By Dave Munday
The Post and Courier
MONCKS CORNER, S.C. — Residents wanting a new fire station went away from a council meeting Tuesday unhappy and confused.
“What happened?” Heather Gramajo said to fellow Foxbank residents after the meeting.
Council spent an hour meeting behind closed doors after announcing it would talk about whether to borrow money for a new fire truck for the downtown station and for a new fire station for Foxbank, one of several growing neighborhoods along U.S. Highway 52 that the town has annexed in the past few years.
Council came back out in the open and agreed to borrow enough money to buy the fire truck. It remained uncertain if it will borrow the money for the fire station.
Mayor William Peagler, who has been pushing a fire station for Foxbank, wasn’t happy with the deal, but it was the best he could get, at least for now.
“There is still dissension among council as to whether or not it’s going to be approved,” Peagler said after the meeting.
If council borrowed the whole amount - $1.5 million - it would raise property taxes about $8 on a $200,000 house, town officials estimated.
The fire truck is $400,000. The fire station would cost $800,000, The rest would be the remainder of a previous loan included in the bond.
Mayor Pro Tem David Kizer said he agreed Foxbank needs its own fire station but was hesitant to borrow the money in this economy.
“We need one, and we will put one there,” Kizer said after the meeting. “It’s just a matter of when and a question of financing. I just want to make sure the timing is right for everybody. I still don’t feel good about this economy.”
Residents who came to the meeting hoping for a decision left disappointed.
“I think I’m just pretty shocked,” resident Mark
Gramajo said after the meeting. “I think we all expected some kind of result. ... I’d just like to know exactly why the closed session wasn’t made public, especially when it comes to such a large issue and important topic as public safety. Council needs to ensure the public knows what’s going on behind closed doors.”
His wife, Heather Gramajo, said, “When you bring us into your town, you need to take care of us like your own family.”
Resident Sandra Skiles said, “Moncks Corner needs to realize we’re part of them now.”
About 600 houses have been built in Foxbank in the past four or five years, with another 1,100 planned. The nearest fire station is eight to 10 minutes away.
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