Goose Creek City Council Regular Meeting - December 9, 2025
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Goose Creek City Council Regular Meeting - December 9, 2025
The Goose Creek City Council held its regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, December 9, 2025, at 6:00 PM in Council Chambers. The meeting included public comments, a report from the Mayor's Leadership Council, approval of minutes, recognition of Christmas card design winners, Citizen Fire Academy graduates, and outgoing Councilmember Hannah Cox, as well as several legislative items and administrative actions. The meeting adjourned at 7:55 PM.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Minutes: Minutes from the City Council Workshop on September 23, 2025, October 28, 2025, November 18, 2025, and the Regular City Council Meeting on November 11, 2025, were approved unanimously (all ayes).
- Old Business – Business License Ordinance Update: An ordinance to amend the business license class schedule as required by Act 176 of 2020 (Second and Final Reading) was approved unanimously.
- Old Business – Annexation of Beverly Drive Parcel: An ordinance to annex TMS 235‑13‑04‑045 (approx. 0.381 acres) and assign Residential Single Family (RSF) zoning (Second and Final Reading) was approved unanimously.
- Old Business – Rezoning of Etiwan Drive Parcel: An ordinance to rezone TMS 243‑04‑00‑077 (approx. 5.15 acres) from Village Node (VN) with Central Creek District (CCD) Overlay to General Commercial (GC) with CCD Overlay (Second and Final Reading) was approved unanimously.
- New Business – Master Fee Schedule Resolution: A resolution amending the City of Goose Creek Master Fee Schedule (Introduction and Final Reading) was approved unanimously.
- Administrator's Report – Sign Removal/Replacement Incentive Plan Extension and Waste Screening Grant: A request to extend the Sign Removal and Replacement Incentive Plan indefinitely at 80% reimbursement up to $7,000 and to create a Waste Screening Incentive Plan using remaining funds (approx. $275,000) was approved unanimously.
- Administrator's Report – Speed Hump Installations: Approval to install speed humps on Anita Drive, Foxborough Road, and Red Cypress Drive in 2026, using $58,051.30 from the City's traffic calming budget supplemented by $40,000 from County Councilmember Phillip Obie and $23,000 from County Councilmember Steve Davis, was approved unanimously.
- Administrator's Report – New Appointments to Boards and Commissions: Appointments were approved: Nilsy Rapalo and Amy Heckle to the Cultural Arts Commission (two‑year terms), and Brian Harris to the Building Board of Adjustments and Appeals (three‑year term, At‑Large).
Public Comments & Testimony
- John Tecklenburg (applicant for the Etiwan Drive rezoning) thanked the Mayor, City Council, and staff for their understanding and public service.
- No public comments were offered for the Solid Waste Collection Ordinance (public hearing) or the E‑Bike/E‑Scooter Ordinance (public hearing).
Discussion Items
- Solid Waste Collection and Disposal Ordinance (Commercial Roll‑Cart Service): Councilmember Jerry Tekac moved to table the ordinance to gather additional information on the number of potential participants (estimated between 6 and 500) and related revenue/expense impacts. Councilmember Hannah Cox supported tabling, noting the City's intent to help niche businesses. City Administrator Natalie Zeigler recommended tabling until the January 27, 2026, Council Workshop, with possible reintroduction at the February 10, 2026, meeting. The motion to table was approved unanimously (all ayes).
- E‑Bike and E‑Scooter Safety Ordinance: The ordinance was introduced for first reading. Mayor Gregory Habib expressed concerns about regulating e‑bikes more strictly than traditional bicycles, jurisdictional challenges, and the potential impact on adults who rely on e‑bikes for transportation. He noted that state legislation may be more appropriate. Police Chief LJ Roscoe confirmed similar ordinances exist in about six or seven other municipalities. After discussion, the motion to approve failed (all nays). The Mayor indicated the ordinance could be brought back for further discussion at a future workshop.
Key Outcomes
- Business License Class Schedule Update: Adopted; effective May 1, 2026.
- Annexation of Beverly Drive Parcel: Approved and annexed into the city with RSF zoning.
- Rezoning of Etiwan Drive Parcel: Approved; property rezoned to General Commercial (GC) with Central Creek District (CCD) Overlay.
- Master Fee Schedule: Adopted; effective January 1, 2026.
- Sign and Waste Screening Incentive Plans: Extended until funds exhausted.
- Speed Hump Installations: Approved for three roads; funding committed for 2026.
- Board/Commission Appointments: Approved as recommended.
- Solid Waste Commercial Program: Tabled to January 2026 Workshop.
- E‑Bike/E‑Scooter Ordinance: Failed; to be revisited in January 2026 Workshop.
- Recognition: Christmas card design winners (Liberty LePine, $100; Isabella Brown, $100, absent); graduates of the first Citizen Fire Academy; outgoing Councilmember Hannah Cox (thanked and presented with a South Carolina House Resolution).
- Mayor's Report: Announced upcoming events including the Christmas Parade (Dec. 13), Shop with a Badge (over 50 children served), Toys for Tots collections, holiday closures and sanitation schedule changes (cards mailed to residents), recycling program reminder, Veterans banner pickup, Boulder Bites (Dec. 11), and multiple adult craft/workshop classes at the Rec Center and Creek Collective.
Meeting Transcript
All right, we're gonna start here in a second, even if the technology isn't working. I don't like to not do this on time. Okay. Very good. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you very much. I want to call this meeting to order. I appreciate everybody we have a coming out. We have a very nice crowd tonight, uh, which means we're doing some fun stuff because I like fun stuff. Y'all don't stay for the hard stuff, the fun stuff happens, everybody gets out, and then we gotta go through the hard stuff. But I very much appreciate appreciate you all coming. Uh today is Tuesday, December 9th. This is our regularly scheduled council meeting. And at this time, Gerald Stenson with the helping hands of Goose Creek will lead us in prayer, and we will follow that by the Pledge of Allegiance. Father, we come this evening to give you thanks. Hello, we want to bless every citizen of Goose Creek, especially around the holiday season. There's some that may be going through some struggles. Some when they look around the table, there's loved ones missing. Lord, we ask you to give them peace beyond all understanding. And again, we just want to thank you for just being God. We want to thank you for all you've done. We ask you to touch everyone is here, every feminist representative. Bless them in the name of Jesus. We pray this prayer in your name. Amen. I pledge the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God. Thank you so much. I appreciate that very much. Uh um Kelly, I don't have any people that have signed in to speak. Okay, well, we do have one that would like to speak that I'm going to use some mayoral privilege. Huh? You have that on your agenda. Um that's a second reading, and it's not a public comment. If we're talking about the same thing. No. Yeah, I don't think we are. Um John, I I know you wanted to you wanted to come and say a few words, so I'd like to give you the opportunity to do that. So I was told I didn't need to sign up for public comment. It's okay. I would have gladly signed up. Um, John Techlenburg, and I wanted to thank you, Mr. Mayor and Council members, for your understanding on the uh matter of the rezoning over on um Etawan Drive. But also uh it turned out I was the applicant for that, uh helping out my son who's in the real estate business. But mostly I just wanted to come and uh thank you for your service, because I do understand that serving in municipal government, both as staff and uh as elected official, um, is is truly public service. By the way, your staff was great all the way through this matter, and again, I thank you for your understanding and wish you happiest holidays you could ever have this year. Thank you so much. Thank you, John. And I knew he was going to commend our staff, so that's why I wanted to bring him up to do that. And I also can't wait to uh maybe retire from here and let my hair grow out. That's gonna make me very happy.
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