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SEPTEMBER 28–OCTOBER 4, 2023
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PRESORTED PERMIT NO. 97 BEAUFORT, SC 29902
COVERING BEAUFORT COUNTY
Parks and Rec director breaks rules Loper spends nearly $800k unapproved; administration takes 73 days to notify Council
From left, Tom Berenger, director Lawrence Kasdan, Jeff Goldblum, Kevin Kline and William Hurt, on the set of the Big Chill. File photo
Still Chillin’ After All These Years
On 40th anniversary of its release, The Big Chill still one of Beaufort’s main attractions By Margaret Evans The Island News
T
he first time I saw The Big Chill, it left me cold. It was winter of 1984, and I was a college freshman. The movie’s buzzy reputation had preceded it to my small liberal arts school in Tennessee, and, more significantly, so had its wildly popular soundtrack. All that autumn, strains of ‘Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,’ ‘Whiter Shade of Pale,’ ‘I Second That Emotion,’ et. al.,
streamed from every dorm room, frat house, and pub on campus. The Big Chill was the background music of our young lives that fall. We couldn’t get enough. So, when the movie finally came to our university theater just after Christmas break, we packed that tiny, single-screen cinema to overflowing on opening weekend. It was a genuine campus-wide phenomenon. And for me – though I never admitted it then – it was a letdown. I just didn’t find the movie compel-
ling. In hindsight, I think I was too young to get it, and too much a child of the times. Sure, I loved all that 60s music, but I was very much an 80s kid. I had no real context for understanding those angsty, 30-something characters, former college radicals coming to grips with their yuppiedom – and their mortality. The only part of the film that captivated me – besides the Motown music – was its setting. The story unfolded
SEE CHILL PAGE A9
By Delayna Earley The Island News It has been posted all over social media – a handicap accessible playground is coming to Beaufort County and has been placed at the Port Royal Community Center. But documents, internal communication and information from multiple sources show that Parks and Shannon Recreation Direc- Loper tor Shannon Loper did not follow the rules on how to get it. And the Beaufort County administration was less than forthcoming about how long it took to address the issue or notify County Council. According to the presentation that Chuck Atkinson, the Assistant County Administrator for Development and Recreation, gave during the Finance, Administration and Economic Development Committee meeting on Monday, Sept. 18, Loper and the Parks and Recreation Department did not follow proper procurement procedure when securing the handicap accessible playground. The term “handicap accessible playground” is the term used by Beaufort County when referring to the playground, so that is the term we are using. According to Atkinson, the playground structure was procured via a Sourcewell National Cooperative Contract, which is an agreement between a local, state, regional or federal government and a business that secures affordable rates and establishes delivery terms on goods that the agency needs to have. During the meeting, he told committee members that Beaufort Parks and Recreation did not follow the proper procedure per Beaufort’s Code of Ordinances Sec. 2-509(d), which states that any purchase made that is more than $200,000 needs to be brought before County Council for approval, even if the money has previously been approved as part of the budget process. He claimed to believe that intentions behind the “oversight” were good and asserted that the positive aspects of the new playground
SEE RULES PAGE A7
NEWS
EDUCATION
VOICES
INSIDE
Ex-attorney Fleming appeals 10-year sentence for helping Murdaugh steal.
Parker’s Kitchen donates $75,000 to support Beaufort County teachers, staff.
Pine Island’s development will help Gullahs, not hurt them.
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