Special  Council Meeting
of the Latta Town Council
October 2, 2014
7:00 PM
The Latta Town Council held a special meeting at 7:00 pm on Thursday, Sept. 4, 2014.  The following were present:  Council members Taylor, Shelley, Mason, Williams and Reaves.Chairman Mason called the meeting to order and led the Pledge of Allegiance. Councilwoman Williams offered the prayer.

Budget
Chairman Mason presented the proposed budget for 2014/2015 fiscal year for its second reading.
The budget ordinance was read.
Motion to accept the budget as presented for the second reading was made by Councilwoman Williams, seconded by Councilman Reaves, and unanimously approved by roll cal vote of council.

EEOC Ordinance
Motion was made by Councilwoman Williams, seconded by Councilman Taylor to include the following as part of the town’s personnel manual. It was unanimously approved by roll call vote of council.
The policies are:
Equal Opportunity
It is the policy of the Town of Latta to provide equal opportunity to all applicants for employment and to administer hiring, compensation, training, promotions, transfer, discipline, and other terms and conditions of employment without discrimination in regards to race, color, religion, gender, disability, age or national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Anyone who believes that he/she has been discriminated against in violation of this policy should report the matter to his/her supervisor of Department Head, Human Resources Department, any member of Council, or the Mayor.
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Anti-Harassment
Various laws and regulations generally prohibit employment decisions from being made on the basis of race, gender, religion, national origin, color, age, disability, sexual orientation, or similar distinctions. In addition, it is our desire to provide a working environment in which employees are free from discomfort or pressure resulting from jokes, ridicule, slurs, threats, and/or harassment relating to such distinctions or simply resulting from a lack of consideration for a fellow human being.
Councilwoman Williams commented that no one will lose their jobs by contacting Council or the Mayor relative to harassment.

Council Compensation
There was discussion relative to when the mayor will reimburse the town for the fringe benefits that are being received by him but were not authorized by Council.
The mayor has been notified that payment is due by October 9th or his insurance will be cancelled.
Councilman Taylor berated the Clerk/Treasurer concerning the performance of his duties.
Councilwoman Williams requested that Council investigate another accounting system. She does not like QuickBooks.

Haunted Forest
Judge Dupree requested 1500.00 to purchase items for the Haunted Forest to replace those that are damaged or not useable. This may cause the forest to exceed its budget by some small amount.

Police
There are itching bugs in the Police Department! Estimates for extermination will be obtained. Bishopville has been billed for Myron Dixon’s training expenses. Dress uniforms are needed. The cost will be a little over 3000.00.
Tasers are good. Radios can be upgraded but they are old. Cameras were discussed.
Police Policy is being upgraded and will be distributed when back from the printer.
Body cameras will be mandatory at some point in the future.
There being no further business, the meeting was properly adjourned.

Regular Council Meeting
of the Latta Town Council
October 9, 2014
7:00 PM
The Latta Town Council held a regular meeting at 7:00 pm on Thursday, October 09, 2014.  The following were present:  Council members Taylor, Shelley, Mason, Williams, and Reaves.  Mayor Pro-Tem Mason called the meeting to order, led the Pledge of Allegiance, and offered the prayer. Councilman Drawhorn arrived at 7:48.

Minutes from Regular Council Meeting,
September 11, 2014
Motion was made by Councilwoman Williams and seconded by Councilman Taylor to accept the minutes as presented.
It was unanimously approved by roll call vote of the council.

Minutes from Special Council Meeting,
September 4, 2014
Motion was made by Councilman Taylor and seconded by Councilwoman Williams to accept the minutes as presented.
It was unanimously approved by roll call vote of the council.

Minutes from Special Council Meeting,
October 2, 2014
Motion was made by Councilwoman Williams and seconded by Councilman Shelley to accept the minutes as presented.
It was unanimously approved by roll call vote of the council.

Council Benefits
The mayor and members of council have the right to be treated as all other employees of the town. This means that they are entitled to retirement and insurance benefits as are all employees. The mayor has chosen to take advantage of this, but the other members of council are not taking advantage of this. There is much discussion relative to the dissatisfaction of the other members of council relative to this.

Mayoral Compensation
Discussion relative to adjusting the compensation of the mayor (which would become effective after the next election of the mayor) was held. No action was taken at this time.

CDBG
Grant has been granted, preconstruction conference has been held, construction is expected to start in 10 or 15 days.

Who-So-Ever-Will
There were no comments.

Department Reports
Streets
Harold commented on his written report
Aerators have been repaired again. Monthly reporting to DHEC is underway. Surge protectors are being investigated.
School contractors are supposed to repair their damage to service road to treatment pond.
Cleanup is Saturday.
A quote to fence in lot beside Kannaday’s is 8500.00. Other quotes will be obtained.
The County has provided some dirt at treatment plant to enable Airgas driver to turn around and not have to back in or out around pond.

Municipal Court
Judge Janette Dupree read her written report
She discussed upcoming laws and legal events that she learned at her conference.

Parks and Recreation
Jimmy read his written report which was distributed to council.
Football season is 2/3 complete. One team has gone to district playoffs.
Three fields have been rented for a tournament.
Softball signups are weak. There may not be enough interest to play fall softball.
Signups for basketball will begin soon.
Jimmy is investigating an online store that will insure good quality products with no cost to us. The uniforms and equipment would be cheaper than what is currently available and the town would receive a commission.
There was discussion relative to coordination of the community center. It was decided that the parks and rec director is the person to whom reports should be reported.

Police Dept.
Chief Crystal Moore read her written report which was distributed to Council.
Two officers are at academy and two will be going after they return.
The town hall was sprayed for bugs.
The oxidation pond and the water treatment plants are outside of town so the police department has no jurisdiction at either.
There was discussion relative to annexation and a request for Kimberly to speak to Council regarding this.

Clerk/Treasurer
Joe distributed a budget vs. actual report to Council and department heads.
He recommended purchasing a time clock system through amazon that would enable the various departments to log in where they report to work. Some would actually use a time clock and others would use the computer at their work station.
Motion to purchase a manual time clock from Sam’s was made by Councilman Taylor, seconded by Councilwoman Williams, and unanimously approved by roll call vote of council. Councilman Taylor will handle the installation of the time clock.
Credit card processing was discussed. Two vendors are needed to accept credit cards online. Council needs to determine whether or not the town will absorb service charges or they will be absorbed by the consumer.

Fire Dept.
Chief Josh Holt reported that there were two calls last month. One was a false alarm and the other was distinguished before they arrived.
The fundraiser was successful.

Mayor Pro-Tem
Councilman Mason received permission to pay dues to the Latta Merchants Association
The town has received a DHEC violation notice. Harold’s response was read to council.
He has forwarded a list of duties to a prospective Town Attorney and hopes to get a response before the next council meeting.
He reported on an electrical change order for streetscape that we expect to not have to pay.
He reported on a FOIA request from Mayor Bullard.
He notified Council of our ad on the the back of the Latta Revitalization Tour of Homes. It is normal and customary expenditure.
He read a letter from Ms. Jacqueline Squires relative to their cleaning up of the lot after the building was removed.

Council Reports
Councilman Taylor
He thanked all for coming and inquired about the status of the DOL report. The report is expected soon but has not been received.
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Councilman Shelley
He received permission to purchase a plaque to honor Glenn Greene for his many years of service to the town.
He requested permission to send letter requesting cleanup to an absentee property owner. It was recommended that he obtain the letter that has been used by councilman Drawhorn in the past.
He requested that estimates be obtained to tear down the cox building that was donated to the town.

Councilman Drawhorn
He thanked all for their attendance.
Cleaning lots and sidewalks need to not be overlooked.
Henry St  Park still needs some attention.
Thank you notes should be sent to the new businesses on Main St.

Councilwoman Williams
Thanked all citizens for their attendance and support
She inquired about the dumpster for the citizens. It is in the recycle center but not in the place it has normally been.

Councilman Reaves
Nothing to report

Executive Session
Motion to go into executive session was made by Councilman Taylor, seconded by Councilwoman Williams and unanimously accepted by roll call vote of council.
There were no votes taken during executive session.

There being no further business, the meeting was properly adjourned.

Regular Council Meeting
of the Latta Town Council
November 13, 2014
7:00 PM
The Latta Town Council held a regular meeting at 7:00 pm on Thursday, November 13, 2014.  The following were present:  Council members Taylor, Shelley, Mason, Williams, Reaves, and Bullard.  Mayor Pro-Tem Mason called the meeting to order, and led the Pledge of Allegiance. Councilwoman Williams offered the prayer.

Minutes from Regular Council Meeting,
October 09, 2014
Motion was made by Councilman Drawhorn and seconded by Councilwoman Williams to accept the minutes as presented.
It was unanimously approved by roll call vote of the council.

Commendation
Mayor Bullard presented a plaque commending the long service of former Town Attorney Glenn Greene

Grievance Committee
Councilman Taylor proposed that the Grievance Committee be composed of: Harold Snipes, Crystal Moore, and Josh Holt, as department heads. Jimmy Haselden, Curt Miller, and Rebecca Page as employees. Alternates will be Bobby Jones and Jackson Winkler.
Councilwoman Williams made motion to accept the new grievance committee as presented. Councilman Drawhorn seconded and it was unanimously approved by roll call vote of Council.

Special Events Insurance
Joe Powell questioned whether the parade and other special events should have liability insurance. SCMIRF does not cover special events. He recommended that insurance be a part of the permitting process. Discussion resulted in council agreeing to pay for the insurance if the Merchants Association is not able to do so. Motion to this affect was made by Councilwoman Williams, seconded by Councilman Shelley and unanimously approved by roll call vote of council.

Council Compensation
Council compensation must be presented by Ordinance.

Time Clock Procedures
It was agreed to schedule a working session to develop procedures for using the time clock.

Who-So-Ever-Will
Tom Dees commented on the conflicts within the FCC relative to speeding up and slowing down data. The town’s contract with Time Warner Cable should be updated or another vendor should be considered.

Department Reports
Police
Chief Moore commented on her written report which was distributed. Hepatitis shots are required for all town employees.
Officer Palmer will graduate from the academy next week.
The new uniform jackets were displayed as were body cams.
They are trying to obtain storage containers from 1033 program.
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Municipal Court
Judge Dupree discussed her written report which was distributed to Council.
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Parks and Recreation
Jimmy thanked all who helped with Haunted Forest.
He discussed his written report which was distributed to Council.
A representative of Anaconda Sports was introduced. He explained how his online program could benefit the town.
Councilman Drawhorn requested information relative to Henry St Park. There was discussion relative to this.
Councilwoman Williams commented that the refrigerator in the community center is not cooling properly and needs to be repaired or replaced.
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Clerk / Treasurer
He reported on information learned at the recent SCMIRF and SCMIT insurance meeting.
He commented on the process of accepting credit cards. It was the consensus of Council that plastic be accepted and that fees are passed along.
The audit is progressing better than last year. The auditor has written CDBG requesting the proper disposition of the HOP funds.
Kimberly Herndon will be happy to discuss annexation after the first of the year.
StreetScape lights are mismatched. Citizens are complaining. Duke has been contacted.
Wanda has info relative to recodification.
SCMIT will decrease 21% SCMIRF will decrease due to deleting coverage on the abandoned water tank and treatment plant.
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Fire Dept.
This report was distributed to council.
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Administrator’s Report
Pig Pickin will be Fri., Dec. 19th
Correct Streetscape lights are coming; smaller trees have been substituted in islands; SCDOT has removed some streets from their system. PARD money is coming in we should expect some to be released to Latta.

Council Reports
Councilman Taylor
Thanked all who helped and participated in the Haunted Forest. It was a big success with lots of smiles and screams.
He emphasized the need to communicate to citizens relative to the DHEC requirements prohibiting mixing trash with yard debris. It was decided to send letters to the offenders.
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Councilman Shelley
He has been approached by CSX concerning the crossties at the park where the depot was. He requested permission to purchase cross ties to replace the rotten ones.
Harold is working on a price for tearing down the Cox building on SE Railroad Ave.
Requested permission to plant the now vacant lot at NW Railroad and Rice St.
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Councilman Drawhorn
Sidewalks need attention. Some are broken; some are covered; some have weeds and debris.
Ditches are in poor repair.
The signs commemorating the State Championship basketball team have been obtained and need to be installed. The school has requested that the championship team be honored as grand marshals of the parade. The parade committee will be contacted relative to this.
He requested information relative to the planning and zoning committee. Each councilperson was requested to provide a volunteer for this committee.
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Councilwoman Williams
She distributed notes relative to the recent Pee Dee Regional Rural Water Association meeting that she attended.
Trinity Behavioral Care has treatment services should the need arise.

Executive Session
Motion to enter executive session was made by Councilman Taylor and seconded by Councilman Drawhorn. It was unanimously approved.
No votes were taken nor action authorized during executive session.

Adjourn
Upon exiting from Executive session, the meeting was properly adjourned.

The next regular meeting is scheduled for December 11, 2014 at 7:00 p.m.

Special  Council Meeting
of the Latta Town Council
November 25, 2014
7:00 PM
The Latta Town Council held a special meeting at 7:00 pm on Thursday, Nov 25, 2014.  The following were present:  Council members Taylor, Shelley, Mason, Drawhorn, and Williams.. Chairman Mason called the meeting to order, led the Pledge of Allegiance, and offered the prayer.

Time Clock
Much discussion resulted in agreement on a time clock policy to be presented at the next council meeting for approval.

Cell Phones
It was decided that there is no advantage to switching to Straight talk instead of using Verizon as a provider.
There are several phones that should be eliminated: former employee Tim Noland should be disconnected. Any other phones that are not being used should be disconnected.
A Registered letter to Mayor Bullard should demand return of the phone and the iPad that he has in his possession. These will be used by the administrator and passed down as that position is filled by a new person.

Other
It was decided that time worked on paid holidays would be at straight time subject to the normal rules of Overtime. Holiday pay will also be paid for that day.
There being no further business, the meeting was properly adjourned.