Rural status can't stop Johns Island growth
 

JOHNS ISLAND--As Barry Hart talked Tuesday afternoon in the driveway of his Patton Avenue home, with about a minute lapsing between each passing car, he had reason to be happy about a pending victory in the ongoing fight to preserve the Johns Island's rural feel. Later that day, as expected, Charleston County Council gave final approval to moving its rural-urban boundary line back to its original position. The decision reclassified about 2,500 nearby acres from suburban to rural, making dense development across the street from Hart more difficult. But Hart and his neighbors were in no mood to celebrate; they had a more pressing concern than a line on a map. That's because County Council also is expected to vote soon to allow a planned development with 735 new homes on 300 acres near Patton Avenue and Fickling Hill Road. Hart, a roofing contractor who has lived in the Morris Acres subdivision for four decades, knows what that could do to traffic on the narrow country road in front of his home. "We're not opposed to the property being developed by any means. We just think 735 is excessive," he said. "We have no sidewalks, and all of a sudden we're going to dump 1,500 cars on these rural subdivision roads." Councilman Leon Stavrinakis said he understands the residents' concerns, but he hopes they understand this proposed zoning is a compromise. Under the county's guidelines for rural areas, the developers could build more than 900 homes on the site. Had the boundary line not been changed from urban to rural, the developers could have sought permission to build more than 2,000 homes. "I told them (the residents) I'm not completely happy with this thing. I know they're not. I asked them to keep in mind that this was a compromise," Stavrinakis said. "I think getting it reduced down to 735 is a major, major victory, and I think in time they will realize that."Developer Joe Marguerite said a few years ago, he originally planned to build a golf course and about 300 multifamily units on the land, but some islanders resisted. He gave up that plan when financing for new golf courses dried up. "I was told I would never get any of this multifamily stuff going. The community was dead set against it," he said. "This type of unit really was a hot topic, and that surprised me." Marguerite said he is trying to address neighbors' concerns with a new traffic study -- one that's not required by the county -- and by limiting the number of homes along areas that border on existing homes. "Always, the neighbors next to a project don't want it. I've never had a project, no matter what you propose, that people want," he said, adding that attitudes often change once people see what has been built. "The unknown is a scary thing for everybody." Marguerite also was in favor of keeping the 2,500 acres classified as urban, mostly because they're near the Limehouse bridge and a large sewer line. Limiting density on those acres will encourage denser development further south on the island, he said. "Everything the people want to do to prevent sprawl creates more sprawl," Marguerite said. "That to me is the irony of the whole thing." The debate about the 735-home development hasn't dampened everyone's enthusiasm about council's decision to reclassify as rural the 2,500 acres between the Stono River and Main, Patton, Fickling Hill and Brownswood roads. Megan Terebus of the Coastal Conservation League called the decision "good news" because such a big change in the urban growth boundary would have set a bad precedent. "If this line can be moved on Johns Island, does that mean it can be moved in Mount Pleasant? In the Ashley River protection district?" she asked. "If they had succeeded in moving this urban growth boundary line, it would show the boundary could be moved anytime somebody wants it to be moved." Councilman Fran Roberts, whose district includes the 2,500 acres, fought to keep the area urban at first, but he later supported the change back to rural. He said he changed his position after realizing the urban classification would have posed problems for some keeping horses in the area. "I saw the horse farms. I saw the horses. Now that they were in the suburban area, they can't have any horses," said Roberts, who is up for re-election Nov. 2 and faces a challenge from Democrat Curtis Inabinett. Roberts, like Stavrinakis, said the 735 homes are far fewer than what otherwise could have been built. Still, Hart and others are surprised that the county's unified development ordinance, or UDO, allows so much development in the rural areas that it was designed to protect. "I don't know all the ins and outs. I know just enough to be dangerous or get myself into trouble," said Hart, who has scheduled a neighborhood "brainstorming session" for 7 p.m. Thursday at the Berkeley Electric Co-op on Maybank Highway. "If the UDO can allow this kind of development, something needs to be changed with the UDO. The UDO was supposed to be protecting the rural characteristics of places on Johns Island," Hart said. "We're going to end up in a major urban area."

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