Volume 1 Issue 1

May 4, 2007

     We are tremendously excited to introduce Lucky Dog Publishing's second community newspaper, The Island Connection. We have been publishing our national award winning newspaper The Island Eye News on the Isle of Palms and Sullivan's Island for two years. Since its inception, the Island Eye has been an open forum for our friends and neighbors and we hope to continue this tradition with the Island Connection.
      The Island Connection is free and will be delivered to all residents of Seabrook and Kiawah every other Friday. We hope to supplement all of the wonderful publications that currently serve the area with our view of the joys of living on a barrier island in the Lowcountry. The Island Connection is your community paper. If there are any pictures you would like to see or stories you would to enjoy reading, let us know. Do not hesitate to send in your unique views of the islands. We not only enjoy reader contributed stories and pictures, we depend on them.
The Island Connection will cover town news from both Kiawah and Seabrook, local and cultural events, local accomplishments and debate on issues such as managed growth and road expansion. The editorial page is always open, our only request is that all letters must be signed, and that the debate and discourse is always friendly. We hope that the information and calendar we will provide will keep you informed of all the wonderful opportunities we have on our home islands.
  Four months ago I began a dual residence between Sullivan's Island and Kiawah Island. I am looking to move onto Seabrook in the next few months and look forward to meeting more of you. In the mean time, we can be seen at most of the public meetings, Fishers or the Rosebank Cafe in Bohicket, or Java Java in Freshfields. We are sharing a space in the Straw Market in Kiawah until we get settled. Feel free to send us your suggestions or call us with questions or concerns anytime you wish. We look forward to serving you.

Seabrook Island town council meeting - April 24, 2007

Bohicket Bridge gets beefed up
Beginning in roughly September or October of this year, the Bohicket Creek Bridge will begin its process of reconstruction. Bids for the project should be let in June and, by August, a contractor should be selected.
      The sixty-six foot bridge replacement project is projected to cost between $1.5 and $4 million, with federal assistance paying for 80% of the construction costs. According to Terry Koon, assistant bridge designer for the project, the rest of the cost will be provided by gas tax funds. During construction, a temporary bridge will be built to avoid detouring traffic ten miles out of the way on River Rd. The Charleston County Board of Zoning Appeals recently granted approval for the removal of  400-inches of trees (that is the diameters of the trees added together) which would be mitigating by planting live oaks, gums and other native trees and ground cover. This was the minimum amount of tree removal necessary for the completion of the project. Plans for replacing the deteriorating, but still comfortably intact Hoopstick creek bridge will be put on hold until the Bohicket creek bridge is completed.

Pedestrians soon able to stroll comfortably to Freshfields
“Almost there,” said Mr. John Flemming at Tuesday’s meeting, addressing the issue construction on a new walkway from just outside the gates of Seabrook Island to Freshfields. “We are currently waiting on approval from Charleston County OCRM (Ocean and Coastal Resource Management), who promised that they will work with us to the best of their abilities.” the OCRM is currently dealing with more permits than they can handle and there are only a limited number of reviewers, but they have promised to get an approval to the town as soon as possible. Since there is a minimal chance of the OCRM changing the details of the permit, the council felt that it would be a good idea to consider starting to take bids from construction companies for the walkway. So far, Three local contractors have expressed interest in bidding on the project and the walkway should take about 4-6 weeks construction time once a contractor is chosen.

The question of connection at Jenkins Point
Although John Maybank had signed up to speak at the council meeting, he was unavoidably detained and was unable to make his presentation regarding an application that he is making to DHEC about the building of a six foot wide cart path to access Horse Island and Long Island from Jenkins Point. In return for the means of accessing the islands, Mr. Maybank will place a conservation easement on the islands that will be held by the Lowcountry Open Land Trust. There will be no future subdivision of Long Island, with only one home site allowed. There will also be no further subdivision of Horse Island but one single-family compound will be allowed. All dock permits on the Bohicket River will be given up but a deepwater dock could be applied for on Privateer Creek. Mr. Maybank would like for the Town to positively support the permit since Seabrook Island would benefit from the green space and protecting the view corridor.

Notes from the Mayor

• Milage reimbursement for town business was officially changed from .37 ½ cents per mile to the highest allowable amount of .48 ½ cents per mile.
• There was the rumor of a request to use the current maintenance area as dormitories for summer interns for the town, the precedence for the request being that the Fire department used the area for a short time during the building of the new fire station. Although the request has not yet come before the town council, council decided to say no, stating that the area was currently zoned commercial and that the fire department had used the maintenance area more as a duty point than a dormitory.

Notes from the Town Administrator

• At the last meeting, it was agreed that the remaining $3,633.51 from the radio fund be returned to the general fund, however, Mr. Pierce asked that $258.80 be paid before the funds transfer to pay for four digital radios to be presented to CERT (the Community Emergency Response Team). The amount was approved unanimously.

Notes from Councilmembers

• Town council requested funds from the Charleston CTC (County Transportation Committee) to help pay for the bike and pedestrian walkway from the town gates to Freshfields and received a grant of $50,000 toward its construction. The construction is estimated to cost roughly $330,000, excluding the three proposed bridges, which will add a possible $45,000 extra to the cost. Charleston CTC suggested that council ask the State for assistance as well, but would consider granting another $50,000 if the town found no other source for grant money.
• Comcast will be getting a bill from the town due to the huge upset they caused recently during underground cable installation on the island. Not only did they hit a water main, losing over a quarter million gallons of water before the line could be shut off, but they also cut all the telephone and sewer lines to Marsh Hen.
• Verizon proposed a new footprint for their cell tower following a discussion that showed the other five cell tower companies on the island had footprints less than half the size proposed by Verizon. The new footprint is more compatable to the other tower areas and will not require the fence around the tower to be widened, as it was proposed at the last council meeting. However, the company took it upon themselves to take the cell tower contract that has been signed an accepted by the island’s five other cell companies and re-write it in full, including a change that requires the town to pay for the electricity to run the tower. The town’s lawyer, Steve Brown, has asked where in the world they (Verizon) found this lawyer, but council has full confidence that the details will be sorted out satisfactorily.
  
  “Dog Ordinance” passes first reading
  After its first year on a trial basis, the dog ordinance seems to have worked out well and council has approved unanimously the first reading to make it a permanent ordinance. The Dog Ordinance, more formally referred to as Ordinance 2007-03, states that domestic animals/pets are not allowed on any beach except under the provisions stated in the ordinance. Outside of the Designated Area (see map), the times for pets are as follows:
  
  Outside of Designated Area:
  May 1 - October 31 - No dogs or other domestic animals shall be allowed on the beach that are not on a lead at all times.
  November 1 - April 30 - Dogs on leads will be allowed between 10am and 5pm on the beach and off lead prior to 10am and after 5pm.
  
  Within Designated Area:
  May 1 - October 31 - Dogs will be allowed off leads below the apparent high water mark prior to 10am and after 5pm, provided they remain subject to voice control.
  November 1 - April 30 - dogs will be allowed off leads below the apparent high water mark at all times provided they remain subject to voice control.
  
  Ordinance to drop rezoning fees for conservation land passes first reading
  Ordinance 2007-04, an attachment to the town’s DSO (Development Standards Ordinance), passed its first reading at the council meeting unanimously. This ordinance allows for the zoning fees to be waived for any applicant requesting that their property be zoned or re-zoned into the Conservation District and were the applicant agrees to place a deed restriction on the property that no further re-zoning of the property will be allowed.
  
  Watercraft restrictions ordinance passes second reading
  Ordinance 2007-02 passed its second reading unanimously at the council meeting, with one small amendment to add “kayaks” to the list of vessels excluded from the restricted vessels allowed to launch on the beach. The ordinance states that no person may use any vessel or manipulate any water skis, aquaplane surfboard or similar device in a negligent manner so as to endanger the life, limb or property of any person and no person may use the above stated vessels while under the influence of alcohol, any narcotic drug, barbiturate, marijuana or hallucinogen. The word “vessel” is defined as every description of watercraft on the water, used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on the water.
        Vessels that are excluded from the vessels restricted from beach launch include sailboats, surfboards, kayaks, rafts, inner tubes or similar devices.
  
  POA and Seabrook Island Club to form timeshare and rental restriction committee
  The Seabrook Property Owners Association has become concerned about multiple home ownership on Seabrook. Although the town code allows for up to four individuals to own one home, there is a general consensus that this law is not being enforced. Also, timeshares appear to have become less coordinated and the restrictions seem as though they are not being as strictly enforced as they should be. The Seabrook POA has requested permission to form a committee that will address these issues and have requested that a member of the zoning committee or a member of council be present at the new committee’s meetings. The council agreed to allow the new committee to form, but asked to get back with the POA about which board member would be assigned to their committee. “Personally,” the Mayor stated, regarding the POA‘s concerns, “I would prefer five people owning one house than one person owning a house and renting it to everyone in the world.”