The Aiken County Farmers Market will be the focus of Monday night’s Aiken City Council meeting.

On the agenda for the 7 p.m. council meeting is the second and final reading of an ordinance amending the city charter to change the appointment of commissioners to the Farmers Market Board of Directors.

Also on the agenda is a resolution to authorize a tender for the development of the Jackson Petroleum site.

Jackson Petroleum’s property is located across Williamsburg Street to the north from the Farmers Market.

Farmers Market Association

The city’s Parks, Recreation and Tourism Department wants to make changes to the city charter to create a board to give market vendors more influence and control over operations at the farmers market, City Manager Stuart Bedenbaugh said in a memorandum to council.

As part of its efforts to give vendors more say, the department decided to create a new committee, but then learned that city ordinance already called for a farmers’ market commission, Tourism Director Eric Gordon told council on June 10.

However, the Commission has been inactive for several years, if not decades, he added.

Therefore, the department decided to amend the existing code rather than establish a new committee, Gordon continued.

The regulation would change the name of the commission to “Farmers Market Committee”.

This would also change the way members join the board.

Specifically, the city ordinance stipulates that the council appoints the members. The amended ordinance provides for the members to be elected by the registered market traders.

Committee members are expected to be registered sellers.

The amended code would provide for four meetings per year and would eliminate provisions allowing the committee to hire staff and purchase equipment.

And it would also define the role of the department.

The Aiken City Council approved the ordinance on first reading on June 10. Councilman Ed Woltz voted against approval.

Jackson Petroleum

The bid is intended to find developers who want to demolish the existing buildings – only one of perhaps several could be saved, Bedenbaugh said in July – and build a mixed-use building on the site.

According to the tender, the mixed-use development could include commercial space, apartments and/or terraced houses, and parking spaces would also have to be available.

The bid calls for the construction of a shortcut road connecting Williamsburg Street and Marlboro Street, Bedenbaugh said.

The city is working with the South Carolina Department of Transportation to acquire property on the 100 block of Marlboro Street, he added.

If the city gets the street, it will convert it to the downtown Pascalis-Dexter grid format, Bedenbaugh said.

Further agenda items

The council is also expected to consider first reading of an ordinance that would add proceeds from the sale of Newberry Hall to the city budget and approve plans to build a dental office in the Village at Woodside.

How the Newberry Hall revenue will be spent will be decided by the City Council later, Bedenbaugh said. The ordinance simply adds the money to the budget, he added.

Also on the agenda is the reappointment of Glenn Rush to the General Aviation Commission.

The council also plans to recognize Thomas Watson and the Boy Scouts of Troop 146 for an Eagle Scout project, as well as five USA Boxing Team medalists from the Hankinson Boxing Gym.

The council will meet at 5 p.m. for a work session to discuss USC Aiken’s plans for its softball field with Dan Heimmerman, the school’s chancellor.

To accommodate construction of the Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative, the softball field will be relocated to the other side of Robert M. Bell Parkway.

Also on the agenda is a board meeting to be held between the work session and the regular meeting. The council is expected to conduct its annual review of Bedenbaugh’s performance as city manager.

Here’s how you can participate or watch

Meetings are held on the third floor of the municipal building at 111 Chesterfield St. SW.

Parking is available on both sides of Chesterfield Street, in the city parking lot next to City Hall, and along Newberry Street.

A livestream of the meeting will be available on the city’s YouTube channel.