James Islanders weigh risks of creating new town

Proponents seek self-determination; opponents fear unexpected costs

Monday, May 13, 2002

BY JASON HARDIN
Of The Post and Courier Staff

     If at first you don't succeed - or if the S.C. Supreme Court rules the town you called home was formed illegally and must be dissolved - try, try again.
     That has been the mantra of advocates for a town of James Island ever since the first town vanished in a cloud of legal dust five years ago.
     Now, after years of low-profile struggles, proponents are back, ready again to ask islanders to form a new town in a May 21 referendum.
     If they receive a majority of the votes, a town of some 22,000 residents would come into being. It would include most James Island residents who are not already in the city of Charleston and would be the fourth-largest municipality in the county.
     Their pitch is a simple proposition: self-determination. "The main reason is because the people want to govern themselves, not submit to someone else's government," said Mary Clark, who has worked for the last five years to lay the groundwork for a new town. "We always thought, 'Let's stay as we are - we don't need a government.' Well, that hasn't worked for us."
     But creating a new town doesn't come without questions and possibly organized opposition. Some say cobbling together a town out of scattered pieces of suburbia makes no sense. They say a town would likely cost residents more money, even discounting possible legal costs arising from a challenge to incorporation.
     Essentially, there is too much uncertainty to risk taking the step of forming a new municipality, they say.
     "It just doesn't pass scrutiny," said Patterson Smith, who is organizing an effort to oppose incorporation. "The town of James Island has the cards stacked against it."
    
WHY FORM A TOWN?
     Clark and others say forming a town would give them control over their own destiny. At the same time, it would give them new cachet, a status that would translate into a seat at the table where decisions about road-building priorities and development plans are made.
     What's more, they argue, it won't really cost a thing. If a town were formed, it would be eligible for state and local shared revenues, such as local option sales taxes. Those funds could be used to offset the cost of services residents receive from the James Island Public Service District, which means residents could see a significant drop in their net tax bill.
     As long as the town keeps the size of its government small, something most town backers say they want, it would be a financial plus for residents, backers say.
     But opponents say adding another layer of government would be inefficient.
     They note that it's impossible to predict whether the town will be able to refund money to its residents. Elected officials might create more services that cost more money. New needs might arise, and Charleston County might charge for some services it now provides for free.
     Finally, the town could be a target for legal attacks from neighbors, particularly the city of Charleston. In fact, the city's decision to contest the first town led directly to its demise, and many believe a legal fight will erupt again.
     The sales tax money that would go to the new town would come directly from other county municipalities. Charleston, North Charleston, Mount Pleasant, the county and the other towns would all see their share of the sales tax pie dwindle, giving them an incentive to challenge the town if it has legal flaws.
    
OVERRUN
     Many town proponents say they feel a way of life is slipping away - a suburban intimacy becoming overwhelmed by growth.
     They see a town as a way to hold off the changes.
     "We're losing our whole community right now to apartment complexes, traffic, taxes. We're losing what we hold dear, and we don't have a say in it," said Kay Kernodle, who would be running against Clark for mayor if the town passes.
     "James Island is a close-knit, small community, and that's what appeals to everybody," Kernodle said. "We want it to remain where if you see somebody you know in a grocery store, you ask how their kids are."
     Principally, that would be accomplished by limiting new development. Proponents talk of stricter zoning, of building permit limits akin to Mount Pleasant's, and even of trying to persuade the city of Charleston to agree to an island-wide moratorium on growth.
     Many cite the city of Charleston's drive to annex onto the island as the cause of their problems, arguing that many city properties are host to apartment complexes or other high-density developments.
     "It destroyed our way of life. It has put traffic here that we never would have had if the island was left alone," Clark said. "We wouldn't have had all of these apartments and condominiums, things the city would be ashamed to have on the peninsula. This will stop it forever, for once and for all. It will never happen again."
     Some say that what's done is done. The island is nearly built-out, meaning there would be little development left for a town to slow or stop.
     Town backers say there are still enough smaller undeveloped tracts left to make limiting growth worth their while.
     Charleston officials say some of those developments are in the county and question whether the island would look much different even if the city had never annexed onto the island.
     Besides, said Charleston Mayor Joseph P. Riley Jr., the city's annexation efforts have slowed and things are unlikely to change dramatically in the future. "The city does not foresee any new substantial growth on James Island."
     Yet Riley figures so prominently in the pro-town rhetoric that some critics question whether the drive to form a town has more to do with anti-city feelings than anything else.
     "I'm trying to look at it as a businessman," said Smith, who lives in what would be the town. "It's not about personalities. It's not about Mary Clark; it's not about Kay Kernodle. It's certainly not about Joe Riley. The town of James Island is being formed not on the premise that they can provide better services. It's being founded on a negative - 'We're keeping the city of Charleston off the island.' "
     Town backers dismiss the idea that their movement is about Riley.
     "I have nothing personal against him," Clark said. "We just want to be left alone."
    
NUTS AND BOLTS
     The most contentious debates revolve around the questions: What services would the town provide, and how much would they cost?
     Town backers say it's impossible to say with certainty what would happen. It will be up to officials who haven't been elected yet to determine what kinds of services the town should provide.
     But most incorporation organizers and candidates for mayor and council agree that a smaller government is desirable.
     A hypothetical budget submitted to the S.C. Secretary of State's office included four employees and total spending of about $1 million, much of which would go toward tax relief.
     The PSD would continue to provide fire, sewer and trash services, while the Charleston County Sheriff's Office would continue to provide policing.
     Using revenue estimates derived from the prior town, about $660,000 could go toward offsetting PSD property taxes, said Trent Kernodle, Kay Kernodle's husband and an attorney who has been assisting the effort.
     That works out to be about $30 worth of tax relief per town resident, and could be a conservative estimate, he said. That amount would vary, however, depending on how much the town spent on other services, the value of a homeowner's property and other factors.
     Opponents, however, question whether that's realistic.
     They say the county might have to charge the town for policing and other services, and that eventually the town budget would grow. They note that the town would consist almost entirely of residential property, not commercial property that could generate more revenue. That could leave the town in a financial bind later on, they say.
     "What I'm saying is, how can you provide services to a town of 22,000 with four people?" Smith asked. "This, in a rational analysis, does not pass muster financially."
     Trent Kernodle said it's up to the town to provide the level of services its residents want. There's no particular level of service a municipality must provide, he said.
     "I do not believe in just saying, oh, the town of Folly Beach provides a police department, and therefore we've got to have one," he said. "If we have a need ... then we can supplement it. This goes back to whether you want a coliseum or not. Or an aquarium might be an example."
     Smith, however, said he doubts that the county would continue to provide sheriff's office services for no additional cost.
     County Council Chairman Tim Scott said that decision is up to Sheriff Al Cannon, who wrote town backers stating that nothing would change. Capt. Dana Valentine, a spokeswoman for the sheriff, confirmed the office would continue services at no cost, as it does for other small municipalities.
     Scott added, however, that the county would have to charge for any other services, such as planning. However, if the town were created, the county has agreed to provide services until the end of the year. At that point, town and county officials would have to negotiate service arrangements, he said.
     Others said they wonder if it's possible to maintain a small government.
     "North Charleston was going to be a small, no-service town," said Charleston City Attorney Bill Regan. "But the first time you've got three or four dog bites, you've got a dogcatcher. And then if people aren't satisfied with the sheriff's department, there's a police department. There is a creep in government and I think it's unrealistic for people to think they'll keep paying what they're paying now."
     Trent Kernodle said if that happens, and if residents aren't happy with their tax bills, all they would have to do is replace their elected officials. At least, he said, they have a say.
    
RIPPLE EFFECT
     The proposed town would be eligible to receive state and local shared revenues - perhaps more than $1.5 million a year, according to estimates from Charleston County officials.
     But that's not new money - it's simply a new division of money existing governments already receive, and James Island's windfall would come straight out of their pockets. Lost sales tax revenues could cost the city of Charleston about $490,000 and North Charleston about $425,000 annually, said Keith Bustraan, the county's chief financial officer. Mount Pleasant would not be far behind, and the county itself would lose about $480,000, he said.
     Opponents say the losers in that transaction would likely fight back, throwing the new town back into court. That could place a hefty legal bill on the backs of town residents, they say.
     That's what happened when the first town was formed in the early 1990s. Charleston instantly sued on the grounds that the town was formed by illegally crossing over waterways and marshland already claimed by the city. The Supreme Court agreed, killing the town.
     Since then, however, the General Assembly passed a bill that allowed such areas to be, essentially, shared by two municipalities, giving rise to the new incorporation movement. But it doesn't mean legal challenges aren't possible.
     Charleston, in particular, would have the most to lose if a town were created, said Jeremy Browning, a political science professor at the College of Charleston. Incorporation would prevent the city from adding to its tax base by annexing further on the island, he noted.
     Incorporation could also complicate regional planning efforts by adding a new voice to discussions about smart growth and land-use policies, he said.
     Riley said the potential of lost money is not a big issue, but city officials generally take a cautious stance on the issue.
     "Really, I think this is a matter for the citizens of James Island," Riley said. "Whatever happens, the city of Charleston will work with them."
     Regan said it would be premature to analyze the legality of a town before it's formed, but he has said he has a "gut feeling" that it might not be legal.
     City Councilman Robert George, who represents much of the city portions of the island, said he dislikes the idea of further fragmenting local government.
     "I don't think it's a good idea. If we were talking 10, 15 years ago, it might be different," he said. "But if you look at a map, it looks like someone took a paint brush and splattered paint all over it."
     If there were a clear legal flaw in the incorporation, the city should sue, he said. But if not, it would serve neither the town nor the city, he added. "There's no reason in the world to bleed each other to death again in the courtroom."
    
MOMENT OF DECISION
     Voters have just a little more than a week to make up their minds on the issue.
     Backers say this is the last, best chance to take control of the island's future, even as they admit it's something of a leap into the unknown.
     "Do we know what will happen if we have a town? No. Do we know what will happen if we don't have a town? Sure. We're going to be the dumping ground for everything there is and we have no say over it," Trent Kernodle said.
     Town supporters won the last referendum by a hair's-breadth. Both sides say turnout will be critical this time around.
     "If we win, that's great. If we lose, the people will have spoken," Clark said. "I'll fade out into the sunset if they say they don't want it."
    
    
     Voters will be asked six questions:
     1) Should most of the unincorporated portions of James Island be incorporated into a new municipality - in other words, should a new town be formed?
     2) What should the municipality be named? The town of James Island? The city of James Island? Or something else?
     3) What form of government should be used? Mayor-council, council or council-manager? Those are the three basic forms of government in South Carolina. Mayor-council means that an elected mayor also has the day-to-day responsibility of running the municipality. That is the system that the city of Charleston uses. The council form of government means that an elected mayor and council directly run the municipality. A mayor, under this form of government, has few additional powers beyond being a member of council. The council-manager form of government means that the elected mayor and council hire a professional manager to run the day-to-day affairs of government.
     4) How should council members be elected? Should all council members be elected at-large from the entire municipality? Should council members run from particular districts and be selected only by members of the district? Should some be elected from districts, and others at-large? Should all council members reside in a particular district but be elected at-large? Should all be elected at-large, but some must reside in particular districts and others may be from any district?
     5) Should elections be partisan or nonpartisan?
     6) Should mayors and council members serve two- or four-year terms?
    
    
     Jason Hardin covers the city of Charleston. Contact him at 937-5549 or at jhardin@postandcourier.com.