Temps remain high as we open August, investigations of county allegations
By Lolita Huckaby
BEAUFORT
August. We’ve made it to August, through the 67th Water Festival and record-breaking temperatures with no hurricanes breathing down our necks … yet.
The local elected council members have officially taken a little summer break from their duties – except for riding in the Water Festival parade and cruising around together in boats. But wait, what could stir the community back into life but a scandal? And that’s exactly what the County Council folks have on their hands.
Two weeks ago, it was questionable whether the community had “gone berserk” over allegations of wrong-doing by County Administrator Eric Greenway. But the community interest escalated quickly last week when the County Council on Monday announced they were suspending Greenway indefinitely, with his $210K salary (plus benefits) while allegations of impropriety were being investigated.
By Wednesday, the Council had met again, primarily in executive session, and decided they better hire their own outside attorneys (the council legal department has three bonified attorneys on staff) and do their own investigation.
By Friday noon, Greenway was fired “for cause” after his elected bosses unanimously decided they had heard enough and it was time for him to go. (That happened with a 10-0 vote since Councilman York Glover was absent.)
Looking back on how Beaufort County government got to this place, the accusations seemed to have started with the proposed Pine Island development. It was brought to light, initially, by an anonymous concerned citizen who discovered Greenway and Pine Island developer Elvio Tropeano were playing golf together on Fripp Island … and told the County Council members about it.
Opponents of the Pine Island project had been muttering for weeks that something fishy was going on with the way those plans were progressing, that it was apparent Greenway and county staffers had been talking with Tropeano about the project long before it came before any review boards.
And while playing golf together might not be illegal … at least not in South Carolina … it sure didn’t look “right.”
Some of those concerned citizens while looking around on the internet grew even more suspicious that where there’s smoke, there may be fire and sure enough, more questions about Greenway’s operations bubbled to the top. Questions that went beyond that golfing date with Tropeano. In fact, complaints forwarded to the County Council via email were more about some of the purchases and hirings Greenway had coordinated.
As anyone who is following this story knows, Sheriff P.J. Tenner and Solicitor Duffie Stone were presented information and decided to pass this hot potato to an outside investigative group, i.e., solicitors from outside our 14th District.
The council voted to appoint John Robinson, one of the newest administrators hired and formerly the city of Beaufort assistant fire chief, as interim administrator bypassing about a dozen individuals higher up on the administrative chain of command.
Lisa Lynch who had been hired by Greenway to serve as the county’s Wellness Director and lead on an education program for the county’s opioid addiction recovery program, issued a statement after she was fired last week when news of the investigation started being made public. She stated Greenway sexually harassed her and her firing was the result of retaliation when she agreed to work with the law enforcement investigation as a witness.
And of course, the “drama” doesn’t stop with the county, at Greenway’s former desk.
Across the street, at City Hall, we still have the ongoing saga of Dick Stewart and 303 Associates versus irate citizen Graham Trask. Stewart has now filed a lawsuit against Trask for delaying his three-story-with-a-rooftop-bar hotel (now referred to as “the Red Menace”) and parking garage. Building projects for which he now has the needed permits, though no ground has been broken.
There’s the issue of City Council versus Historic Beaufort Foundation, a matter which has been put on hold until later this month when the elected council members go back to work and decide whether to take the advice of the Municipal Planning Commission and leave the development review board as is, or go in the direction they’re obviously heading, removing the requirement that HBF gets to make recommendations to the Historic Review Board.
No wonder some folks are going to the movies to watch “Barbie” or “Oppenheimer.” Watching government at work, as many have said, is like watching sausage being made. It can be messy.
Debate over books drags on as school bells get ready to ring
BEAUFORT – Two more weeks before the county’s public school students head back into the classrooms and guess what, the district leaders are still talking about books. (Beaufort Academy students start back Aug. 15.)
It’s been a long, hot summer for book-banning talk, both pro and con, and the process of reviewing contested books, which began last October, is still going on.
Thus far, the majority of 97 books initially removed from the school library shelves have been returned. But the committees established by the school board to review the challenged books are still meeting, and those who don’t like the process are still complaining.
In fact, one citizen made news in late June for tossing a bag of chicken feed to the feet of the school board, calling them “chickens” for not doing more to ban what he considers offensive material.
The 11-member school board had a couple of special meetings to discuss how to censure that citizen, but they also decided it would be a good idea to ban pocketbooks and backpacks from board meetings … just in case.
It almost seems ironic that such prohibitions for a board meeting would have to be in place, like security measures taken at all the school campuses because we just don’t know who might be coming into the schools with evil intent. Ironic, if it wasn’t so sad.
Beaufort County School District with its 19 campuses will begin the new year with a new Robert Smalls Leadership Academy (formerly the middle school), four new principals and a $439 million bond referendum looming in November.
A lot of important issues to be faced by the elected board leaders as they try to support a complete education program in safe environments. Too bad it’s the chicken-feed throwing dad and the book ban discussion – which, remember, is taking place around the country – that are the issues that get attention.
Lolita Huckaby Watson is a community volunteer and newspaper columnist. In her former role as a reporter with The Beaufort Gazette, The Savannah Morning News, Bluffton Today and Beaufort Today, she prided herself in trying to stay neutral and unbiased. As a columnist, these are her opinions. Her goal is to be factual but opinionated, based on her own observations. Feel free to contact her at bftbay@gmail.com.
