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Lancaster
er NNews
Lancaster Countys triweekly newspaper

75 CENTS

SUNDAY, JUNE 14, 2015

www.thelancasternews.com

County budget additions address 4-H, turnout gear and salaries

BUNNIES, BOOTS AND BONU$ES

Officials
explain
raises

Interest in
4-H Club
increases

2013 Archer study

used to determine
amount of pay hikes

Cathyleen Rice

crice@thelancasternews.com

As local 4-H Club coordinator

for Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service, Steve
Hucks is a one busy man.
Hucks projects that 4-H programs
will
touch the lives
of a little more
than 1,900 children this year.
Hoping
to
share his knowledge
with
young people in
the community Steve
so that they too Hucks
can
answer
questions and know about the
environment, Hucks hopes to
reach 10 percent of the youth
population each year.
This wasnt a career path
Hucks was on. In 2011, Hucks
began attending pullet project
meetings with his son, Thomas,
now 14, that was led by former
4-H coordinator Ashley Hinson.
He said he was impressed
with how the program brought
families together. After Hinson
left to farm greener bluegrass
music pastures to manage her
daughters, The Hinson Girls,
Hucks took her place.
In his role, Hucks recruits,
trains and utilizes volunteer
leaders to reach out and develop ways to provide 4-H services
across the county.
He also works with students
at every county elementary
school Indian Land and A.R.
Rucker middle schools and
Carolina Christian Academy,
but that doesnt mean his
hands stay clean. Hucks plant
gardens for Hope on the Hill,
See 4-H CLUB I Page 3A

Council gives
first nod to IL
moratorium

Christopher Sardelli
csardelli@thelancasternews.com

According to the latest cost, that firefighter who just showed up and is shucking
off his tennis shoes to slide into fire boots,
pants, hood, coat, gloves and a helmet will
be wearing $2,666.15 worth of protective
clothing before unrolling the first fire hose.
There was a huge increase last year because the standards were raised. That
means the cost of turnout (gear) has gone
up substantially. It keeps going higher and
higher, Blackwelder said.

Whether youre an account

clerk or a zoning official, a slew
of county employees from A to
Z should start seeing a slight
bump in their paychecks later
this year, thanks to a series of
proposed pay increases included in Lancaster County Councils fiscal 2015-16 budget.
The budget, which still awaits
final reading by council on June
22 before it can be approved,
includes three major items designed to retain Lancaster
Countys 870 employees and
make their salaries more comparable to nearby counties.
County Finance Director Veronica Thompson clarified the
three-part pay increase plan on
Thursday, June 11.
She said the first part includes giving a $3 per hour pay
adjustment to all EMS shift
paramedics.
The next portion includes a
raise for employees who have
worked with the county for 10 or
more years, bringing their salaries halfway to the market rate
for those positions based on a
compensation and pay classification study created in 2013 by
Rock Hill-based human resources management consulting group, The Archer Company.
But out of 124 eligible employees in that category, only 77
qualify for the raise, with 47 employees already at or above the
market value for their positions.

See GEAR I Page 5A

See RAISES I Page 5A

GREGORY A. SUMMERS
gsummers@thelancasternews.com

Tradesville Volunteer Fire

Department member Cody
Ellis dons his turnout gear
before heading to an accident
scene at Overbrook Road on
June 5. Ellis, who completed
the basic firefighting course
at the Lancaster High School
Career Center, is one of the
countys newest volunteers.
Ellis is also a nationally
certified firefighter.

Cost of turnout gear soars

Gregory A. Summers

gsummers@thelancasternews

When Lancaster County Council decided to bump up the 2015-16 fiscal budget to
provide a little extra money to county volunteer fire departments for turnout gear, it
was almost a matter of necessity.
The cost of properly outfitting a firefighter
in thick, composite thermal coats and pants
that protect them from fire and heat has
risen 22 percent since 2008, said Lancaster
County Fire Marshal Stephen Blackwelder.

A downhill double-up

City council did

pass first reading of
proposed budget
Denyse Clark

Christopher Sardelli

dclark@thelancasternews.com

csardelli@thelancasternews.com

Lancaster City Council actually

did pass first reading of its 201516 fiscal-year budget at the Tuesday, June 9 meeting but after
much confusion, said City Administrator Helen Sowell.
The 5-2 vote came with an
amendment made by Councilwoman Tamara Green Garris as to
how the first reading of the budget
was proposed.
An item was put on the table for
discussion and after a lengthy discussion, I believe all of council believed they were voting for first
reading with Councilwoman Garris amendment in place for the
published ordinance, Sowell said.
At the onset of Tuesdays meeting, Finance Director James Absher requested first reading of the
budget and announced a public
hearing 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 16
and a scheduled second reading
June 23.

Stepping to the microphone,

Indian Land resident Jane Tanner
told Lancaster County Council on
Monday, June 8, how important a
temporary rezoning moratorium
for the Panhandle would be for
the future growth of the area.
Tanner, along with several fellow residents, packed council
chambers hoping to convince
council to approve a nine-month
moratorium on any rezoning applications for all properties north
of S.C. 5 to the state line.
I feel the moratorium is very
important to Indian Land because
were exploding with developments, Tanner said.
With thousands of rezonings approved during the last few years,
Tanner said now is the time to halt
rezoning applications to give the
planning department some
breathing room as it conducts its
See MORATORIUM I Page 3A

163rd year, No. 72

Two sections
18 pages
Subscriber services
(803) 283-1145

Landon Holden, 8, and his brother,

Chase Holden, 13, enjoy the day at
Kershaw Skate Park on June 9.
TIM DEATON/FOR THE LANCASTER NEWS

Weather

Mostly sunny
with a slight
chance of rain
Highs: 92-94
Lows: 69-71

Deaths, 4A

Index
Church News ........................5B
Classifieds ............................7B
Coming Events ....................6B
Education ...........................3B

Entertainment ..................4B
Faces & Places ..................1B
Opinion .............................8A
Sports ................................6A

Beulah Benson
David Frazier
Robert Myers

See BUDGET I Page 2A

Inside, 2A

Forty Acre
Heritage
Preserve grows
by 698 acres