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Votes at a glance: Chesterfield County Council approves property purchases, road closure and appointments; tables large planning and solar ordinances
Summary
At its January meeting the council approved several property transactions and local actions, declared surplus equipment, appointed a fire‑district board member and authorized small salary adjustments; the council also tabled final votes on the comprehensive plan and two Duke Energy ordinances to allow new members more time for review.
Chesterfield County Council took a number of formal actions during the January regular meeting. Several property transactions and routine items were approved, while the council tabled several high-profile ordinances for additional review. The following summarizes each formal action recorded in the meeting transcript.
Votes and formal actions
- Adopt agenda: Motion to adopt the meeting agenda was approved by voice vote (motion by Councilmember Ethan Ford; second by Councilmember Hattie Burns).
- Election of council leadership: Nick Barry Anderson was nominated and elected chair (voice vote). A separate balloting process selected Todd Smallwood as vice chair. Ballots were collected and read aloud; the council ultimately elected Smallwood as vice chair by majority vote (ballot tallies were read on the record).
- Approval of minutes: Minutes for Dec. 4 and Dec. 18 were approved (motions and seconds recorded; voice votes).
- Sandblast Rally road closures: The council approved requested temporary closures for county roads relating to the Sandblast rally (motion passed; mover: Curtis; second: Kirkley). Event organizer Andrew Frick described the event and road closure plan; council asked about notifications to postal service and EMS coordination.
- Purchase: Property I (the Alpha Center) — approved. Council disclosed that Property I (identified as the Alpha Center) will be purchased for $260,000 using ARPA funds to house the coroner's office and related functions; appraisals were performed and the county reported the purchase price is below appraisal. Motion and vote to approve third reading passed.
- Purchase: Property A (Farm Services Agency building) — approved. Council approved purchase for $135,000 (ARPA funds). The county said the building will be used to house voter registration and elections when reconfigured; the move is part of a domino set of property transactions described during the meeting. Motion passed by voice vote.
- Sale: Property L (Leopard building) — approved. Council authorized sale of the Leopard building for $105,000. The sale follows the property purchases above and is intended to consolidate solicitor and elections office space and free the Leopard building for sale to a purchaser. Motion passed by voice vote.
- Comprehensive plan (11A) and Planning Commission ordinance (11B): Both items were on third reading but were tabled for 30 days to allow newly seated council members time to review the long (roughly 700-page) plan and associated documents. Motion to table passed.
- Duke Energy Progress fee-in-lieu ordinance (11C) and MCP Park ordinance (11D): Councilmember Kirkley recused himself from those two items; the council voted to table the Duke Energy Progress fee-in-lieu and MCP Park ordinances (both third readings) until the next meeting to allow additional review.
- Public hearings: Council opened and closed public hearings on multiple items, including Project Seaboard fee-in-lieu and the MPO/park ordinances; no substantive public objections prevented later council action on other items.
- Purchase/surplus and equipment: The sheriff's department tow truck was declared surplus and the council authorized use of proceeds to purchase replacement equipment. Motion passed by voice vote.
- Resolution: Souletown Road truck restriction — passed. Council approved a resolution requesting South Carolina Department of Transportation designate Souletown Road as closed to through truck traffic for safety reasons (motion passed by voice vote).
- Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) materials — provided for information only; no council vote required.
- Board appointment: Alligator Fire District. The council voted to appoint Derek Road to the Alligator Fire Board by voice vote (motion by Councilmember Eddie Kirkley; second by Councilmember Douglas Curtis).
- Executive session & compensation direction: After an executive session (employment/appointments) the council authorized the county administrator and finance director to implement targeted salary adjustments for the remainder of the fiscal year, with a total allocation discussed of about $5,000 to be drawn from available reserves; the motion passed by voice vote (mover recorded on the transcript; second by Councilmember Eddie Kirkley).
Ending: The council closed the meeting after taking the actions above. Several postponed items (notably the comprehensive plan and the Duke Energy ordinances) will return to a future meeting for further consideration.
Notes on method and documentation: Most votes in the meeting were taken by voice. Where roll-call ballots were used (vice chair election), the clerk read ballots aloud and the clerk's tally was recorded on the transcript.
