Trent Kernodle has filed a class action suit against the Town of James Island.

Former JIPSD Chairman David Engelman, JIPSD Candidate Sandi Engelman, and former JIPSD Commissioner Rod Welch have signed onto the complaint.

The suit seeks to force the Town to implement the policy Trent Kernodle proposed in his 2014 campaign for Mayor--mail the checks.

The funds in question are those that the Town has received since 2012 from the Local Option Sales Tax Property Tax Credit Fund.  The Town has received $1,982,736 since 2012.   Our monthly financial reports are here.   The proportional share of Town's interest earnings on these funds is $446.

Trent Kernodle is asking that all of those funds be distributed to the property owners of the Town along with more than $200,000 worth of interest and lawyer fees--that is, money for himself and two other law firms.

The Town Attorney, Bo Wilson, is defending.   We have retained Danny Crowe, former general counsel for the Municipal Association of South Carolina, to help.   The Town has relied on the Municipal Association's advice that because we have no tax millage, there is no legal obligation for the Town to provide a tax credit.   A tax credit is a reduction in the amount charged on a tax bill.  There are many municipalities in South Carolina in the same situation as the Town.  They receive Local Option Sales Tax funds and have no property tax millage.  As far as I know, none of them mail out refund checks.

I have proposed to Town Council that we introduce a property tax of 35.1 mills.   The Town will be obligated to provide a tax credit against our own millage.   It is my goal to follow the South Carolina LOST statute exactly.   The Kernodle suit has reinforced my commitment to this policy.

I renew my call for the James Island Public Service District to reduce the millage they charge in the Town so that the we may obtain fire services by contract.   Many municipalities obtain fire services from a special purpose district by contract, including the City of Folly Beach and the City of Charleston from the James Island Public Service District.   A contract between the Town and the JIPSD would result in a 31% property tax cut for homeowners in the Town this year.

If you have any questions or concerns, please email me at mayorwoolsey@gmail.com or call me at 697-7020.

.Mayor Bill Woolsey

Where are new pedestrian, bicycle, transit, and transportation facilities needed in the Folly Road corridor? What should future growth and change look like, and what unique features should be preserved? Where are public transportation improvements and new street connections most crucial in the event of an emergency such as a hurricane evacuation? We need your help to answer these questions.

Join us for an informative discussion about the future of Folly  Road, from Center Street on Folly Beach to the Wappoo Cut Bridge. At this kick-off meeting, the consultant team will introduce issues to be addressed by the Folly Road study as well as current best practices in Complete Streets and sustainable town and transportation planning, pedestrian-and bike-oriented street design, integrating "green" infrastructure, and preserving community character.

This will be the first in a series of meetings where we will be asking community members for their input to help create the Folly Road Complete Streets Corridor Plan - a study undertaken by the Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments (BCD COG) in association with the City of Charleston, the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SC DOT), the Charleston Area Regional Transit Authority (CARTA), the Town of James Island, the City of Charleston, the City of Folly Beach, and Charleston County, to explore the potential to remake Folly Road as a more sustainable, multimodal corridor, which could become a precedent for the Charleston region. This meeting will be held on Thursday, April 23, 2015 from 7:00 pm. to 8:30 p.m. at the Lowcountry Senior Center, 865 Riverland Drive, Charleston, SC. For more information, please visit www.bcdcog.com.  Contact: Nick Pergakes, AICP, Senior Planner, BCD Council of Governments, 843-529-0400.

NOTICE OF PUBLIC FORUM

Notice is hereby given that Charleston County Council will hold a public forum on Thursday, April 16, 2015, at 4:30 o’clock p.m., in the Beverly T. Craven Council Chambers, Lonnie Hamilton, III Public Services Building, 4045 Bridge View Drive, North Charleston, SC for the purpose of gathering input from the public regarding the following three potential library locations on James Island:

1. The current site located at 1248 Camp Road.

2. The vacant building near Bi-Lo site located at 848/850 Folly Road.

3. The former Baxter Patrick Elementary School property located at 1858 South Grimball Road.

A presentation will be made by County staff regarding the three potential sites prior to the public comment period.

Public comments, written and oral, are invited.

Beverly T. Craven

Clerk of Council

I am asking Town Council to introduce a 35.1 mill property tax to fund a $2 million annual payment to the James Island Public Service District for fire protection.   Currently, the JIPSD funds fire service in the Town by directly taxing the Town’s property owners.

I am asking the JIPSD Commissioners to reduce the operating millage they collect in the Town by 35.1 mills and allow the Town to pay the difference directly to the JIPSD.   The JIPSD currently collects 51.1 mills in the Town, so a 35.1 reduction would leave the JIPSD 16 mills to fund solid waste collection and other services in the Town.   If the JIPSD and Town come to an agreement, the total operating millage collected by the Town and JIPSD together would remain 51.1 mills.  

Municipalities are legally-obligated to provide a LOST (Local Option Sales Tax) property tax credit against their own millage.   For the 2015-16 fiscal year, I am proposing a $2 million property tax credit, which would zero-out the Town’s new millage.   IF the JIPSD and the Town come to an agreement, I project that the tax savings for a homeowner would be 31% on the County tax bills going out to Town residents this fall.   

JIPSD Chairman Donald Hollingsworth initiated monthly Chairman/Mayor meetings this year.  I outlined the Town’s new proposal to the Chairman at our March meeting.  I also told him that Town’s proposal from last year remains on the table.   If the Commissioners agree to allow a Town tax credit on the JIPSD line on the County tax bill, the introduction of a Town property tax can be postponed indefinitely.    I greatly appreciate Chairman Hollingsworth’s willingness to discuss the Town’s tax proposals and I hope that the Commissioners will come to an agreement with the Town that allows for tax relief this year.

If you have any comments or questions, call me at 697-7020 or email me at mayorwoolsey@gmail.com

Mayor Bill Woolsey

The Town of James Island will hold a Public Hearing on its Proposed Operating Budget for Fiscal Year July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016. The Public Hearing will be held on Thursday, May 21, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. at the Town of James Island, Town Hall, 1238-B Camp Road, James island, SC  29412. Please click the link for the official advertisement.   The proposed budget is here.