COTTAGEVILLE, S.C. (WCBD) – A problem with a septic tank may force a small business in Colleton County to close its doors for good.

David Stanfield and his wife opened Red Brick Pizza in Cottageville a few years ago. But they may have to close their business after South Carolina’s lead health agency, the Department of Health and Environmental Control, said their septic system is not fit for the job.

“Almost two years ago we started, and almost immediately DHEC jumped on my back,” said Stanfield. “In March of last year, we started takeout only, but in March I contacted them about opening a 12-person dining room. They said yes, you can open it.”

A month later, Stanfield said he was told that could not have a dining room.

“I asked them about the tables out front – I had four picnic tables out front – they said you can have all the picnic tables you want, so we built a patio which has a bunch of outside tables. And then five months later, during another inspection, and we’ve gone through eight in one year, during another inspection they said you can’t have these outside tables. I said, well, you told us we could.”

DHEC told Stanfield that his septic tank was too small, and he was given a ‘shut door’ order.

“Two months ago, I went before the council- I begged them, I said my septic system has never overflowed, it’s never had a problem, and they said you have 60 days to put this monstrosity in back here.”

His customers were outside protesting on Tuesday while raising money to help keep them in business.

Stanfield began installing the large septic system. He says he has now spent $51,000 on the project. But his business only makes about $800-$1,000 on a good week. So, he believes he will now have to just shut down.

Stanfield eventually put a water meter on his property after a suggestion from a neighbor to see how much water was being used each day.

“Our water meter shows that we use 350 gallons per night, my existing system will do 450 gallons and they’ve got me putting in the system it will do 1,500 gallons per night which is just crazy. They’ve bankrupted me. They’ve taken every dime that we have, and we don’t even have money to open for food this week.”

DHEC sent News 2 a statement saying Stanfield was not in compliance with his DHEC permit when he moved from take-out only to restaurant seating.

“Mr. Stanfield did not dispute the grounds for suspension but requested the suspension be rescinded because he was diligently working on gaining compliance with DHEC regulations,” the statement said. “Failure to install the upgraded system would not lead to closure of the facility but would result in the return to the original food service operation as approved and permitted by DHEC.”

“I don’t understand this because, you know, America is known for if you put everything into – whatever your dream is – you can get it accomplished and they are burying us alive,” said Heike Stanfield, Co-Owner, Red Brick Pizza.

Stanfield said they were last open on Saturday. But unless a miracle happens, he believes they may not be able to re-open again.

The matter was discussed during a DHEC board meeting on May 5, 2022 with the restaurant’s owner in attendance – a motion was made about two hours and thirty-three minutes into the meeting, following an executive session. You can watch that hearing by clicking here.

Deputies make arrests after body found in Cottageville woods where hunter went missing

COLLETON COUNTY, SC (WCSC) - Investigators have made a number of arrests after a body was found in the woods in Cottageville in the same area where a hunter went missing.

The Colleton County Sheriff’s Office says 25-year-old Schuyler Rene Andrulat of Cottageville and 33-year-old Nathan Baughman of Summerville have been charged with obstruction of justice. According to court records, the charges against Andrulat were dismissed and expunged.

A third man, Brad Skipper, has also been charged with an outstanding warrant from Colleton County.

The body was found around 8 p.m. on Thursday in a wooded area off Red Oak Road, the same area where a hunter went missing last Friday

The sheriff's office says the missing hunter was staying with friends who waited until Sunday to report him missing.

The coroner is doing an autopsy to determine the cause of death and identify the body.

The arrests stems from an incident that began on Aug. 21 when a Colleton County deputy responded to a home on Peirce Road in reference to a missing person.

The deputy spoke to Andrulat who said a friend of hers, Orin Patrick, had come to her home to go hunting Friday evening.

According to a report, Andrulat said she dropped Patrick off along the woodline on Peirce Road with a shotgun.

"Andrulat stated that several hours later, she received a call from Patrick stating that he was lost in the woods and he wanted her to drive along the road and beep the horn so that he could find his way back to the road again," the report states.

Andrulat told investigators that she did this around 9 p.m. on Friday but could not find him.

According to authorities, Andrulat said she received another call from Patrick that only last a few seconds and had since been unable to reach him through his phone again. Andrulat told deputies that she did not know any more information about Patrick.

In the incident report, the responding deputy reported that when he first met with Andrulat, she was unable to give any information about Patrick. The deputy then told Andrulat to get in contact with some of Patrick's friends or family so that he could get enough information to do a report.

Authorities also spoke with Patrick's friend, Baughman, who told investigators over the phone that he and Patrick had been staying at a home on Lakeview Drive in Summerville.

Baughman said the last time he saw Patrick was on Aug. 19, but was unsure of the time "because they had both been drinking so he did not remember much about that day."

The incident report states Baughman told investigators that this was not the first time Patrick had just "gone away, but it has never been for this long and never without making contact with him."

Detectives reported that they had Patrick's cell phone pinged to find the last location for it which was in Summerville.

Copyright 2016 WCSC. All rights reserved.

A few years ago David Stanfield, with the help of many other people, converted his old horse barn into a church. “I love people,” said Stanfield, “Now I finally have something that draws people.” Stanfield holds the service every Sunday at 6pm at Horseshoe lake in Cottageville.

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Frankalina Marie signs the hymns during the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. "When the group is singing they are singing with all their heart,” said Marie. “Its real stuff, there's no pretend, there's no show, we're so glad that everybody is here." Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Members of the Cowboy Church play during their Sunday service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. David Stanfield, center, with the help of many other people, converted the old barn into a church. "God gave me cheap lumber," said Stanfield. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Sofi Moore, 6, with her mom Kristina Harris during the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Mama Sue sings during the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. "This is like my second family, said Mama Sue, "It is my home away from home." Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Brenda Smith sings the hymns during the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Members of the Cowboy Church play during their Sunday service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. David Stanfield, center, with the help of many other people, converted the old barn into a church. "God gave me cheap lumber," said Stanfield. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Lyla Youmans, 4, sits with her mom Chelsea Mixson during the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Rose Marie Fender sings the songs that are played during the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Lyla Youmans, 4, sits with her mom Chelsea Mixson during the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Hymnals are placed in the hand made pews during the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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David Stanfield laughs with James Poole and Joan Newberger after Poole questioned him for not liking greens before the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. "You live in the south and you don't like greens?" said Poole. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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John France, left, plays pool with a friend outside the church before the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Kristina Harris digs in to the large spread of food prepared by Derrick Edwards after the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. "Were all family here," said Chef Edwards. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Sofi Moore, 6, dances after eating dinner at the Cowboy Church service in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. Behind the church is a lake and a small beach that the attendees can fish from or take a boat out on the lake. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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David Stanfield runs the Cowboy Church service and other amenities around the property in Cottageville on Sunday, June 4, 2017. "I love people," said Stanfield, "Now I finally have something that draws people." Stanfield takes pride in his way of having church. Michael Pronzato/Staff

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Cottageville residents have seen change in their community in the last few years, and now the Greater Cottageville Chamber of Commerce is ready to encourage more improvements.

Frank Santorella, a resident of Cottageville, said he is proud of the small town and wants to showcase its beauty, friendly people, and excellent location.

“We want to create a chamber of commerce here. We already have a 501-3C non-profit status, Maryann Blake is serving as our attorney, and we are ready to roll,” said Santorella. “We have ‘Friends of the Park’ which is comprised of people who helped develop the park into what it is now.” He says there are also plans at the park to install a memorial with engraved bricks to honor veterans. This will be accomplished by applying for grants and accepting donations.

Santorella, who plans to initiate the chamber, will serve as a temporary director. He says he already has seven merchants who are interested in joining.

“We want to make Cottageville a destination. Red Brick Pizza and Beer Garden is the anchor store for starting the chamber,” said Santorella. “It’s a one-of-a-kind business in the entire region. Once the chamber officially opens, we want to pick a member of the chamber and promote that business each week, and once a month promote everyone. There will be a rotation, and this will be good for everybody.”

He went on to say that the brick-and-mortar stores are the life of Cottageville, not the transient businesses. He feels that transient businesses will not want to invest their funds in the chamber, but the stationary businesses are here to stay.

“I think the people of Cottageville will be positively affected by the chamber and will accept it with open arms. Hopefully, this will bring even more businesses our way. Our only option now is to travel to Summerville or Walterboro to purchase some items. That’s between 15 to 20 miles away. Cottageville has a lot of people in the rural areas, and though our local gas stations try hard to serve the needs of the community, it would be nice to have boutique shops here. We already have a new vape store that has a coffee bar. So we are starting off well,” said Santorella.

He is hoping to have the new chamber up and running by the end of the first quarter of 2022.

“There will be a fee for stores to become part of the chamber,” said Santorella, who gathered ideas and patterned the Cottageville chamber after the City of Walteboro’s. “I received ideas on how to structure the fees. They won’t be impressive because social media provides a lot of free advertising. We will have a website and newsletter for the community. We will be out there,” he added.

Anyone interested in joining the new chamber can write to: Greater Cottageville Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 464, Cottageville, SC, 29435. Businesses can also contact Santorella on Facebook at Friends of the Park or call The Vape Stop at 843-701-4262.

The American Red Cross is helping a Cottageville family with temporary shelter and food after a house fire destroyed their home on Saturday, March 13th.

Firefighter-paramedics with Colleton County Fire-Rescue were called to the Amber Court house in Cottageville at about 8:55 a.m. They found an adult man climbing out of a small window of the mobile home when they arrived: the man was not harmed.

According to Barry McRoy, chief of Colleton County Fire-Rescue, the house was already about 65 percent engulfed, or filled with flames, when fire crews arrived on scene.

“Firefighters deployed multiple hand lines to the structure and stopped the spread of the flames, but the interior of the mobile home was gutted,” he said. “The family lost most of their belongings.”

McRoy said local fire crews had the fire under control within 15 minutes, but crews stayed on scene for about two hours “performing overhaul.”

According to McRoy, the fire appears to have started in a utility shed located next to the house. The flames then spread to the mobile home, he said. The utility shed, which was about 12x12 in size, was fully engulfed when firefighters arrived on scene.

No one was injured in the blaze.

The American Red Cross was called to help the family.

A second house fire that also occurred in Cottageville last week left a Cottageville family with house damage and with personal losses. (See more information on that story in this issue).

So far this year, CCFR has already responded to 18 structure fires.

In 2020, CCFR responded to 73 structure fires.

According to McRoy, the number of fires in 2020 was down from the year prior: in 2019, Colleton County Fire-Rescue responded to 28 fires.

For this year’s house fires, McRoy said firefighter-paramedics have seen the fires being related to people smoking. He also said yard debris fires this year have gotten out of control and sent flames to nearby houses and structures.

“We are seeing an increase in the woods fires,” he added. “Most of the fires are from people burning outdoors, such as yard debris fires, someone burning off their yard and even people burning household garbage, which is not permitted.

“This is the time of year, people tend to burn yard debris from cleaning up their property or conduct large outdoor burns related to land management,” he said. “Many people leave the fires unattended and they spread to neighboring property or buildings. Some of those structure fires are related to unattended outdoor burning which spread to outside utility buildings.”