Man blind in one eye after dispute over beer
After his neighbor refused to give him a can of beer, a Rock Hill man assaulted him, blinding him in one eye, The (Rock Hill) Herald reported.
The victim, 51, reported to deputies that he and his neighbor, 43, had been drinking at a bar. An hour later, the neighbor asked the man for some beer and allegedly attacked him when he refused.
The victim initially refused to let paramedics take him to the hospital, but a police report said that deputies insisted because he was intoxicated and seriously injured. The man was taken to Piedmont Medical Center. The medical staff there told authorities that the man was blind in his left eye, with possibly irreversible damage.
Deputies were unable to reach the suspect by phone because his number had been disconnected.
Benjamin suggests tax breaks for out-of-state housing developers
Out-of-state developers building three student apartment complexes will save about $2.1 million in taxes each year for 10 years, The State reported.
The developers will be the first to receive a 50 percent tax break designed to attract student housing projects to Columbia.
The complexes, which are currently expected to open in the next two years in the Vista, are being developed by firms in Columbus, Ohio, and New York.
Mayor Steve Benjamin requested the unusual tax break after complaining that Columbia has missed out on tax revenue from a student housing boom over the last eight years.
“Research showed us the projects were not going to happen if we did not have some kind of tax incentive,” Benjamin said last week. “This is using an economic development tool to create the urban, vertical development we need.”
Critics of the tax cut argue that the break is unfair and creates an unfair advantage for some developers.
Officials to potentially privatize parking
City officials could privatize the city’s 10 parking garages and the two that will be built for the Bull Street neighborhood, The State reported.
Mayor Steve Benjamin and assistant city manager Missy Gentry said that they are preparing to seek proposals from the private sector for all garages within a couple of months.
“The goal is to have a system that easily pays for itself and also helps facilitate business growth,” Benjamin said. “Let’s ask folks, ‘Are you interested in partnering with us in this way?’”
Benjamin said he has been discussing privatization with city staffers for several years, since City Council would have to approve this change in parking practices.
The parking department says that Columbia’s 10 garages have produced revenue for the city over the past three years, with net revenue totaling $1.3 million from 2011 to 2013, but the city’s
annual reports say otherwise, showing deficits of almost $2 million for fiscal years 2011 and 2012.