A message from Mayor Kleinman
Happy New Year, Seabrookers. I hope that you have enjoyed a wonderful holiday season. My wish for each of you is for a healthy, prosperous, and safe 2025. I have a lot of good news to share; 2024 was an important and eventful year for TOSI. It was a year of accomplishment, and a year of promises kept. I am proud to be your Mayor, grateful for your trust and confidence, thankful for my partners, Council Members Raymond Hamilton, Dan Kortvelesy, Darryl May, and Gordon Weis, and honored to be supported by the top-notch Town staff, led by our excellent Town Administrator, Joe Cronin, and former Assistant Town Administrator, Town Treasurer and Town Clerk, and now Town Administrator of the Town of Awendaw, Katharine Watkins, who will be greatly missed. Despite what you may have thought, Short-Term Rentals was not the only thing Council worked on in 2024. Though STRs did occupy much staff and Council time, many other important priorities were addressed. Early in 2024 Council adopted a resolution establishing the Town’s strategic priorities for 2024-2025 and articulating our shared vision for future actions and the most efficient and effective use of limited public resources.
Council identified nine priorities, four of which were identified as critical:
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Comprehensive Beach Management Plan. COMPLETE. The Town worked closely with CSE Coastal Science & Engineering, the foremost experts in the field. A five-year update of the Beach Management Plan has been completed and adopted.
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Short-Term Rental Ordinance. COMPLETE. Council made it a critical priority to complete a comprehensive review of the Town’s existing short-term rental ordinance; evaluate and if applicable adopt an ordinance to implement recommended changes. Three ordinances were adopted on December 17th.
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Comprehensive Marsh Management Plan. IN PROGRESS. Partnering with Elko Coastal Consulting, preparation of a Comprehensive Marsh Management Plan is well underway and we expect completion around mid-year 2025.
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Comprehensive Plan. COMPLETE. TOSI’s Planning Commission worked much of the year to update the Town’s Comprehensive Plan, including crucial action concerning the Charleston County Urban Growth Boundary and future land use recommendations. The Update was submitted to Council and approved on December 17th.
Other Strategic Priorities included the following:
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Seabrook Island Road. Our application for permits for the roadway/ drainage project is pending with the Bureau of Coastal Management (formerly OCRM). We will report updates as things change. Critically importantly, however, Council transferred $664,915 to the Road and Drainage Fund in 2024 (including $514,915 from the grant funds received by the Town under the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds Program). In furtherance of our efforts to beautify the Seabrook Island Road right-of-way, the Town has re-paved the pathways, replaced the fences and installed a new sign in furtherance of this goal.
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External Relationships. The Town is participating with SIPOA and the Club on creation of a Master Plan, an effort to create a long-term plan for our entire island. I meet regularly with the presidents of SIPOA and the Club to ensure open lines of communication. Along with the Mayor of the Town of Kiawah Island, I hosted a Community Meeting regarding the proposed re-zoning by Charleston County for the Island Park Place Health and Wellness Village, which featured the participation of Charleston County Council Members, Jenny Honeycutt and Joe Boykin.
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Communications. The Town sought to diversify and enhance communication capabilities and to develop and implement additional tools to communicate with the public. The Town hired a new Communication & Events Manager, Abby Grooms and an E-Newsletter, The Pelican’s Brief, was initiated. (Anyone not currently receiving the newsletter should please let us know in Town Hall (agrooms@townofseabrookisland.org)).
We have a long list of other accomplishments for 2024, including, but not limited to the following. We received a clean audit opinion on our 2023 financial statements. We adopted a balanced 2025 budget. $400,000 from our SLFRF grant was transferred to St. Johns Fire District for the purchase of a High Water Rescue Vehicle to be housed on Seabrook Island. Council worked with SIUC to authorize the bonds for the expansion of the Utility Commission’s effluent holding pond and pump station renovation. TOSI’s Environment and Wildlife Committee sponsored educational events concerning coyotes (partnering with St. Christopher Camp) and alligators.
Not only did your Town Council conduct and complete major projects and initiatives, it is important to note that we did this with extensive public involvement, as was my promise to you. Town Council convened three Special Committees and conducted a total of 89 public meetings in 2024. Public participation was broad, vocal and diverse. In addition, I personally met with every one of you who requested a meeting. As I said above, 2024 was a very good year for TOSI. We still have much work to do, and you will be hearing from me soon about that. Cheers!
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