The Times and Democrat from Orangeburg, South Carolina • 9

Tuesday. December 22, 1998 GOP wants documents on Hodges' house hunt, mansion conditions By CARRIE ARMSTRONG Associated Press Writer COLUMBIA South Carolina Republicans want I copies of all documents related to Gov. -elect Jim Hodges' search for a new home as they try to show that the Democrat wants to get out of living in the I' Governor's Mansion. Hodges' transition committee, the Budget and Control Board and the mansion director all got the I state open-records requests from state Republican Executive Director Trey Walker on Monday. He wants documentation of how much it will cost to rent another house while the mansion is renovated.

Walker also wants annual maintenance costs for the Lace House, another building on the mansion grounds that Hodges' staff has said is not fit to live in. Walker asked for copies of documents from exterminators, architects, environmental regulators and building code inspectors that would show why the Lace House is uninhabitable. Hodges' spokeswoman, Nina Brook, said the governor-elect does not have any of the items Walker wants. "The Hodgeses remain disappointed they will not be able to live in the Governor's Mansion and they are waiting on the Budget and Control Board to let them know where they will be able to live," she said. Board spokeswoman Louise Majors said Walker will get whatever information the Freedom of Information Act allows to be released.

"Well process it normally and release the information when we can," she said. Mansion Director LeAnn Fowles and Hodges' chief of staff, Kevin Geddings, did not return calls seeking comment Republicans have suggested Hodges wants to move from downtown Columbia so he can enroll his 5-year-old son, Luke, in a different school district Children living in the Governor's Mansion are supposed to attend H.B. Rhame Elementary School. But Hodges is reportedly looking into at least two other public schools in the district, A.C. Moore Elementary and Rosewood Elementary.

Earlier this month Geddings Baid the first family could not live in the Lace House because the attic was filled with 200,000 bats. When reporters toured the home a few days later, there was no sign of, the creatures. Geddings then said he had never seen the bats but that one of Republican Gov. David Beasley's staff members had told him they were causing an odor in the house. THE TIMES AND DEMOCRAT Orangeburg, S.C.

gffl ws) floes) mffiHffl FAMILY CLOTHING The Governor's Mansion is in Richland School District 1 and zoned for H.B. Rhame Elementary School. But Hodges has been considering at least two other public schools in the district, A.C. Moore Elementary and Rosewood Elementary, The (Charleston) Post and Courier reported Monday. GOP trying to box Hodges in on school choice By The Associated Press COLUMBIA Republicans are trying to put Democratic Jim Hodges in a political box, saying Hodges' decisions on a school for his 5-year-old son, Luke, should be seen as the way he also stands on the issue of school choice.

Hodges "should make sure his children attend school where he resides, or allow the same opportunity for all South Carolina children that he allows for his own children," said state Rep. Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston, who wants students to be able to transfer from substandard schools. The Governor's Mansion is in Richland School District 1 and zoned for H.B. Rhame Elementary School. But Hodges has been considering at least two other public schools in the district, A.C.

Moore Elementary and Rosewood Elementary, The (Charleston) Post and Courier reported Monday. "The debate will be affected by what the governor-elect does with his own children," said David Eckstrom, the Republican chairman of Lexington-Richland School District 5. He lost the education superintendent's race last month to Democrat Inez Tenenbaum last month and is "Parents would like to have the right to choose the school for their child to attend, whether it is within their district or within another district," Eckstrom said. Hodges' family is seeking a rental home during renovations of the Governor's Mansion and the nearby Lace House, which are expected to last 18 months. State Republican Executive rector Trey Walker filed open-records requests Monday for documentation of how much it will cost to rent another house.

He also wants annual Lace House maintenance costs. That includes copies of documents from exterminators, architects, environmental regulators and building code inspectors that would show why the Lace House is uninhabitable. No matter where he lands, Hodges says he and other parents "have to live by the transfer rules that (the district) sets." In Richland 1, just 19 of 1,694 transfer requests were turned down last year, district spokesman Greg Plagens said. The South Carolina Education Association, with 22,000 members, says vouchers for parents to send children to private or religious schools will kill the public school system. The teachers' group fought off last year's proposal in the school accountability bill to let students transfer within their district from unsatisfactory schools.

Jackie Hicks, SCEA president, says open transfer policies could lead to white flight in districts with urban areas. Hodges says that could lead to financial problems. "The issue is if the student moves away and takes with them the public school's allocation, then there are some fixed costs in the district they've left behind," Hodges said. He said Republican Gov. David Beasley was not criticized when he transferred his two daughters from H.B.

Rhame to Satchel Ford Elementary. "He liked the school (Satchel Ford). He liked the principal," said Gary Karr, Beaslea spokesman. "It wasn't a rejection of any particular kind of school." Walker said that was consistent with Beaslev's continued support of school-choice plans. Sale Sale 12.99 $10 Men's Shetland Juniors' plush sweaters and vests fleece separates Goody's low Price 24.99-34.99 Goody's Low Price 24.99-29.99 Sale Juniors' knit leggings Goody's Low Price 9.99 Sale $15 $20 Men's Union Bay sweaters Goody's Low Price 36.99 Sale Sale Sale $7 $10 Men's and ladies' Misses' and Juniors' sweaters flannel shirts juniors' knit tops and sweater vests Goody's low Price 15.99 Good Low Price 9.99-1 5.99 Goody's low Price 24.99-34.99 CfesO 3Z C5slZ Sale Sab Sale 50 off 50 off $10 $15 Goody.

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