By Brian Sherman for The Island Eye News

In April of this year, Sullivan’s Island officially completed work on a $25-million project that completely overhauled its wastewater treatment plant and six lift stations. In addition to replacing an obsolete system with one that can stand up to the wrath of nature and serve the needs of the town’s residents and businesses for the next 50 to 100 years, the work also caught the eye of the South Carolina Rural Water Association. At its annual conference in November, the SCRWA presented Sullivan’s Island Water & Sewer Department Manager Greg Gress with its 2022 Wastewater System of the Year Award. “The upgrade of the facility proves the system’s willingness to look forward and readiness for managing future capital improvement projects,” according to SCRWA. “The crew is progressive-minded in the efficiency of the treatment works and in all facets of operations. The management staff works hard to improve the sustainability of the system, which was demonstrated during the construction phase of their project.” The citation from SCRWA went on to say: “The facility was upgraded to climate resiliency. All upgrades were designed with natural disasters in mind, such as hurricanes, earthquakes and floods, in order to protect the crucial infrastructure assets. All system and electrical features were elevated above the 100- year flood elevation, piping and equipment supports were installed and a generator was installed at each station. All of these measures will help protect their system against any potential coastal vulnerabilities for years to come.” “It was a ‘we’ award, not a ‘me’ award,” Gress pointed out, giving credit to his small but experienced staff. “These guys are literally the ones who kept the plant running during the construction process. They were instrumental in keeping everything running while the new plant was being built. Now they are tasked with keeping it maintained.” Gress also said he appreciates the support he and his staff has received from the Town Council. The Water & Sewer Department staff includes: Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator Matt Williamson; Wastewater Treatment Plant Lead Operator John Myers; Chief Operator Andy Williams; Wastewater Collection System Lead Operator Tyler Potter; and Operator Trainee BJ Van Marel. Gress, who has been with the Department since 2001, said each staff member has a specific job, but they have learned to handle other responsibilities as well. “We do a lot of cross training,” Gress said. “With a small utility like us, it’s the nature of the beast.” Gress and his staff were praised by Council members at their Dec. 20 meeting, and later Councilman Bachman Smith, chair of the Water and Sewer Committee, offered additional accolades.

“Greg Gress is an amazing individual who knows his work very well. What he’s done for us as far as innovative and forward thinking and planning is remarkable,” Smith commented.

“He takes care of his people, and they all seem to love working there. It seems to be a really unique situation. I’m super proud to be a part of it.”

Dear Island Neighbors,

I hope y’all had a great Christmas and are on your way to a healthy, happy, peaceful and rewarding 2023.

For this episode of “As The Year Turns,” we’ve got a number of items.

Town Hall New Year’s Day holiday observance

Since Jan. 1 is a Sunday, the holiday will be observed with Town Hall closed on Monday, Jan. 2. The usual garbage and yard debris collection schedules will be unaffected. Of course, all public safety and other essential functions will be fully staffed over the holiday weekend. … and then some: See the next item.

New Year’s Day Polar Plunge

The 28th Annual Polar Plunge event, originated and promoted by Dunleavy’s Pub, is now a treasured New Year’s Day tradition for the entire island. The actual plunge into the water is at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 1, but folks will begin gathering and celebrating hours before that. Many of our Island restaurants will be participating with special outside service for food and beverages. 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 22½ seaward of Middle Street will be closed to vehicular traffic. Please recall that the “Reason For The Freezin’” is to raise funds for the Special Olympics. Come out to celebrate with neighbors and strangers, enjoy food and beverage, but please bring cash to contribute to the many Special Olympics volunteers. 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. (Tom P.: I know you don’t need encouragement) Come on out to see hundreds of your neighbors go off their meds all at once at a great family event.

Possible IOP Connector reconfiguration concepts

You may recall that the South Carolina Department of Transportation re-striped the Connector a couple years ago, and that those changes have not been universally applauded. Recently, SCDOT representatives made a presentation to the IOP City Council to show several possible reconfigurations to address issues with the current layout. Mayor Pounds and his Council graciously invited us to attend that presentation, which is summarized here: bit.ly/ IOPConnector. SCDOT will be soliciting public comments on all this in the near future, so stay tuned.

Vehicle Identification tags for emergency re-entry to the island

Those island decals we’ve become accustomed to having on our windshields, designed to identify residents so they can re-enter the island in the event of an emergency, have outlived their usefulness. We are replacing them with tags to be hung from your inside rearview mirror when needed. They are issued per licensed resident in each household, with verification of their Sullivan’s Island address on their driver’s license. Nonresidents may have up to two per property with verification of ID and one of the following: real estate closing statement, property tax bill or tax return. Proof of partnership must be provided for properties owned by an LLC or other entity. Get yours now. Whenever the need for them arises, you will be very occupied with other urgent things.

Charlie Post 5K and 15K Run and Walk

It’s hard to believe this is the 39th annual occurrence of this run/walk event, always in a time of the year with wildly unpredictable weather – and tidal – conditions, but here we are. It’s happening Saturday, Jan. 28, at 8:30 a.m. Over the years, we’ve had gale-force winds, blinding fog, frigid cold, stifling heat – for January – ultra-high tide that put a half-foot of cold water over part of the course. … you name it. Last year we got to check what may have been the last open weather box: a few flakes of snow. While that admittedly doesn’t sound like much of a sales pitch, especially the snowflakes, this really is a very interesting event right here in our neighborhood. And part of the proceeds go to our Fire and Rescue Squad. For more info: charliepostclassic.com. I hope to see you there.

Dog tag renewal time

If you’ve got a pooch, don’t forget it’s time to renew Fido’s town license. Info is at bit.ly/ SIDOG.

See you around the island, and here’s to a wonderful 2023 for all of us.

Mayor Pat O’Neil

843-670-9266

@oneilpm1

oneilp@sullivansisland.sc.gov

Video by Rusty Williamson for Island Eye News

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The wealthiest neighborhood in the South is Fisher Island, an exclusive 216-acre island a couple miles off the coast of Miami — and it’s only accessible by helicopter or by boat.

With less than 400 residents, $90 million condos and an exclusive golf course, Fisher Island ranks first in terms of median home values, according to a recent analysis of ZIP codes by realty service RealtyHop.

Homes here cost a median of $6.1 million — more than double the amount you’d pay for almost all of the homes in the rest of the top 10 most expensive ZIP codes in the South.

That’s followed by two other small, beachfront neighborhoods, including Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina, near Charleston Harbor, and Anna Maria, Florida, near Tampa, which have homes closer to a median value of $3 million.

Here’s a look at the rankings.

1. Fisher Island, Florida (33109)

Median home sale price in 2022: $6,100,000

2. Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina (29482)

Median home sale price in 2022: $3,200,000

3. Anna Maria, Florida (34216)

Median home sale price in 2022: $2,800,000

4. West Lake Hills, Texas (78746)

Median home sale price in 2022: $2,275,000

5. Great Falls, Virginia (22066)

Median home sale price in 2022: $1,650,000

6. Naples, Florida (34102)

Median home sale price in 2022: $1,647,000

7. McLean, Virginia (22101)

Median home sale price in 2022: $1,605,000

8. Highland Park, Texas (75205)

Median home sale price in 2022: $1,590,000

9. University Park, Texas (75225)

Median home sale price in 2022: $1,550,000

10. Atlanta (30327)

Median home sale price in 2022: $1,450,000

Aside from the top three spots, the list is mostly rounded out by posh suburbs in Washington, D.C. and Dallas. Overall, the median home price is just under $2.4 million across the top 10 most expensive ZIP codes.

The analysis examined ZIP codes in the South as defined by the Census Bureau, which includes the following places: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, D.C. and West Virginia.

To compile the rankings, RealtyHop looked at prices for all types of homes in all ZIP codes in the U.S. between Jan. 1, 2022, and Oct. 19, 2022. Listings with invalid ZIP codes, including single-building ZIP codes, were excluded.

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SULLIVAN'S ISLAND, S.C. (WCIV) — Sullivan's Island banned short-term rentals more than two decades ago, except those that were grandfathered in.

Residents are concerned with one company they say is bending the rules.

Tim Emrich says the home, located at 3115 Ion Avenue, has fractional ownership and is overseen by Pacaso.

Emrich said Sullivan's Island is for families and retirees, not people on vacation, and with three children, they don’t want to live next to a home with many different owners.

According to him, other residents on Sullivan's Island share his opinion and are not happy about it.

To try and stop it, he and his wife created a campaign to keep Sullivan's Island community oriented.

"We saw an advertisement where you could buy 1/8 of the house. After we dug a little deeper, it became apparent that this was, this is really a scheme to circumvent the rules that have been in place for over 20 years in a small town that limit short-term rentals; they prohibit them unless you were one of the properties prior 20 years ago," Emrich said.

Driving up and down streets on Sullivan's Island, you can't miss the signs that read "Stop timeshares on Sullivan's."

Emrich and his wife passed around the yard signs and have been attending town council meetings to try and stop Pacaso from selling homes on the barrier island.

"Our aim is to first of all raise awareness. We've obviously got over 200 signs out across the island. Any residents you speak to on Sullivan's Island adamantly oppose this game. Every member of the council is opposed to the scheme. And so, really, we're pushing the politicians to do something about it," Emrich said.

Emrich tells us the campaign's primary goal is to get town leaders to enforce the rules that are already on the books and push these types of companies and homes out.

He says communities across the country have successfully fought these types of companies.

"They're assuring us that they are on this. The government does not move this fast, and we would like them to, but they are giving us every assurance that they that they're going to do something about it," Emrich said.

Mayor Patrick O'Neil says residents feel short-term rentals destroy the sense of neighborhood.

He thinks no one wants to live next to a group of people on their first night of vacation.

“After a great deal of research and study, last week we issued a notice of zoning violation to the owners of the property in question here, and we are awaiting a response," Mayor O'Brien said.

Pacaso spokesperson Brian McGuigan stated: "Pacaso is not a timeshare. We help families co-own second homes, which is common practice and can help reduce competition for single-family homes on Sullivan's Island. Research shows that co-ownership contributes more to the local economy than the typical second home while redirecting second home buyers away from median-priced single-family homes in demand by locals and into high-end, luxury homes.”

Pacaso explains they aren’t a timeshare and retain no ownership interest in the home once sold, but they provide property management services.

Pacaso insists they will collaborate with Sullivan's Island leaders on any related public policy questions.

The company believes an ordinance addressing Pacaso’s model could broadly impact many houses.

Families and friends gathered en masse on the beach at 2 p.m. Sunday to greet the new year with a chilling dive into the Atlantic Ocean during the 20th annual Dunleavy’s Pub Polar Plunge on Sullivan’s Island. A similar event occurred Sunday at Folly Beach.

“It’s a good way to start the new year and ring it in with good feelings and vibrations,” said Jamie Maher, owner of Dunleavy’s Pub, which started the event 20 years ago.

Pub founder Bill Dunleavy jumped in the ocean on New Year’s Day with a group of friends two decades ago, Maher said, and since then it’s grown into a time-honored tradition. This year’s event garnered about 1,000 people.

Dunleavy’s opened bright and early for the pre-party. After a glacial dip into the 52-degree ocean, participants funneled back to Middle Street to keep the block party going with the pub’s neighboring restaurants.

“Years ago, we connected with the Special Olympics South Carolina, so that’s been a big draw,” Maher said. “We call it ‘freezing for a reason.’ People come down and donate money, and we’ve raised more than $500,000 over the past few years. All the restaurants out here also donate a percentage of sales to the Special Olympics.”

Why do they jump in the cold water?

Tom Lawrence of Mount Pleasant has been doing the polar plunge with his family for the past three years after relocating from Boston.

“It’s a great way to start a new year and start off on a positive foot,” Lawrence told the City Paper while standing on the beach in a Grinch costume with a Santa beard. It’s the second year he’s dressed as the Grinch to take an icy dip in the Atlantic with his family.

“My daughter Bella loves doing this,” he said. “She loves the ocean and loves the celebration.”

While most people were dressed in regular swimsuits or bikinis, some of the costumes included plungers dressed as hot dogs, the Grim Reaper and Santa.

“People were seriously into it,” one observer said.

Maher said his favorite part of the celebration is the assortment of costumes worn by participants.

“When I was down on the beach earlier, I saw some kids who are now grown adults who I’ve known since they were little doing the plunge,” he said. “I love seeing that over the years, the tradition is continuing on.”

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