Here’s when late Columbia councilman Joe Taylor will be laid to rest

We now know the details of when late Columbia City Councilman Joe Taylor will be laid to rest.

Funeral services for Taylor will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 5, at Columbia’s First Presbyterian Church, according to an obituary from Dignity Memorial. Services will be followed by a reception for the Taylor family in the church’s Jackson Hall.

Taylor died unexpectedly on Thursday, just a year after the former S.C. commerce secretary was elected to a seat on the Columbia City Council.

Taylor previously served as South Carolina’s commerce secretary from 2005 to 2011, the primary figure in state government promoting business development and investment in the Palmetto State, serving under former Gov. Mark Sanford.

Sanford awarded Taylor the Order of the Palmetto for his efforts in luring big-name businesses to the state, including Boeing, which opened an airplane manufacturing plant in North Charleston in 2011.

A longtime Midlands businessman, Taylor had been critical of the city before launching his campaign for what he saw as impediments to doing business. He trumpeted a sprawling property tax analysis the city commissioned last year that showed the Columbia area having the highest taxes in South Carolina among large metros.

A confident and loquacious character, Taylor quickly became a dominant force on City Council. He was leading a charge to overhaul the city’s property tax structure, and he, in tandem with Mayor Daniel Rickenmann, frequently advocated for moves to improve conditions for local businesses across the city.

He founded Southland Log Homes with his father, and served as CEO of Park and Washington LLC and co-owner of Il Bucato pizza restaurant on Beltline Boulevard. He also had a hand in several real estate developments around the area.

Taylor is survived by his wife Amanda, his adult son John Taylor and daughter Ann Corontzes. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations to the newly established JET Fund to provide financial support to amputees seeking prosthetic devices and services.

Gov. Henry McMaster has said flags will be lowered to half-staff at the S.C. State House on the day of Taylor’s funeral. A special election for Taylor’s city council seat will be held March 28.