WINNSBORO – With Fairfield County moving forward with an aggressive enforcement of more rigid property maintenance codes, Winnsboro Town Council made a move to keep pace during their May 7 meeting, voting 3-0 to approve a contract with the Central Midlands Council of Governments to review Winnsboro’s codes.
“We’ve asked the Council of Governments to review our property codes and advise us of what to do and what to change,” said Mayor Pro Tem Jackie Wilkes, who chaired last week’s meeting in the absence of Mayor Roger Gaddy, sidelined with illness. “We’re hoping to get something similar to what the County’s got. There’s no sense in us having something different.”
Wilkes said it was also possible that Winnsboro would petition the County to administer the codes, once the new regulations are in place.
Winnsboro is shelling out $2,400 to the Council of Governments for their assistance in the review.
“We thought it would be easier, simpler and faster than bringing the committees in to get this done,” Wilkes said.
Council also heard from Vickie Dodds, Chairwoman of the Friends of Mt. Zion Institute (FOMZI), who reiterated her group’s commitment to working with the Town to salvage the historic school building.
“Whatever form our partnership takes, we vow to keep our mutual interests in opportunities for the county front and center,” Dodds said. “This opportunity is about so much more than the preservation of a building. It is an opportunity to impact the economy, our quality of life and our visible standing in the state.”
Council agreed to schedule a work session with FOMZI in early June in order to sketch out the details of the project.
