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Here is an interesting article on residents pushing for a new County that would be carved out of sections of NW Richland and north Lexington County. This follows a series of attempts over the years of communties seeking to incorporate to either keep out development/other cities/towns or control their own destiny.. Most recently was the Ballentine area's quest to incorporate to stave off the intrusion of Irmo, prior to that two decades earlier you had St Andrews that sought to incorporate to stave off Columbia. There was even talk of NE Richland County becoming a city.. All of these efforts failed with the exception of Blythewood.. which was the only effort to date that has been successful but yet others persist....
Looks like they have been reading the Charlotte Observer. There is a small ultra conservative group who wants to form a new city in South Charlotte and leave Charlotte. Funny thing about these ideas is that they will still spend most of their dollars in Richland/Lexington and be subject to the trans tax. In fact, a lot of SC counties may be adopting the tax due to the pitiful underfunded SCDOT. This does not include the cost in establishing a new police department, administration, fire, medic etc...
If anything, some counties should be merged. That being said, putting the area currently covered by Lexington/Richland 5 all in one county (which is probably bigger than these people want) would be fine by me.
Looks like they have been reading the Charlotte Observer. There is a small ultra conservative group who wants to form a new city in South Charlotte and leave Charlotte. Funny thing about these ideas is that they will still spend most of their dollars in Richland/Lexington and be subject to the trans tax. In fact, a lot of SC counties may be adopting the tax due to the pitiful underfunded SCDOT. This does not include the cost in establishing a new police department, administration, fire, medic etc...
How true..... By the time you add in those services you are probably going to be equal if not be in a higher taxing jursidiction. All of this is more political than anything else.. These areas feel that they are not being served by their current elected officials.. Rather than mounting a grassroots campaign to get rid of them, which would be cheaper, they try to break off and form their own community. I think this make sense in very urbanized areas or in areas that have a diverse tax base other than just suburban homes and strip malls.. Even Blythewood has office and industrial tax base of all of the "new towns" in the midlands. I wonder if the folks behind this effort are the same folks that were behind the Ballentine incorporation failure? Becoming a "town" would have been way cheaper than becoming a "County" and if the State has to "approve" it.. I see the members of the General Assembly that represent this areas opposing a new County being formed.. if for no other reason it would **** off the elected officials and the base in the County's that will lose the tax base from this area where this new County is being created. They would also have a whole new group of primadonna elected new County Council Members that they would have to deal with wanting their share of State and Federal Dollars what state legislature wants that All I have to say is.. they need to look at a better name than "Birch County". I would prefer Murray County or even Lake County......LOL
Why don't they instead look to become an incorporated municipality that crosses county lines?
Sounds similar to proposals here where I live in northern Fulton County, GA to re-establish Milton County (the circular northern portion of the county), which was absorbed into Fulton County sometime in the early part of the 20th century to rescue it from bankruptcy. Interestingly, these days it's the wealthiest part of the county. But at least there's something of a historic precedent for such a move here.
If they don't like the way things are going in Richland or Lexington County they can move to another county, much like they expect my partner and me to move to another state if we want to get married.
If they don't like the way things are going in Richland or Lexington County they can move to another county, much like they expect my partner and me to move to another state if we want to get married.
I wonder if marriage equality could be passed on a county level? I bet we could get it passed in Richland County. Then again, maybe we could just secede from South Carolina.
Why don't they instead look to become an incorporated municipality that crosses county lines?
Sounds similar to proposals here where I live in northern Fulton County, GA to re-establish Milton County (the circular northern portion of the county), which was absorbed into Fulton County sometime in the early part of the 20th century to rescue it from bankruptcy. Interestingly, these days it's the wealthiest part of the county. But at least there's something of a historic precedent for such a move here.
They tried that before and it failed... additionally... as a municipality they would still be "subject to" Richland and Lexington County depending on their municipal boundaries.. If you form a new County you would be rid of the leaders from aforementioned Counties....
The town of Irmo was incorporated in Richland County but extends into Lexington.. After the City of Columbia in the late 80s annexed Columbiana Center.. the town looked to Richland County and the Courts to intervene since they felt Columbia had robbed them of much needed tax base. When Richland County sat on its hands.. the town decamped into Lexington County in terms of their seat of government... so they became a ward of Lexington County instead of Richland. Now the Ballentine/Birch County area feels unrepresented by both Richland and Lexington Counties and threatened by annexation from Irmo and to a lesser but still real extent.. the City of Columbia.. so they are attempting to carve out their own niche....
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All I have to say is.. they need to look at a better name than "Birch County". I would prefer Murray County or even Lake County......LOL
Better yet, change the letter r to a letter t in Birch and you have a winner. 
