Dear Island Neighbors,

Just a few items this time, the first of which definitely affects all of us, every day.

WE ARE FLUSHED WITH EXCITEMENT TO INVITE YOU TO...

...the ribbon-cutting for our newly rebuilt Wastewater Treatment Plant (sewage plant) and associated system improvements. On Friday, April 29, 2022, at 1:00 PM, we will officially celebrate the completion of a $25 million-dollar, multi-year project to make necessary replacements and improvements, and vital resiliency enhancements, to what had been an aging system.

The event will be at the plant, at 2051 Gull Avenue (behind Town Hall and Fire Station). The ribbon-cutting and few short speeches will commence at 1:00, but you are invited to attend any time until 3:00 PM.

With our Fire Station and Maintenance/Storage Building construction project, parking close to the plant will be limited, so if you can bike or walk, that is advisable.

You might be surprised to learn that our original treatment plant was built back in 1968. Those early Island leaders were truly environmentally conscious and visionary in moving the Island away from septic tanks. Bear in mind that the tax base of the Island then was tiny compared to the present or recent past.

You might also be surprised to learn how many coastal locations  continue to rely on septic tanks to this day, at least in part.

The original treatment plant equipment had reached the end of its useful life. Further, our growing vulnerability to flooding and sea level rise, and increased awareness of the threat from seismic events (AKA earthquakes), made it essential that we not only build back but build back higher and stronger. And the threat of electric outages from various causes necessitated more reliable backup generators at the treatment plant and sewer lift stations (pump stations).

At the same time, the miles of sewer mains (pipes) that constitute our collection system were equally aged, in some cases even older (back to 1938!). As with old collection systems in cities and towns across America, the system was vulnerable to what’s called “I and I” (Inflow and Infiltration), which means stormwater and groundwater entering the sewer system, greatly increasing the flow into the treatment plant and possibly taxing its capacity.

Unlike water mains which are under pressure, sewer mains with leaks are not likely to discharge much of their contents into the surrounding earth. They are more vulnerable to intrusion from groundwater and stormwater. Sewage treatment plants are not built to treat rain or groundwater.

So with this project, we have endeavored to produce a secure, resilient and functional wastewater system that will serve us for at least the next 50 years.

Many people have worked long and hard to achieve this milestone, but I can only name a few here. Greg Gress is the leader of our great Water and Sewer Department, which includes all the folks who work so hard to ensure that we always have good water coming into our homes and “used” water flowing away from our homes to where it can be properly treated. Town Administrator Andy Benke has ably overseen this biggest-ever collection of Town capital projects.

The Councilmembers most involved in this project have been those who serve on the very hard-working Water and Sewer Committee. The current Chair is Bachman Smith, whose background in construction law and tireless dedication have been invaluable in this effort. His predecessor W&S Chairs, Susan Middaugh and Debra Hazen-Martin, also worked extremely hard in championing and shepherding the many years of earlier efforts to get these projects started. Many other former Councilmembers have served on the W&S Committee; I apologize that I can’t list them all here, but the current members with Bachman are Gary Visser and Scott Millimet.

Please come out to the ribbon-cutting so you can see first-hand what has been accomplished!

BUDGET TIME

Council is deeply involved in the annual months-long budgeting process. You can visit the Town website (Council Meetings) to see the draft budgets we have been reviewing thus far, and continue to watch or attend our workshop and regular meetings in May and June in which we finalize the budget.

More importantly, you can attend regular meetings and the Public Hearing on the budget if you wish to provide input during public comments. Please visit the Town’s home page and click on “Upcoming Meetings and Agendas” for the dates and times.

BEACH TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT UPDATE

We continue to work with leadership of the Isle of Palms, Mt. Pleasant and Folly Beach, and media representatives, to develop a coordinated program of outreach to the greater Charleston area to apprise potential day visitors of real-time traffic conditions. Hopefully they will then factor that info into their travel decisions before heading to the beach. Stay tuned for more details soon!

See you around the Island!

Pat O’Neil
Mayor
843 670 9266
Twitter: @oneilpm1
oneilp@sullivansisland.sc.gov