Post Tagged with: "John Tecklenburg"

Photos by Rob Byko. Copyright, 2020.

PHOTO ESSAY: Calhoun statue comes down in Charleston

Staff reports  |  Contributing photographer Rob Byko captured the moment Wednesday (above) that a statue of John C. Calhoun cracked away from its pedestal after workers sawed and chiseled for 17 hours to free it.  

After Charleston City Council voted Tuesday night to take down the statue, work crews arrived shortly after midnight Wednesday to start the removal process. Originally, officials thought it would take a few hours to unattach the bronze statue from the 115-foot pedestal at Marion Square, but workers discovered they had to saw through a metal rod inserted more than a century ago to provide stability, particularly from hurricane-force winds. 

Throughout the day, hundreds stopped by to watch the workers’ progress.  Just after 5 p.m., the statue came down.  It then was loaded onto a truck and taken away.  Read more about what happened Wednesday.

by · 06/29/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Photo Essay, Photos
Police monitor the Calhoun monument at Marion Square.

FOCUS: Council vote may bring down Calhoun statue this week

Staff reports  |  Charleston City Council is poised Tuesday evening to vote on a resolution forwarded by Mayor John Tecklenburg to remove the statue of John C. Calhoun from atop a 110-foot pedestal at Marion Square.

Calhoun, a former vice president and powerful senator in the years before the Civil War, advocated and developed the political theory of nullification, which holds that states should be able to invalidate federal laws.  Never legally upheld in federal courts, this principle of state’s rights was used by slave-holding states to break away from the United States when, most historians agree, the war was caused for economic reasons to perpetuate the system of human bondage of enslaved Africans.

If the Wednesday vote, which reportedly has the backing of all members of council, is not challenged in the courts, observers say the statue could be down as early as Wednesday morning, a relatively swift end to a controversial statue that has been a thorn in the side for the city’s African Americans for more than a century.

by · 06/22/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news
Wappoo Shores resident Julia Sauer, left, carries D'Allesandro's pizzas with Police Chief Luther Reynolds and Mayor John Tecklenburg. Photos by Ruta Smith, Charleston City Paper.

FOCUS: Neighbors chip in to buy pizza for police, firefighters

Staff reports  |  Residents of the Wappoo Shores neighborhood in West Ashley collected more than $650 in the last two weeks to feed police, firefighters and first responders as a way of thanking them for their service.

Fueled by an additional in-kind donation by D’Allesandro’s Pizza in downtown Charleston, the neighbors bought 30 of the company’s pies for officers on Friday afternoon. They plan to deliver as many to West Ashley firefighters next week.

Reynolds eats a slice of D’Allesandro’s pizza — at a safe social distance from anyone else!

“We’re so grateful for the support,” said Charleston Police Chief Luther Reynolds, who jokes how pizza, or “Vitamin P,” is his favorite food. “This is yet another example of showing how much the community cares for us.”

by · 05/04/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news
NEW for 5/4: Pizza for police; Wasted time; Cinco de Mayo

NEW for 5/4: Pizza for police; Wasted time; Cinco de Mayo

IN THIS EDITION
TODAY’S FOCUS: West Ashley neighbors chip in to buy pizza for police, firefighters
COMMENTARY, Brack:  Legislators wasted two months of 2020 session
IN THE SPOTLIGHT:  Charleston Gaillard Center
NEWS BRIEFS:  Corona — the beer, not the virus — on tap for May 5
FEEDBACK: Tree butchers still at it
MYSTERY PHOTO: Big water
CALENDAR:  May 8 telethon to raise money for homeless hurt in pandemic
S.C. ENCYCLOPEDIA: Catawbas

by · 05/04/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Full issue
Charlton Singleton will perform at the March 11 Homeless to Hope Fund Benefit Concert in Charleston.

NEWS BRIEFS: May 8 telethon to help homeless hurt in pandemic

Staff reports  |  Charlton Singleton, Shovels & Rope, Manny Houston, Lee Barbour, Kanika Moore and other artists will perform May 8 at a telethon to pay for services that benefit people transitioning out of homelessness.  The event will run on a variety of local media outlets. The Homeless to Hope Benefit Telethon starts at noon May 8 and will operate until 8 p.m.

by · 04/27/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Good news, News briefs
Chalked sign near the intersection of St. Andrew's Boulevard and Folly Road.

FOCUS: Tecklenburg outlines three stages of reopening Charleston

By John Tecklenburg, mayor  |  When the City of Charleston issued the stay-at-home order a few weeks ago, the primary goal was to “flatten the curve” so as to not overwhelm our hospital capacity and to greatly reduce the spread of contagion. I have been encouraged by the most recent numbers, which is a testament to our citizens staying smart, staying distanced and listening to medical experts. The plan to “flatten the curve” has and is continuing to work and we must be vigilant to keep Charleston from becoming a “hotspot”. 

As we continue to flatten the curve, it is time to  ready our strategic reopening to avoid any resurgence or spikes of the virus. I view this challenge in three ways:

* Protecting the lives and wellness of our citizens;
* Keeping our hospitals from being overwhelmed;
* Maintaining economic activity and core government services until a vaccine or treatment becomes available.

by · 04/20/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news
NEW for 4/20: Reopening Charleston; Acts of kindness; Crab Bank photos; More

NEW for 4/20: Reopening Charleston; Acts of kindness; Crab Bank photos; More

IN THIS EDITION
TODAY’S FOCUS: Tecklenburg outlines three stages of reopening Charleston
COMMENTARY, Brack:  Intentional acts of kindness soothe during crisis
IN THE SPOTLIGHT:  South Carolina Ports Authority
PHOTO ESSAY:  The beauty of Crab Bank
NEWS BRIEFS:  How you can “adopt” a Charleston restaurant during crisis
FEEDBACK: Tree butchery continues in 2020
MYSTERY PHOTO: Classic white mansion
CALENDAR: Get your art fix online
S.C. ENCYCLOPEDIA: Camp Sevier

by · 04/20/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Full issue
At left is Mount Pleasant Mayor Will Haynie at a Sunday press conference, flanked (and socially distanced) by Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg, Mount Pleasant Police Chief Carl Ritchie and Charleston Police Chief Luther Reynolds.  Photo provided.

FOCUS: Leaders say to stay home, stay distanced, stay safe

Staff reports  | City and county leaders strongly urged Charleston County residents to “stay home, stay distanced and stay safe” in the weeks ahead as the nation grapples with the coronavirus pandemic.

As of Sunday, 13 people in Charleston County tested positive for coronavirus, as well as two in Berkeley County and one in Dorchester County, according to state data.  Across the state, 195 people tested positive for the virus, including 44 in Kershaw County.

“Doctors tell us that the uncontrolled spread of COVID-19 would be nothing less than a death sentence for thousands of our friends and family members right here in the Lowcountry,” Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg said at a Sunday press conference.  “And the only way to avoid that tragedy is for all of us to start following those three simple rules right now.”

Stay home:  “If you don’t have an essential reason to go out, don’t go out. The life you save by avoiding that unnecessary trip could turn out to be yours or one of your loved ones.” the mayor said.

by · 03/23/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news
NEW for 3/23: Stay at home; Shared sacrifice; Disaster loans

NEW for 3/23: Stay at home; Shared sacrifice; Disaster loans

IN THIS EDITION OF CHARLESTON CURRENTS
TODAY’S FOCUS: Leaders say to stay home, stay distanced, stay safe
COMMENTARY, Brack: New normal involves shared sacrifice for common good
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Titan Termite & Pest Control
NEWS BRIEFS:  Small businesses can apply for disaster loans for working capital
FEEDBACK:  Hooray for South Carolina
MYSTERY PHOTO: Outdoor room with a view
CALENDAR: Take a look at some virtual events

by · 03/23/2020 · Comments are Disabled · Full issue
CALENDAR: Inauguration day in Charleston to be Jan. 13 

CALENDAR: Inauguration day in Charleston to be Jan. 13 

Staff reports  | Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg will be sworn in for his second term during a noon ceremony Jan. 13 at City Hall, 80 Broad St.  Also to be sworn in are six members of city council, including newly-elected members Ross Appel, Karl Brady, Marie Delcioppo and Jason Sakran, and current members Peter Shahid and Keith Waring.

by · 01/06/2020 · Comments are Disabled · calendar