Moving Company in Isle of Palms

ISLE OF PALMS — The city will recognize a man affectionately known as Beach Santa this week for his efforts in keeping the coast clean and bringing attention to the litter crisis plaguing beaches and waterways.

Howard Hogue will receive the Isle of Palm’s Signal 30 Award at a city council meeting on July 27. The award is given on a limited basis with the approval of the city council for special citizen service.

Hogue, of Moncks Corner, has become a staple on the beach at the Isle of Palms. He is known for his big white beard and is often seen wearing red swimming trunks and a red muscle shirt as he walks along the shore with a litter grabber and bucket.

He picks up litter as he walks and regularly stops to take pictures and talk with beachgoers.

From the summer of 2018 to the end of May 2021, Hogue documented collecting more than 55,000 litter and debris items from the Isle of Palms Beach and more than 75,000 items from the streetscape and parking lots in the island’s Front Beach commercial district.

But his cleanup efforts expand farther than the Isle of Palms and includes other parts of the Charleston region, too. It is believed that he has collected more than 425,000 litter items across the Lowcountry.

“Beach Santa has done an incredible service by helping to keep our island beautiful and protect the coastal ecosystem and public health from pollution,” said Isle of Palms Mayor Jimmy Carroll in a news release.

Carroll said Hogue is an inspiration and great role model, and he thanks him for his volunteer efforts.

Susan Hill Smith, a city councilwoman and the Isle of Palms Cleanup Crew co-founder, said the 425,000-plus items collected by Hogue was done with “a twinkle in his eye.”

“This kind crusader gladly talks with those on the beach who ask about what he’s doing, ready to share a message for all who will listen about the importance of doing our part to protect the environment and shared public spaces,” Hill said.

To help prevent some of the beach litter, Isle of Palms began restricting smoking on the beach and beach access points in 2020, plus prohibited single-use retail plastic bags, plastic straws, balloons, and Styrofoam coolers, cups and food containers.

Hogue is continuing to document his litter sweeps and anticipates exceeding half a million litter items by the end of 2021.

ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (WCBD) – Dead jellyfish are lining the sand along Lowcountry beaches and now many are wondering what’s causing the problem.

Dozens of dead jellyfish have been spotted both in water and along the sand at the beach on the Isle of Palms raising the question for beach goers: why are so many washing up? Experts say it’s not completely unusual.

“Yesterday we saw maybe four or five,” said a beach goer.

Experts say the jellyfish showing up are ‘Cannonball Jellyfish’. They’re a more mild type of the species than the ones that generally sting people.

The flowy creatures by nature begin showing up in waters off the coast of Charleston as the weather and water warms up.

“They really rely on wind and water currents to and tide to move them horizontally through the water,” says Erin Weeks, a Media Coordinator with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resource’s Marine Division.

Weeks says Cannonball Jellyfish stranding’s are common May through August, particularly after storms.

“So anytime we see periods of strong onshore winds or storms offshore that would cause currents pushing jellyfish onto the beaches we’ll see stranding’s,” says Weeks.

Weeks says while the purple and clear blobs are fun to look at, they should be left alone if encountered on the beach.

“They are typically considered harmless to humans, if you do get stung by them it’ll be mild it’s more like a skin irritation,” says Weeks.

And while this type of jellyfish showing up on the Isle of Palms are mainly harmless. Weeks says other types of jellyfish packing stronger stings have also been known to call the Carolina coast home.

“So if you’re not able to identify the jelly in the water or on the beach it’s best just to avoid them because actually dead jellyfish can still sting you after they’ve been beached,” says Weeks.

Weeks says the Department of Natural Resources does not require sightings of Cannonball Jellyfish to be reported. They say beach goers can expect to stranding’s from time to time over the next several months.

ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (WCIV) — The South Carolina Professional Firefighters Association said the wages for the Isle of Palm Fire Department are not high enough.

The city of Isle of Palms said the lowest paid firefighter earns $12.55 an hour.

"They are not paying well. And they are not paying down the road, people are realizing it," said William Pesature, Vice President of the SC Professional Firefighter Association.

Pesature said in the firefighting world you want to build a team that has experience, training and standing.

He said the Isle of Palms is not doing that for their firefighters and a change needs to be made when it comes to pay.

He said the department has two problems: no fire chief for the last eight months and the firefighter pay rate.

"You should be able to afford a decent wage for your firefighters so that they want to stay there. If you have one of the richest cities in the state, and you are not taking care of your first responders? What's going to happen to your in an emergency situation?" he said.

Pesature said the issue should concern taxpayers on the island because when someone leaves the department the city has to pay to train a new employee.

"Training is very expensive. Because they have to pay for a person to go to school and then when they are supposed to be in the fire house (and) they have to pay someone overtime to cover their spot to maintain the standards of staffing," he said.

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ABC News 4 reached out to the city for comment. Desiree Farago, the city administrator said in part, "The City is in the process of finalizing a wage and compensation analysis with the goal of identifying market based and competitive wages for all City positions. We expect the report and recommendations for adjustments will be in place before the end of the year."

"We have also collected feedback from every member of the fire department regarding how we reward high performance and increase wages throughout their tenure with the city that will be incorporated into new compensation policies," John Moye, an IOP councilman, said.

Moye said the consultant's leading the wage compensation plan should be presenting to council sometime in September.

ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (WCSC) - Leaders on the Isle of Palms are moving forward with a parking plan that would add dozens of new spaces along Palm Boulevard.

Instead of the current parallel parking along Palm Boulevard, the new parking spaces will be set at a 60-degree angle on the non-ocean side of the road.

On Friday afternoon, city leaders passed the plan. Town officials say the new changes would add around 80 more spaces for people along the island’s main stretch.

Lisa Allison, who lives on neighboring Goat Island, says demand for parking along the beach will always outweigh the available space.

“I don’t think it will ever be enough,” Allison said. “Because so many people want to come to the beach. We are lucky to have it and everyone should be using it.”

Beach access advocate Michael Barnett said after seeing SCDOT demonstrations of the new layout, he feels it’s safe and a welcome addition for the island.

“It’s sort of a small victory, and I think it’s the first step in a larger plan SCDOT has for the Isle of Palms,” Barnett said. “I think it’s great. I think it’s safe.”

But others are concerned about the safety of the changes.

Longtime IOP resident Ted McKnight said the space between the spots and Palm Boulevard is not wide enough to safely allow cars to pull out without going onto the busy road.

“I am for the maximum number of safe parking spaces,” McKnight said. “Safe parking starts with exiting the parking space and you have to be able to do it without backing up onto Palm Boulevard.”

The Barrier Island Preservation Group, made up of local IOP residents, also sent a letter to Isle of Palms City Council Friday morning calling for stronger designations of each space, a test-run during busy summer months and more room between cars and the road for anyone backing out.

“While 30 degree or 45 degree angled parking could provide a safer solution, as recommended by SCDOT’s published guidelines, ensure all 60 degree spaces have adequate maneuvering space to exit safely, without oncoming traffic interruption, via encroachment on Palm Boulevard,” the Barrier Island Preservation Group letter recommends.

This week, crews with the South Carolina Department of Transportation began surveying the land and marking spaces.

But installation of buffers won’t begin until Monday, according to SCDOT spokesperson Pete Poore said.

Copyright 2021 WCSC. All rights reserved.

ISLE OF PALMS — The fight over South Carolina beach parking has taken another sharp turn after the state Department of Transportation revoked its approval of the island’s 2015 parking plan that barred nonresidents from using spaces on most streets.

The barrier island across from Mount Pleasant has been the subject of intense blowback after announcing plans in 2020 to eliminate hundreds of parking spaces near the popular beach — a plan the DOT also blocked.

The IOP town government already is facing a parking lawsuit, and statewide legislation over beach parking issues has been introduced with the IOP’s actions in mind. And now the DOT plans to take a broad look at parking plans it previously approved near public beaches.

That could include resident-only parking areas but also examining paid parking rates in places including Myrtle Beach, DOT Secretary Christy Hall told The Post and Courier.

Hall said previous state approvals of parking plans focused on traffic flow, without considering whether the plans were fair for all state residents. That was an error, she said.

Right now, Isle of Palms is the focus of the state’s attention, with Hall saying the parking rules there are potentially unconstitutional. That attention, and the plan to “revoke the full approval” of the parking plan that keeps nonresidents off neighborhood streets, prompted Isle of Palms City Council to vote unanimously Tuesday night to work with DOT on alternatives.

The decision came after a 100-minute executive session where council members discussed the issue privately with legal staff. The special meeting was held the day after the city received a letter from Hall.

“I am of the opinion that the 2015 plan has improperly designated a significant number of state-owned highway right of ways as ‘resident only parking’ potentially denying nonresidents their constitutional guaranty of equality and privilege,” Hall said in the letter to Isle of Palms officials Monday.

That’s a stark reversal of DOT’s opinion in 2015 when then-Secretary of Transportation Janet Oakley said the plan “appears to provide an excellent way for the city to address the issues of summer traffic.”

Most roads in South Carolina are state roads, and state approval is required for parking restrictions or paid parking.

A revocation of Isle of Palms’ 2015 parking plan could potentially allow nonresident parking across the island. Hall said DOT hopes to work with the city on a plan for angled parking on the land side of Palm Boulevard, which would restore some parking on the road closest to the beach.

Prior to Tuesday’s council meeting, Mayor Jimmy Carroll expressed frustration.

“They are basically cramming whatever they want down our throats,” he said. “They basically want us to come up with more parking or they will revoke our 2015 parking plan.”

Hall said she hoped to “trigger some dialogue” with Isle of Palms, and that’s what City Council agreed to Tuesday, faced with the states’ threat.

The Charleston Beach Foundation, a nonprofit group created in response to Isle of Palms’ parking restrictions in 2020, is “thrilled and appreciative” of DOT’s actions, the group said in a statement.

The group filed suit against Isle of Palms after the city in July 2020 temporarily prohibited nonresidents from using 763 parking spots, including all but 10 free parking spaces on the island. That case is pending.

Many of South Carolina’s barrier islands have struggled to manage traffic and parking during beach season as the populations of coastal areas have soared. Isle of Palms, for example, has about 4,300 residents. Mount Pleasant, which connects to the island by bridge, now has about 90,000.

“Our beaches are full in the summer and they want to cram more in there,” Carroll said. “I invite (state Sen. Larry) Grooms to come out in July and get a taste of what we are dealing with.”

Grooms, R-Bonneau, is the sponsor of legislation that would clarify the state’s existing right to regulate parking on state roads.

“We’re taking existing law, a Supreme Court decision and an Attorney General’s opinion, and wrapping it all up so that someone can point to that law,” Grooms said. “It’s making the law clear.”

He added, “No one is trying to open up all the streets on Isle of Palms for public parking.”

Hall said reviews of beach parking in other communities will follow, including a look at paid parking rates on state roadsides.

Isle of Palms raised parking meter rates by 25 percent in 2020. The city expects to collect about $1 million from parking kiosks and lots yearly, which is double the amount the city has said it spends on “beach visitor support” — parking management, beach service officers, beach cleanup, public restrooms and related capital costs.

Isle of Palms’ paid parking areas are on town-owned roads, but some beach communities do have paid parking on the sides of state roads.

“We’ve never really lifted the hood on the rates and looked at the equity issue prior to this happening with Isle of Palms,” Hall said. “I feel like we have an obligation to look at the rates that are being charged for parking in the right of way on state highways.”

She said that’s likely to include a look at rates charged in Myrtle Beach “at some point in time.”

As the clash between the island and the Transportation Department continues, highway officials are also working on a plan to improve bicycle and pedestrian access to Isle of Palms across the IOP Connector.

Carroll said the city just learned of that a week ago and he’s concerned the plan would reduce the emergency lane down the center of the bridge.

“That emergency lane is so critical, especially during the summertime,” he said.

The island and surrounding communities have encouraged ways to get to the beach that don’t require parking, including a shuttle bus from Mount Pleasant and encouraging bicycling. Carroll said any plans to improve bike and pedestrian access should focus on the north side of the bridge because it connects to sidewalks on the island.