Town to Get Drainage Update

Mickey Seabrook of the engineering firm E.M. Seabrook, which the town of James Island has hired to plan drainage and road improvements, will present his list of public works needs to council March 18.

Seabrook also will present a cost estimate for the work at that meeting, said Town Administrator Roy DeHaven.

DeHaven met with Seabrook last week about the areas on James Island that are in the greatest need of drainage improvements.

He said the areas include Clearview Drive at the end of Harbor View Road near Fort Johnson Road, Woodland Shores Road near the Riverland Terrace neighborhood and the area near Wilton Street and Folly Road.

DeHaven told council at its Feb. 19 meeting that areas Seabrook's firm already has improved include Kentwood Circle in the Lynwood subdivision off Camp Road.

DeHaven said several residents on Kentwood Circle had built driveways over drainage ditches, which caused flooding in the neighborhood.

DeHaven said the firm had to dig 4 feet deep just to find the drainage ditches.

Seabrook's firm also did paving and sloping work on Arsburn Road off Battery Island Drive. DeHaven said now that Arsburn is paved, people have been dumping trash at the end of the road. He has informed the James Island Public Service District about the problem.

Seabrook is done with the engineering part of the drainage study to assess problem areas, DeHaven said.

"We can start scheduling (improvements)," DeHaven said.

"Two streets will (cost) a huge amount of money," DeHaven said. "Clearview and Woodland Shores Road."

Money for drainage improvements will come from the town's public works fund. The 2007-08 budget for these kind of projects has $700,000.

In other council business, DeHaven told members that the town doesn't have enough resources to comply with state regulations about the number of hired employees in the building department.

DeHaven said the state mandates municipalities have a certain number of positions in the building department that the town can't afford, such as a residential and commercial building inspector and permit clerk, but there are ways to "opt out" of that mandate, DeHaven said. He told council that the city of Folly Beach is in a similar situation.

State law now requires municipalities to hire a building code official.

A new law may require municipalities to provide up to six employees in the building department, said Folly Beach City Administrator Toni Connor-Rooks. Folly Beach has two employees in the building department, and she said there were no plans to hire anyone else, at least full time. The city is looking into the details on the new law.

DeHaven said James Island cannot afford to hire additional employees.

"Revenues from the building permit side are not sufficient to pay a permit clerk or building contractor," DeHaven said. Two town assistants, Hanna Wehmeyer and Toshyanna Roberts, have been picking up the slack to help with permitting, he said.

According to Chapter 9, Title 6, of South Carolina state law, which addresses building codes of local governments, municipalities can be exempt from employee requirements by submitting an affidavit to the South Carolina Legislative Council addressing the financial reasons why the municipality can't provide the services.

The law states that a municipality may be exempt from the requirements until it is financially able to provide the services or after five years.

Connor-Rooks said that in an ideal situation, the city would have enough employees in the department to share responsibility.

"In most small towns, you're fighting to hold on and take care of the employees you have," Connor-Rooks said.

"It's great to have enough (employees) and separation of duties, but it's not something feasible for a town our size."

The city's new budget year starts in July.

Connor-Rooks said the city will look at the building department's budget requests for next year and at any new state requirements.

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