Officials Say County's Project Rise Incentive Unusual
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| PAGE LABEL EVEN | CROWNING T Vol. 117HE No. 75 JOURNALFriday, April 16, 2021 $100 ACHIEVEMENT T J Daniel shuts out JOY IN THE WORK: Tackling a major home project can be a positive experience. B1 Warriors to clinch ACCOUNTABILITY: US expels Russian diplomats, imposes sanctions for hacking. D1 region title. C1 OCONEE COUNTY Officials say county’s Project Rise incentive unusual BY RILEY MORNINGSTAR Dominion Senior Living area — to have any kind of to build senior living Square in Clemson. The revenue credit agreement THE JOURNAL chief executive officer economic incentive given communities company operates other with Phoenix Senior Mark Taylor told The to something the size of in the Upstate, facilities in South Caroli- Living in March. Details CLEMSON — Three Journal the company was a typical senior living pointing out na, Kentucky and Tennes- of an investment price tag officials with senior living never offered any econom- community,” he said. “As the region’s see. and the number of poten- communities — including ic incentive to locate in developers, anything we growth with a tial new jobs have not been both relatively new and es- Oconee County. can take advantage of to “growing de- PROJECT RISE made public, with county tablished developments — “It is not very common help our project and build mography of Earlier this month, The officials citing confidenti- separately told The Jour- in our business to have a new community — we’re age-appropri- Journal reported Oconee ality agreements. A special nal they don’t believe it’s — particularly in an certainly out there looking Taylor ate seniors.” County Council approved source revenue credit is an common for a government area with a pretty heavy for those things.” Dominion the first reading of an economic development tool body to offer tax incentives amount of visible econom- Taylor said there wasn’t Senior Living opened in ordinance authorizing the to open a facility. ic growth like the Upstate economic disincentive the fall of 2019 at Patrick delivery of a special source SEE INCENTIVE, PAGE A6 CLEMSON OCONEE COUNTY County officials Rising above downtown planning to beef up cybersecurity BY RILEY MORNINGSTAR from happening again. THE JOURNAL In the proposed bud- get for the upcoming fis- WALHALLA — cal year, county admin- Nearly two years after istrator Amanda Brock a malware attack on has set aside $75,000 for Oconee County govern- information technology ment offices, officials equipment and cyber- are poised to commit security software. The more money to prevent a similar shutdown SEE SECURITY, PAGE A5 SENECA JERRY BEARD | THE JOURNAL Architect presents Construction is well underway on the Shepherd Hotel in downtown Clemson. drawings for new Shepherd Hotel projected for April 2022 opening Seneca Middle BY GREG OLIVER opening date to follow in April. The assembled since the site is zero lot THE JOURNAL hotel is planned to be six stories line, a term referring to a property tall. with one boundary wall of a struc- BY GREG OLIVER Carter Sease in Colum- CLEMSON — Construction of a “The goal of an April opening is to ture built right on the property line. THE JOURNAL bia told School District 56,000-square-foot and 67-room bou- give our staff time to train and de- The pre-constructed panels and of Oconee County tique hotel in downtown Clemson velop prior to a busy football season structural steel are currently going WALHALLA — The board trustees that the staffed by special needs students is in the fall,” Trammel said. up, with a crane installed on the site. architect for the new project on Wells High- well underway, and officials say it is Groundbreaking for the hotel, Seneca Middle School way is projected to hold slated to open a year from now. located at the College Avenue site HOTEL LOOKING TO PARTNER project said the nearly 850 students when it Abby Trammel, architectural and where BB&T once stood, happened WITH CLEMSONLIFE 170,000-square-foot opens in August 2024. land planner for Pavilion Develop- in November 2019. Trammel said One unique component of the building will hold up to “That number’s going ment Company, said the Shepherd the building was designed using a hotel is the employment of special 1,200 students when it to change back and Hotel is slated for completion in system of pre-constructed panels cre- opens in three years. January 2022, with a projected ated off-site and brought on-site and SEE HOTEL, PAGE A5 Joel Carter of Jumper SEE DRAWINGS, PAGE A2 SENECA Oconee teachers, administrators recall tornado’s impact BY GREG OLIVER generators, and Cox said the Quincy Road commu- THE JOURNAL the school also accepted nity at 8 a.m. that Monday clothing donations and morning, seeing downed SENECA — Students, One year needed supplies. Designat- trees and power lines educators and adminis- ed pickup spots and times everywhere. trators in the Seneca area were put in place. Farmer and many were already reeling from later ... Cox, who was assistant others began cutting trees the instructional switch principal at the time, and and moving them out of to distance learning as a then-principal Angie Hen- the road and spent the day TUESDAY MARKED the result of COVID-19, but derson called and checked going yard to yard and one-year anniversary of the the events that took place on affected families, while cleaning up downed trees. devastating EF3 tornado that a little more than a year several teachers had to “The whole week was swept through Seneca on ago made the pandemic move into temporary spent cleaning yards and April 13, 2020. This week, seem insignificant in the housing until repairs working on rooftops,” The Journal is running a moment. could be made. Farmer said. The EF3 tornado that series of stories on the “Ravenel Elementary devastated portions of tornado and its lasting School came together and SENECA MIDDLE the Seneca area on April effects on the community, supported our own family, RALLIES TO HELP 13, 2020, caused Oconee both positive and negative. but also extended assis- Seneca Middle School County schools to spring tance to all community media aide Lee Ann Ste- into action. members in need,” Cox phens said immediately Ravenel Elementary to school families and said. following the tornado, a list GREG OLIVER | THE JOURNAL School principal Robin teachers affected by the Ravenel Elementary was made of all students Blue Ridge Elementary School teacher Brenda Bouldin Cox said teachers provid- storm. Business owners teacher Jay Farmer loads supplies to pass out to students after the April ed much-needed supplies donated gas to use for remembers driving into SEE IMPACT, PAGE A3 2020 tornado. | INSIDE | | INFO | WILLIE SAYS: ARRESTS A6 COMICS B2 OPINION A4 DELIVERY (864) 882-2375 CALENDAR A2 ENTERTAINMENT B3 SPORTS C1 CLASSIFIEDS (864) 882-2375 CLASSIFIEDS D2 LIFESTYLE B1 STOCK REPORTS D4 ADVERTISING (864) 973-6305 There’s nothing COLUMNISTS B2 OBITUARY B4 WORLD | NATION D1 unifying about that. B4 | PAGE LABEL EVEN | A2 THE JOURNAL FRIDAY, APRIL 16, 2021 Rock quarry deals with lightning strike BY RILEY MORNINGSTAR Brock told The Journal an electri- ranty or not,” she said. “The storm THE JOURNAL cian believed there could have been that came through was on Tuesday more than one lightning strike. No evening, and staff were not present Thursday’s COVID-19 WALHALLA — A lightning one was injured in the strike, she at the time.” strike to a piece of equipment at said. Rock production will halt for the numbers at a glance the Oconee County rock quarry The release said repairs were entirety of repairs, according to the Confirmed Confirmed Percent is expected to halt production for underway and would require the release. Various products are still cases deaths positive several days. “reconstruction of two cone crush- available at the quarry, including Oconee County issued a news ers,” with the repairs taking up to asphalt sand. Brock hesitated to South Carolina 589 2 6.3% release on Thursday afternoon six days. give a projected dollar loss figure Oconee County 18 0 1.9%* announcing the lightning strike Brock said it was too early to say in operations for the closure, with Pickens County 20 0 2.8%* hit the quarry’s “jaw crusher and whether a factory warranty would some sales still taking place. damaged the frequency inverter, cover the damage. Operations are expected to re- * Seven-day moving average impacting the machine’s ability to “Because this is an act of God, sume April 23. Cumulative cases operate.” there are some uncertainties about County administrator Amanda what would be covered under a war- [email protected] | (864) 973-6685 South Carolina: 473,442 cases, 8,194 deaths Oconee County: 8,483 cases, 126 deaths Pickens County: 16,498 cases, 250 deaths Oconee Memorial Hospital ICU occupancy DRAWINGS: District aiming to spend $46M Beds available: 12 Beds taken: 8 Beds occupied by COVID patients: 1 FROM PAGE A1 Corridor hallways will felt very comfortable with in property assessments. allow enough space for this particular design.” As a result, it significantly SOURCE: SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL forth a little bit depending students to adhere to Carter said one lowered the amount of 8 on the time of year and social distancing. COVID-19-related feature percent money available such and with folks mov- “We’ve been doing this of the new school is the for the district. The term ing in,” Carter said. “So in our school designs for addition of a “sick room” “8 percent money” refers we’ve got plenty of room roughly 10 years, so it helps for students who become to a statement in the South | CALENDAR | there on day one.” us with students bumping ill with the flu, fever or Carolina Constitution that elbows by allowing a little COVID-19.