Students show designs for Johns Island recreation center; council honors retiring members and employee award
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Summary
Hot Gap Middle School students presented designs for the Johns Island Recreation Center using Minecraft Education; council also honored Rossi Brown as Employee of the Year and paid tribute to three retiring council members.
Hot Gap Middle School students presented their winning design proposals for the planned Johns Island Recreation Center at the Dec. 16 Charleston City Council meeting, describing floor plans that included a lobby, accessible pool features, gym and fitness space, meeting rooms, playgrounds, pickleball courts and outdoor amenities.
Teacher Brett Sheridan said the project connected classroom learning with community planning: students reviewed the city’s architectural plans, built scaled designs in Minecraft Education and pitched ideas to city architects Gable Stubbs and Jason Kronzberg. Several students — including Colin White, Russell Tim and Hart Anderson — walked council through their floor plans and answered questions about accessibility features, sports courts and outdoor programming.
The mayor also recognized Rossi Brown, an accounting technician in the finance department, as the 2025 recipient of the Susan Griffith Customer Service Award and Employee of the Year. The mayor read a nomination from Terry Williams recounting an incident in which Brown performed the Heimlich maneuver and later checked on the nominee.
Council took time to honor three retiring members — Councilman Robert Mitchell, Councilman Dudley Gregory and Councilwoman Parker — for decades of combined public service. Councilmembers offered brief tributes and the mayor announced a motion to name the new pump station on Septima Clark Parkway the "Dudley Gregory pump station," which was made and approved by voice vote.
Quotes
"From this outstanding field, one individual has risen above...it is my honor to announce the winner...Mr. Rossi Brown," the mayor said while reading the nomination.
"I always consider myself a community person...it's all about working together and harmony and peace," Councilman Dudley Gregory said in his remarks.
Context
The student project was presented as the city advances the Johns Island Recreation Center design process; the council praised the students’ engagement and said the designs closely matched the city’s proposed floor plan. The council's tributes to departing members emphasized continuity, local knowledge and long-term service.
