Mayor's Message

Dear Island neighbors,
 
Well, ready or not, here are the holidays! I hope all of you and your families have a Merry Christmas and/or Happy Hanukkah (which commences the evening of December 25 this year).
 
HOLIDAY FIRE SAFETY TIPS
The last thing anyone wants at any time of the year, but especially this time of year, is a fire.  Fire Chief Anthony Stith wants you to be aware of seasonal problems to avoid:

• Keep your Christmas tree “well-hydrated”. Check the water level in the stand regularly.
• For trees and other things you put lights and other electric items on: Check for frayed wires (and replace them!). Make sure that potentially  hot bulbs do not make contact with flammable materials.
• Keep flammable trees, presents and other decorations away from open flames. And make sure they are not somewhere where a pet could knock them into the flames.
• Check your smoke detector, and check that your fire extinguishers are charged. And keep them very handy even if offends your sense of holiday design...c’mon, they’re red, so just stick a couple green bows on them and they’ll fit right in with everything else.
• And this one from me: As a proud native of South Louisiana, which introduced the world to the concept of turkey-frying-house-fires...if you want to fry a turkey for any holiday celebration, do it well away from your house, and not under it or any other structure (or low-hanging tree). Make sure the level of oil in the pot can accommodate the turkey without spilling over and causing a conflagration. Check that the turkey is fully defrosted before adding it to the oil, otherwise the water released when it quickly defrosts will cause an instant boil-over. Do not try any of this without watching several turkey-frying-safety videos and having that fire extinguisher nearby. And NEVER leave the setup unattended once the heat is on.

HOLIDAY HOME SAFETY TIPS
Chief of Police Glenn Meadows has other important suggestions for your home safety during the season, especially if you’re travelling:

• Don’t have packages spending the holidays on your porch or steps. This is both bait for porch pirates and an announcement that no one is home. Ask a neighbor to check for your packages and move them to somewhere more secure, or try to schedule your deliveries for dates when you’re home.
• If you’re traveling, avoid other advertisements that you’re away, like accumulating mail or newspapers. Try to schedule holds for both of those. Ask a neighbor to keep an eye out in case your attempts to stop the daily paper are unsuccessful.
• Also if you’re traveling, consider getting your place put on house watch by our police. You can do this in any of three ways:
  1. Download the form here, fill it out and drop it off at Town Hall during regular business hours https://bit.ly/SIHouseWatch
  2. Fill out the form and email a photo or pdf of it to Chief Meadows at gmeadows@sullivansisland.sc.gov
  3. Photo or pdf your completed form and send it via text to Chief Meadows at 843-834-4298.

Chief Meadows assures you that he will make sure all your house watch requests are handled. How’s that for service, folks?
 
STITH PARK MASTER PLAN UPDATE
At our meeting on November 19, Council approved the proposed park Master Plan  with several changes to the overall concept. We removed from consideration the proposed observation tower on top of the mound as well as potential swimming pool or community center at the park.  
 
The Recreation Committee will resume discussion of phasing improvements for the park on Tuesday December 17 at 10 am, based on identifying the most pressing issues at the park.
 
NEW YEAR’S DAY POLAR PLUNGE!
The 30th Annual Polar Plunge event, originated and promoted continuously by Dunleavy’s Pub, is now a treasured Island New Year’s Day tradition for the entire Island. The actual Plunge into the water is 2:00 PM on  Wednesday, January 1, but folks will begin gathering and celebrating hours before that. The slow trek to the beach will begin around 1:30; don’t underestimate how long it will take.
 
Many of our Island restaurants will be participating with special outside service for food and beverage. Please be careful driving through the commercial district, and remember that many more folks than usual will be milling about very close to Middle Street. Station 22 ½ seaward of Middle Street will be closed to vehicular traffic most of the day.
 
Please recall that the “Reason For The Freezin’” is to raise funds for the Special Olympics South Carolina. Come out to celebrate with neighbors and strangers, enjoy food and beverage. PLEASE BRING CASH to contribute to the many Special Olympics volunteers. If you can’t attend, you can contribute by visiting https://bit.ly/2025SIPolarPlunge or you can drop off a check to “Special Olympics South Carolina” at the pub.
 
If you plan to actually join (vs. watch) the plunge, here is a tip from painful personal experience: Wear some kind of dunkable footwear. Running barefoot over hard-packed little sand ridges gets painful quickly, especially in the cold.
 
Wear your wackiest costume (even you, Tom P...I guess!). Come on out to see hundreds of your neighbors go off their meds all at once, at a great family event.
 
And with that, Happy New Year!
 
See you around the Island!
 Pat O’Neil
Mayor
843 670 9266
oneilp@sullivansisland.sc.gov

A Holiday Message from the Town Administrator

Season’s Greetings Island Residents!
 
As the holiday season approaches, I would like to thank our residents and staff team members for all they do to make Sullivan’s Island an amazing place! Whether you’re a newcomer or longtime resident, business partner or Town employee, together, we all contribute to what makes Sullivan’s Island a special place to call home. Over the past six months, it has truly been my honor to serve as your Town Administrator. It has been challenging at times yet exciting getting to understand a different side of Town governance.  I’d like to give a special thanks to our Council members, citizen volunteer board and commission members and our dedicated staff for their patience and guidance in this process.  
 
A few considerations as we wrap-up 2024:
In the spirit of the holiday season, Town Hall will be closed on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, the day after Christmas and New Year’s Day. This break allows our dedicated staff members to spend quality time with their families and friends while many of our public safety employees remain hard at work keeping the Island safe.

• Town Council meeting will be held December 17th at 6:00 PM
• Recreation Committee meeting will be held December 17th at 10:00 AM
• Water & Sewer Committee meeting will be held December 19th at 9:15 AM
• Polar Bear Plunge will be held January 1st 2025. Expect delays around the commercial district with increased pedestrian activity between Middle Street and the beach. The plunge will take place at 2:00 PM. Station 22 ½ will be closed at 7:30 AM and reopened at 5:00 PM.

Trash and Recycling collection:
Christmas Eve- Solid waste collection unchanged, Tuesday, December 24th; Yard waste and recycling collections taking place on Thursday, December 26th .
New Year’s Eve- Solid waste collection unchanged, Tuesday, December 31st;  Yard waste delayed one day and taking place on Thursday, January 2nd. Recycling will be collected January 8th.

Please be sure to sign up for “TOSI Talks” and the Town’s newsletter to stay up to date on all Town meetings, projects and special events…Just text "Hello" to (855) 675-TOSI (8674).
 
On behalf of Mayor O’Neil, Town Council and all of our dedicated Town staff members, we wish you all a happy and heathy holiday season!
 
Sincerely,
 
Joe Henderson
Town Administrator

Sullivan's Island Fire and Rescue
Donates High Water Vehicle
 

On November 19, 2024, the Sullivan’s Island Fire & Rescue Volunteers purchased a high-water vehicle that will join the fleet of the Sullivan’s Island Fire Department’s rescue vehicles. The 2010 vehicle has 10,292 miles and has been completely refurbished. The vehicle now known as HW1201 is capable of driving through deeper waters than any of the other current rescue vehicles greatly increasing the department’s rescue abilities in floods and high- water situations.
 

Sullivan's Island Police Department
Wraps Up 2024 Holiday Bike Drive
 

Bikes of all shapes and sizes lined Middle Street on the morning of December 16, marking the end of the 4th Annual SIPD Holiday Bike Drive. The SIPD met their goal of 300 donated bikes and 57 helmets. Officers of the SI Beach Patrol and Police Department have spent the last few weeks assembling and safety testing each bike. Thank you to everyone who graciously donated a bike or helmet and to Timmy Hayes who donated 4 moving trucks and the assistance of 3 movers to transport the bikes. The bike drive benefits the U. S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program whose mission is to collect new, unwrapped toys during October, November and December each year, and distribute those toys as Christmas gifts to less fortunate children in the Charleston community. 
 

 Holiday Safety Tips

The Holidays are a time of joy and celebration but can also be a time of opportunity for bad actors. To stay safe this Holiday season the Sullivan's Island Chief of Police, Glenn Meadows, is offering a few safety tips.

If leaving for the Holidays:

• Ask a trusted friend, neighbor or the Police Department to watch your home. House watch forms are available on the Town website.
• Use timers for lights and radios while you're away.
• Remember to make arrangements to suspend delivery of mail and newspapers.

Porch Theft Prevention:

• Get a P.O. Box at your local Post Office
• Set up notifications to track your packages
• Install a security camera
• Have your packages delivered to your office
• Require a signature for delivery
• Reschedule deliveries or ask for a package hold if you will be away from home
• Ask neighbors to remove packages from your porch

After the Holidays:

• Don't advertise expensive toys, electronics, or other gifts received by the boxes left for garbage collections. Compress large boxes and place them in the recycle bins for pick-up.
• Add new items to your home inventory. Take photos or video of all items of value in your home and list each item's make, model, serial number and other information.
• Engrave new items to help identify them in the event they are stolen. 

 
For more information or questions, please reach out to Chief Glenn Meadows. His email is gmeadows@sullivansisland.sc.gov, and his cell phone is 843-834-4298.

Maritime Marginalia

by Town Naturalist Rebecca Fanning on odds and ends of interest regarding the lively world out of doors on the island.
 

Trimming & Pruning Season is Here

As winter sets in, plants transfer their energy into the root zone, making it a relatively safe time to limb up fruit trees and other accoutrements of a good garden. Trimming and Pruning Season on the Island also refers to Section 21-71 of the Town’s ordinances, which provides beachfront residents with the opportunity to reduce two common shrubs of the maritime forest to a height of five feet. Additionally, the ordinance allows for the removal of one invasive plant, the Popcorn Tree – a fast-growing ecological terror. I’d like to take a moment to applaud the residents who are addressing the invasive Popcorn Tree population. It’s a formidable task, and the results have been transformational. The sections of forest that have been permitted for Popcorn removal so far have led to the removal of hundreds of these invasive trees big and small, now representing more accurately the Sullivan’s Island maritime forest as it should be – a native plant community full of birdsong.

Since I wrote last time about Eastern Baccharis and the showy way she disperses her seeds, my next thought was of a close companion in our bosky plant community and the other shrub affected by our trimming and pruning ordinance – Wax Myrtle (Morella cerifera).

The Many Benefits of Wax Myrtle

Historically, Wax Myrtle was revered as a real lifesaver. An herbal remedy against dysentery and internal ulcers may not come in handy quite as often as it once did, however its mosquito-repelling properties are timeless. Rubbing Wax Myrtle leaves on your skin doesn’t repel pesky bites quite as well as American Beautyberry, but unlike the latter, Wax Myrtles keep their leaves all year around. In fact, the evergreen dense foliage turns out to be particularly beloved by our resident winter songbirds who form huddles, invisible to the outside observer except for the bowl-full-of-jelly tremors they set off along a Wax Myrtle hedgerow as they bustle from branch to branch. Sheltered from the wind, our eponymous Myrtle Warbler feasts upon the copious waxy blue berries that grace female Wax Myrtle branches throughout the coldest months of the year. 

Gourmands may be interested to know that Wax Myrtle far surpasses measly bottled bay leaves for flavoring winter stews. And for the craftier among us, ‘bayberry’ candles were once a staple of holiday table settings. Put Wax Myrtle berries in a pot of boiling water and skim the wax off the top to create your own bayberry candle this holiday season, and you’ll never let cinnamon spice ruin your palette again!

A Neighborly Disposition
It’s important to note that much of the maritime forest lacks berry-bearing Wax Myrtles, because it takes older, woodier growth for reproduction to occur. With trimming and pruning occurring in certain locations every single year for so many years in a row, about half of the maritime forest lacks Wax Myrtle berries and lacks its dense foliage. A good rule of thumb for foragers is never to take more than 10% of what is available to harvest, because 90% belongs to the little birds whose lives depend on it.
If you haven’t shaken hands with Wax Myrtle yet, I encourage you to get out into the maritime forest and get yourself a nose full of crushed Wax Myrtle leaves. There’s nothing like it in the whole world that smells so seasonally Sullivan’s.

Aside

Food waste is a sad reality of the holiday season. But don’t feel bad! Look no further than the Battery Gadsden compost drop off bin. By diverting food waste out of the landfill and into the composting program, you can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase the water holding capacity of soil, and spare your friends and family from all your burnt and bitter peanut brittle nightmares. Go to the Charleston County Website to learn more and sign up today!

Ask a naturalist: Use the subject heading Marginalia and email rfanning@sullivansisland.sc.gov with all your questions such as, What’s that blooming? Who’s that bird passing through? Or When and where we should meet for a walk! for consideration next time in Maritime Marginalia.

Polar Bear Plunge
January 1, 2025
2:00 pm

2025 Dog Licenses Now Available 
December 2, 2024
2056 Middle St

Holiday Household Collection Schedule

Solid Waste
December 24 and 31

Recycling Collection
December 26 and January 8

Yard Waste
December 26 and January 2

Stay current with the latest updates of Town projects on our website or follow the links below.

Stormwater Projects

• Stormwater Master Plan (FEMA BRIC BR-194-0008) 2020
• Island-Wide Stormwater Improvement: Basins at Station 16, 25, 28.5 and 31 (SCIIP- South Carolina Infrastructure and Investment Program)
• Station 18-19 Stormwater Improvements (FEMA 4241)
• Stormwater Outfall Improvements Station 19 & 25 (SCEMD 4492 COVID-19)

Historic Preservation Projects

• Historic Resource Survey Update
• Historic District Design Guidelines Consultant

Recreation Projects

• Battery Logan Rehabilitation and Vegetation Management
• Cove Inlet Bridge Renovation
• Master Plan for Stith Park
• Nature Trail Phase II: Trail Construction Services
• Nature Trail Phase II: Boardwalk and Ramp Construction
• Interior Demolition for Old Town Hall Building

Resilience and Sea Level Rise Adaptation Plan

• Beach and Dune Restoration- Breach Inlet USACE Supplemental Project
• Resilience and Sea Level Rise Adaptation Plan
• Accreted Land Management Plan

Join Council in congratulating those employees who celebrated employment milestones with the Town during the month of September! Thank you for all of your hard work keeping our Sullivan's Island awesome!
 

William Curtis Gibbons III -
Fire Captain, 22 Years on 12/31/2024

Curt has been in the fire service for 35 years. He started as a volunteer at age 18 with the Isle of Palms Fire Department. After transitioning to a career position as firefighter he served the citizens of Isle of Palms for 10 years rising to the position of Engineer. After leaving the city he became a volunteer with the Sullivan's Island Fire and Rescue while working at Guy C. Lee building materials transitioning into a career position as firefighter in 2003.  During Curt’s time on the Island he has been promoted to Engineer, Lieutenant, and finally Fire Captain. It has been a gratifying journey and a pleasure to serve the citizens of both Islands he likes to call home. 
 

Monty Anders -
Deputy Chief - 2 Year on 12/22/2024

Monty began his service on Sullivan's Island in January 2023. Prior to that he served over 6 yrs. in the United States Navy working in Submarines. He started in law enforcement in 1994 when he enlisted in the Pa State Police. He retired as Corporal/Patrol Unit Supervisor in 2014. He then worked for over 5 years with the Selinsgrove Borough Police Dept. He has previously worked as a 911 Dispatcher and was also a volunteer Fire Fighter for over 25 years. He looks forward to working in the community of Sullivan’s Island. He feels it is vitally important to have a strong relationship between the community and law enforcement.

Joseph McMullen-
Patrol Officer, 4 Years on 12/05/2024

Joe started with the Town in 2020. He is a sworn Patrol Officer, which duties include patrol of the Island, focusing on traffic enforcement and protecting the Island residents and their property. Additionally, he serves as a Firearms Instructor.

Tree Commission Meeting- Canceled
Monday, December 16 at 5:00-6:00pm

Council Meeting
Stormwater Master Plan Seamon Whiteside and Associates
Tuesday, December 17·at 6:00 – 7:00 pm

Recreation Committee Meeting
Tuesday, December 17 at 10:00 am

Design Review Board Meeting
Wednesday, December 18·at 4:00 – 5:00 pm

Water & Sewer Committee Meeting
Thursday, December 19 at 9:15 am

Town Hall Closed
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, November 24, 25 and 26 All Day in celebration of Christmas
 

May the Spirit of the Holidays
be with you throughout the New Year.