Latest news with #SpartanburgCountyCouncil
Yahoo
28-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Candidates for Spartanburg County Sheriff: Meet Adam Crisp
Nine candidates are running for the Republican nomination for Spartanburg County Sheriff. The GOP primary is scheduled for Aug. 5, though early voting is underway. The special election to replace former Sheriff Chuck Wright will take place on Nov. 4. In an effort to help readers know more about the candidates and their stances on key issues facing the Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office, the Herald-Journal sent four questions to each candidate – one tailored to his individual experience and three that are identical. Some answers have been edited lightly for length or clarification. Adam Crisp Age: 39 Occupation: Chief Operating Officer for Signal SecurityEducation: Bachelor of criminology, University of South CarolinaFamily: Married with five daughters You have served as deputy with the Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office and as a member of the Lyman Town Council. How would these combined experiences inform your perspective on the sheriff's relationship with Spartanburg County Council and other stakeholders? My combined experience as a deputy with the Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office and as a member of the Lyman Town Council gives me a unique and well-rounded perspective on how to strengthen the relationship between the sheriff's office and Spartanburg County Council. As a former deputy, I understand the needs, challenges, and realities faced by law enforcement officers. I've responded to calls and experienced the demands of the job. That gives me credibility when advocating for resources, training, and support for our deputies. Serving on Lyman Town Council—now as chairman of the Public Safety Committee—has given me critical experience in governance, budgeting, and public accountability. I've worked with elected officials, city departments, and community members to pass policy, allocate funds, and drive public safety initiatives. These experiences position me to serve as a bridge. I know how to speak the language of both law enforcement and elected leadership. Based on your understanding of the situation in the Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office currently, what would you do in your first month (or week or six months or year…) to improve morale among deputies and staff members? The first week or month will be about visibility and accountability and about building back the trust lost. I will: Conduct confidential, department-wide surveys and listening sessions to give every deputy and staff member a voice. I want to know what's working, what's not, and what support they truly need. Be visible and accessible—not sitting behind a desk. I'll visit every shift, ride along with patrols, and spend time in dispatch and detention to demonstrate that leadership is present, engaged, and listening. Immediately address any toxic practices that have created division, favoritism, or mistrust in the ranks. The subject of pay for deputies has been a focus of discussion in this race. Salaries vary from county to county and among various municipal police forces. What can be done to keep Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office salaries competitive with those of surrounding departments? I am the chair of the Public Safety Committee on the Lyman Town Council, so I hold the purse strings for our police. I've been able to give a 22 percent raise over the past year-and-a-half. That's more than the Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office has had in 15 years. I also have experience working with elected leaders to advocate for the resources needed to pay officers to combat crime. I've also seen the importance of clear communication, collaboration, and transparency between public safety leaders and elected bodies. It's a relationship-building process. As sheriff, I will foster a proactive, collaborative relationship with Spartanburg County Council by ensuring transparency in budgeting, strategic planning, and policy decisions. Since President Trump took office in January, there has been considerable discussion about immigration enforcement. ICE is set to receive a substantial increase in funding following the recent budget legislation that was signed into law. Candidates for Spartanburg County Sheriff have expressed support for ICE's efforts to target illegal immigrants. At the same time, some residents are worried about the potential presence of masked ICE officers using heavy-handed tactics in our community. Others are anxious about the possibility of ICE mistakenly detaining legal immigrants, naturalized citizens – or even U.S.-born citizens. How would you balance support for the federal crackdown on illegal immigration while protecting the rights of individuals and communities in Spartanburg County? ICE works in partnership with local jurisdictions. They can't just come in and do whatever they want. We're going to uphold the law, and we will cooperate with 287(g), the program that allows local law enforcement to partner with ICE on immigration enforcement. But we will treat people with dignity and respect. If we see things that are not constitutional, we will exercise the means to put a stop to that. This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Spartanburg County Sheriff candidate answers questions about the job Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Spartanburg Co. Council reacts to Sheriff Chuck Wright resignation
SPARTANBURG COUNTY, S.C. (WSPA) – Spartanburg County Council Chairman Manning Lynch said he received a phone call from the South Carolina Attorney General's office Friday morning, alerting him that Sheriff Chuck Wright had resigned. After returning from a seven week long leave of absence for 'unspecified medical reasons' just three days ago, Wright sent Governor McMaster a letter of resignation and turned in his badge. Councilman Monier Abusaft explained the county has mixed feelings about his resignation. 'There's a lot of mixed feelings,' Abusaft said. 'There are people who have long felt that the sheriff's office wasn't appropriately ran and had their feelings about Chuck Wright, but there's a lot of people in this county who have strong feelings that are positive for the Sheriff.' 'I mean, until very, very recently he was clearly the most popular Republican elected official in our county,' Abusaft continued. Wright has been the sheriff since he was elected in 2004. However, over the past few months, many of his actions have been called into question including the hiring of his son, Andrew Wright, and spending more than $53,000 on a public credit card. 7News was told that only $1,100 was paid back. Spartanburg Co. Sheriff Chuck Wright resigns, cites 'recent health diagnosis' 'It has been hard. Obviously, the sheriff's department is a big part of running a county, and you know nobody would wish for what we just went through,' said Lynch, who was the first to be notified. 'Citizens feel like they've been cheated out of a sheriff for the last six to eight weeks, whatever it's been, and we have answered to the people, but it's been a lot of 'I can't say right now.' It'll just be nice that we've passed that stage and we kind of know what the path forward is going to be,' Lynch added. Friday afternoon, Governor Henry McMaster appointed the current Cherokee County Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy Jeffery Stephens to serve as the replacement until a special election is held later this year to replace his position. 'We're glad to be moving in that direction, in the direction of certainty, just a better place to be than where we've been,' said Lynch. Abusaft said it has been frustrating, especially as the public safety chairman, not to be completely transparent with the public, but promises a bright future is ahead for Spartanburg County. 'I mean this is hour one, day one of the end of an era of law-enforcement in Spartanburg County,' Abusaft said. 'There's going to be a much more forceful relationship from our side with the sheriff's office. There will be a fine-toothed comb and a philosophy with the request for money and what their leadership is telling us until we can rebuild trust in them.' Abusaft estimated that in the next two months, council will be able to talk freely. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Britt's move triggers special Spartanburg County Council election in November
David Britt's departure from Spartanburg County Council means there will be a special election on Nov. 4. Filing for candidates to replace Britt as the council member from Spartanburg County Council District 3 will take place from 12 p.m. on June 6 until 12 p.m. on June 14, according to John Baucom, the county's director of Voter Registration and Elections. The filing fee is $741.51. Britt was sworn in on May 20 to represent Spartanburg County and much of Greenville County on the South Carolina Public Service Commission. The commission has oversight over utilities, including setting rates for natural gas, electric, water, and wastewater companies. It also regulates telecommunications companies. Britt had served on the county council since 1991. He was heavily involved in economic development. At his swearing-in ceremony at the Spartanburg County Courthouse, Britt received praise from OneSpartanburg President and CEO Allen Smith for his role in bringing numerous manufacturing companies to the area. He was reelected to his council seat in 2024. If two or more Republicans or two or more Democrats file to run for the open seat, there will be a primary on Aug. 5. Any necessary runoffs would occur on Aug. 19. In addition to Britt's departure, Spartanburg City Council member Rob Rain was recently appointed to the South Carolina Ports Authority. More: Spartanburg county, city council members to resign, accept state positions Rain announced his move at a city council meeting earlier in May, but Baucom said he hasn't yet received an official letter of resignation from Rain. A special election for Rain's seat would also take place on Nov. 4. City council members are elected on a nonpartisan basis, so there would be no need for a primary. This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Special election set to fill empty seat on Spartanburg County Council
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Spartanburg Co. close to landing nearly $2.8 billion project from mystery company
SPARTANBURG COUNTY, S.C. (WSPA) – Spartanburg County approved a resolution Monday to provide tax incentives in an attempt to land one of the largest investments in South Carolina history. Spartanburg County Council unanimously approved a resolution to move forward with two Fee In Lieu of Tax (FILOT) Agreements for Project MOC-1, a nearly $2.8 billion investment which would add 27 jobs. Council member David Britt said MOC-1 would be the second largest single investment ever in the state. While he couldn't divulge name of the company behind the project or where the project will be located, Britt described it as a high performance computing facility. He said the company is involved in technology, engineering, and aerospace and the facility will generate its own power. Britt said he's met with company executives and they are 'the kind of company we want in the county.' 'We want companies that are going to help raise the bar for all of Spartanburg County,' Britt continued. Britt said Spartanburg County is still competing with another state for the project. The FILOT agreements would set the property assessment at 4% for 40 years and provide a special source tax credit of $30 million over 20 years against the payments in lieu of taxes. The next step for the project is the first reading of ordinances for the two FILOT agreements. The agreements will require three readings by county council before they are approved. 'Hopefully, very soon, we'll be able to announce the name of the company and where they're going and what they're going to be doing,' said Britt. Britt expressed hope that an announcement would be made before May. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
