Roasted: Coffee with Roger Goodman

Roger Goodman, running for Dorchester County Council District 6, sat down with Patch and concerned voters 4:30 p.m. Thursday at .

Coffee with the Candidates is 4:30 p.m. Thursdays. .

Here is a recap of Thursday's event with Goodman:

Q: What is your opinion on the county services building, also known as the Old Hospital?

It should stay just the way it is. I see no reason at all to do anything with it. The $30,000 in leases the county pays due to the building being too small to house all of its services down here is much cheaper than building a new building. The cost factor of building a new county chambers is tremendous. 

Q: Will the county have to raise taxes?

Yes and nobody's talking about it. I don't want to see taxes raised at all. I want the county to clean stuff up. The county is not spending money in an efficient manner, and no one is willing to dig and see what can be cut. You need to stop spending more than you take in. That's what I have to do at home and at my business.

Q: What is your position on impact fees?

If I had been on council when the issue came up, I would have voted against it. You can call it impact fees or you can call it a tax. Either way it doesn't make good sense and hurts small business owners more than those who cause infrastructure problems. We are trying to build the economy, and all it does is slow down growth. It was passed because we needed a new revenue stream. It hasn't slowed growth of big planned developments, which cause the biggest impact to infrastructure. We've got to fix the roads. The problem with impact fees paid is are they going directly to fix the road affected? These large developments need to directly invest in the infrastructure they're impacting. Impact fees are not hurting these big companies; they're hurting the little guy.

Q: What is the government's role in economic development?

I'd like to see the government involved as least as possible. Impact fees are a great example of hurting the little guy. The role, as I see it, is to oversee and not to restrict. The biggest thing hurting county economic development right now is ailing infrastructure. That hurts our economic development. 

Q: What is your position on aggressive or forced annexation by the town?

I'm against forced annexation, but if a majority of a subdivision agree to be annexed, that's OK. It needs to be up to the residents. If they don't want to be annexed, then it will be my job to fight for their wishes. 

Q: With little political experience, how will you work with the county's legislative delegation?

I thought my lack of political experience was a good thing. When this country was founded, our forefathers didn't think our government offices needed experienced politicians. There will likely be some huge changes with our delegation, and when I get elected, I'm going to have to sit down with these people. Until we know what they're going to do in Columbia, it makes it very hard to know what to do at the county level.

Q: You were fired from the county and have subsequently sued, which hasn't gone to court yet. Why?

I was appointed constable by the magistrate. I was asking questions about the legality of other constables who lived outside the county, and a magistrate from St. George fire me, which he doesn't have the right to do under S.C. law. 

Q: Have you ever impersonated a police officer?

No, and I'm not sure where that information came from. 

Q: You have sued another former employer, the Department of Corrections. Please explain. 

I left the S.C. Department of Corrections, working at Lieber in Ridgeville, and I was seeking clarification of the United Methodist Church program where things kept coming up missing. I did not seek any award in the suit, and the matter was settled without me obtaining money. Being a public employee for many, many years, you learn that corruption is widespread in our current system. The only way to get people in government to pay attention and to take action against corruption is in the courtroom. It's the only place you can make them accountable. If you're a public employee and willing to stand up against the system, there is a terrible price to pay. 

Q: Does that mean you'll "clean house" if you win office?

I have no agenda to clean house. It's not why I'm running. This county does need some accountability, which I intend to create. Somebody needs to watch out where the money's going.

Q: What are your thoughts on term limits?

I'm a firm believer in term limits. I will limit myself to two terms, since eight years is plenty. If you can't get your point across and help the community in eight years, then it's time to give somebody else a shot.