City of Columbia swears in new council members

COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — As the new year begins, the City of  Columbia is celebrating its newest council members.

Friends and family packed Columbia’s City Hall as Councilman Will Brennan of District III was sworn in for a second term and Councilman Tyler Bailey was sworn in for a first term in office.

A crowd of around 150 people looked on as Councilman Brennan took his oath of office, administered by his mother, Dr. Stacey Van Pelt Brennan.

“My father did it last time, and now my mom is doing it. So it’s just a full circle, it’s very exciting. You’re only as strong as your backbone and the family is the backbone,” says Brennan.

Newly elected Councilman Tyler Bailey, representing Columbia At-Large, was sworn in by Judge Daniel Coble of the Fifth Judicial Circuit Court.

“I feel good. I feel real good. You know Columbia is my home. The only place I can call home, so to be selected by the people of Columbia to win how I won — it feels real good, and I’m humbled with this opportunity. I look forward to serving,” says Bailey.

After taking their oaths, the councilmen took their seats among the other councilmembers.

Brennan believes Columbia’s future lies by the water.

“We’re working hard for continued infrastructure. We’ve got a lot of storm water, drinking water, waste water, that we’ve got to keep clicking through in District III. And then again, access to our rivers. The river district is in District III. We’re excited about that, so being at the table and being able to push those initiatives is very exciting for the next four years,” says Brennan.

Bailey’s focus is the youth of Columbia.

“The police department is going to do their thing when it comes down to finding criminals and locking them up, right? But we can reach kids before they go down that cycle. Bringing things like entrepreneur courses to Parks and Rec, gaming, just being more creative with how we use our facilities. I mean the parks are right there in the community. They’re the incubators where we can reach kids directly. And so I think we need to reach them, be direct with them. Have paid mentorship programs and using our Parks and Rec as a start,” says Bailey.

Councilman Ed McDowell of District II was also sworn into office ahead of Wednesday’s ceremony.