Spartanburg County Council Says No to Clearer Residency Laws

Updated: March 2, 2012:

Spartanburg County Council voted against defining residency more clearly for commission and board members despite weeks of controversy over a former commissioner who resigned over questionable residency.

The ordinance sought to provide factors council could consider when determining residency for an appointee, including physical mailing addresses, income tax returns, driver's licenses, etc.

Former Planning Commission Greg Hall resigned earlier this week after it was revealed he lived in Greenville County. (See below for original reporting on the Hall saga.)

Commissioners and board members are required to be "residents" of Spartanburg County, but what resident means is not explained in the law.

After the Hall controversy, Councilman Roger Nutt proposed an ordinance to define residency and again, give council ways to determine someone's residency.

However, at a special called meeting Friday morning, the council voted against the ordinance with a vote of 4-3. Those who voted against strengthening the residency requirements include: Jane Hall (who originally appointed Greg Hall); O'Neal Mintz; Michael Brown, and chairman Jeff Horton.

Roger Nutt, David Britt, and Dale Culbreth all voted for it.

Councilwoman Hall said the law was too vague, though she said the council should reconsider something similar moving forward.

Horton called the proposed measure "more government, not less," and Mintz and Brown were for the most part quiet in their opposition. 

Check back later for more updates to this story.

Updated: February 28, 2012:

The Spartanburg County planning commissioner whose residency has been in question has resigned from his post following weeks of controversy.

Jane Hall, who appointed Greg Hall and is not related, held a news conference Tuesday morning where she read a resignation letter from Hall who is out of the country for work. 

"I would have never thought that wanting to give back ... would have caused so much controversy," the councilwoman read from Greg Hall's letter.

The letter goes on, "I believe as long as I serve on the planning commission it will cause a distraction and this body won't be able to achieve its true goal of working for all residents of our county."

County Council Chairman Jeff Horton and Councilman O'Neal Mintz stood in solidarity with Councilwoman Hall as she delivered a blistering assessment of the media's coverage of the story. 

“From some serious instances of yellow journalism to the behavior of those with a "gotcha" kind of mentality, Mr. Hall is truly a victim of the actions of a small group of people that do nothing but tear apart Spartanburg county for political points," Hall said. 

The councilwoman said she will appoint a new commissioner to the planning commissioner in the coming weeks and urged a time of "healing" for the county and its council as it moves forward.

Look for more updates on this story throughout the day.

Updated: February 27, 2012

The Spartanburg County Board of Voter Registration again upheld the registration of a county commissioner whose residency has been questioned for weeks.

After a nearly two-hour hearing triggered by a citizen's public challenge, the board decided county planning commissioner Greg Hall meets the residency requirements set forth by state law to be able to vote in the Abner Creek precinct of Spartanburg County.

The public challenge came from Jim Gardiner, a Spartanburg County resident, who submitted a written challenge after seeing media reports surrounding Hall's residency.

Hall told county council prior to his nomination that he lives at 1 Century Place in Spartanburg County, though that address is where Hall's business is located. Tax records show Hall paid the "legal residence" special tax assessment rate on a home in Greenville County. That discrepancy has sparked the controversy.

Gardiner spoke for almost 30 minutes and detailed why he thinks Hall actually lives at a home on West Poinsett in Greer in Greenville County. Gardiner's case centered strongly around public tax records which indicate Hall claims legal residence in Greenville County.

Hall was not present for the hearing before the three-member registration panel, but his attorney, Pat Knie, was present.

Knie told the board that a trust managed by Hall owns the Greenville County home, and Knie said the beneficiary of that trust is actually Hall's wife, not Hall himself. Therefore, Knie said, the address is technically the wife's legal residence. And Knie said state law provides that a husband and wife can have separate legal residences.

Knie presented numerous documents, from water bills to doctors forms to athletic club membership papers, that list Hall's address as 1 Century Place.

The man challenging Hall's residency said he doesn't doubt that Hall receives lots of mail at his business address at 1 Century Place, but he asked Hall's attorney, "where does he go home at night?"

No one answered that question, and the board members said their task was to determine legal residency, not where someone actually sleeps.

UPDATED: February 20, 2012

The Spartanburg County Council refused to second a motion and discuss the recent and controversial appointment of a planning commissioner whose residency is being questioned.

Roger Nutt made a motion before Monday's council meeting to discuss Greg Hall's appointment to the planning commission, but "they [the council] ignored it," Nutt said.

Hall, whose residency is in question, was recently appointed to the planning commission by Councilwoman Jane Hall and confirmed by a majority of council. (Roger Nutt was the only descenting vote.)

Tax records show Hall pays the 4% legal residence tax on a property in Greenville County, but he told Spartanburg County Council that he lived at 1 Century Place in Spartanburg County. Hall also used that address to register to vote in Spartanburg County the day before his appointment.

1 Century Place is a commercial building where Hall's business, Century 3, Inc., is located.

A Spartanburg County citizen filed a formal challenge with the county's voter registration board, and now a hearing is scheduled for February 27th at 10:00 a.m. in county council chambers. The citizen must come up with evidence to prove Hall doesn't live at 1 Century Place. If the evidence convinces the board, its members could vote to revoke Hall's registration.

POSTED: February 14, 2012

The Spartanburg County Board of Voter Registration said they found no issues with a county commissioner's questionable residency status, and found that he is legally registered to vote in this county.

The board met Tuesday morning, and agenda item one was to discuss the residency of Greg Hall, who in November was appointed by county council to be on the planning commission.

Soon after his appointment, however, questions began about Hall's residency, and it appears Hall doesn't maintain a legal residence in the county he’s been appointed to represent, according to a 7 On Your Side Investigation.

County ordinance calls for any member of a commission to be a legal resident and registered voter in Spartanburg County, but Greg Hall, who was placed on the planning commission in November, may not live in the county, according to property tax filings.

On his application for the commission, Hall said he lived at 1 Century Place in Greer in Spartanburg County, and he said he was registered to vote in the Abner Creek precinct.

But 1 Century Place is not a residential address; it’s a commercial property where Hall’s business, Century 3, Inc., is located.

According to 2011 property taxes in Greenville County, Hall claimed his legal residence at 400 West Poinsett Avenue in Greer in Greenville County, a piece of property for which he pays the “legal residence” tax of four percent. Hall paid $1,976.29 in taxes on Jan. 17, 2012, for the home, according to online records.

Since 1979 Hall had been registered to vote in Greenville County, but on Nov. 21, 2011 -- just one day before submitting the application for the commission -- Hall changed his registration to Spartanburg County, according to the state elections office. Again, Hall used the business address as his home address, according to Spartanburg County’s director of registrations and elections Henry Laye.

Laye said Hall used a water bill from 1 Century Place as proof of residency, which Laye said is acceptable proof. However, Laye said if Hall does not actually live at the 1 Century address then an investigation of voter fraud could be launched by the election commission and sent to the S.C. Law Enforcement Division for further review.

“Hopefully knowing my board they'd be very professional about it, and they'd want it investigated,” Laye said last week.

But Tuesday morning, that board met and decided Hall's proof of residency is enough to satisfy the requirement. The board said it must simply trust Hall lives where he says he does, even if the evidence suggests otherwise. 

The only way the board would investigate further is if someone formally challenged, in writing, Hall's residency. 

Spartanburg County Councilwoman Jane Hall nominated Greg Hall, and despite the shared last name, they are not related.

The councilwoman said she’s confident in her nomination, and said she’s been assured that Mr. Hall’s domicile is at 1 Century Place.

However, when asked if she could be certain, her response was, “what I can tell you is that I have talked with the man. I have asked him, ‘do you live in my area?’and his response is ‘my domicile is at [1] century place.’”

Councilman Roger Nutt, who was the only council member to vote against Greg Hall’s nomination, said the 1 Century Place address looked fishy to him from the start.

“He may be a fantastic individual and might do a great job on the planning commission,” Nutt said, “but  ... if he doesn't live in the county, he shouldn't be on the planning commission. Nobody should.”

Repeated attempts to reach Mr. Hall for comment, including e-mails, calls, and visits to a planning commission, have been unsuccessful.

Hall attended his first commission meeting Tuesday night, but he left through the back door without giving this report a comment. 

The planning commission is charged with helping to develop ordinances for building and development within Spartanburg County. Plus, it’s responsible granting variances and overseeing an array of projects such as roads and new subdivisions.