Hyperbaric Chamber Therapy in North Charleston, SC

NORTH CHARLESTON — City leaders are on track to increase the salary of the mayor to $218,310 a year, a 12.6 percent increase over incumbent Keith Summey’s current pay of $193,880.

The full City Council will take its first vote on the matter Feb. 23 after its finance committee earlier voted 8-2 to raise the pay for the city’s mayoral position, making North Charleston’s mayor the highest paid in South Carolina.

If passed, the mayor and council member salaries would go into effect in January 2024 — after the city’s November municipal election.

The city contracted the outside firm of Management Advisory Group to analyze the salaries of the mayor, City Council and employees. MAG recommended a 20 percent increase for the mayor, which would’ve put the mayor’s pay at $234,000.

City staff instead recommended a 12.6 percent raise, equal to the raises employees have received over the past three years.

The firm also recommended an increase for other elected officials. The city’s Finance Committee, which includes all members of the council, voted the same day in a 6-4 vote to also increase the salaries of North Charleston City Council members from $20,657 to $23,260 a year.

MAG said the salary increases are meant to “more adequately compensate for the time and effort to do their jobs involved in the diligent performance of their responsibilities and bring the city in line with comparable cities within the state.”

MAG did a similar analysis in 2019, after which City Council approved the current pay for mayor and council. The new salaries will go to whoever is elected in the city’s November general election.

North Charleston has a full-time mayoral position, as opposed to some other governments where the mayor might serve in a part-time capacity.

First elected in 1994, Summey, 75, has remained tight-lipped about his political future, though several sources inside City Hall have said Summey has told them he does not plan to run for an eighth term. He told reporters at City Hall on Feb. 22 that he’ll make a decision within 30 days.

“I love what I do,” Summey said. “In a couple of weeks, I’ll be 76 years old. I have four beautiful grandkids. I’ve got to make up my mind. I’ll do a final sit-down in the next couple of weeks with my family and make it a family decision.”

Summey’s financial activity for a potential political campaign has been mostly dormant. His campaign finance reports show no fundraising activity for 2022.

North Charleston is one of two large South Carolina municipalities that use a strong-mayor form of government in which the mayor runs the city’s day-to-day operations acting as a chief administrator. In Charleston, Mayor John Tecklenburg earns $214,394.39 annually.

Elsewhere throughout the Palmetto State, mayors of larger cities mostly act as elected officials who preside over council meetings while hired city mangers run daily operations of local government.

Columbia City Manager Teresa Wilson makes $228,314, according to 2021 data provided online by the city. At the time, then-Mayor Steve Benjamin earned $75,000. Greenville manager John McDonough earns $278,512, according to the Municipal Association of South Carolina. Part-time Mayor Knox White makes $24,000.

The uncertainty surrounding the North Charleston mayoral position is one of the reasons Councilman Bob King voted against the salary bump. King said he may have supported the pay raise if Summey had planned to run for reelection.

That said, $213,000 is still too high of a salary, King said.

Councilman Ron Brinson, who also voted against the pay raises, said the timing of the proposals isn’t ideal.

“I think with all that’s going on in the economy, it’s just not a good look,” Brinson said.

The full City Council will have to make a final decision on the new salaries. Council meets at 7 p.m. Feb. 23 to make an initial vote inside City Hall.

Five world-class illusionists will stage incredible interactive illusions at the North Charleston Performing Arts Center May 2. This mind-bending theatrical production called Champions of Magic includes stunts such as an impossible escape from Houdini’s water torture cell, mind-blowing mentalist predictions and levitation high above the stage.

One of the five performers, Hollie England, said she performs artistic magic acts. In the show, England swallows needles and plays with fire while dressed as an Alice in Wonderland-inspired character.

Mentalist Alex Mcaulay will “dive into the audience’s minds,” England said. “We interact with and use the audience in very different kinds of ways. Alex, he reads people’s minds. The thoughts in your head, he can delve in there and get them out.

“And then, we have Fernando Velasco, an escapologist. He does some death-defying escapes, from diving into water tanks with handcuffs to getting out of a straitjacket,” she said.

A duo called “Young and Strange” will also perform, creating large-scale illusions in the vein of well-known magician David Copperfield.

“There’s definitely a lot of audience participation, so if you want to get picked for something, then there’s a lot of chances it might happen,” England said. “It’s for the whole family, and it’s got a large variety of things in the show, so everyone’s going to find something that they enjoy.”

The five illusionists in Champions of Magic have been compared to the characters of the 2013 film, Now You See Me, in which charismatic magician Atlas (played by Jesse Eisenberg) leads a team of talented illusionists.

The film, predictability, gets some things wrong about being a stage illusionist, England said, mostly that they perform acts which simply can’t be done in real life. It does, however, get some things totally right.

“They each have their own speciality of magic that they do, which is accurate to us as well,” England said. “I also love how they work together, which is something that Champions of Magic also does. We have multiple acts we do together as a group, and that’s really cool because you see how we interact with each other, and how we create magic together.”

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A charter school in North Charleston will close its doors after this school year following a history of violations and instances of noncompliance.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A charter school in North Charleston will close its doors after this school year following a history of violations and instances of noncompliance, according to the Charter Institute at Erskine.

Gates School has been in operation since August of 2021, “founded to serve students with a primary diagnosis of dyslexia,” according to the school’s website.

The Charter Institute at Erskine’s Board of Directors, tasked with authorizing charter schools in South Carolina, voted Monday to revoke the charter of Gates School “due to systemic findings of noncompliance of state and federal special education law.”

The board had previously met Mar. 16, 2022 and voted to revoke Gates School’s charter for the same reason, but an appeal hearing from the school gave them a second chance at keeping their doors open and remedying “it’s ongoing noncompliance,” the Institute says.

Live 5 has previously reported on the school’s history of noncompliance, including when the Charter Institute at Erskine paused enrollment just months after the school’s opening due to staffing shortages, specifically special education teachers.

“The Board and our District are tasked with ensuring that every student’s rights are protected under the law and that our schools are complying with all legal and regulatory requirements imposed by our federal and state governments,” Dr. Steven Adamson, President of Erskine College and Chairman of the Charter Institute Board, said. “As we move forward, the Institute and the Board are committed to ensuring a smooth transition.”

As of April 24, 2023, about 95 students were enrolled at Gates School, according to the Charter Institute at Erskine. The Institute says it will notify parents of the closure and work with families to “provide a smooth transition for their students.”

Ashley Epperson, Director of Communications for the Charter Institute at Erskine, provided this statement regarding the school’s violations:

The Gates School’s history of noncompliance has been extensive. As a result of Gates School’s systemic noncompliance, their students with disabilities are owed more than 220,000 minutes of special education services that the school was required by law to provide. The Charter Institute, in an attempt to remedy this systemic special education noncompliance, provided ongoing support, trainings, and site visits to the school. In an effort to impress upon the administration of Gates School the seriousness of these matters, the Institute placed multiple sanctions on the school from 2021-2023, including the issuance of multiple notices of noncompliance, multiple corrective action plans, and multiple enrollment freezes.

Stephanie Sams, Founding Board Chair for Gates School issued the following statement after Monday’s announcement:

Gates School community is heartbroken and disappointed that the Charter Institute at Erskine Board disregarded the information from special education compliance experts that no statutory grounds for revocation exist. Gates School has always been dedicated to appropriate service and exceptional instruction and experiences for our dyslexic learners. Our focus will always remain on them and their best next steps. The Gates School Board and community will be taking under consideration those best next steps although I have been told that parents have already filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights.

The Charter Institute at Erskine says this is the first charter the board has revoked. Over the past decade, 14 charter schools have been closed in South Carolina.

The Charter Institute at Erskine is compiling a full list of Gates School’s violations and instances of noncompliance.

Officials with Gates School have yet to respond to a request for comment.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

A 40-year-old laundromat in North Charleston has been recently transformed, but what’s special about it is more than just its appearance.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A 40-year-old laundromat in North Charleston has been recently transformed, but what’s special about it is more than just its appearance.

Erin and John Carpenter went on an RV trip around the country during the pandemic, and that’s when they realized how important laundromats were.

After the trip, they moved to Charleston and wanted to get involved in the community. That’s when they saw Reynolds Laundromat on Reynolds Avenue in North Charleston was for sale.

The old laundromat, which has been in business for over 40 years, looked less than desirable. There were broken machines, broken furniture, and lots of repairs that needed to be done.

“John was like let’s do it,” Erin said. “Let’s make it a better place.”

The couple got the laundromat in July of last year and let it exist the way it was for six months. During that time, they listened to feedback about what was wanted and needed by the community.

It took two and a half months to transform the space, and the new Reynolds Laundromat opened up two weeks ago.

They researched laundry prices in the Charleston area and made sure they were offering the lowest prices. They then made it into a place where people sleep, hang out, eat, watch television, use free Wifi and enjoy a safe, clean space.

The grand re-opening celebration was a free laundry day complete with free loads, food, and games. The couple partnered with Lowcountry Blessing Box Project to make it happen.

“Oh, the need for this is great,” Esther Smith, volunteer for Lowcountry Blessing Box Project, said. “This community here, they really do need to be able to come here and get their clothes washed, you know.”

The couple posted a Tik Tok video of their story, and it went viral, receiving 10.5 million views as of Wednesday.

The post got the attention of many in the community including local organizations, who are reaching out and want to get involved to have more free laundry days and events.

“It was really really cool to engage with people who you know maybe live in the area or have been like hey I live nearby, I’d like to donate or I want to help sponsor more free laundry days,” Erin said.

It’s been especially exciting for manager Steve P. Eddie, who has worked here seven days a week for nine years.

“It’s more than just laundry,” Eddie said. “It’s also been a place that no matter what they’re going through, they can come here, be at peace, be safe, safe knowing that we designed this place for them and knowing that it’s beyond laundry.”

The couple is now watching their project grow before their eyes. They hope that more free laundry days are in the future, with hopes of doing them every few months. They also are adding a kids area with books and toys, as well as creating a laundry pickup and delivery service.

“Now to see people sitting at the picnic tables and kids playing in the kid’s area and using the technology and eating at the different things it’s kinda fun to see it come to life,” John said.

Longtime employee Eddie hopes it’s just the beginning for the newly renovated laundromat.

“My vision for this place is for this place to be here a long time,” Eddie said.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Boeing’s South Carolina workforce grew by about 950 in 2022, part of a companywide surge of 15,000 employees around the world.

Boeing shared its year-end employment numbers in conjunction with filing its 10-K financial performance forms with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The growth of the Lowcountry workforce brings the total headcount to about 6,500 at Boeing South Carolina’s two campuses, according to figures released by the company. The company said in a news release that it plans to hire another 10,000 workers worldwide in 2023.

Part of the Palmetto State hiring took place because delivery resumed for the Dreamliners produced at the Ladson plant. Production of the 787s had continued at a slower pace while the company and Federal Aviation Administration worked to address safety concerns.

Related: Boeing makes first 787 delivery since 2021

The company acknowledged that a return to deliveries accounted for some of the hiring, but not all of it.

Although the Dreamliner program is based at the North Charleston plant, other Boeing operations include:

• Boeing’s engine nacelle design and manufacturing center of excellence, supporting the 777X and 737 MAX programs, among others.

• Boeing Research and Technology South Carolina, the center of the company’s composite manufacturing development activities.

• One of Boeing’s four Information Technology Centers, which provides support to the entire Boeing enterprise across the globe.

• One of the primary U.S. Air Force base locations (Joint Base Charleston) supporting the C-17 fleet with technical and logistics solutions.

• One of three domestic BCA Engineering Design Centers, performing engineering work statement for BCA, BDS and BGS programs and projects.

• Senior Boeing executives leading enterprise roles such as 787 Engineering; 787 Quality; Ethics, Law and Global Compliance; and others.

“Our diverse Boeing South Carolina team demonstrates a commitment to safety, quality and integrity every day on the 787 program and across the many other Boeing programs and projects BSC supports,” Lane Ballard, vice president and general manager of the 787 program and Boeing South Carolina site leader, said in the news release. “I am proud of our growing team in South Carolina, and we will continue to invest in our teammates and the development of meaningful and fulfilling careers for generations to come.”

Boeing South Carolina is one of only three aerospace production sites in the world where twin-aisle commercial airplanes are assembled and delivered. It is the only site in the world that encompasses the full cycle of Dreamliner production, starting with fabrication using carbon composite materials and ending with final assembly and delivery to the customer.

The company has invested more than $83 million with charitable organizations in South Carolina, with an emphasis on education, arts and culture, health and human services, civic engagement and the environment. From their headquarters in Virginia, Boeing today said it would donate $500,000 to earthquake relief in Turkey.