Community Enrichment Plan: IOPThrives!

Milestone timeline:

Survey Released
Fall 2023
Survey Results Received
December 2023
Survey Results Presented to City Council & Public
January 2024
Community Enrichment Task Force Formed
March 2024
Community Listening Session One
May 2024
Community Listening Session Two
June 2024

The City of Isle of Palms, in collaboration with Explore Charleston, the College of Charleston, and The McNair Group, is pursuing the development of a Community Enrichment Plan (CEP) using residents’ voices as the main driver of the process. The travel and hospitality industries are vital to the island's identity and economy.

Improving quality of life for residents is one of the main priorities anchoring the city’s Strategic Plan. Residents’ quality of life also plays a significant role in tourism’s success, and it is critical to the community's overall well-being. The city aims to maintain an equilibrium of these key elements for the longevity and prosperity of Isle of Palms.

With the guidance of The McNair Group and city staff, the Community Enrichment Plan will be constructed by the Community Enrichment Task Force. The Task Force, nominated by City Council, include various community members, including residents, business owners and tourism experts. The committee is responsible for developing recommendations to address livability and tourism management and facilitate community enrichment that will benefit the city continuously. 

Substantial community input and data will be collected to guide the city on how to productively deal with the complexities and challenges of regional population growth while ensuring Isle of Palms thrives as the most sustainable, family-friendly beach community in South Carolina. Data will be collected through surveys, focus groups and large listening sessions.

All collected data and insight will be used to outline recommendations for an ongoing plan that will create improvements that foster livability, sustainability and responsible economic development.

 

Community Listening Sessions

Date: May 29, 2024

Time: 10 a.m.

Location: Recreation Center (Magnolia Room)

 

Date: June 5, 2024

Time: 5:30 p.m.

Location: Recreation Center (Magnolia Room)

 

Questions about the Listening Sessions? Text "Hello" to (877) 607-6467 to get connected to a city staff member, or call (843) 886-6428.

You can also the City Calendar for upcoming Community Listening Sessions and Focus Groups.

 

 

CEP Task Force Members:

Joe Ready 

jjjready@aol.com

Beverly Miller 

bevmiller@bellsouth.net

Alex Stone astone@islandrealty.com
Bill Skeens

williamjskeens@gmail.com

Paige Grimball 

paigegrimball@gmail.com

Linda Tucker  

tuckerl@mindspring.com

Susan Hill Smith 

susanhillsmith@gmail.com

Maryanne Chalmers 

ma.chalmers@gmail.com

Rod Turnage 

rodturnage@gmail.com

Hugh Swingle 

hugh@palmblvdrealty.com

Patsy Hindman 

pbhindman@bellsouth.net

Sarah Vega 

sarah.e.vega@gmail.com

Ben Marks webmarks@gmail.com

Project Updates

September 12 Update
Thursday, September 12, 2024

Safety and Environmental Focus Teams presented drafts of their portion of the Community Enrichment Plan. The group provided feedback on the drafts.

Mr. McNair asked Task Force members to consider more “digestible” ways to share and prioritize the components of each committee’s work so that it becomes more actionable to Council and the public.

View meeting minutes

September 5 Update
Thursday, September 5, 2024

Discussion about quality of life continued. Task Force members engaged with Administrator Fragoso for details about the statistics surrounding short-term rentals and the City’s software used to track the rentals. While the statistics may currently indicate a larger percentage of short-term rentals, Mr. Skeen pointed out that when the less active rentals are removed from the calculations, the numbers show more of a balance between residential and rentals. Task Force members discussed the development of a “Good Neighbor” initiative that would inform neighbors of contact information for a short-term rental but also require short-term rental license holders to attend a class about what it means to be a “good neighbor.”

Each Focus Team will continue to work on their drafts and will present them during the next meeting.

View meeting minutes 

August 22 Update
Thursday, August 22, 2024

Each Focus Team provided an update on their work. McNair directed the Task Force to discuss the Quality of Life recommendations developed earlier in the year. The conversation centered on the enforcement around and communication with short-term rentals. Mr. Turnage (from the Traffic & Parking Focus Team) shared information about the work of a subgroup of the IOP Chamber of Commerce, Family Vacation Rental Group, made up of island property managers who oversee 96% of the island’s vacation rentals. Mr. Swingle noted that recent data shows more complaints to the Police Department about residents than renters.

Each Focus Team will submit the draft of their work to the larger group in early September.

View meeting minutes 

July 25 Update
Thursday, July 25, 2024

Community Enrichment Task Force Meeting

Focus Teams gave an update on their progress. Teams have been researching current Isle of Palms projects and viewing other cities' plans for inspiration on balancing residents' quality of life and tourism.

To allow more time to gather information and form the draft of the Community Enrichment Plan, the project has been extended to November of 2024. Task Force members discussed at length their desire to create a living document used by this and future City Councils to guide the city’s commitment to community enrichment.

View meeting minutes

July 18 Update
Thursday, July 18, 2024

Community Enrichment Task Force Meeting 

The Task Force continues to work in small groups outside of the regular meetings to compile the information needed to create the Community Enrichment Plan. Each small group (Focus Team) gave an update on their respective areas- Environmental, Safety, Traffic & Parking. The Task Force then worked in separate groups for the remainder of the meeting.

McNair and several members agreed it was important to remind readers of the final plan that the Isle of Palms is a small, finite space that needs good stewards of both residents and visitors.

View meeting minutes

June 27 Update
Thursday, June 27, 2024

Community Enrichment Task Force Meeting 

McNair shared the proposed meeting structure and agendas with the group. The Task Force has formed subgroups to focus on key areas – Environmental, Safety, Seasonal Visitation. The subgroups will return to the large group with their findings and suggestions. The groups will meet during regularly scheduled meetings in the Council Chambers and on their own as needed.

McNair reminded Task Force members that their work product will guide stewardship direction for the next 10-15 years and they do not need to come up with all the solutions. The purpose statement of each group should define what success looks like in each area. He provided suggestions on how to bring together the purpose statement, strategies, and recommendations.

View meeting minutes

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