We are proud to recognize the elected officials that serve Simpsonville. They are citizen legislators who volunteer to run for office and accept the responsibilities of overseeing services for our city, approve a budget, set tax rates to pay for those expenses and hire personnel to accomplish those goals.

The city of Simpsonville has six council members that represent all of the citizens and are elected by all registered voters in the city. However, in order to qualify to run for City Council you must live in one of the wards established to spread influence around the city. Wards 1, 3 and 5 were recently on the ballot and will serve 4 years. Wards 2, 4, and 6 will serve two more years then stand for election in 2025. The mayor was just re-elected and will serve 4 years. All candidates in Simpsonville run at large.

We asked each council person to forward a short write-up to include contact information, challenges facing our citizens, solutions that may be introduced, and plans for the future.

Here are your elected officials.

Chad O’Rear - Ward 1

When I decided to run for the Ward 1 Council seat I observed the same issues that everyone else in the city has seen and experienced on a daily basis, booming growth and the traffic that comes with it. This is certainly not the same city I grew up in in the 1970’s and 1980’s. Growth is certainly not all bad but does need to happen at the same pace as infrastructure improvements. I will introduce an Ordinance next month that will give the Council a little more flexibility in dealing with development in the city. As your elected officials the City Council is ultimately responsible for how the city grows and how infrastructure is developed to keep up. I take this responsibility very seriously and will look for all solutions that will financially impact the citizens of Simpsonville the least. I’m a taxpayer here too! Soon I would like to find a simpler solution to the traffic flow downtown by relooking at the “Counterclockwise” traffic flow change. It would be nice to find some relief from the traffic while we wait for the SCDOT to remove the planters on NE Main St. I really enjoyed my first few months on the Simpsonville City Council representing my hometown. I look forward to helping make this City better than ever over the next four years. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me with any questions, suggestions, or concerns.

Chad O'Rear - Ward 1 Councilman - 864-823-9732 - corear@simpsonville.com

Aaron Rupe - Ward 2

CHALLENGES

Obviously the amount of growth is the number one issue for our city. With that growth comes more traffic. The amount of growth not only is effecting Simpsonville, but Greenville County as a whole. It is something that all the City Councils within Greenville are having to deal with.

Another concern for a lot of residents in our city, is flooding from hard rains. The residents mostly affected by this are in older neighborhoods, where the pipes underground were not made to allow this kind of water run off, nor were they required to put in retention or detention ponds. This has led to major problems for some of our residents.

SOLUTIONS

While City Council is extremely careful with each developer that comes before us, the county can and in most cases, approve the development, even if City Council votes against it. So, whether Council approves the development or not, the development in most cases, will be built there. This has been at times a struggle with what seems to be a pro-growth county verses a city who is very conservative when it comes to adding new developments.

In regards to the water run off issue, it has been estimated that the costs involved would be the 100s of millions dollar range. To put things in perspective, our city’s annual budget is a little less than $30 million. To fix this issue properly, it could cost upwards of 100 times our annual budget or more. We have spoken to the county, state and I’ve even made calls to our US representative for funding in this area. What we need to realize is there are hundreds of areas in our state that are even worse than Simpsonville. This is a state-wide issue and if there are funds from the State or Federal Government, everyone’s got their hands out and wants a piece of the pie. I do meet once a month with our representative in Columbia and speak to him as well as others in Columbia weekly to keep a constant line of communication open.

PLANS FOR THE FUTURE

As many of you have seen, the buildings for the new City Hall, Fire Station, Court House and City Park has been started and progress is moving very fast. It has been told to Council that the buildings will be ready for occupation by October of this year. 100% of the Court House is being funded by the county.

The new City Park, I believe will be the prettiest park in the State when finished.

To help with our traffic issues, some of the city streets will be one-way. This was done by SCDOT and they feel this will fix many of our traffic problems downtown. Be looking for implementation as soon as this summer.

Aaron M. Rupe - 519 Dovestone Drive - Simpsonville, SC 29681 - 864-275-7241 - arupe@simpsoville.com - Elected through 2025

Shannon Williams - Ward 3

I have enjoyed being on Simpsonville City Council and am grateful for the opportunity to serve the city. I know there are things that need work. Some main topics I have heard concerns about are traffic, flooding, and infrastructure. I do know that all of these are currently being addressed. We have one-way roads being put in the downtown area to help with traffic flow. Repairs on roads from flood damage and discussion on how to prevent flooding with future developments are in progress. And, sewer lines and infrastructure are being updated. I understand it will take time. I am looking forward to seeing City Park soon, it will have some new amenities that are really going to be enjoyable for everyone. I am looking forward to the next 4 years and excited to serve the city as a person who cares about the community we live in. I can be reached by Phone or Email.

204 Sellwood Circle - Simpsonville, SC 29681 - 864-688-9951 - swilliams@simpsonville.com - Elected through 2027

Sherry Roche - Ward 4

After several requests including email and phone messages, we regret to report that Ward 4 Councilwoman Roche decided not to comment for this article. We began this project to recognize all the city officials in our community, and to offer an opportunity to provide an avenue for transparency and communication with their constituents .

204 Foxhound Road - Simpsonville, SC 29680 - 864-325-3035 - sroche@simpsonville.com - Elected through 2025

Tim Pinkerton - Ward 5

I believe my role as a Council-member is first be a good steward of our Citizens needs which are rooted in:

• Maintaining and improving infrastructure (storm drainage, traffic, paving and public works)
• Providing a safe and secure City backing the Police and Fire Departments
• Ensuring our budget supports those needs first over wants

202 S. Almond Drive - Simpsonville, SC 29681 - 864-219-7488 - tpinkerton@simpsonville.com - Elected through 2027

Lou Hutchings - Ward 6

Prior Service to the City of Simpsonville...

• Member Swamp Rabbit Trail Development Committee, Simpsonville, SC
• Chairman of Arts Center Feasibility Study Committee, Simpsonville, SC
• Served on the City of Simpsonville Planning Commission and Board of Zoning Appeals

Deep Roots in Simpsonville...My wife, Mary, and I have called Simpsonville home for practically all of our adult lives. Our four children have all grown, attended school, worked and played here. Our roots are deep and we all love this town. Public service has been my way of returning some of that love to the town and people that have been the source of so much success and happiness for our family.

Term of Service - I am currently serving my second four-year term and will be up for reelection in 2025.

Planning

Planning is my number one priority for the City of Simpsonville. For all functions of City Government to work effectively, there must be a plan in place. Prior to being elected, my background in Simpsonville city government with first the Planning Commission and then the Board of Zoning Appeals, allowed me to see the effects that proper planning (or lack thereof) can have on our city.

With this in mind, I worked with Council to revise the 2030 Comprehensive Plan. Having a rule book in place, our Council was then able to devise and employ a Strategic Plan which ultimately lead to the development of a Master Plan. With a visionary Master Plan and a revised Comprehensive Plan, we have the necessary tools to manage our City and move forward with direction. With these plans in place, all of the following important aspects and goals of Simpsonville city government have been achieved, so far.

Some critical achievements:

• Maintained a balanced budget with a healthy reserve fund
• Developed a strategic plan for our city
• Developed and began implementation of a master plan for downtown
• Economic development: attracted many new businesses with a significant increase in retail sales
• Community development: established an arts and cultural center, increased affordable housing with habitat for humanity, upgraded and improved our senior and activity center
• Envisioned a plan for the swamp rabbit trail in Simpsonville and established the first mile of trail
• Developed and implemented a plan for our revitalized city park and municipal complex

Some of my Current Goals

• Develop a plan to mitigate storm water runoff issues and implement better control in the future.
• Continued focus on sustainable, smart growth with an increased emphasis on infrastructure needs

As always, I will strive to be a good listener to determine the wants and needs of our residents and to translate those wants and needs into actions that will offer the most benefit to our City of Simpsonville as a whole.

304 Alder Drive - Simpsonville, SC 29680 - 864-303-5767 - lhutchings@simpsonville.com - Elected through 2025

Mayor Paul Shewmaker

Challenges Faced: Our city faces two ongoing challenges: rapid growth causing traffic congestion, and storm-water runoff leading to flooding during heavy rains. Managing growth, zoning, and annexation while addressing traffic concerns is complex. Additionally, flooding impacts some of our residents severely, necessitating immediate and long-term solutions.

Solutions in Progress: Addressing growth requires cooperation between Greenville County and all six cities in the county. We are being overwhelmed by this growth and without a regional plan we're going to turn into the next Atlanta. I've been working with Upstate leaders on this but it remains challenging. Addressing our flooding issues requires significant funding. While we're pursuing options like low-interest loans, direct funding from state and federal sources is crucial. I've joined the American Flood Coalition to advocate for this support. I've already been to Columbia once and will be going to D.C. in early May. I want to thank the S.C. House for their funding request in the House Budget. It's with the Senate now. I urge residents to contact our elected representatives to vote for this funding.

Future Plans for Simpsonville: Construction progresses on the new municipal complex and is expected to be completed by October, and the City Park renovations will be done by spring of next year. Our downtown revitalization project, delayed due to contractor availability, promises improved traffic flow and walkability. You should see the cones go up this summer. Please be patient while this project is under way. Efforts to extend the Swamp Rabbit Trail continue, with a focus on collaborating with property owners for success.

With all this going on I know by this time next year you'll see a Simpsonville that's even better, and yet still, simply home.

Email: mayorshewmaker@simpsonville.com - Phone: 864-619-8445