The Town of James Island is almost entirely zoned single family residential with a density of three units per acre. There is no vacant land in the Town zoned for apartments. The only areas zoned multifamily have had apartment complexes on them before the Town was formed the first time--in 1992.
The commercially-zoned properties in the Town do allow for apartments, but only four units per acre. There are very few vacant commercial lots in the Town. Nearly all of the commercial lots in the Town are along Folly Road and have businesses on them.
In fact, there isn't very much vacant land in the Town at all. The Town is almost entirely "built out" made up of single family residential neighborhoods.
In last the ten years, there have been three small subdivisions built in the Town with 44 new homes. Since the Town is made up of slightly more than 4000 households, that is an increase of about 1%.
When I see candidates for Town Council centering their campaigns on stopping excessive development on James Island, I am puzzled. What developments in the Town of James Island are they complaining about? Town Council can prevent rezoning of single family areas to commercial or multi-family. But no one on Town Council has supported that. And it hasn't happened.
Of course, we see new apartment complexes and residential neighborhoods being constructed on James Island nearly every day. It occurs on the approximately 50% of James Island that has been annexed by the City of Charleston.
James Island Town Council has no authority over development in the City of Charleston. The City does not ask the permission of the Town's Mayor or Council before they allow developers to build. The laws of the South Carolina do not require them to ask our permission. County Council has no authority over the City of Charleston either. County Council only governs development in the unincorporated area.
Former Mayor Riley supported dense infill development on James Island. Since he has left, City policy has improved, but there is a legacy of City zoning that allows for dense development. Nothing requires a municipality to zone for dense development, but once you have zoned a property multi-family or commercial, reversing course is difficult. You can expect a legal challenge from the owners and they have a very good chance of winning in South Carolina. Still, most City areas are zoned for their least dense single family residential--five units per acre. Unfortunately, that is substantially more dense than in the Town.
In my view, what the Town needs to do is continue to work to change annexation laws in Columbia so that the voters in the 25% of James Island that is unincorporated and was in the Town in 2011 can rejoin. The Town's density requirements will then apply on approximately 50% of James Island, rather than the County's slightly higher density or the City's substantially higher density. The way to stop the City from annexing even more of James Island is to reunite the Town.
So, when a candidate for James Island Town Council tells you they will stop excessive development on James Island, ask them, how? Do they think this excessive development is in the Town? Do they support reuniting the Town and stopping the continued expansion of the City of Charleston on James Island? Do they think they will make the City of Charleston change its development policies? How? Beg and Plead? Cry? Speak firmly? Throw tantrums?
The one member of Charleston City Council who lives on James Island fully understands the need to stop excessive development. I have always been willing to work with her. But she is just one member of City Council. How can Town officials be most effective? My observation over the years is that having Town officials insult City officials has been counter-productive. The City of Charleston did modify their zoning on James Island so that commercial properties no longer automatically allow for large apartment complexes.
I certainly hope that no candidate for James Island Town Council is so cynical that they hope that voters will be confused and think that these developments are occurring in the Town of James Island and that all that must be done is to elect new members of Council. To me, that seems like exploiting voter ignorance.
I certainly am open to new ideas. Exactly how can a member of Town Council stop excessive development in the City of Charleston or the unincorporated area? How can property owners in the unincorporated area be stopped from annexing to the City of Charleston to allow even more density than in unincorporated Charleston County? Shouldn't candidates let the voters in on their plan?
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