Volume 1 Issue 9

August 24, 2007

Folly fights fish hook, wins freedom

The South Carolina Aquarium released a critically endangered juvenile Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle into the Atlantic from Beachwalker County Park on Kiawah Island on Monday, August 13 at 10:00 am . Named “Folly,” the 4.2 lb juvenile Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle (Lepicochelys kempii) was caught hook and line by a fisherman on Folly Beach fishing pier on July 13. South Carolina Aquarium staff arrived just in time to rescue Folly and bring it to the Aquarium’s Sea Turtle Hospital . It appeared that the turtle's front left flipper was entangled in the fishing line because there was a deep laceration, commented Shannon Teders, Aquarist with the South Carolina Aquarium who was on site during the rescue. The hook was taken out of the turtle's mouth by the fisherman.

During its rehabilitation at the Sea Turtle Hospital , Folly was treated with antibiotics and vitamins. Recent blood work provided hospital staff with a healthy diagnosis, demonstrating Folly’s positive response to the medical care and deeming it releasable.

Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles are predominantly found in the Gulf coast, but are known to migrate along the Eastern coast of the United States . DuBose Griffin, South Carolina Marine Turtle Program Coordinator, says that when fisherman catch a sea turtle on hook and line, they should remove the turtle from the water using a dip net and not use the monofilament line. If the turtle is not seriously hooked (such as the flipper or beak), then remove the hook. Otherwise, do not attempt to remove the hook or cut the fishing line to release the turtle. This could possibly result in the death of the sea turtle. If the turtle has swallowed the hook or is seriously injured, please call the SCDNR Hotline (1-800-922-5431), so the turtle can be picked up by the Marine Turtle Conservation Program staff and transported to the South Carolina Aquarium Sea Turtle Rescue Program.

About the South Carolina Aquarium:
The South Carolina Aquarium, Charleston ’s most visited attraction, features thousands of amazing aquatic animals from river otters and sharks to loggerhead turtles in more than 60 exhibits representing the rich biodiversity of South Carolina from the mountains to the sea. Dedicated to promoting education and conservation, the Aquarium also presents fabulous views of Charleston harbor and interactive exhibits and programs for visitors of all ages.

The South Carolina Aquarium, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, is open Monday - Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. (last ticket sold at 5 p.m.) from April 1 to August 15 and is open Monday – Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. (last ticket sold at 4 p.m.) from August 16 to March 31. The Aquarium is closed Thanksgiving Day, half day Dec. 24 (open 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. ) and Dec. 25. Admission prices are: Children 1 and under (free); Youth 2-11 ($8); Adults ($16); Seniors 62+ ($14). Military, senior, college and group discounts are available. For more information call 843.720.1990 or visit www.scaquarium.org. Memberships are available by calling 843.577.FISH.

Kiawah Town Council – August 7, 2007*

Summer details
“Well, we weren’t even expecting to have this meeting last month, but this is what a month does to you,” said Mayor Wert as he reviewed the list of new business for the day’s meeting. Most of the August Council meeting consisted of budget approvals and contract renewals; no new Ordinances were read or approved during the meeting.

Truck purchased under budget
The Town was able to procure a new truck for $29,145.95, well under the $45,000 budget allocated under the 2007/2008 budget. The purchase was initially approved by Mayor Wert and subsequently approved unanimously by the Council.

Audio/Visual equipment purchase put on hold
Councilman McIver asked that the purchase of both a new security camera and new audio/visual equipment for the upstairs conference room be tabled for a while until the items were found at a better price. Mayor Wert suggested that the decision to purchase the items be postponed indefinitely so that the decision could be made without setting a deadline date. Council approved and the decision to wait on the purchase was passed unanimously.

Landscaping for Beachwalker Drive
Councilman Orban stated that Council has been working for some time to improve the looks of Beachwalker Drive, the road off of which Kiawah Town Hall is located. After conferring with the company Three Oaks Contractors, Councilman Orban was able to get a bid for design, sodding and landscaping for $62,598.65, well under the $100,000 budget. “We still need to include pipe work,” Mr. Orban added, pointing out the drainage that still needed to be done for a nearby sinkhole. “We have a quote for $9,165 from Three Oaks for boring underneath the landscaping so we can place the drainage pipe.” Mayor Wert nodded and suggested that the proposal for landscaping be changed to include the cost of boring for the new pipe. With a total of $71,763.65, the landscaping project comes in at 25% less than the $100,000 budgeted for the project. The approval to go ahead with Three Oaks Contractors was approved unanimously. The cost of replacing the pipe under the driveway is estimated to run around $45,000.

Kiawah Conservancy grant
The Kiawah Conservancy announced that its grant of $100,000 this year would be going toward the protecting and preservation of the land located at 38 Berkshire Hall.

Beach monitoring
Councilman Lipuma proposed that the Town accept a bid to monitor Kiawah’s beaches for the next five years which will include the follow-up work on beach renourishment, habitat mapping, etc. The bid for the project came to $45,608. “This is what we were looking for, so I move that e accept,” said Mr. Lipuma. Council agreed and passed the proposal unanimously.

SATAX funding with Kiawah Golf Resort
Councilman McIver proposed that the SATAX (State Accommodations Tax Advisory Committee) contract with Kiawah Golf Resort be reinstated for the following year. Mayor Wert agreed and stated that a few allocations had been changed from last year, but after further consultation, the group decided to change the allocations back to the previous recommendations.

Debris removal contract renewed
The debris removal contract with Phillips & Jordan was approved unanimously to be extended and will expire on July 31, 2008.

Beach Patrol contract
Mayor Wert stated that the contract Kiawah Island held with Rod Miller of Island Products, Inc. for provision of the Island’s beach patrol was being terminated and rather quickly. The Town had received a letter of termination on July 27, stating that the company no longer had the man power to provide Beach Patrol for Kiawah Island and as of August 10, their ability to provide staff could become irregular. “So we’ve put the search for a replacement on a fast track,” said the Mayor. “We have two organizations that have come to us with bids; Island Beach Services and the Kiawah Island Community Association. Both of their bids were very close and neither company is substantially different from the other, so we have passed the decision on to Council.” The Mayor stressed that the decision had to be made today since they only had three days to find a replacement. “This contract will expire on January 31, 2008, so this is not a permanent replacement,” Mayor Wert also pointed out. “So this is not a long term decision; we just need a patrol to get us through the next six months.”

“I think we need to take our time and sort out the qualifications of each applicating, but we need someone immediately since this is the busy season,” said Councilman Orban. Mayor Wert agreed, stating that the companies had bid according to the existing contract with Island Products. “We’re not re-designing the Taj Mahal here,” he pointed out.

“This would be more seamless for KICA (Kiawah Island Community Association), since they already handle security on the Island, but on the other side of the coin, this other company has staff that is ready to go tomorrow,” said Councilman McIver. “The bottom line is I lean in favor of KICA, but it’s a close call.”

“I’m also torn,” said Mayor Wert. “ But having been put in this position because of the failure of the previous company, I think it would be more seamless a transition if we used KICA. Right now, KICA has jurisdiction right up to the end of the beach boardwalk and all we would do is extend their jurisdiction. I vote for KICA because of the seamlessness, but Island Service has also done very well for us in the past.”

“My preference is for Island Beach Services,” said Councilman Orban. “They’ve been doing this job, it’s the height of the season and we need experience on the beach. For the interim period, I say we go with them.”

Councilman Lipuma, however, agreed with the Mayor and Councilman McIver. “I’m concerned about back-up support,” he stated. “This makes me lean more toward KICA because we could also use them in the long term.”

The final vote came to 2 – 3 with Councilmen Burnaford and Orban in favor of Island Beach Services and the majority in favor of KICA. The contract was awarded to the Kiawah Island Community Association.

Lowcountry Heritage Arts Festival
“Don’t forget!” Said Town Administrator Tucker. “The Lowcountry Heritage Arts Festival is being held at the Sandcastle on Friday, August 24 and the public is invited. There will be booths showing how to make sweetgrass baskets and weave cast nets, as well as Gullah readings, demonstrations on quilting and spiritual and Gullah singing. The event starts at 7:00pm and the cost of the meal is $12. All proceeds will go to benefit the Lowcountry Food Bank.”

“I think this is a positive thing to do,” said the Mayor. “ We’ll have good Lowcountry food and we’ll be able to teach our residents our heritage and teach them how it’s (basket weaving, cast net weaving, etc.) done, if people are interested.”

Purchase of new Town ATV (all terrain vehicle)
“The East End is changing,” said Councilman Lipuma. “We need a vehicle that can access the East End and the beach. Jim Jordan attained quotes and had up to $15,000 left over from last year’s budget to work with. We purchased an all terrain vehicle for $11,499, which came to $14,069.46 after we included an outboard motor and trailer.” The Mayor agreed that it was an appropriate purchase, stating that the purchase was required to fulfill their grant contract since that area, which includes the new 100 foot wide flushing channel, has to be monitored until 2011.

CharlestonCounty Sherriff’s office letter
“We received a letter from the County Sherriff’s office stating that the hourly rate for deputies has gone from $20 to $25 an hour,” said Mayor Wert. “This is a huge increase and since we had budgeted for $20/hr. for this fiscal year, we negotiated with the department to continue the pay rate of $20/hr. until our next budget year. The Sherriff’s office agreed and we will be keeping the pay rate at $20/hr. until the 2008/2009 budget year.”

Environmental report
Councilman Lipuma stated that they had received four wildlife calls this month, including a couple aggressive alligators and an injured osprey that flew off on its own. “The new Bobcat Tracker is in place on the Town website and received 483 hits on it’s first day,” Mr. Lipuma announced. The Tracker can be found on the home page of the Kiawah Town website, www.kiawahisland.org, and tracks the movements of five bobcats through Kiawah, Seabrook and the end of John’s Island.

“We are also working on a painted bunting study,” said Mr. Lipuma. “We’ve placed microchip transmitters on 4 birds which will fall off in 3 to 4 weeks. We should have the data from that study in the next few month.”

Councilman Lipuma also pointed out that there had been testing of some of the local fish and an elevated arsenic level had been detected in some tuna and red fish, though not a high enough amount for concern. The analysis of the East End project is also available to the public and is available at Town Hall. Jim Jordan is also working on another alligator survey on the island. He estimates that there are as many as 600 alligators in residence on the island.

Public Safety

• Two new “No Bicycling” signs were added to the inbound and outbound road near Freshfield’s.
• The ability for EMS vehicles to get to the beach through beach accesses is being looked into, since there are three accesses near the Sanctuary that the vehicles can not use. The Resort is looking into widening them in order to make them more accessible.
• Council also stated that they would be looking into the possibility of getting lifeguards for the beaches during the busy seasons.
• KICA has been asked to focus on Ocean Course Drive, since there have been multiple reports of speeding in that area.

How big are your yard’s trees?
Chief Ristow of the St. John’s Fire Department asked that residents look into the size of trees in their front yards and make sure there is enough clearance for fire trucks if they need to get to the house. “We can’t fight what we can’t get to,” he stated.

Communications report
The Town Notes are still separate from the Town Digest, but as of September, they will be mailed together with the Notes tucked into the Digest. This leaves the newsletters with ¾ page more to fill, so Council asked that anyone who has articles they would like to contribute to the newsletters are more than welcome to send them in.

It was also noted that Charleston County Council approved the new 2007 update of the John’s Island Traffic Study at the cost of $75,000.

Town Administrator report
Councilwoman Rucker gave further details on the first annual Lowcountry Heritage Arts Festival at the Sandcastle, stating that tickets would also be available at Town Hall. She also stated that he had recently attended a roundtable discussion on the Island’s disaster preparedness. At the meeting, it was realized that there hadn’t been much discussion on post-recovery procedures. The group formed a four person task force to formulate an Island-wide post recovery plan. If successful, the committee will post the plan with FEMA for approval.

Ms. Rucker also stated that the Town will be participating in a new urban green space program along the Town’s new bike path.

Grants for making your home more wind-resistant
The SC Department of Insurance has just rolled out their new SC Hurricane delegation program and part of the program apparently allows property owners to request grants to help make their homes more wind resistant. For more information on this program, contact enforcement officer Rusty Lameo at 768-9166, or email him at rlameo@kiawahisland.org.

Citizen’s comments
Ms. Wendy Kulick announced that the Kiawah and Seabrook Island property owners outdid themselves with dontations to Mount Zion Elementary. She thanked everyone for their kindness and generosity and thanked local publications for helping to get the word out.

*Please note that these are not the approved minutes of the Kiawah Island Town Council meeting. The approved minutes from this meeting will be available at the next Kiawah Island Council.