Council supports trail ordinance, renews emergency measures

Trail ordinance would permit public safety officials to enforce restrictions

Committee of the Whole meeting can be viewed on the City of Simpsonville YouTube Channel

Simpsonville, S.C. — Simpsonville City Council has signaled support for an ordinance that would allow public safety officials to enforce rules for the Swamp Rabbit Trail by voting to move the ordinance to its next business meeting.

In a vote of 6-0 at the Committee of the Whole meeting Tuesday, City Council approved adding Ordinance 2020-04 to the scheduled business meeting in November. Councilman Lou Hutchings of Ward VI made the motion, and Councilwoman Stephanie Kelley of Ward II made the second.

Councilman Ken Cummings of Ward V was unable to vote due to technical difficulties.

The ordinance would give the Simpsonville Police Department and Greenville County Sheriff's Office jurisdiction over the mile-long stretch of trail on South Main Street from West Trade Street to Fairview Road. The ordinance prohibits on the trail the operation of a bicycle at more than 20 miles per hour and motorized or off-road recreation vehicles and the selling, soliciting and advertising for any commercial enterprises unless allowed by the City.

Exceptions for motorized or off-road recreation vehicles are motorized wheelchairs by a person with a disability and vehicles operated by public safety officials and the Greenville County Recreation District. 

Simpsonville City Administrator Dianna Gracely said the Public Works Department had installed signage indicating the prohibition of motorized vehicles on the trail but noted the City does not have an ordinance to enforce the signage. Gracely said she met with Simpsonville Police Chief Mike Hanshaw about drafting an ordinance that would adopt the same rules for the trail that the cities of Mauldin and Travelers Rest and the county have adopted.

"It's basically just ... so that we have uniform standards for all trail users throughout the county," said Gracely at the meeting, which was held virtually via an online meeting service at 6:30. 

In response to a question by Mayor Paul Shewmaker, Gracely said a battery-powered bicycle would not be considered a motorized vehicle. 

Ordinance 2020-04 requires two readings by Council and is expected to receive its first reading at the business meeting on Nov. 10.

Council also adopted an ordinance that renews the state of emergency declaration that Council first adopted in the spring to help prevent the spread of the Novel Coronavirus Disease 2019. In a vote of 6-0, Council approved Emergency Ordinance 2020-05, with Kelley making the motion and Councilman Matthew Gooch of Ward I making the second.

The emergency ordinance does not add any new stipulations but merely renews authorities adopted in March to set procedures for Council meetings; allow Council meetings to be conducted electronically; disallow public attendance at Council meetings and direct the city administrator to provide public access to meetings via the internet.

Gooch noted that Council has adopted this year a total of five emergency ordinances, which automatically expire after 60 days. Gooch said he knows that Council needs to keep the emergency ordinance in place right now due to the pandemic but stressed the importance of returning to public in-person meetings when possible.

"I don't want to endanger anyone or make anybody feel uncomfortable, but I also don't want this to go on forever," Gooch said. "I know we need to look at it soon and probably after this (ordinance) is over talk about what we will try to do."

Councilwoman Sherry Roche of Ward IV said that she shares Gooch's desire to return to public meetings. Roche said that she would vote for the emergency ordinance on Tuesday's agenda and acknowledged the role that the pandemic might play in the timeline for moving Council meetings from online back to Council Chambers.

"It's time to put the people's business back in a face-to-face manner," Roche said, adding that she would like Council to start meeting in person again in January.

The United States experienced its highest daily total of reported COVID-19 cases on Saturday with almost 84,000 cases, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. 

Council also voted 7-0 to move an ordinance approving a new Comprehensive Plan to the business meeting in November. 

If passed, Ordinance No. 2020-03 would adopt an updated comprehensive plan for the City of Simpsonville that addresses planning efforts for the next two decades. The Comprehensive Planning Enabling Act passed by the General Assembly in 1994 requires that municipalities adopt comprehensive plans.

Ordinance No. 2020-03 must undergo two readings before Council can vote on it.

Council also voted 6-0 to move an item for consideration to the next business meeting that would approve a major change to the Waterleaf at Neely Ferry property. The change would allow Waterleaf to reformat a planned two-story office space in Phase II of its development to include flexible rentable office space targeted toward Waterleaf residents in response to work-from-home conditions caused by the pandemic.

If Council approves the change, residents would be able to work from home without having to work in their apartments. The change would also add more apartment space above the flexible office space.

At the conclusion of the meeting Tuesday, Roche removed from the agenda an item addressing the City's animal ordinance regarding the ownership of chickens as pets and noise complaints about roosters. Roche said any changes to the ordinance would require other issues to be addressed, too.

"I would like to go ahead and postpone this discussion for another time, so that I can do more research and collaborate with a few more people," Roche said. "I don't want to introduce it now without having everything in order."

Simpsonville City Council will hold a regularly scheduled business meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 10 via an online meeting service. The meeting will be live streamed via the City of Simpsonville YouTube Channel.

Simpsonville residents and business owners who would like to participate in Citizen Comments can call Mayor Shewmaker's office phone at 864-967-5400 and leave a message no longer than 3 minutes. Callers must state their names and addresses at the beginning of the call and refrain from foul language as all qualifying messages will be played over the live stream during the meeting.

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