Walter Atkins

The council held a public communication forum featuring presentations from community organizations. Thrive Upstate provided an overview of their services for individuals with developmental disabilities, head injuries, and spinal cord injuries, emphasizing their residential, day program, and community inclusion initiatives. Discussion also covered challenges such as staffing, aging infrastructure, and state-level restructuring. Additionally, the council received a presentation from Greenville Together, which discussed a coordinated initiative to address homelessness by focusing on systemic solutions rather than management of the crisis.

The Finance Committee discussed the request for South Carolina Opioid Recovery Fund (SCORF) grants for fiscal year 2027. Presentations were given regarding the current status of the county's opioid abatement strategies, focusing on the medication-assisted treatment (MAT) program at the detention center and community-based services provided by the Phoenix Center and its partners. Successes in reducing fatal overdoses and program scalability were highlighted, alongside a request for continued funding to sustain these initiatives. Key operational data including screening numbers, treatment initiations, and outreach efforts were presented to support the ongoing need for these resources.

The committee discussed the proposed revision of the noise ordinance and the introduction of a new plainly audible standard, ultimately deciding to hold the ordinance in committee for further review. Discussions also covered construction equipment noise limitations and existing noise ordinances. Additionally, the committee considered proposed car wash facility standards, addressing concerns regarding decibel levels, property setbacks, and the potential impact on existing commercial developments.

The committee discussed several zoning dockets. Docket CZ 2026-011 for a rezoning to C2 commercial district was approved. Docket CZ 20226-014 for a rezoning to R15 single-family residential was approved to resolve a split-zoning issue. Docket CZ 2026-016 for a rezoning to AG agricultural preservation district was discussed, with concerns raised regarding potential impacts of agricultural activity in a residential area; the committee considered potential text amendments to zoning ordinances for home-based businesses to address the applicant's needs without changing the zoning.

The committee discussed appointments for the Citizens Academy and established strategic priorities including transparent and responsive government, strategic growth, land use planning, targeted economic development, fiscal stewardship, core services (specifically public safety), and infrastructure and capital planning. Additionally, the committee held an executive session for legal advice regarding multiple civil actions and potential class action litigation. Following the session, the committee recommended that the full Council approve resolutions for participation in opioid-related settlements and a specific settlement for civil action 2023-CP2304287.