Council meetings to be temporarily live streamed

Council meetings to be temporarily live streamed |

Public may submit comments via phone call

Simpsonville, S.C. — In an effort to preserve public access to and participation in local government in the face of a global pandemic, the City of Simpsonville will continue to temporarily live stream Simpsonville City Council meetings.

City Council will use an online meeting service to hold remote meetings that will be live streamed to the City of Simpsonville YouTube Channel. An emergency ordinance passed by Council in March allows Council to conduct meetings by electronic means to reduce the risk of exposure to the Novel Coronavirus Disease 2019.

Ordinance No. E-2020-001 prohibits the public from attending Council meetings in response to national guidelines issued by the federal government to limit gatherings to no more than three people. However, Council and City administration remain committed to transparency and therefore invite the public to submit comments for meetings via voicemail at Mayor Paul Shewmaker's office phone number 864-967-5400.

Messages, which cannot be longer than 3 minutes, submitted by city residents or business owners with businesses inside city limits by 12 p.m. the day of the meeting will be played during the live stream. Callers must state their names and addresses at the beginning of their messages and refrain from using profanity. The public may also submit voice memo audio by emailing Mayor Shewmaker at pshewmaker@simpsonville.com.

“Simpsonville City Council is committed to keeping our channels of communication open,” Mayor Shewmaker said. “We feel it’s very important for people to be allowed to make public comment during our meetings, especially during this difficult time. Council always welcomes phone calls and emails.”

Contact information for Simpsonville City Council members can be found at www.simpsonville.com/citycouncil. 

Community relations specialist Justin Campbell said the top priority for the City is the health and safety of residents and visitors but added the City is resolved to maintain an open accessible government.

“The emergency measures that Council and City administration have taken are to ensure we are doing everything we can to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus and protect our most vulnerable,” Campbell said. “At the same time, elected officials have a responsibility to make government as accessible to the people as possible no matter the circumstances.”

Council is scheduled to hold a remote business meeting April 14 at 6:30 p.m. that will be live streamed to the City of Simpsonville YouTube Channel. 

For more information, contact Justin Campbell, community relations specialist, at jcampbell@simpsonville.com.