Copyright Charleston Post and Courier
GEORGETOWN — Early voting for Georgetown City Council races began Oct. 20 and the election will be held Nov. 4. Here’s a look at the candidates for three council seats and mayor: Georgetown City Council race Incumbent Republicans Jonathan Agner, Jim Clements and Jimmy Morrison are seeking another term on the council. They are challenged by Democrats Jessie M. Walker, Hobson Henry Milton and Sharon Melton. The Post & Courier asked the candidates about the challenges the city is facing, including rising utility rates, lost industry and the redevelopment of Georgetown’s waterfront. Jonathan Angner Jonathan Angner spent his early childhood in Michigan before moving to the Upstate. He graduated from Clemson University and served in the military for a decade. He owns several businesses, including an electrical contracting firm and a plumbing company. If re-elected, Angner would like help facilitate new investments in the West End. He said the new city hall project could be a catalyst for that. He would also like to see mixed-use development on the Liberty Steel and Georgetown port properties. That could include light industry, arts and culture venues, green space, and possibly an education facility and marine manufacturing company. Although he acknowledges higher utility rates have weighed heavily on many families, he maintains the increases were necessary to repair the city’s credit. He said rates hadn’t been raised for many years, and the city’s bond rating had been downgraded because the utilities were not self-sufficient. "We sought election and won election knowing there were going to be challenges that we would have to make decisions on," Angner said. "And we’ve not shied away from them." Jim Clements Jim Clements was born and raised in Washington D.C. He attended a military academy there before he was recruited to play basketball for the University of South Carolina. He has been in the construction business for almost 50 years. He would like to see the Liberty Steel property, International Paper site and Georgetown port redeveloped in a way that feels cohesive. He’s interested in bringing housing and businesses to the waterfront, in addition to facilities such as a medical center or a university extension. He’d also like to see maritime industry there. If re-elected, Clements said he’d like to update the city’s water and waste treatment plants to ensure they’re being used to their highest potential, address water and sewer rates, which he believes should be lowered, and prioritize affordable housing projects. "We need houses for the working class, to be honest with you, and firemen, policemen, nurses, and, more importantly, young people," he said. Clements said raising the city’s utility rates was necessary to repair Georgetown’s credit and to cover costs, and he considers the utility package to be fair for residents. In the future, he said rates will only be raised by a small percentage to account for cost-of-living increases. Hobson Henry Milton Hobson Henry Milton is a former city councilman and a lifelong resident of Georgetown. He is a graduate of Howard High School. He worked for 38 years as a longshoreman and has served on both county and city planning boards. Milton said his top priority is addressing the city’s utility rates. If elected, he said he would focus on keeping rates and availability fees from increasing. Eventually, he said he would like to lower them. "Take the burden off the people first. And once we take the burden off the people first, then we concentrate on the other issues we need to going forward,” he said. He would like to see high-paying manufacturing companies on the Liberty Steel mill property. He doesn’t support the plan for mixed-use development that an unnamed buyer has proposed for the site. He said he would like to see another industrial company move onto the IP site and use some of the existing infrastructure there. Milton hopes to focus on creating family-sustaining jobs. He said he doesn’t want people to have to move away from the city to make a living. Sharon Melton Before moving to Georgetown, Sharon Melton drove a bus in Brooklyn, N.Y. She is now retired and serves on the city’s zoning board of appeals. She served on the community appearance board for over a decade. Melton said she decided to run for office because she’s unhappy with how the city council has been operating. She contends the council lacks transparency and accountability. "I couldn't sit back and not do anything," she said. "I can't complain about something if I'm not going to try to be a part of helping the situation, right?" If elected, Melton said her priority would be trying to make utility bills manageable for residents. Ideally, she would like to lower both the utility rates and availability fees. She’s not yet sure how to make that a reality, but she's confident the council could come up with a solution. She would like to see the IP, Liberty Steel and Georgetown port properties redeveloped with new industry that could provide residents with high-paying jobs. She sees an Amazon warehouse as a possibility. She would also like to see public green space on the waterfront. Jimmy Morris Jimmy Morris grew up between Andrews and Kingstree and moved to Georgetown around 2005. He is a salesman and estimator for Coastal Asphalt. He previously worked at the former steel mill and taught and coached at Andrews High School. He’s seeking re-election because he feels like there’s more he can do to improve the city. "Over the last four years, we got a good bit of things done through working with local and state representation to give matching grants and do some infrastructure work that was much needed," he said. "But it's not finished, and there's a lot more I feel like we could do." Morris favors mixed-use development on the waterfront, including light industry. He said the city should focus on attracting jobs to make up for the closures of the IP and Liberty Steel mills. He doesn’t want the city to rely solely on tourism. He said he’s been helping the city to update its zoning ordinance to prepare for new development. Like his fellow incumbents, Morris said the utility rate increases were necessary to make up for the years when rates were not increased. Jessie M. Walker Jessie M.Walker is a lifelong resident of Georgetown. She works in human services and is involved in community development and economic development. If elected, Walker said she would prioritize public safety, attainable housing projects and easing the burden of utility bills for residents. "My rates have increased tremendously. I'm feeling the effect of that as well," Walker said. "We have to stop it and address it to make it more affordable." If elected, she insists she'll dig into the city's utility rates to ensure residents' utility usage adds up to what they’re being charged. She would also like to determine if the availability fees for utilities could be lowered. She hopes Georgetown’s waterfront will be developed with high-paying light industry jobs and said she would not advocate for tourism-related uses. Georgetown mayoral race Republican incumbent Carol Jayroe is seeking re-election. She is running against Jay Doyle, a member of the Forward Party. Jay Doyle Originally from Boston, Jay Doyle has lived in Georgetown for the past 17 years. While in Boston, Doyle was a remodeling contractor and owner of a property management business. He said he decided to seek office after becoming displeased with how the city handled certain issues, including the creation of its comprehensive plan. "Then we had the loss of all the jobs and the rising of all the utilities, and I just felt somebody really had to stand up and stick up for the working class people," he said. Doyle said he would like to see a large technology company come to Georgetown’s waterfront that could provide light manufacturing and office jobs. While the mill properties are being prepared for development, Doyle said he would try to recruit a cross laminated timber facility to a county property on Pennyroyal Road. He said such a facility would make good use of the area’s timber and would provide jobs sooner than development on the mill sites would. Doyle doesn’t think utilities should be overseen by the city council. Instead, he proposed a utilities commission that would handle the funds. He said although he couldn’t promise lower utility rates, he would do everything in his power to keep them from increasing. Carol Jayroe Carol Jayroe has served as Georgetown’s mayor since 2022. She has a background in banking and a career in real estate. She was born and raised in Georgetown. She said she’s seeking re-election to continue the work she began in her first term and to see infrastructure projects, such as an $8 million downtown drainage project, through.
