By JIM FAILE

DARLINGTON - A senior official with the S.C. Department of Commerce recommended a major overhaul of Darlington County’s Economic Development Partnership that he said should include reducing the size of the partnership’s Board of Directors and making the partnership’s executive director responsible to the county administrator rather than the board.

Maceo Nance, director of Small Business and Rural Development for the Commerce Department, said the public-private partnership needs a restructuring if it is to work properly. He said the organization appears to be a partnership in little more than name only. “Partnership does not exist in this county,” Nance said.

“This is a critical time for Darlington County,” he said. “It’s a time to make tough decisions. It’s a time to do away with individual likes and dislikes. It’s a time to eliminate turf issues. It’s a time to put petty differences aside. It is the time to establish a new Darlington County.”

Darlington County Council agreed in June to ask Nance and the Commerce Department to review the nearly three-year-old partnership and make recommendations for possibly restructuring it. That came after several council members voiced some displeasure with the partnership and its performance.

Nance presented a report prepared by him and his staff to council during a special called meeting Thursday. He said the recommendations were based on a review of materials and information provided by county officials and the development partnership. He said that while the recommendations reflect an opinion, it is “an educated opinion, an opinion based on experience.”

Members of the partnership Board of Directors and representatives of Darlington County Progress, a private, nonprofit group formed to support the partnership and economic development efforts in the county, were also on hand for the presentation.

“Partnership is more than a word. Partnership is unified action by a group of people. I think you’re at a crossroads here,” Nance said.
Nance said the recommendations provide a framework on which to build if council chooses to do so. “We strongly believe that this is a good structure. It’s manageable,” he said.

Nance said the funding setup by which the county and Darlington County Progress each provide half of the partnership’s local budget of $285,000 is a good arrangement that indicates that both the public and private sector recognize the importance of economic development.

In recommending that the executive director report to the county administrator, Nance noted that 33 of South Carolina’s 46 counties currently use that model in their economic development programs. Ten county development directors report to a board or board chair, and three are staff members of regional alliances and report to those organizations’ executives.

“We strongly recommend that the executive director report directly to the county administrator and that the administrator have all personnel oversight responsibility,” Nance’s report says.

“The developer/administrator relationship is one of the most important in county government, especially when it comes to expediting incentive package decisions, funding requests for product development and bridging the gap between the partnership board and the Darlington County Council. The administrator should serve as a sounding board for the executive director prior to approaching county council regarding all issues. They should work as a team.”

The recommendations also include shrinking the number of available seats on the partnership’s Board of Directors from 28 to 13. “Twenty-eight is way too many people. I just don’t see it functioning,” Nance said.

Not all 28 seats are filled. According to the county’s website, the board currently has 14 members. Current rules allow council to appoint nine board members with one of those the council chairman. Another nine are appointed by the board of Darlington County Progress.

The partnership board itself elects three members at large. Representation is also available to the county’s four municipalities. The county administrator and the heads of the county’s two chambers of commerce in Hartsville and Darlington also hold seats on the board but are nonvoting members.

“Without specific guidelines and procedures, large county development boards such as this one invite unwanted consequences,” Nance’s report said. “The potential for selecting members ‘just to fill a seat’ or the big wrestling match over ‘who’s in control’ are two pitfalls that often arise. In addition, it is usually very difficult to keep all on large boards focused and involved on the business at hand.”

Nance is recommending that council and Progress each appoint only four members. Each would serve four-year terms.

Two seats would be dedicated to existing industry representatives each serving two-year terms under the recommendation. The report calls for those two representatives to be selected by an Existing Industry Roundtable made up of the top executives of Darlington County’s industrial base. Currently, no such entity exists, Nance said, but he said the county needs to establish one.

One seat would be reserved for a representative of one of the two electric utility companies operating in the county, Progress Energy and Pee Dee Electric Cooperative, with that seat rotating between the utilities every two years. And one seat would be dedicated to one of the two chambers of commerce, also rotating between the two every two years.

The chairman of council and the chairman of the Progress board would select the partnership board chairman jointly, under the proposal.

“Board configuration should include representation from those entities that are directly involved in the economic development process, as well as those involved in day to day business operations,” the report says. “It is important that there be no more than one member of the board from any organization or entity.”

Nance also recommended term limits with no member serving more than two consecutive terms. He said the current arrangement does not adequately address term limits. “Keeping folks in a rotation is always good,” Nance said.

Appointees to the board should be the top executives of the entities represented, Nance said. “Designees are not an option,” he said. And appointment should be based on a person’s ability to serve with distinction, he said.

He said the board should be diverse in both race and gender and that appointees should be visionaries, capable of working collaboratively with others and have a good grasp of business practices.

Nance said that while all of the appointees should be encouraged to undergo economic development training, the eight appointed by council and Progress should be required to attend and successfully complete the S.C. Economic Development Institute, an economic development training course originally designed for elected and appointed officials, and should do so within the first 12 months of their service on the board.

Nance said the board needs to meet more frequently, at least once a month for the first year. Currently, the partnership board is required to meet at regular intervals but no less than once a quarter. Too few meetings encourage low attendance and participation, Nance said. He said meetings should be considered professional meetings and not social gatherings.

“Boards of this type must be functional,” Nance said. He said more frequent meetings help develop a stronger working relationship among members. After the first year, the meeting schedule could be scaled back to every two months, he said.

Nance also addressed what he said appears to be a communication breakdown. “Y’all figure it out, but there’s some communications breakdowns that are going on here, and it’s creating some ill will,” Nance said.

Currently, the partnership provides an annual report to council, although partnership Executive Director Robert Long meets with council on an as needed basis usually related to a specific project need.

“Communication with county council, the county administrator, as well as the partnership board is a must for a unified and coordinated economic development program,” Nance said. Regular personal presentations involving council, the board and the administrator need to take place, he said.

The county also needs to develop a new long-range strategic plan for economic development, Nance said. He said in his review of materials, the most recent strategic plan he found was dated 2002. In addition, an Annual Program of Work should be developed to help give the partnership direction and focus, he said.

Nance said accountability with measurable standards and transparency are important to ensure that activities remain above board and to build trust. “Don’t get activity confused with achievement,” he said.

Council Chairman Billy Baldwin said council will take up the recommendations at its next meeting on Aug. 15.