[James Island Reincorporation]

But the Town supporters are so hell bent on forming their own town, the last election was also a two to one vote in favor of the town, so no one knows which way it will go today.

hi everyone,

I just voted on my paper ballot in a CARDBOARD BOX VOTING BOOTH, Placed my ballot in an old fashioned Wooden Box too! I cannot believe #1) they did not use the election commission for this election #2) That I literally had to vote inside of a makeshift cardboard box with what looked like a shower curtain (and rod) attached to it.

I have my fingers crossed until we find out the results, I will say that I did see a hec of lot more voters than I have ever seen for this type of election, Parents of children that my kids are friends with, young voters, I was impressed with what I saw at my facility at the Camp Road Fire Station.

I was wondering how we can find out EXACTLY who ran this election, since they did not use the election commission, How do we know that these people are not all Town Supporters who will happily throw all of the "no" votes away?? I know that sounds mean, but I just feel like that is the point they(town supporters) have come to and it wouldnt surprise me if something like that happened, oh well, i guess we will find out tonight!!

[James Island Reincorporation]

From JAMES ISLAND:

Hi Folks,

I saw virtually no posts on this topic from someone living on James Island, so I thought I would offer my perspective. I've seen lots of speculation regarding the reasons why "I" want to be in the Town of James Island and not in the City of Charleston.

There are many reasons, some of which include arguably more taxes. MUCH more important to me is self-determination. I've seen what the City of Charleston has done on James Island, and it is a disgrace. More importantly, we the residents didn't have a voice in these decisions. Examples include development of the Dill Sister

[James Island Reincorporation]

Do you have a link or a website that we could go to and take a look at it? I'm not sure of what publication you are referring to.

i have emailed someone at THE JOURNAL to ask if I can get a copy of the letter. they do not have an online archive system, i thought they were associated to the post & courier ( i get the journal with my newspaper once a week) but apparently they are not, as soon as i can get some type of link I will post..........

[James Island Reincorporation]

Hi confused, I read your posts, and I have to say that I'm not surprised with the response you've received from Mary Clark. This in my opinion of course, but I believe she offers no rational reasons to form this town. Her only reasons for this incorporation movement are based on irrational hatred of Mayor Riley and the city of Chas. I admit, I am not an adamant supporter of Riley, since I feel there are some problems in the city he has not attempted to solve. However, my opinions of this incorporation are in line with his. It just does not make sense to have redundant bureaucracies serving different sections on the barrier island.

The only perceived benefit of forming the town, according to the pro-town people, is that people on James Island will have more local input and control over development. This stems from the aforementioned hatred of the city that supporters such as Clark have, claiming that the city has let developers run rampant in building more houses, condos, and shopping centers.

However, this rationale is completely bogus. What town supporters won't tell you is that much of the development that occurred on the island was outside city limits! The city started annexing land in the late 1970s, but many neighborhoods were being built or already existed, with the county providing zoning and allowing for construction. Unincorporated areas continued to be developed under very loose county ordinances, only to have the city annex the properties later, after they were completed. The blame cannot be blamed squarely on the city...the county provided the impetus for James Island to become what it is today. If the remaining James Island residents want more control of how the island is developed, it would be most logical to annex into the city of Chas. The city already provides many services to the island including recreation facilities, trash, sewer, and zoning. The proposed town would only provide the last service listed. James Island is also historically an integrated part of the city of Chas.

As far as controlling development, the city has a detailed plan of what James Island could be, which requires their expertise in zoning. Now, the fact is that many people are continuing to move to Chas, so I don't think JI can be preserved exactly like it is. However, if the whole island were in the city, another city councilman would have to be added to represent the additional population. I believe this would give residents what they desire: more local input.

I understand your frustration with the police concerning your street, but this is just another example of why the whole island should be in the city. City and county police cannot overstep jurisdictions...that just causes a whole load of legal problems. The problem will not be solved if the rest of JI incorporates, it will only continue. Anyway, if you can be annexed, I would suggest that you do that. Then, you can start up your own neighborhood association to help rid your neighborhood of these criminals.

Wow, thanks for the info, i havent been able to check online for awhile, i have to tell you i have gotten more information for you guys then i have from anyone else on this island. I believe that you are right, we have decided to vote against the incorporation in this upcoming election. I dont know what good it will do though, James Island has a terrible voter turnout.........those that want the town will vote, the rest either dont care what happens or are like I was a few months ago, to busy/consumed with life to get involved. I hope for the sake of James Island it (the incorporation) dosnt happen again.

p.s. did anyone read Mary Clarks letter to the Editor in THE JOURNAL on May 11, 2006. If so , what did you think? There were a couple of comments my husband and I could just not figure out.

[James Island Reincorporation]

Welcome to the forum, confused!

I will take a stab at answering some of these questions for you, but keep in mind that I am not from Charleston, though I am familiar with the issue. I am not an authority on the situation.

1. The advantage to having an incorporated "Town of James Island" is that there would be more local control over what happens wihtin its boundaries. That includes zoning, emergency services, design codes, taxes, issuance of building permits, planning, and things of that nature.
   
   
2. There realy isnt anything that can be done to stop the development, its going to happen in some form or another. It could be possible to alter the zoning and building regulations to only allow a certan type of development (for example, single family residential or townhouses). That could be an issue of contention though, because not everyone will agree to that arrangement.
   
   
3. I have no idea who is building those townhomes. Perhaps someone more familiar with the area will speak up.
   

The problem with an incorporated "Town of James Island" is that you have areas, as you know, that are in the City of Charleston. Upon an incorporation, the parcels in the city will remain that way. James Island woud only incorporate the parts of the island that aren't in already the city. I will post a map later illustrating the situation. The incorporated James Island would not have that mcuh conrol over the entire island because its boundaries are so disjoointed. If you look at #1 above, you can see the types of things that municipalities control. James Island would not be consistantly developed because two separate municipalities would occupy the island itself. The incorporated municipality may change zoning and its comprehensive plan to make changes similar to what you desire, but the parts that remain in Charleston will not have those same rules, so the odds are that development will still happen in the parts that remain in Charleston.

In my opinion, James Islanders should request to be annexed into Charleston. Once the island is entirely in the city, a neighborhood organization can be formed (if one doesn't already exist) and still create a plan that reflects the community's desires. Or it could operate under the District You would accomplish the same goals that way, and not have an additional taxing body that supplies redundant services.

Here is a link to the City of Charleston Dept of Planning and Neighborhood Services. The Neighborhood Services explains what a neighborhood association can do.

The City of Charleston also has a Community Districts plan. This plan would help James Island have its desired look and feel. Here is a link to information on the districts plan. If remaining areas of James Island were to be annexed into the city, this would be beneficial to the Island.

Hopefully this information is useful to you. I will work on that map this afternoon. Take a look at some of those links, and let us know what you think, and if you have more questions!

thank you so much for the response! I am well aware of the planning department at the city, and cannot get any help from them either. I just mailed mysecond letter to the city's RMC office to find out if we even have a neighborhood association (i mailed a letter to every resident on my street and not one person knew if we had an association or not).

I believe you are right about annexing, we are just a small step away, I did email prior TOJI councilman Qualey also this morning at one last final attempt to get there side of the story without any Riley bashing. We have the annexation paperwork already, I just want to make sure that we are making the right decision for our family. i will be glad when this is all over...... thanks again!

[James Island Reincorporation]

hi,

I am pretty new to all of this......please bear with me. I have been back on James Island for 4 years, I havent lived here since a teen (its been awhile!). I remarried (my husband lived over here) and then quit my job to stay home & care for 1 of my children who has Spina Bifida.

Since I had more time during the day on my hands, I really wanted to become involved with my community, I have always loved James Island, it used to feel like a different little world when you would cross the bridge headed for home........laid back.......peaceful......beachy......nice. I was concerned (and ignorant) about what was happening with JI so I called Mary Clark (about 1 1/2 years ago). I was not at all impressed with her personally, she seemed uneducated & simple minded, but still a nice lady. I kept asking her WHY should we vote for JI and what I could do to help,( my main concern has always been the amount of developement over here.........if you havent taken a drive around the island lately, you should, there are condos, apartments, homes literally on top of each other) I spoke with Mary for about 1 hour on the phone, we did a lot of chatting about this and that, but I never got any clear answers. It was very evident that she did not like Riley & at the time I agreed with her. I'm sorry but he seems like a greedy snake............but will admit I have not studied up enough on his political career enough to say that full heartedly.

Out of frustration, I gave up on my ideas of helping out my community & possibly involving myself in politics on any level. (I also became consumed by some issues in my own neighborhood on James Island, that I have still not been able to resolve as my Street is City of Charleston, but my home is County. (and I cant get either one of them to take responsibility for our neighborhood issues)

Anyways, I am back in the loop again hopefully, I have read all of the posts listed on this site & done a little internet research to get "accquainted" with this mess again. But I am still CONFUSED!!

Since ultimately people are going to do what is best for them and their family/finances/etc. Here are my questions:

1) What are the benefits of having a town?

2) Is there anything to do about slowing down the rate of developement on this island as it seems every available piece of land is being built on

3) Who is really responsible for building all of those ugly townhomes on the way out to the beach.........it used to be such a nice drive.........

I guess once I figure out who's side I am on, then I can begin to involve myself politically as I believe I have something to offer on several different levels.........

I have received the letters from the city..........they seem harsh..........i have spoken with Mary Clark (added note: on more than one occasion) ........she seemed harsh.........

My husband and I are thinking of moving our family, I would love to stay on the island but refuse to pay $350,000 for a broken down home and I feel that James Island has lost a lot of its appeal for any type of quiet/laid back life.

We are definitely leaving our neighborhood (WhiteHouse Plantation) because of the crime (we have 3 crack houses in our neighborhood); the apathy of my neighbors when it comes to neighborhood issues; and the fact that I cannot call 911 without it being a confusing mess, I guess if I take my cell phone out to the street, I can say I am city, but If i decide to walk into my yard I'll need to call again & ask for county. (By the way get this: 3/4 of my street is City and about 4 homes; the rest are county; City Police will not help with speeding because the person complaining-me- is a county resident; County will not help because when they are actually speeding, they are in the city's jurisdiction????)

Help! I need some clear & concise answers!

sorry for the long post!