Chair Paul Livingston, Vice Chair Damon Jeter, Joyce Dickerson, Val Hutchinson, Gwendolyn Kennedy, Bill Malinowski, Jim Manning, Greg Pearce, and Kelvin Washington were present. Norman Jackson and Kit Smith were absent. Citizen’s Input

Dr. Raj Aluri, director of the Columbia International Festival, spoke to the council about the upcoming festival, which will be in April. Aluri thanked the council for past support and said over 10,000 people would attend the event. Half of those will be visitors. He asked the council to help the festival again this year with funding from the Hospitality Tax. The council obliged, designating $10,000 for the event. Administrator’s Report

County Administrator Milton Pope told the council the Screaming Eagle substation was suffering from cost overruns and needed additional funding. $450,000 was originally earmarked for the project and unforeseen costs and delays now push the estimated total to $820,000. Pope offered a way to provide the funding without a budget amendment. After a couple of questions, the council approved the request.

The Development Roundtable presented a list of 22 standards for future development. The committee is comprised of Richland County staff members, members of the environmental community, and local developers. The group has worked to develop an all encompassing plan for future development that is DHEC approved and offers compromises between the differing groups. The list will now be developed into specific proposals for the council to look at by early 2010. Regular Agenda

A proposal to address the issue of collecting Hospitality Tax revenue from businesses straddling county lines was addressed and Bill Malinowski had trouble with the concept. He felt the county should decide how much of the property is in Richland County and collect that percentage, an idea that might work for property tax collection. But Hospitality Tax collection is done differently and would present problems with determining who is owed what. Malinowski finally relented and allowed the proposal to pass without further discussion.

A motion by Kelvin Washington to establish a public private partnership to address the Atlas Road Farmer’s Market idea was defeated. Sheldon Cooke was added to the Board of Zoning Appeals, and Vincent K. Bartley was added to the Business Service Center Appeals Board. Kimberly A. Kennedy–Gooden is a new member of the Community Relations Council and Staci Pritchard will join the Employee Grievance Committee. The Midlands Workforce Board added Randy Cherry.

Malinowski reported to the council the Rules and Appointments Committee had decided to drop the idea of a county–wide letterhead for all departments. He pointed out that Judges, elected officials, and some departments had strong attachment to the existing logos and letterheads and didn’t want to change.

Gwen Kennedy, who suggested the universal logo for all county correspondence, said she felt it is important for uniformity and professionalism. Joyce Dickerson said her letterhead is an expression of her office, and she wants to continue using what she has. Malinowski and Val Hutchinson said they had spent a lot of time trying to resolve the issue, but many county departments like the differing letterheads; it allows them to tell where interdepartmental information comes from at a quick glance. Jim Manning said the wishes of the citizens of Richland County should be more important than those of the county employees. Washington proposed a committee of one (him) to design and implement an all encompassing county letterhead.

After Executive Session, the council adjourned.