New candidate enters race for York County Council seat

One candidate is throwing his hat into the ring to replace a retiring member of the York County Council.

Lake Wylie resident Doug Meyer-Cuno will run for the York County Council District 2 seat held by Bruce Henderson, who is stepping down at the end of the year. Meyer-Cuno plans to make an official announcement at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the Bagel Boat on Charlotte Highway.

The president of the Fort Mill-based food seasoning company Carolina Ingredients, Meyer-Cuno has been outspoken on the growth and development challenges facing Lake Wylie, and plans to make them a centerpiece of his campaign for the Republican nomination.

“We’ve had tremendous growth, very chaotic growth, and that’s the primary reason (I’m running),” Meyer-Cuno said. “We need to set aside green space ... and we need to be concerned about water quality, especially since we’re the single supply of water for the county. Those will be some of my primary focuses.”

District 2 covers the Lake Wylie community on the west side of the lake and the town of Clover in northwestern York County. Despite being one of the fastest-growing areas of the county, Lake Wylie is an unincorporated area without its own dedicated services. Residents have argued for more than a year that the County Council should create an overlay district to limit development, without a definitive plan in view.

Meyer-Cuno said he would call for Lake Wylie to become an incorporated town that could set its own limits on new construction.

“The Lake Wylie/Clover area hasn’t received the proper leadership and wherewithal to get the bandwidth that we deserve,” he said.

But while he wants a more local focus on Lake Wylie, Meyer-Cuno also wants to broaden the perspective of the County Council as a whole by adding at-large seats alongside the existing members’ districts.

“Right now, the county’s not very cohesive, because the members in their districts almost work independently,” he said. “If we have at-large members, we will have more commonality, and we can build a community as a whole.”

Meyer-Cuno also serves on the York County Economic Development Board. He wants York County to attract businesses with good prospects for long-term growth, to maintain the tax base needed to serve a growing residential population.

He may not be the only candidate in the race. Lake Wylie resident Allison Love has previously said she plans to run for the seat. Love had not returned a phone call seeking comment by Thursday afternoon.

This story was originally published January 14, 2016 at 7:52 PM with the headline "New candidate enters race for York County Council seat."