DEW selling surplus properties to fund tax‑system modernization, director says

Cheryl Stanton told the committee the agency pursued a surplus‑property initiative after identifying underused buildings and poor locations. She said DEW has sold multiple properties and received "almost $9,000,000" that the agency is reinvesting into a new tax system rather than seeking general‑fund appropriations.

Stanton said the Department of Administration and an outside real‑estate partner (CBRE) helped market properties and that proceeds included federal funds originally used to purchase buildings. She said the decision to sell followed a state executive order to reduce state real‑estate holdings; some properties have been sold to local governments and institutions (Stanton corrected a listing that showed the College of Charleston but said the property was adjacent to MUSC and that MUSC purchased the land).

Committee members asked for appraisals, sale plans for remaining properties and whether local governments could be partners in finding uses for sites considered eyesores; Stanton said she would provide appraised values and work with local workforce boards and DOA processes where applicable.