Pressure Washing in James Island, SC

JAMES ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - An abandoned home and tennis courts could see new life if the town of James Island purchases the property, but nearby neighbors say they want to know what’s coming first.

Formerly home to the Herbert Tennis Center, this space is located on Sea Aire Drive on two acres. It could be home to a new public space for the town, but only if it gets under contract with the private developer who owns it.

“There’s a lot of apprehension on what’s really going to happen here,” neighbor Al Williams said, who lives within 15 feet of the lots in question.

Williams mentions the possibility of a recreational space.

“You got people yelling and screaming within 15 feet of my house,” Williams said.

But others who live across the street, like neighbor Patrick Bucher, have other ideas.

“A green space would really work for me well with limited parking,” Bucher said. “No facilities.”

Another neighbor, Sheila Hanna, says she’s lived near this area for around seven years and has always known it to be abandoned.

“I would just prefer it to be neighbors,” Hanna said. “I don’t want anything public to draw people.”

But the town’s mayor Brook Lyon is trying to avoid creating more homes.

“Everyone on the island that I’ve come into contact is tired of the overdevelopment,” Lyon said.

Lyon says the town is applying for about $930,000 in greenbelt funds and part of it would go toward purchasing the property.

And with neighbors saying they feel left in the dark about the decisions, Lyon says they plan to get a survey out on the town Facebook page, their website, over email and send letters to the people living closest to the property only once they have the property in their hands.

“We’re not just going to arbitrarily go and do something without consulting our citizens,” Lyon said.

There’s also concern about the town not following the ordinances of the overgrowth on this property, which has vines covering the abandoned house and fencing and tall grass. However, Lyon says town hall never heard of any complaints of overgrowth at this property until Wednesday.

She adds it could take years for them to get permission from the owners to fix it.

“Which is why it’s a great opportunity for the town to buy it and get the lots cleaned up,” Lyon said. “Either fix the house up, which I think is highly unlikely, or get it torn down.”

Williams says he’s excited about what’s to come but wants the mayor to keep her promises of greenspaces, parks, and storm and sewage.

“And her other thing was transparency,” Williams said. “Well, we’re hitting on three of them. Let’s get on the fourth issue.”

The first time this contract will be on the agenda is at the next town council meeting on June 20 at 7 p.m.

Copyright 2024 WCSC. All rights reserved.

As the saying goes, the only thing separating Charleston from Hell in the summertime is a screen door. Well, we have an antidote for those sweltering summer days: a visit to Charleston County water parks.

All three splashy attractions have rolled out their summer 2024 hours and with activities for all ages, you’re pretty much guaranteed to cool off a few degrees.

Goggle at these water parks:

Whirlin’ Waters Adventure Waterpark Location: Wannamaker County ParkHighlights: The 65-ft Washout slides, the 27,000-sqft Big Kahuna wave pool, The Rollin’ River lazy riverSchedule: Now-Sunday, Aug. 11, Monday-Friday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. + weekends 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday, Aug. 17-Sunday, Sept. 1, weekends only 10 a.m.-6 p.m.Admission: $24.99 general admission

Splash Island WaterparkLocation: Palmetto Islands County ParkHighlights: 200-ft body flume, 16-ft otter slide, raindrop waterfallsSchedule: Saturday, June 8-Sunday, Aug. 4, Monday-Friday 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturdays 10 a.m.-6 p.m., and Sundays 1-6 p.m.Admission: $10.99 general admission; $2 per person Palmetto Islands County Park gate admission also required

Splash Zone Waterpark Location: James Island County Park, 871 Riverland Dr.Highlights: 200-ft tube slide + open slide, rainforest-themed play structureSchedule: Saturday, June 8-Sunday, Aug. 4, Monday-Friday 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturdays 10 a.m.-6 p.m., and Sundays 1-6 p.m.Admission: $15.99 general admission

Pro tips: Admission for kids + seniors costs a few dollars less than general admission at each park. Go after 3 p.m. on weekdays to snag cheaper general admission. If you’re planning to visit the water parks a lot this summer, you might want to splurge for a Splash Pass 2024.

You better believe we’ll be floating down the Rollin’ River soon — see you there, CHS.

JOHNS ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - Sea Island Habitat for Humanity is taking on its first affordable home neighborhood on Johns Island for first-time buyers currently renting and living on or near the island.

The organization, known for providing about six houses per year to first-time homebuyers who qualify for the program, plans to build almost 50 homes in a single area.

“So we provide houses for folks to buy and they will own in their name as opposed to a rental, and so most of our program participants could never qualify for a normal mortgage, certainly not buy a house that they can afford in Charleston, or along the Johns Island area,” Sea Island Habitat for Humanity Executive Director John Rhoden says.

The idea for a nearly 50-home community on their 30-acre plot between Main Road and Humbert Road on Johns Island is a new type of project.

“We have multiple mortgages on the property that kind of make it more affordable for them,” Rhoden says. “But for us to find land, close to where people work is difficult. So what we always are trying to do is find land that we can turn into affordable housing neighborhoods. So people can live close to where they work.”

Rhoden, a licensed contractor, says these homes will hopefully be built at a pace of 10 a year until the community is complete. The project is just beginning the permitting process so it will be a few years before construction begins. There are already lots of people interested in the properties. Rhoden says it is a long process to get approved that involves financial classes and participating in the build.

“We have to make sure that folks are needing a house not just wanting a house so we do make sure we only serve up to 80% of the main area income,” Rhoden says.

The land is already zoned for single-family homes and will have three entrances to the homes. Rhoden says the 10 houses a year pace should also help slowly acclimate the area to the new builds.

“Our people that we’re putting in houses already live here,” Rhoden says. “Our programs are a long period. It’s between one and two years to get into a house.”

Habitat will hold interest meetings about the homes a few times a year and the first one is expected in July. Rhoden says the list of people interested is already long, showcasing the need for housing on the island.

Copyright 2024 WCSC. All rights reserved.

JAMES ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - James Island firefighters are heading into the James Island Public Service District budget meeting saying they have gotten no response to their requests to meet and finalize the upcoming year’s budget when it comes to disparities in regional firefighter pay funding.

The James Island Public Service District is a special purpose district providing wastewater, solid waste, fire protection and rescue services, street lighting, street name signs on James Island.

For months in the first half of 2024, the James Island Fire Department has been campaigning for and petitioning the district for a meeting about what they say is underfunding in their wages.

“I have not been able to sit down. Meeting requests that we have sent via email have all been denied to be able to meet with them,” James Island Professional Firefighters President Sean Foulois says.

Firefighters argue that a starting salary of less than $37,000 is underfunding, causing staff shortages to the point they might lose full shifts of workers and result in closing a station.

“We hope that if there’s a decision rate, that they’re going to bring the pay up. So it’s comparable because that’s the biggest issue for the current staff with the salaries that are available in the area. You know, it’s $20,000 plus or minus, that they can go someplace else and make more money. So, I mean, the cost of living and Charleston area, they need to look at that for themselves and their family,” Foulois says.

On Jun. 17 the Public Service District responded to a request for comment about the budget and firefighter pay, in part saying:

The JIPSD Commission has been working diligently to find ways to provide better compensation for all our essential workers.

The district went on to say that they are limited by their 7,000 customer tax base. Foulois says that’s more than the silence he’s met with, but it’s not specific in terms of what changes may or may not happen.

“We’re still going in blind. We’ve heard little snippets that they were working on it. We haven’t heard anything as far as what might be a proposal if any. So we’re going in we have to wait and see what the response is going to be, you know, and that’s going to dictate you know, one way or the other way we have to do next,” Foulois says.

Foulois says it’s taken bravery for his firefighters to stand up and ask the district for answers. He’s hopeful the budget meeting will provide some answers in the form of announcing tax changes to create raises.

“We’re going into a hopeful you know that they’re going to make a decision, but if they don’t make a decision, the other thing that the district has to do is publicly state what their plan is by not making a decision. The department’s possibly down to one shift. How are you going to protect the citizens, you know, that you’ve been elected for or hired by, just like we have, if you don’t have enough people?” Foulois says.

Firefighters plan to attend the James Island Public Service District Budget meeting at James Island Town Hall at 6:30 p.m. on Monday. When asked to provide a more clear breakdown of the budget beforehand, a Public Service District Representative encouraged people invested in the item to come to the meeting.

Copyright 2024 WCSC. All rights reserved.

JAMES ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - James Island firefighters say their department is underfunded and underpaying firefighters to the point that there are consistent vacancies and soon, they fear they will have to close a station.

The James Island Fire Department is run by the James Island Public Service District. As of 2024, firefighters have a starting salary of $36,525.40, and have raised the issue multiple times already in 2024.

In a letter to the Public Service District in June, President of the James Island Professional Firefighters Sean Foulois asks leaders to meet to discuss how to fix a few problems.

As of Monday morning, Foulois says he has not heard back and is disappointed.

“The potential repercussions are severe, the fire department will be compelled to close firehouses and apparatus resulting in significant delays in response times for the citizens of James Island,” Foulois says.

Foulois says while there has not been an issue with response times yet, he sees it coming soon on the path they are headed. He reports that a full fire department staff needs 45 firefighters, and they are working with 37 employees, 16 of whom are actively seeking other better-paying jobs.

“The numbers that are projected to leave, it is inevitably going to have that impact. And that is what we’re trying to prevent. Because we’re here right to protect the citizens of this community and we want we don’t want to see them put in danger. But that is where this is headed with the numbers that are projected to leave,” Foulois says.

Professional Firefighters Association of South Carolina Local 61 President John Baker also came forward to support the department.

“Behind me is a group of men who selflessly put their lives on the line every single day to protect the citizens of James Island,” Baker says. “They also protect the citizens of Charleston. They also protect the citizens of John’s Island. We have a very unique dynamic here in Charleston, where we all are tied together through an auto aid agreement. The men behind me are tired, they’re worn out.”

Foulois and Baker say at the rate pay and staffing stands, James Island could end up ceding fire protection to the City of Charleston. While the city does have two stations on the island, Baker says those are not meant to fully serve the population.

Foulois notes in his letter to to the James Island Public Service District there has not been a tax increase to raise firefighter salaries in nearly a decade. His paperwork shows the last cost of living adjustment was a five percent raise in 2016. Firefighters are eligible for up to a four percent merit raise each year. The pay tables note that the district did a pay scale study from 2018 to 2019, but Foulois says the department has never seen the results of that study.

He compares this to the firefighter step pay scale in Charleston, which begins at close to $50,000 and has had multiple cost-of-living adjustments in recent years. Foulois says to his knowledge, the district has emergency funds in a “rainy day” fund. He believes this is an emergency.

“They have enough money in the rainy-day fund that they could actually make a significant change in the salaries right now without impacting the millage for the taxpayers,” Foulois says. “But there’s also grants, other avenues that way that we could discuss, you know, it’d be explored, and we would have to apply. We can offer them assistance in doing that and you know, getting through the process, that would definitely help the situation.”

Foulois and Baker ask the people of James Island to reach out to the commission for the public service district and encourage them to come to the table and address the issue.

James Island Public Service District Acting Manager Tamara Robinson provided the following statement:

The JIPSD Commission has been working diligently to find ways to provide better compensation for all our essential workers. This is a District wide concern as we are one collective District including our administration, fleet services, solid waste and wastewater departments - in addition to our fire departments. Each of these essential services are necessary to protect our citizens. Compensation for our essential workers is funded by our limited tax base of 7,000 customers of the JIPSD. The Commission has a proposed budget increasing salaries to get all departments of the JIPSD better pay.

Click here to read the district’s notice of the 2025 budget.

The budget does note millage rate increases and the wastewater collection rates are being raised but does not put in writing the use of the money or a designated pay raise for essential workers.

“While we have heard about the potential district-wide salary increase, we have not received any official documentation. The district’s broad approach is one of the factors contributing to our firefighters being the lowest paid in Charleston. To tackle this issue and retain our staff, the district needs to focus on the fire department’s pay specifically,” Foulois says.

The James Island Public Service District will have a budget meeting on June 24 at 6:30 p.m. at James Island Town Hall, located at 1122 Dills Bluff Rd.

Copyright 2024 WCSC. All rights reserved.