City of Lancaster City Services

The City of Lancaster is proud to provide the best in service to our citizens. Our employees, whether they serve in a public safety, public works, utility service, or administrative function, constantly strive to provide you with the very best service possible.

Administrative Services Department

The Administrative Services Department handles purchasing bids and contracts, federal, state and local grant administration, liability and municipal property insurance and a wide variety of related administrative functions. Human Resources, Risk Management/ Safety and Building and Grounds operations/ maintenance are also handled by personnel assigned to this department. Linda Vaughan serves as the Director of Administrative Services.

Building, Licensing, and Zoning Department

The Building, Licensing, and Zoning office consists of a Building Official, a Code Enforcement Officer, an Administrative Assistant for Licenses and Permits, and a secretary. This staff insures that buildings in the city are built to meet the applicable code requirements and that existing buildings are maintained appropriately. Building Official Richard Bowers and staff stand ready to work with our citizens, developers, and contractors. Our ?one stop shopping? philosophy has proven effective in minimizing developer concerns when considering development within the city limits. The department has responsibility for all construction code related activity, zoning, subdivisions, storm drainage and flood prevention, sign installation, overgrown lots, derelict vehicles, landscaping, business licenses, yard sale permits, water/sewer application processing, restrictive covenant recording, filing/release of liens/judgments, and other license/ permit activity. In addition, all matters related to hospitality tax collections are administered through this department.

Court Administration

The Court Administration Department operates the Municipal Court of the City of Lancaster. This court handles criminal matters that are not General Sessions offenses. Examples of cases heard in the Municipal Court include 1st offense DUI, speeding, assault and battery and disorderly conduct. Civil cases are not tried in this court. Robert Davis and Helen Sowell currently serve as Municipal Court Judges.

Finance Department

The Finance Department handles all revenue coming in from taxes, bills, fees or other income sources. (Taxes are collected by Lancaster County and remitted to the city.) They also handle billing for utility services and payment of bills for services rendered to the city. This department also handles payroll and data processing functions. Jim Wilson serves as the Finance Director.

Fire Department

The Lancaster Fire Department consists of 27 full time firefighters and 15 volunteer firefighters. The department has modern equipment including two 2,000 gallon per minute engines and a 102 foot aerial ladder/platform. Other emergency vehicles include a 1,250 gallon per minute engine, a 1,000 gallon per minute engine, a modern service and equipment truck, a medium rescue truck, and an urban forestry response unit. On site resources include a hazardous material unit with rehab section, and a confined space response trailer with all required materials and tools. City residents enjoy the substantial insurance savings associated with coverage by an ISO Class 2 department, which places the Lancaster Fire Department in the top rated 1% of fire departments nation-wide. All firefighters are also hazardous materials technicians, confined space technicians, and emergency medical first responders. Chief Chris Nunnery and his firefighters are always ready to save the lives and property of our citizens.

Police Department

The Lancaster Police Department consists of 49 full time employees and 22 part time and volunteer employees. A 25 officer Patrol Division maintains a constant patrol of the city and is ready to respond to any emergency call. Other department personnel provide specialized services such as investigative officers, bike patrol officers, victim?s advocate officer, K-9 officer, School Resource officer, 911 telecommunicators and other supervisory staff functions. The Lancaster Police Department is a Community Policing department and maintains a full time Community Police Liaison Officer. There are also 15 Police Reserve officers on staff. Police Chief Hugh White and his officers are always ready to serve and protect our citizens.

Public Utilities Department

The City of Lancaster owns and operates a Wastewater Treatment Plant, upgraded in 1995, that discharges into the Catawba River. The plant has a permitted capacity of 5,750,000 gallons per day, a structural capacity of 7,500,000 gallons per day and meets applicable Department of Health and Environmental Control guidelines. The facility staff maintains a comprehensive pretreatment program and is ready to assist industrial and commercial developers with wastewater discharge concerns. N. M. "Mack" McDonald serves as the Public Utilities Director.

Public Works Department

The Public Works Department provides for water distribution and sewer collection services, residential and commercial garbage service, and street maintenance service.

The City of Lancaster purchases water from the Lancaster County Water and Sewer District water plant located on the Catawba River. The city receives up to 3,000,000 gallons of water per day from this plant. The City of Lancaster also has an agreement with the Springs Company to provide up to 4,000,000 gallons of water per day if needed. The water distribution system consist of two 500,000 gallon above ground water storage tanks and approximately 120 miles of water main, including a 16 inch main on South Carolina Highway 9 Bypass and 12 inch main lines in the Industrial Park and Downtown Business district. The wastewater system consists of approximately 125 miles of wastewater mains, thirteen pump stations at strategic locations and is currently undergoing an upgrade. The City Finance Department handles utility billing and collection services.

The City of Lancaster Solid Waste staff handles residential and commercial garbage. This staff also operates a transfer station to handle the transportation of garbage to a suitable landfill site. The City uses rollaway containers for the convenience of citizens. The city also operates loaders and containers to pick up yard debris and large items that are left at the curb. A staff of 10 employees efficiently disposes of our citizen's garbage.

The City of Lancaster Street Department handles routine street and traffic sign repairs and works to keep our highway rights-of-way maintained and litter free. Traffic signals are maintained by the South Carolina Department of Transportation. Street lights are maintained by Duke Power.

Public Works Director Jerry Crockett oversees a staff of 48 employees capable of handling the requirements of our citizens.

The City of Lancaster exists solely to provide an enhanced level of service to our citizens. While residents do pay city taxes, they receive a wide range of enhanced services that are unavailable outside the city. City residents also enjoy cost savings on items ranging from water rates to insurance rates. Of course, city taxes are deductible from state and federal taxes.