Charleston County News Release

MEDIA CONTACT

Name:   Jennie Davis, Charleston County Public Information Officer

Phone: 843.958.4012

Email:   jdavis@charlestoncounty.org

Release Number: 2911

Date: August 20, 2008
 

George W. Tumbleston Jr. Service Center Reopens in Ravenel

          Service center will be open to the public at 8 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 25.

At a regular meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 19, Charleston County Council voted to reopen the George W. Tumbleston Service Center, located at 5962 Highway 165 in Ravenel. The center, more commonly known as the St. Paul’s Service Center or the Ravenel Service Center, will reopen at 8 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 25.
 

In an effort by Charleston County staff to reduce costs and maintain countywide efficiencies, some of the services provided at the George W. Tumbleston Service Center had ended at 5 p.m. on Friday, July 18.
 

However, County Council voted to reopen the center until they have an opportunity to go through a review of all County departments and functions. County staff hopes the review will be finalized by October so Council can provide direction for the next budget cycle at that time.
 

“We decided to reopen the George W. Tumbleston Service Center in the interim while we conduct a functional review of everything the County does,” said Tim Scott, County Council Chairman. “Our goal is to provide the highest level of services to all of our citizens and we believe the functional review will help us make our decisions.”
 

The service center is in Charleston County’s District 8, which is represented by Curtis Inabinett.
 

“After the center closed, I got phone calls from the area’s mayors and citizens urging us to reopen it,” Inabinett said. “We discussed the item at a council committee meeting and decided that keeping the center open would be the right thing to do to serve the residents while staff conducts a more in depth cost-benefit analysis of the center. I am personally going to visit residents in the area and make sure they are aware of the kinds of services that are provided at the center, and I will also encourage them to use it if they want it to continue to stay open in the future.”
 

The following County services are again available at the George W. Tumbleston, Jr. Service Center beginning 8 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 25 (these are the ones that ended after 5 p.m. on Friday, July 18):
 

        Treasurer’s Office 

• Accepting tax payments
• Issuing receipts
• Answering tax payment questions
• Collecting child support payments
• Accepting applications for the Charleston County Assessor’s Office

        Auditor’s Office 

• Providing tax bills
• Registering residents for Homestead Exemptions
• Accepting applications for the Charleston County Assessor’s Office
• Accepting voter registration applications
• Processing personal property tax appeals
• Processing mailing address changes
• Collecting and depositing fees and issuing 45-day vehicle license plate tags
• Researching and resolving property tax issues
• Processing returned license plates and other refunds
• Processing military and S.C. Department of Revenue exemptions
• Processing four and six percent applications for recreational vehicles

        Building Services Department

• Processing plan reviews for commercial and residential properties 

        Planning Department 

• Assisting with zoning and answering zoning questions

• Processing zoning, building and S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) applications

• Issuing zoning and building permits for residential uses

Hours of operation at the George W. Tumbleston Service Center are 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and the center is closed for lunch each day from 12:30 - 1:30 p.m.
 

The Magistrate’s Court, the Sheriff’s Office Ravenel substation and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) substation 14 were not affected by the July 18 closing and continue to be housed at the facility, along with the Ravenel Town Hall.
 

SIDEBAR INFORMATION ON THE ST. PAUL’S SERVICE CENTER 

• The St. Paul’s Service Center opened on July 10, 1994.
• The property was donated by the town of Ravenel plus $150,000. Charleston County Government was responsible for the design and construction costs of the center.
• The 10,500-square-foot building sits on 4.9 acres of land.