electrician in North Charleston, SC

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) — How long would you wait for that the right new sofa or kitchen table? Some customers of a North Charleston furniture store say they’ve been waiting for two years now and claim they’re getting the runaround.

ABC News 4 received multiple reports directly to our newsroom of this, and one we found was Goose Creek mother and daughter Brittany and Shelby Fox.

“We're gonna tell the story start to finish, and you know, just cut out the nonsense,” Brittany Fox said.

On January 15, 2021, the Foxes bought a new dresser online from Home Décor Outlets from its North Charleston location. But the process of getting the furniture to their doorstep took longer than they expected.

“They told me after the first [of February] that it would get delivered. It never came,” Shelby said. “There was one contact where they said something about there was going to be a delay with the dresser could be up to six months.”

So, the mother and daughter waited. And waited.

“I have to chase them,” Shelby said. Then waited some more.

“It was just dead silence from there,” Brittany said.

Now, almost two years later – they still have nothing. They said there was one constant throughout the process: “The runaround was consistent.”

No furniture or money received by the family. Besides the receipt they have from their purchase, the only thing they say they actually got from Home Décor Outlets: Ads.

“[They were] trying to sell me a mattress,” Shelby said. “Yeah, spamming my phone pretty much. But never offering money back.”

As the time went by and the furniture had yet to arrive, the Foxes turned positions and tried to get their money back. Only to find out: “They could not refund my debit card.”

The Foxes say the company told them they had a no-refund policy and the only possible way to get one was to fill out a form and apply, where the refund would only be granted under certain occasions. The whole concept was something that confused the Foxes.

“We never even got a product at this point. It's not even a refund, it's a cancellation,” Brittany Fox said.

So I tried to get in touch with the company. I called the executive board, the phone numbers listed at their corporate websites and the phone number for the North Charleston store location. But all the phone numbers either went straight to voicemail or to dial tone alerting the phone had been disconnected.

After more than an hour, I gave up calling, got in the car and took a trip to the North Charleston store location.

It was the same thing customers like Brittany and Shelby Fox did after having their attempts at communication fall through. But much like the Foxes, when I arrived, I realized there were going to be no answers.

The store was closed with no furniture. Instead, just the remnants of a business.

So why was this the case? I did some digging and found the company had its Better Business Bureau accreditation revoked in January of 2022 for not responding to claims like the Foxes' and others that came in to government offices.

“We had eight complaints over the course of the last six years,” said Bailey Parker, Communications Director for the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs. “I'd say the majority of them came in from 2020 to 2022.”

But even the SC Department of Consumer Affairs had a problem contacting Home Décor Outlets.

“They were not getting back to us on a number of these complaints and didn't ever respond to the initial point of contact from us.”

After some more digging, we found out in February of 2022, the company filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy. Furthermore, just days after the interview with the Foxes, they received a letter from Georgia’s bankruptcy court suggesting the Home Décor Outlets convert from chapter 11 to chapter 7 bankruptcy. It would mean the company would have to close all their stores and liquidate their assets.

However, the documents still give no timetable on when these claims will be resolved and if any money is guaranteed to these customers.

“Consumers are most likely not going to be the ones that get paid back. First, it's going to be the other major creditors that they probably owe debt to,” Parker said.

We also learned from the Georgia Court of Bankruptcy, the company received loans through Covid relief, which they are required to pay 20 percent back, as well as general business loans, and they have missed 15 out of 19 payments -- not a good sign for customers.

“At the end of the day, if they don't have money, they don't have anything left, they can't pay,” Parker said.

So what are these customers options at this point?

“The only options that a consumer would have is taking the business to magistrates court, which in my opinion, is not a great option,” Parker said.

The money spent on attorneys for magistrate court could be larger than the money lost in some of these claims. Parker does say waiting to see the results of the bankruptcy court might be the best option.

Meanwhile, the Foxes ended up finding a suitable replacement dresser elsewhere. But still, after going through this whole experience, they left one piece of advice for any consumers in the state.

“Don’t just check the reviews on the product, check the reviews on the business.”

A North Charleston restaurant that served up the Grand Slam breakfast and other dishes for nearly 25 years is going, going, gone.

The only Denny’s left in the region abruptly closed amid a legal dispute between the Upstate-based dining chain and the franchisee that operated the 2280 Ashley Phosphate Road location.

The main entrance to the building was secured by a padlock and chain early Sept. 8. The signage was removed and left near some bushes lining the vacant restaurant.

“Sorry, we are officially closed. Thank you for your patronage,” according to a handwritten note taped to one of the front doors.

An attorney for franchisee Donnell Thompson, a former National Football League tight end, told an industry trade publication this week that the North Charleston restaurant and another Denny’s in Fayetteville, N.C., were to close Friday.

“We all agreed that the employees could work until this weekend, so the units are open until Friday of this week,” James L. Walker Jr. of Atlanta said in the report by Nation’s Restaurant News.

Walker did not respond to a request for additional comment.

Thompson is president and co-founder of RWDT Foods Inc., which he formed in 2012 with another NFL retiree, Ron Wooten, who played for the New England Patriots. It owns about 30 restaurants in the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida, including Checker’s drive-thrus.

The company filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit against Spartanburg-based Denny’s Inc. and its franchising arm late last month in Charleston County.

According to the complaint, the publicly traded chain had notified RWDT in October that it had defaulted on its operating agreements for the two locations, citing management-training infractions.

The franchisee said it immediately tried to fix the problems, as allowed under its contract. It alleged that its efforts to “cure” the default were thwarted.

“What began as a clear directive ... quickly turned into a moving target, making any meaningful corrective action by RWDT impossible,” the company said in its 24-page complaint.

Earlier this year, Denny’s issued a formal termination notice that was effective April 22, leading to negotiations over the several months while the restaurants continued to operate.

The settlement talks failed.

Afterward, a final termination notice was to take effect Sept. 5. RWDT requested a temporary restraining order barring Denny’s from ending the contract. A judge declined, saying on Sept. 2 that the franchisee had not demonstrated “irreparable harm.”

The two shuttered restaurants were profitable and employed a total of 24 workers, including several who have been with RWDT for more than a decade, according to the lawsuit.

The breach-of-contract litigation is expected to continue even after the restaurants have been shut down.

Denny’s did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday. In statements provided to Nation’s Restaurant News it said that it had “made every effort to work with Mr. Thompson, and it was unfortunate that he has elected to proceed this way.”

The company also said that its “success is tied directly to the success of all of our franchisees, which is why we make every effort to support them and their operations.”

The Ashley Phosphate Denny’s opened its doors near Northwoods Boulevard in 1998 in a new building patterned after an old-fashioned roadside diner, complete with a silver-cladded exterior, chrome finishes and neon lights.

RWDT took over the location in 2007. In 2013, the company’s owners were the recipients of a Denny’s franchise award.

The region’s only other Denny’s was at 5270 International Blvd., near the North Charleston Coliseum. It abruptly closed several years ago.

Back in the spring, my news outlet filed several reports on Charleston Day – one of the state of South Carolina’s most exclusive private schools. According to those reports, the Lowcountry institution was facing scrutiny over its disbursement of various federal funds provided the Covid-19 pandemic.

Specifically, federal investigators had reportedly been provided information related to Charleston Day’s 2021 application for federal funding via the Emergency Assistance to Non-Public Schools (EANS) program.

According to records provided by the S.C. Department of Education (SCDE) – which administered this program in the Palmetto State – Charleston Day requested $103,185.29 in EANS funding last spring, of which it received $79,777.82.

What’s the big deal?

(Click to view)

(Via: FITSNews/ YouTube)

On its initial EANS application, Charleston Day reported a total student enrollment of 258 – of which 131 were purportedly “students from low-income families enrolled in the private school in the 2019-2020 school year.”

Wait … more than half of students at one of the Palmetto State’s costliest, most prestigious institutions are impoverished?

As I wrote back in March, the notion that 50.78 percent of students at one of the most exclusive private academies in the wealthiest city in South Carolina hailed from “low-income families” was greeted with derision from our audience.

“It is such an incredulous assertion that many of our readers – including Charleston Day parents – doubted the veracity of our original reporting regarding the school’s application,” I noted.

They aren’t doubting it now, though …

(Via: S.C. Department of Education)

In addition to alleged irregularities on the school’s EANS application, questions were raised about various Charleston Day disbursements tied to the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) – which doled out an estimated $953 billion to businesses, self-employed workers, sole proprietorships and select nonprofits across the nation in response to the Covid-19 economic downturn.

Charleston Day received an estimated $570,200 in PPP loans, money which ostensibly went to the school’s payroll.

School officials have told me they “worked diligently to ensure we complied with both the letter and the spirit” of various federal aid programs Charleston Day benefited from – however the veracity of that assertion is very much up for discussion.

Just this week, in fact, my news outlet obtained a copy of a report prepared earlier this year related to Charleston Day’s various alleged financial irregularities. Not only did this document delve into the school’s “possible misrepresentations” on the EANS application – it addressed rumored “invalid” PPP expenditures. Furthermore, it cited “outsized and immediate retaliatory conduct in (the) wake of questions regarding (the) valid use of PPP funds.”

Wait … retaliatory conduct? What is this about?

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DON’T MISS A STORY …

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Prior to my reporting on Charleston Day’s finances, I filed a story on how school leaders removed a trustee (and kicked his three children out of school) after he and his wife raised questions about the Charleston Day’s shifting Covid-19 policies.

The trustee in question – Charleston, S.C. attorney Matt Austin – formerly worked for the office of the U.S. attorney in South Carolina. His wife, Francie Austin, is the deputy city attorney for North Charleston, S.C.

To read my exclusive report on Austin’s unceremonious dismissal from the school’s board (and Charleston Day’s decision to visit the alleged “sins of the father” on his three children), click here.

“They essentially stole money,” one infuriated Charleston Day parent who perused the report told me. “Then they ousted the person who wanted to make it right. And kicked his children out of the school.”

According to the report, the fraudulent spending allegations leveled against the school have merit – especially as it relates to the inflated low-income student count.

“Very few students qualify for financial aid for tuition, let alone a majority of students as represented by CDS in its application,” the report noted. “This metric is easily quantifiable since low-income families seeking financial aid must submit tax and supporting documentation demonstrating need before receiving aid or assistance.”

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Nearby private schools Porter-Gaud and Mason Prep listed only four percent and one percent of their student populations as low-income on EANS applications, the report claimed.

The report further alleged that unspent federal funds were improperly “moved to the (school’s) endowment” even though federal law required that “any unspent funds … must be returned.”

Founded in 1937, Charleston Day caters to the Holy City’s elite – with wealthy parents shelling out nearly $20,000 per year, per child on its kindergarten programs and nearly $28,000 per year, per child for students attending first through eighth grade, according to its tuition page.

Is that expensive? Yes. Although in fairness, South Carolina’s government-run schools are spending nearly $18,000 per child in the current fiscal year to produce vastly inferior outcomes – and not just compared to the state’s elite private academies.

Still, the allegations against Charleston Day – and the acrimony over the ouster of the Austins’ children – is having a ripple effect on the institution. According to my sources, at least three families have withdrawn their children from the school since the beginning of the current school year – with several more families considering such a move.

“The campus is falling down around them,” one source told me this week, referring to head of school Judith Foley Arnstein and her allies. “Students are dropping like flies.”

Things are likely to get worse before they get better, too. In addition to the growing investigative scrutiny, sources close to this case say multiple civil lawsuits against Charleston Day are imminent.

Stay tuned …

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(Via: FITSNews)

Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and seven children.

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SOUTH CAROLINA’S LATEST NEWS IN YOUR INBOX …

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Energetic, humorous national poet Billy Collins will speak Thursday in North Charleston at the Bonds-Wilson campus that’s home to Academic Magnet High School and the Charleston County School of the Arts.

A free public poetry reading will be 6:30 p.m. Sept. 15 in Academic Magnet’s lecture hall. The reading is sponsored by Applause, the official student newspaper of the School of the Arts. Admission is free, but tickets are required. Seating is limited.

Collins, who served as U.S. poet laureate from 2001 to 2003, is down-to-earth and relatable for people who don’t often read poetry, said Mount Pleasant resident and longtime friend Marjory Wentworth, a former S.C. poet laureate.

“When you read one of his poems, you feel like you’re in the kitchen with him and he’s feeding his dog,” she said. “He has this capacity to celebrate the ordinary.”

Wentworth said audiences find his poetry readings to be very funny.

“He’s the kind of poet where you can go to his readings and not know anything about him, but be very entertained. But you’re also going to learn something about your humanity.”

Dr. Shannon Cook, the principal at School of the Arts, said the school community is honored to host Collins, who was invited by SOA English teacher John Cusatis.

“Our students have studied his work, interviewed him to gain a deeper understanding of his approach to poetry, and we have all fallen in love with the rich language and imagery that characterize his writing,” she told the City Paper.

According to a press release, Collins began garnering international attention in the late 1990s, largely due to appearances on various National Public Radio programs. His popularity soared during the next two decades, leading to comparisons with Robert Frost, the last poet to receive the blend of popular and critical acclaim that Collins has enjoyed. The New York Times has called him “the most popular poet in America.” Collins is famous for the affable, conversational tone of his poems, and the ease with which he allows readers to see the extraordinary in everyday experience.

Collins was poet laureate during the 9/11 attacks and composed the poem “The Names” for the occasion of the first anniversary. He has read his work at the White House on two occasions and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

His latest book Whale Day was a New York Times bestseller and his next book, Musical Tables, will be published in November by Random House.

Blue Bicycle Books will be on hand for a book signing after the reading. Copies of several of Collins’ books will be available for purchase as will Conversations with Billy Collins, a new collection of interviews conducted with the poet and edited by Cusatis.

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NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WIS) - So many people know the feeling of sliding on your first pair of glasses and finally being able to see a lot more clearly.

A new law is designed to bring that special moment to more children across South Carolina.

The legislation allows mobile optometry clinics to visit Title 1 schools, offering free screenings and eye exams and fitting and providing students with glasses, with parental consent.

“This will see that our children across the state — and I hope this spreads like wildfire — that they all are able to reach their full potential,” Gov. Henry McMaster said.

McMaster officially signed the new law earlier this year, but he commemorated it Wednesday at North Charleston Elementary School, where he was joined by other elected officials, Charleston County School District leaders and students, and representatives from the national nonprofit Vision to Learn.

The organization lobbied South Carolina’s legislature for the change in law, as its previous language had prohibited Vision to Learn from operating free mobile optometry clinics in South Carolina as it does in other states.

The General Assembly allowed Vision to Learn to operate on a trial basis over the last year before approving the permanent change in law. In that year, the nonprofit reports it provided more than 2,000 students from 17 schools in the Charleston County School District with eye exams, and 1,700 of those kids received free eyeglasses.

“Our program has found that the best way to solve this problem is by bringing access to students right here on campus,” Vision to Learn National Director Damian Carroll said.

CCSD Director of Nursing Ellen Nitz said the new law removes barriers that may be keeping kids from reaching their full potential in the classroom.

“Many of our families will face either financial burdens, transportation issues, parents having to leave work to get to appointments, and then just not even realizing that you need glasses,” Nitz said.

During Wednesday’s event, four CCSD elementary school students received their first pair of glasses, including second grader Taila Sanders, who had selected frames in her favorite color, pink.

“Everything is like so different. It’s like not blurry anymore,” Sanders said.

With the change in law now in effect, Vision to Learn said its next goal is to bring this clinic to more districts across the state and help more South Carolina kids see.

“Our young students experienced unprecedented hardships during the recent pandemic, and now going forward, having access to quality eyecare and prescription glasses will not be one more thing that they or their parents have to worry about,” Rep. William Cogswell, R – Charleston, said.

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