Edgefield County council approves budget line transfers, server and vehicle purchases; historic‑property review authority moved to archives on first reading

Edgefield County Council approved a package of administrative and budget actions at its March 4, 2025, meeting, including transfers of existing funds to address county building maintenance and equipment needs, and gave first reading to an ordinance moving administration of a historic‑property rehabilitation tax program to the county archives.

Council voted unanimously to transfer $250,000 of interest earnings from a county fund to pay maintenance and repairs in buildings that will be vacated when the sheriff’s and magistrate’s offices move to the new law enforcement center. The council discussion, led by the county administrator, listed likely repairs: adding a required rear exit at the annex (per the county’s insurer), replacing an upstairs HVAC unit, repairing a sinking restroom floor in the annex, replacing library canopy drainage and paint, replacing cracked tile in the magistrate’s bathrooms and removing non‑load‑bearing walls in the sheriff’s office to create additional usable office space. The administrator said the Natural Resources Conservation Service will reimburse the county for new carpet and paint in the agricultural building they lease; reimbursement will be handled after the county pays upfront costs. The same agenda item included authorization to use county crews and rented excavator equipment to demolish the old jail, with the roads and bridges department estimating they can perform most of the work to reduce contract costs.

Separately, the council approved using remaining funds in several legacy accounts to replace county network servers and network switches under the county’s contract with Corsica at a cost of $87,188.51. The administrator said the request follows an incident in which a server failure disrupted county functions, notably in the treasurer’s office.

The council also approved using remaining funds in designated vehicle accounts to buy two county vehicles from state contract for approximately $84,000 total, a purchase the administrator said would otherwise be requested in the upcoming fiscal budget. Each of these motions passed by unanimous voice/hand vote.

On ordinances, the council gave first reading to Ordinance 24‑25‑0006 to transfer administrative authority for rehabilitated historic properties (the local implementation of what staff called the “Bailey bill” tax treatment) from Preservation South Carolina/Edgefield County Preservation Advisory Board to the Edgefield County Archives. The administrator told the council the change is administrative only: it transfers the property evaluation and approval process to the county archivist and a building official to improve responsiveness, and does not alter the statutory/eligibility rules of the tax treatment. The first reading passed unanimously.

Motions and movers on record included: Mr. Moody (mover) and Ms. Ireland (seconder) for the $250,000 transfer; Mr. Talbert (mover) and Miss Harland (seconder) for the server purchase; Mr. Moody (mover) and Dr. Kenyon (seconder) for the vehicle purchase; and Mr. Talbot (mover) and Ms. Ireland (seconder) for first reading of Ordinance 24‑25‑0006. All motions passed unanimously.