presentation, Mayor Marilyn Hatley thanked the Humane
Society for its work, and assured Kendrick that the City and the
community would be involved in helping to shape a positive future for
the Society’s important work in North Myrtle Beach.
Council passed motions to approve special events permits for the 13th
Annual Irish Italian International Festival to be held 10am-4pm
September 24 on Main Street, the 911 Candlelight Memorial Vigil to be
held 7pm-8pm September 11 on Main Street, and the Trifecta Triathlon to
be held 7:30am-10am September 11 on Main Street.
Council
passed first reading of an ordinance to adopt the International
Building Code. Standard codes relating to the regulation of construction
activities are typically revised every three years. On July 1, 2016, in
compliance with Section 6-9-50(A) of the South Carolina Code of Laws,
1976 as amended, the South Carolina Building Codes Council (BCC)
formally adopted the following construction related codes for mandatory
enforcement by all jurisdictions within the state. The mandatory codes
that must be adopted include:
(1) International Building Code, 2015 Edition, with the S.C. Modifications.
(2) International Residential Code, 2015 Edition, with the S.C. Modifications
(3) International Fire Code, 2015 Edition, with the S.C. Modifications.
(4) International Mechanical Code, 2015 Edition.
(5) International Plumbing Code, 2015 Edition.
(6) International Fuel Gas Code, 2015 Edition.
(7) International Swimming Pool and Spa Code, 2015 Edition.
(8) International Energy Conservation Code, 2009 Edition.
(9) National Electrical Code, 2014 Edition.
City Council tabled until its August 15 meeting a petition to
rezone one lot approximately 6.4 acres in size located on Main Street
from HC (Highway Commercial) to PDD (Planned Development District).
City Council passed first reading of an ordinance
to amend Chapter 20, Land Development Regulations, of the City’s Code
of Ordinances. City staff is proposing a text amendment to the Land
Development Regulations to clarify the process by which private streets
may be converted to public streets. The Land Development Regulations
address construction and acceptance of new public streets, but are
silent with respect to the conversion of existing private streets.
To
protect the City's financial posture, a procedure for evaluation of
these streets should be established, with the possible requirement of
maintenance bonds or other measures to bring the streets into an
acceptable condition. The condition of such streets would be evaluated
by the public works department, and if immediate maintenance or
retrofitting of the streets or drainage systems is required, the
department would come up with a cost estimate for that work. Then a
resolution to convert them to public streets could be considered by City
Council, with a recommendation by public works that a maintenance fee
be paid in advance. Council would decide whether to assess the fee
and/or accept the streets.
City Council passed first reading of an ordinance to
amend the Zoning Text Amendment as it pertains to the Main Street
Priority Investment Activity Center overlay concerning required parking.
Following
Council's direction, staff referred back to the Planning Commission for
its further consideration the original text amendment considered by
Council in May. The revised amendment included a "fee-in-lieu"
alternative, wherein a property owner could pay into a public parking
development fund in lieu of providing their own required parking. The
fee-in-lieu money would be used by the City to create additional parking
in the Main Street area. The fee schedule has not been determined and
would need to be established by Council at a future date.
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L-R City Mgr. Mike Mahaney, Mike Davis,
Jackie McCullough, Isaiah Livingston, Betty Viles, Robert Jackson, Danny
Vereen, Joshua Beck, Lamorris Gore, Jimmy Wilson |
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L-R City Manager Mike Mahaney and Sergeant Raymond Pollack |