City seeks to regain ownership of property sold in 2015
By Melissa Rollins, Editor, editor@newsandpress.net
Budget season has arrived. The first budget meeting of the Darlington City Council was held April 17 and included presentations by the city fire department and police department, as well as several miscellaneous items relating to past discussions of council. One of those items was the property at 101 Exchange Street.
In June 2015, the City of Darlington sold 101 Exchange Street to Webstar Properties, LLC for $100 upon ‘the condition that Webstar Properties, LLC shall renovate the building, beginning within one hundred eighty (180) days from the Deed by the City.’ During the budget session, council members learned that the building was never brought up to a state ‘reasonably suited for business or restaurant use within eighteen (18) month period’ agreed upon by the city and Webstar during the purchase.
The agreement signed by the two parties included a stipulation that if the renovations were not completed in the specified amount of time, the city had the option to ‘reconvey the property to the City of Darlington…free from all liens and encumbrances.’
City manager Howard Garland shared some background with the council because only councilman John Segars and Mayor Gloria Hines were serving at the time of the agreement.
“We basically gave this building to Victor Webster for $100,” Garland said. “It is the two-story white building at the corner of Exchange and Ward Streets. It is the oldest standing structure in town and was built around 1859.”
Garland said that Webster’s intentions for the building did not pan out.
“He has put probably $30,000 to $35,000 into the building,” Garland said. “He was supposed to open up something like a delicatessen there or a bakery. Well, he was in partnership with some other folks and he decided to open a bar there and they didn’t like it so they pulled out. He doesn’t have the funding to finish the project. So, he’s put all this money in to the building and wants to sell it; there is an interested party.”
The city came to own the property when it was gifted from an estate and has tried unsuccessfully for more than a decade to make it a viable piece of downtown.
“We’ve tried for the last thirteen years to have something done to this building,” Garland said. “Someone had option on it for five years, didn’t do anything with it. Victor Webster’s had option on it for the last three years and has made some improvements but hasn’t done anything with it specifically. He has someone that wants to buy it. I don’t know if they’ll tear it down or not.”
Garland said that a resident sent the city a Freedom of Information request seeking information about the sale to Webstar Properties, LLC. He said that that person also inquired about the city’s option of taking the property back.
“If we take it back, what are we going to do with it,” Garland asked. “I think her thing was, if we take it back why don’t we just sell it to whoever is going to buy it? My response to her was that he’s put a lot of money into it and he’s probably just getting his money back out of it.”
Two extensions were given, one to get permits and another to complete the work. Neither extended deadline was met.
“I don’t mind playing hardball and taking it back,” said councilman John Milling. “If it gets sold, he can petition the city as to whether or not the city wants to give him some consideration for any added value that he’s done. But I don’t know that what he’s done has actually added value to the building. If it is just money that he’s spent, then I’m sorry if he made a bad investment.”
Council decided to asked City Attorney Kevin Etheridge to start the paperwork to get the property back from Webstar Properties, LLC.