When I was elected Mayor I pledged transparency.  Accordingly, I email periodic newsletters to those who have requested, or have been suggested by others.  If you would like to be on the list, let me know at billyk@islc.net.

Last week, the newsletter included an invitation to a Town Hall Meeting on Parris Island where Retired Four Star USMC General Robert Magnus discussed how environmental conditions create a threat to our national security.

 Since we have three bases in Beaufort, I thought this would be interest.  Furthermore, I believe future Pentagon initiatives can lead to private sector jobs.  

The following is the response I received from one resident, followed by my reply. I believe the issue, but also the writer’s the tone, speaks to the day.

The Letter:

Typical Beaufort government…………spending our dollars and our mayor’s time discussing climate change with the military. What about some jobs….Billy?  What about the growth or redevelopment of blighted areas of our town? Somebody wake up the driver of the bus!

My response:

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Let me take a few minutes to explain.

 The email newsletter did not cost the city a dime.   

 Those who attended the presentation learned that the US Department of Defense recognizes that climate change creates effects military operations through out the world and can be a threat to our bases, which threatens our national security and the many human beings who serve our country.  It also affects those who live around military installations and the jobs that many citizens rely on to care for their families, who consume goods and services provided by others, which also means jobs for many in our community.  The Chamber of Commerce recently reported that the total direct and indirect financial impact of the military on Beaufort County approaches $3 Billion. 

 If you talk with the Commanding Officers at our bases, which I do, you would know that they must significantly reduce energy consumption.  This might bring you to realize that seeking cleaner, more efficient and affordable sources of energy could create opportunities for new businesses and jobs in Beaufort.

 As to what your City is doing about blighted neighborhoods, you might go on line to www.cityofbeaufort.org to review the report of the Northwest Quadrant Task Force which includes 100 recommendations to improve a “blighted” neighborhood.  If you read the extensive news coverage of the Task Force’s work, you would know we (volunteers) are already crafting innovative ideas that ensure those who live in the neighborhood have the opportunity to rise with the tide, rather than being washed away by the seas of change.  The report suggests avenues to sustainably affordable homes for nurses, school teachers, firefighters and police officers, many of whom cannot afford to live here even though they serve as faithful and hard working public servants.  The report might even inspire you, as it has others, to volunteer to work with church and civic groups who help elderly residents clean their yards.  Or you might choose to invest a few dollars and/or sweat on one of more of the Habitat for Humanity homes coming out of the ground in the Northwest Quadrant.  And finally, you might even be further inspired to attend a meeting of the recently formed neighborhood association or any of the other active associations who are working together to keep Beaufort’s many neighborhoods cleaner and safer.

 The neighborhood study and subsequent report was accomplished by seven volunteers who met weekly, and carried out assignments throughout the week, for seventeen weeks because they care about their neighbors and their City.  Not one penny was paid to an outside consultant, which likely saved the city in excess of $50,000.

 As you drive down the streets in the City, you might notice that open spaces, state owned road rights of way, parks and cemeteries are being maintained better than they have been in years.  Cost savings and the redirection of man power, through outsourcing trash, yard debris and recycling collections, made this possible.  In recent months, your City Council and staff have made tough decisions whose outcome enables City workers to do more with less.

 I would be remiss if I did not note another citizen driven initiative. Again, a totally volunteer committee will soon present to City Council a detailed proposal for updating all directional signing coming into and out of Beaufort and Port Royal.  Another saving for the City and another project that does not have to remain on a back burner because of the financial situation.

 And finally it should be noted that our local governments, municipal and county for the first time in recent history, are working together rather against each other.  It is in our best interest to follow this course.

 Your letter reflects the negativity currently pervading this country, by many people who are speaking about what they do not know and clearly demonstrating what they do not want to learn.  Many prefer to be angry, rather than rolling up their sleeves and helping with the hard work that goes on during these financially trying times.

 I believe the sun is shining in our beautiful city which creates an atmosphere where many are working together to make it even better.  There is plenty of room on the bus, and I would like to invite you to ride on it and be a part of the positive energy created by contributing time, energy and talents to make our hometown a better place for all of us to live.

 Billy Keyserling, Mayor

Join Us for What May Turn Into an Interesting Opportunity

Next Thursday, General Robert Mangus will talk with the residents of Parris Island and the greater Community about Department of Defense findings about the impact of climate change on National Defense.

As the optimist I am, I believe changes to be made, could create opportunities for local governments, business and families who live in the lowcountry.

Town Hall Meeting & Reception
with
General Robert Magnus, USMC (Ret.)
on
Thursday, Sept. 17, 12:30-2:30 p.m.
Reception 1:30-2:30 p.m
Depot Chapel, Marine Corps Recruit Depot
283 Boulevard De France, Parris Island

You are cordially invited to attend a Parris Island Town Hall Meeting and Reception on Thursday, September 17, 2009, with retired 4-Star General Robert Magnus, former Assistant Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps and a member of the CNA Military Advisory Board, who will discuss the findings of the board’s landmark reports:

National Security and the Threat of Climate Change
released in 2007 and

Powering America’s Defense: Energy and the Risks to National Security
released in May of 2009

These two groundbreaking reports identify national security threats posed by global climate change and the United States’ energy posture, and warn of the perils posed by a continuing business-as-usual-approach to energy use. They also suggest that the Department of Defense can help lead the transformation of U.S energy use by acting as an innovation incubator for new energy technologies.

Please feel free to forward this to those you think might have an interest in the subject matter. Furthermore, please share email addresses (with their permission) of friends and family who you think might be intereted in receiving future newletters.

In the 50’s,the “metal men” worked their way through this country and convinced everyone in every town to cover their beautiful architecture with metal siding. Zillions of dollars later…we have finally managed to tear it all off and send it to the landfill. This century has brought us the plastic,all weather,easy to fold sandwich board,which incidentally,if you allow to proliferate,will counter the effectiveness of the ones already in use. Sandwich boards are effective when trying to pull people onto a side street or to alert and direct to a special event. If everyone has sandwich boards,the only people who benefit in the end will be the sandwich board salesman….whose Dad probably sold metal siding in the 50’s! Beaufort has worked so hard to create and maintain a decent sign ordinance,building codes etcetera after years of excruciating visual clutter all over town,it’s a shame this idea is even being considered. If a business is not clearly defining itself within it’s own confine be it name,window display etc probably adding 8 square feet isn’t going to help.

Cathy Goodell

The following is a letter I sent to Burton Fire District Chairman Gary Bright in response to Law Suit filed against the City of Beaufort

August 25, 2009
Mr. Gary Bright, Chairman
Burton Fire District
Dear Gary:
Thanks for taking the time to meet with Mayor Murray, Mayor Pro Tem Donnie Beer and me to talk about an apparent break down in communications over fire service on Port Royal Island.
I hope you will agree that while Beaufort/Port Royal and the Burton Fire District may have philosophical differences about governance, we share the goal of providing the best possible service to all of our citizens.

I know you will agree that together we have some of the best trained, well equipped, highly motivated, hard working and well managed firefighters in the region. When called to action, they work extraordinarily effectively as a seamless team.

Furthermore, I am sure you would agree that we do not want to return to the days when local government leaders took issues personally, created duplicative and overlapping services, fled to the courts rather than to conversations to resolve differences, and in so doing, wasted thousands of taxpayers’ hard earned dollars and severely eroded confidence in government.

Finally, I hope you would agree that as times change, governments (like businesses) must adjust the ways we do business to best serve our customers. While our firefighters understand this principal of working together, I believe our governments are on a steep learning curve to change the way we do business to meet the changing needs in our communities.

With that background, and in the spirit of what I have just said, when I learned the Burton Fire District gave notice to Beaufort and Port Royal that you were going to cease serving our customers (as you have been doing under an existing agreement) and that you had filed a law suit to force us to renegotiate a contract that does not expire for another eight months, I felt it was déjà vu “all over again”: bad feelings, back to the courts, away from the table, forced duplication of services, wasting taxpayer’s dollars and eroding public confidence in government. I can say with the utmost confidence that this is not a route the people of Port Royal or Beaufort want to pursue. I know we can do better.

Given this situation, The Town of Port Royal and the City of Beaufort are seeking a restraining order to require the Burton Fire District to fulfill existing agreements until we are able to work out differences. From the bottom of my heart, and the depths of my mind, I believe that a threat to suspend fire service to residents, no matter where they live, is not the proper way to resolve differences over governance.

As we move forward, I would like to share some points for future discussion so that we might again all work together, return to the spirit of cooperation and best serve the people.

1. After many years of fights through”annexation wars,” Beaufort County Council, The Town of Port Royal and The City of Beaufort have established Urban Growth Boundaries which outline our respective future growth under a Northern Regional Plan.

2. As required by State Law, each of us will soon complete our respective comprehensive plans for growth and service delivery. These plans will be consistent with the Northern Regional Plan.

3. While boundaries, land use and development standards are fundamental to the Northern Regional plan, all of the governments agreed that we would develop mutually accepted service standards, to include fire, police pubic works and other services necessary within urban environs.

4. The Northern Regional Plan also provides for orderly annexation and future development.

5. Overlay this scenario with the current economic environment, and planning consistent with our comprehensive plan and the Northern Regional Plan, the City has for the past year been systematically looking at creating the most efficient delivery of services to those who live in the City as well as those who might one day live in the City.

This is a complicated process that takes time, creativity and sometimes even outside consultation from impartial parties. In the case of public safety, including fire and police services, we have enlisted an impartial third party from the International City/County Management Association to address the current and future operations of our police and fire departments.

The study is currently underway and a report should be forthcoming in the near future. Once that information, including recommendations, is received and analyzed, our City management will make recommendations to City Council on changes, if any that may be required. Once that process is complete, we will then look to the future and how we meet the growing needs of the public in a rational economically responsible way.

There is no doubt that there are overlaps between services delivered by the Beaufort/Port Royal Fire Department and the Burton Fire District. And we hope to be working with you to reduce the overlaps so that each of us can best use our resources to meet demand.

That being said, during this period of change, it would not be responsible to make permanent changes without the benefit of the information and counsel we have retained. And that will take a while.

I can assure you that you will be among the first to hear once we begin to look at future planning and growth as we believe you are the most likely partner in the future. What form that will take is unknown and will not be know until we have an even better handle of the organization and financing of our services in the best interests of all citizens.

This is the primary reason we are seeking the injunction, trying to avoid duplication and inefficiencies and wanting to work with you and other neighbors in an orderly fashion.

For the time being, since you appear not able to wait for our methodical process, I fear we are going to have to be lead by lawyers as this is the table your Commission has set.

I look forward to continuing dialogue and to our working as harmoniously as possible in the coming years.

Sincerely

Billy Keyserling

Two historically significant city owned public buildings, sitting side by side on Craven Street, known as The Arsenal and the Carnegie Library, are vacant and awaiting to be enlisted for the best public use. Several options are on the table. The city will hopefully soon make a decision.

The Arsenal: Built in 1798, rebuilt in 1852 and expanded in the late 1930’s as a WPA project, the Arsenal has served many public purposes. First, even before the current building was erected, the area was used as the District courthouse when the Governor of SC briefly moved the Legislature to Beaufort as a political maneuver during the build up to the Revolution. Portions of the building have since been occupied by the Family and City Courts, offices, a museum and most recently headquarters for the Historic Beaufort Foundation which oversaw and completed the recent restoration. HBF planned to reopen the Beaufort Museum, but concluded after considerable study, like the County and The City did years earlier, that a local museum in that location is currently not financially feasible. With the museum mission postponed, HBF returned the Arsenal keys to the City so the Arsenal could be put to the broadest public use. And HBF is considering other sites at another time for a museum.

The Carnegie Library: A gift from the Carnegie family around 1917, designed by local architect James Hagood Sams and supported by the Clover Club, the Carnegie Library was one of many Carnegie Libraries built to serve small towns across the US. In the mid 1960s, when the Beaufort County Library found the building too small, and replaced it with a larger structure across the street, the building became the City Court, City Council chamber and offices for staff. As the City scaled back staff (not services) in response to today’s financial climate, all employees now fit under one roof in the current City Hall (until the new complex is completed), leaving the Carnegie Library building vacant.

A Public Process for Selecting Future Use: The City Council tasked its Redevelopment Commission and Mainstreet Beaufort, USA to, through an open process, solicit and vet proposals and recommend the best public use. While Mainstreet reviewed a number of proposals from private and public sector entities, two prospects are currently under consideration.

Proposal for Arsenal and Carnegie Buildings: The Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Visitors and Convention Bureau has proposed the Arsenal become a Visitor’s Center, with space for meetings, public events and cultural and artistic displays, and the Carnegie Library be used their corporate offices.

While I am not on the screening committee, and I am not speaking for the Council which has not taken a position, I believe the Visitor’s Center should be returned to the downtown historic district and the Arsenal is the most suitable venue. I have yet to be convinced that the Carnegie Library’s best public use is office space for the Chamber or any other business organization.

A Proposal for Carnegie Library: A partnership between the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs and the Osher Life Long Learning Institute at USCB, that is currently in the works, proposes that the Carnegie Library house the soon to be born “Carnegie-Osher Center for Civic Engagement.” They propose to restore the structure to it’s original grandeur and to serve two complementary public purposes: To create training programs and workshops for volunteers and the directors of non profit agencies, the development of a database of community “haves and needs” and networking program to create and foster stronger and more effective relationships between Beaufort’s vast retirement community and the many not for profit organizations that need help in growing as they meet the growing needs of the region; the Center will also become an Ethics Studio within its Global Ethics Network. They will hold conferences, initiate and participate in electronically connected conversations about current events and issues with others around the world. This particular studio will serve a model for other communities throughout the US and abroad. Some of the Center’s sister centers are located in Beirut, Cairo, Taipei, Beijing Shanghai, Tokyo with six others affiliated with leading universities on this continent.

The program in not yet in place, but staff at the Carnegie Council and USCB are working on programming issues while awaiting notice from the City as to the availability of the Carnegie Library building since it’s potential availability is what led them to Beaufort.

Finally, the Carnegie-Osher Center for Civic Engagement would not be asking the City of Beaufort for funding as it will raise operating funds as well as the dollars necessary to restore the Carnegie Library.

Again, not speaking for Council which has not taken a position, I support this initiative as I believe that taking Mr. Carnegie’s gift to Beaufort in 1915 and transforming it into an institution that will serve community needs is a very high public use.

A negotiating committee comprised of representatives from the City, Mainstreet and the Chamber are currently reviewing and negotiating the proposals that are on the table.

The City’s mission is to determine the best possible public use for these important and historic city owned public buildings.

I hope will you will take the time and interest to share your thoughts with me and my colleagues on City Council as we consider these proposals.

Billy Keyserling
Mayor
billyk@islc.net