Volume 3 Issue 8

August 24, 2007

Lettitor
By Heather Holbrook

A letter to a friend

Dear Shann,
Sunday, August 12, the heart of Sullivan’s Island broke in two. I was in San Francisco when I got the early morning news that you were gone and I immediately got into a taxi and headed to Grace Cathedral on Nob Hill. Known for its stunning architecture and its labyrinth, a replica of the one laid in the floor of Chartres Cathedral in France around 1220, its path winds around itself, becoming a mirror for where we all are in our lives. Numbly walking the path, the labyrinth touched my sorrow and released my joy. One is to walk it with an open mind and an open heart. That’s so very Shann.

And on this path I can hear your Lafayette lilt in the branches of the live oaks on your street, just catch a glimpse of your colorful skirt as you turn a corner. I hear a champagne bottle uncork just because it’s a Tuesday. I see butterflies float past on Folly as if to say “Follow me, let’s have fuh-n”. I weep. And then I listen to your last voice message saved on my cell phone, making me grin from ear to ear. Your spark is still here, even all the way out in San Francisco , even in Louisiana , the Big Apple, Atlanta , too. But here on Sullivan’s Island , your spark that grew to a steady flame is lovingly guarded by all of us who love you. Your own Mama Pat said you got to live 65 years in your 42 here. And this life was a gift I know you were thankful for.

While you were with us, you quietly wove a thread through this community that bound so many of us together. Always patient, always kind, always ready with a smile, chocolate eyes flashing with glee or promise or adventure. They say your glass was always half full. I say it was full and a half. You make everyone who knew you want to be better; better friends, better neighbors, better spouses. Thank you for the gentle lessons you lived, the gracious manner in which you approached all things. The balance of your real-world tenacity with your child-like wonder made a combustible combination in life.

I remember you saying just two weeks ago, “I am so glad it was me to get sick and not someone else in my family.” I will forever admire your ability to live each day as if it were your last, your solid tolerance for diversity, and your hostess skills where you made a dinner guest feel like the most important person in the room, in the city, in the world. How quick to share your joy and how slow to share your pain.

After the funeral at Holy Cross, we followed you to Folly Beach to The River House, a magical place. A place full of marsh and memories, where the Ma-Ma Sisterhood was born, where you’d retreat with your sweet family. I see waves of grief in the crowd travel like The Wave at a baseball game. We take turns to breakdown and then be strong for each other, mourning our loss, cursing the unfairness, gazing up at the giant outdoor screen and the beautiful movie of your life. It’s a celebration of every part of the puzzle that was you. It was a sad event, but perfect in every way, shot through with a palpable sense of love and purpose, crowned by many dozens of guests leaping from the dock into the Folly River after sunset, pearls and all.

Don’t worry about Jim. We will take very good care of him. The Island will be forever grateful to your husband for helping us to begin to heal from this staggering loss. His staggering loss. Like he said at midnight after your celebration, the road back starts now. And we’re on it right here with him. And your little Earth angels, William and Isabella. Now they have 20 Ma-Mas to help shepherd them. William. Four years old and full of fire, your spirit courses through him like a current and will serve him well throughout his life wherever he goes. He and his sister will have a hundred letters like this one to fill a book to read in the years to come, a treasure to link you to them in written form. My dear Isabella. The 78 months she had with her Mama were 78 years too short, but the love you gave her every day was specially concentrated to last her whole life long. A life she will grab hold and live to make you and Jim proud.

Back at Folly Sunday morning, just hours after the celebration broke up, the sun was bright and breeze still. All by myself, I took a running leap off that dock into the water with joyful thoughts of you.

All peace and light. I’m happy that you are happy there. Love you love you love you, sister.

Isle of Palms Town Council

New City employees
The City of Isle of Palms has hired five new employees, two of which were present to be sworn in.

Jessica Edwards, a new police dispatcher from West Virginia, was sworn in by Mayor Sottile. “It’s always nice to have good people and good voices [at the police station]”, said the Mayor. “It gets pretty busy this time of year.”

Sergeant William O’Donnell was also inducted into the Isle of Palms police department. “I’m very pleased to present to everyone our new livability officer,” said Mayor Sottile as he shook Sergeant O’Donnell’s hand. “Hopefully you’ll help us calm down some of these crowds!“ The Mayor noted that this position had been a long time coming and that he looked forward to having Sergeant O’Donnell serving the city. Sergeant O’Donnell had recently moved to Pawley’s Island from Suffolk, New York and will soon be moving into town.

June employees of the month
Lt. Wright of the Isle of Palms police department recommended both patrolman first class James Ryan and patrolman Craig Thompson for June’s employees of the month.

Turtles terrified of terrestrial trash
Beverly Ballow of the Island Turtle Team stood up during the citizen’s comments portion of the meeting to point out the growing problem with debris being left on the beach. “This is a problem that has gotten extremely worse [over the summer],” Beverly pointed out. “The beach is littered in debris in the form of chairs and tents left out overnight. We believe one of the obligations of the city, citizens and government is to protect the beach for the turtles; it is a moral obligation. We need to keep the debris off the beach since it could kill [nesting turtles]. We’ve had a number of nesters run into these tents and turn around and go back. If they don’t nest, they could lose up to 126 eggs that will never live.”

Mayor Sottile responded by stating that he would like Public Works and Public Safety to look at the issue. “ We need both commissions to look at this at their next meeting,” He said. “Our beaches are the best thing we have. They are the crown jewel of the island.”

However Mayor Sottile said that he was not supportive of writing an ordinance to address the issue and that public education would be the best way to go.

Beverly also noted that the debris also caused a problem for people walking on the beach in the evening. Leftover wires, holes and beach equipment could potentially cause serious injury. There are reported cases of kids and adults facing suffocation when holes collapse.

Councilman Betelli, chairman of the Public Works committee, later commented that they would take the Turtle Team’s points under advisement. “There are laws about debris on the beach and we need to look into specifying what ‘debris’ is,” he stated. ‘We collect metal refuse once a week on the beach but the problem is that we’ve become a disposable society. When people leave, their canopy stays on the beach. We need to get more aggressive and take care of this problem.” Councilman Betelli also said that at a recent meeting, Public Works discussed the problem with “umbrella people”. According to the Town Code, personal umbrellas are not allowed on the beach; they are only allowed to be rented and the rental companies are required to personally drop off and pick up their umbrellas.

Resolution and approval of the 2008 CARTA budget
“As everyone knows, the eight municipalities of Charleston County need to approve the budget each year for CARTA,” said Mayor Sottile, addressing the council. “I believe that CARTA’s new express route really got off the ground well last year and this past month they have started working on the new inter-modal center in North Charleston. This year, CARTA will be adding another express route from downtown to Summerville.”

Leola Hanbury also pointed out that Howard Chapman, the director for CARTA, would be pleased that “our Mayor Sotille is a member of the CARTA board”. Mr. Chapman, who arrived soon after the approval for CARTA’s budget passed unanimously, thanked the council for passing the 2008 budget.

Kudzu and roll-out carts
Councilman Betelli stated that either a drafted newsletter or one page mail-out would be sent to customers of the water department concerning the use of roll-out trash carts on the island. The newsletter would discuss the guidelines of roll-out carts, including their visibility, enclosures and corrals. Councilman Betelli pointed out that corrals for roll-out carts are not really in accordance with the City’s ordinance, so Public Works will be looking into slowly phasing them out.

Secondly, Councilman Betelli stated that there have been complaints about an overabundance of kudzu at Breach Inlet. “We are going to contact SCDOT and get some suggestions to see how we should handle it,” Councilman Betelli said.

The Mayor agreed with Councilman Betelli’s decision to consult someone before removing the kudzu vines. “It (the kudzu) has been there since day one and it helps hold in the dunes. We need to watch out and make sure we don’t create more of an erosion problem than we have.”

Finally, Councilman Betelli reminded Council that this year’s Beach Sweep would be held on Saturday, September 15.

Three first reading ordinances - storm water management
According to the minutes f the Public Works committee on July 17, City Administrator Tucker reported that there were three ordinances and one resolution that needed to be passed at the July Council meeting. The ordinances all deal with the storm water management plan and state the following:
Ordinance 2007 - 14 : This ordinance establishes a storm water management utility for the purpose of planning, designing, funding, constructing and maintaining storm water management, sediment and erosion control, flood and storm water discharge programs, projects and facilities and reviewing ad approving storm water management and sediment control plans for land disturbing activities, and providing for the administration and enforcement thereof.
Ordinance 2007 - 15 : Establishes storm water management utility fees, providing for the classification of real property subject to such fees, establishing the amount of interim storm water management utility fees and providing for the use of such fees by the storm water management utility of the City of Isle of Palms.
* Single family residential: Base Rate ($36/year) times one (1) Equivalent Residential Unit (ERU), regardless of the size of the parcel or improvements.
* Vacant/undeveloped property: Base Rate times one half (½) ERU, regardless of size of parcel.
* Playgrounds/park property: The runoff coefficient (C-Factor), which is .11, is used in an equation to relate the C-factor to the base ERU. That sum is multiplied by the acreage of the property and that ratio is multiplied by the Base Rate to determine their annual fee.
* Special Use Properties: The same equation as Playgrounds/Park Properties with a C-factor of .50.
* Multi-Use Residential Property: Same as Playgrounds/Park Properties, with a C-factor of .64.
* Non-Residential/Commercial Property: Same as Playgrounds/Park Properties, with a C-factor of . .82.

Example calculation:
Commercial Property of 1.5 acres:
ERU = $36/per year.
C-factor ratio of commercial to ERU = .82/.40 = 2/05
ERU/acre = 2.05 x 3 = 6.15 ERU/acre
ERUs for 1.5 acre commercial property = 1.50 x 6.15 = 9.23 ERUs
Utility fee = 9.23 x $36 = $332.28/per year

In no case shall a Utility customer be billed a fee for less than one half (½) the Base Rate.
Ordinance 2007 - 16 :Establishes the storm water management program (SWMP) for the City of Isle of Palms.
Ordinance 2007 - 17 : Alters the zoning code to say that properties must meet requirements to be in compliance with land development plans.

Administrator Tucker stated that the storm water management plan is a federal requirement passed to the state and then passed to local subdivisions for better management of the state’s storm water. “The results should be a good thing, but getting from the requirements to implementation will be something we have to struggle through.” She said, as well as noting that Charleston County will be managing the program for Isle of Palms.

The reason for the rush on the first passage of the above ordinances are because the City needs to have the ordinances read and passed by September to be in compliance with permit. “ There will be modifications at the second reading,” said Administrator Tucker. “We will be meeting with the County to discuss any further changes, but this gets us started for the deadline.”

Councilman Cronin pointed out that one county in Columbia had already received a $700,000 fine for non-compliance with the act.

Councilman Betelli was quick to point out that this is a result of federal regulations and not a decision by City Council. “This came to us because our senators passed this in Washington and then passed it on to us to fulfill. This is a tedious, huge program. City council is doing this because your senators and congressman voted on it,” he said.

“This goes back to 1990 by the EPA National Pollutant Discharge System ,” Councilman Cronin noted. “Phase Two was enacted in 2000 and now we’re being given 60 days to do something that we’ve had two and a half to three years to deal with. It will cost money to monitor and manage and it will be costly relative to it’s benefit in the near term, but in five to six years we should see some benefit.” In relation to the cost of the project, Councilman Cronin also pointed out that “f we had to bring people over, it would cost much more than $36 a year“

Second reading of the historic tree removal ordinance and the front yard setbacks for GC-1
The ordinance regarding the removal of historic trees, ordinance 2007 - 12, passed unanimously, without comment, it’s second reading and the ordinance regarding the front yard setbacks, 2007 - 13, passed 8 - 1, with Councilman Marino stating his objection. “I think we should keep GC-1 the same for now,“ he said. “This is a big step for a large area of the island. A pretty big move. We should consider other options, such as the zoning of two city parking lots in GC-4 or whatever it may be and keep the setbacks the same until we can study the impact on shopping centers and others.”

The Isle of Palms City Council will hold a public hearing on August 28 at 6:30 immediately followed by their regular monthly meeting at Town Hall.

Nasty nibbles worry waders
By Ali Akhyari

     If the influx of out-of-state license plates and triple digit temperatures wasn’t evidence enough, the huge, multiplied population of scantily-clad beachgoers should let you know that the Lowcountry summer is in full swing. It’s like the seasonal rains of savannah Africa: a sudden flood of life-giving rain. Except the rain in this case is money.
      For beach communities whose lifeblood consists of tourism dollars a shark attack can spell disaster. Sounds like the plot of a very successful movie.
     Just toss in Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss and a disgruntled mariner played by Robert Shaw and you’ve got the 1975 classic “Jaws.”
     But this isn’t Amity Island.
     This is the Isle of Palms. Release date, August 2007. 30-year-old Noah Green and a nine year old boy got the lead roles after both were bitten by what is being called a shark. The island is in full swing of its big tourist season and the stage is set for a remake of the classic that inspired a mass hysteria that lingers to this day.
     “I’m not afraid of sharks,” Green says, who credits several years in California for his healthy respect for the creatures. He considers himself a conscientious swimmer who is aware of sharks . However, he admits that he most likely would not have been a victim if he had been properly informed.
     “If I had known that an attack had occurred I would not have been in the water,” he says. One thing that upset me is that a little boy was attacked a couple of hours before. Wild Dunes did not inform any swimmers.”
     Green, an ESL teacher who has been living in China for five years, was on vacation with extended family. They thought it would be good idea to hit the beach before dinner. They had been boogie boarding and surfing. But as the day went on and the waves inevitably became frustrating to surf on, Green decided that he wanted to swim and body surf instead. He was about 35 yards out, sitting on his knees in order to ride the small breakers that came through. He caught the last wave of the day. It didn’t take him far, but when he stood up in the shin-high water he was hit by the fish. The damage was light, but when he kicked in defense, his Achilles tendon was cut.
     “I was instantly in shock and I couldn’t really yell,” he recalls. “Shark! Shark!” he screamed. But the attempted warning was overwhelmed by the reality of danger. “Help me!”
     He got some help for the last 25 yards of his journey out of the water. Fortunately, there happened to be two nurses and a surgeon on the beach that day.
     “Wild Dunes didn’t really have a facility to deal with a situation like this,” Green says. However, when an ambulance arrived, he says they were very professional and helpful.
     Green says that they are certain now that it was a shark. What species of shark is still unknown.
     What is very clear, however, is that there have only been 56 shark attacks in South Carolina since 1837. That’s an average of one every three years. The last fatal attack occurred in 1852 when Charles Chambers was attacked and killed after his boat capsized and he was wading to shore with an oar.
     So why did two brushes with sharks occur within just a couple of hours of each other in the same general area?
     That’s what shark experts, like Arnold Postell of the South Carolina Aquarium have been asked recently.
     Postell believes that several factors could account for this rare spike in shark activity. First of all, this incident occurred on the one of the hottest days we’ve experienced this year. That meant more people at the beach and more people in the water trying to cool off. Mathematically, that simply increases the chances of a person and a shark running into each other. That’s exactly what Postell thinks happened.
     He says that, most likely, the shark was chasing a fish in the murky water. It ran into the something fleshy and instinctively bit at it. “They’re not ravenous feeders,” Postell says. “They’re picky eaters. We’re not what they’re going for.” That’s why most shark attack stories share the common thread of a shark taking a bite and, for lack of better terminology, spit it back out.
     In fact, the occurrence is so rare that, as a diver, Postell says, “it’s more fortunate to see a shark.”
     But Green, lying in a hospital bed, would probably pass on being that fortunate ever again. And although most people would consider the wound to his foot the most pertinent injury, evidenced by the vacuum pack that allows his foot to drain infection as it heals, Green’s mind is on a more uncertain future. The injury, he says, is “definitely life-altering.”
     Green was preparing to begin a contract to teach at a new school in China. However, because of the injury, healing time, and travel woes he will be unable to fulfill his obligation. His doctor also advised him against traveling at this time. But even more than that, his wife is stuck in China. The two find themselves separated during a time when support is would be so welcomed. “I really miss her,” he says. “She’s handling things very well. I feel guilty for her being there.”

Wild Dunes PR representatives did not respond to a phone message as of the publication of this story.