Color Hair Salon near Isle of Palms, SC

ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (WCBD) — A court hearing has been rescheduled in the ongoing conflict between state health officials and an Isle of Palms homeowner.

In February, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) filed a temporary restraining order (TRO) and petition for injunctive relief in the South Carolina Administrative Law Court against Rom Reddy, the property owner on the Isle of Palms who built a wall to protect his property from beach erosion.

DHEC claims the structure is in a critical area and issued Reddy cease-and-desist directives related to the structure. In its Administrative Law Court filing, attorneys for the state agency say Reddy disregarded the directives, and DHEC “has no adequate remedy at law other than to seek judicial intervention to compel the Respondents to immediately cease their unauthorized actions in the critical area.”

In response, Reddy’s attorneys requested the judge deny the motion for a TRO and petition for injunctive relief. They claim Reddy’s structure is not in a critical area and is outside the state’s jurisdiction. Additionally, they say the wall was necessary because of a failure from DHEC and the city of Isle of Palms to protect the beach/dune system and renourish the beaches.

A hearing on the matter was scheduled for Thursday, April 18; however, on April 11, DHEC filed a motion for continuance to push back the hearing “due to its extremely heavy workload and to allow the parties adequate time to prepare for the trial and conduct full discovery.”

Chief Administrative Law Judge, Ralph Anderson, granted that motion on Tuesday, April 16.

In their response to DHEC’s initial court filing, Reddy’s team also requested that the case be removed and handled in circuit court by jury trial, rather than Administrative Law Court. On March 26, Judge Anderson denied that motion. Reddy’s attorneys then filed a separate lawsuit against DHEC and the city of Isle of Palms in Charleston County Circuit Court on March 29.

Additionally, Judge Anderson granted a motion from the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League to intervene in the case, which will allow the group to provide its own arguments against Reddy. Judge Anderson, however, noted their intervention is “limited to the presentation of arguments that are different and unique compared to the Department’s [DHEC] arguments in this case.

The new Administrative Law Court hearing has been rescheduled to Monday, Aug. 12.

ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (WCIV) — The legal battle over a sea wall on the Isle of Palms continues.

A judge has granted the Coastal Conservation League’s motion to intervene in the ongoing lawsuit between the Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) and a homeowner. The hearing was originally scheduled for April 18 but has been pushed back until August.

Both agencies want the structure permanently removed, but the Coastal Conservation League explains the two agencies have separate arguments.

“I think it's DHEC’s job to argue with the laws are in South Carolina; those are the laws they're charged with implementing and enforcing in circumstances like these. Whereas I think it's the league's job in this scenario to argue about the potential impacts or consequences of something like a structure that is in conflict with those laws,” said Emily Cedzo, the league’s director of conservation programs and policy.

READ MORE: "Unauthorized seawall on Isle of Palms sparks DHEC intervention."

Cedzo said these consequences impact all users of our beaches.

The Coastal Conservation League argues that while a structure like a sea wall is made to protect what’s behind it from erosion, it worsens erosion on the ocean side. They fear over time it will eat away at the beach altogether.

“It's making public access incredibly difficult, particularly at high tide. Which also not only makes it difficult for you and I to walk the beach but certainly for wildlife to forage, for sea turtles to nest when they're in season,” Cedzo said.

She said the league worked with the state’s real estate commission last year to better educate beachfront homeowners about the possible risks where they live.

READ MORE: "Coastal Conservation League joins battle over Isle of Palms seawall conflict."

“I think that's imperative that when people first walk into these transactions and buy properties on the beach, they understand the vulnerability of those properties. The fact that beaches can be erosional, you might have these sorts of issues pop up.”

A temporary emergency city ordinance allowing sea walls in a designated area of the Isle of Palms is set to expire on April 19.

In its meeting on April 23, the city council will vote to either extend it or let it expire.

ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (WCSC) - Big changes could be coming to the noise ordinance on Isle of Palms as city leaders hope to make the rules more clear.

The city’s noise ordinance currently doesn’t list specific limits. A proposal would establish set decibel levels based on the time and day of the week as well as the area:

Isle of Palms business owners got the chance to see the numbers and ask questions on Friday.

“We want them to understand that they have a voice, we want to hear from them,” Police Chief Kevin Cornett said. “Anything that is going to impact businesses we want them to be able to come to us and say what they think about it.”

One area resident, who only identified himself as Paul, says the noise ordinance needs to have a balance.

“Obviously, late at night you don’t want people making a lot of noise walking up and down the streets while residents are trying to go to bed, but at the same time this is a vacation spot, so you have to have a little bit on leeway for people to enjoy themselves but also be respectful,” he said.

Cornett says they’re working to find a solution that will work for businesses and residents and increase livability for everyone.

Cornette says noise is a hot topic on the island and he values feedback on this from both residents and business owners.

“Everybody is very much invested in this conversation,” Cornett said. “The city council is taking it very seriously and they are going around and talking to people to get their input. So, I think they are doing a great job on making sure voices are heard so that when we get the final project it’s fair and something that will work for everybody.”

Officers use a calibrated decibel reader when called out to a noise complaint.

“That’s how we determine if it’s a violation and then we would take other factors into account like background noise to keep the realistic approach to is as well,” Cornett said.

The public safety committee has to create a final draft before it will head to the city council for two separate readings.

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ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (WCBD) — As sea levels rise and strong storms impact coastal areas across the country, a battle is brewing on the Isle of Palms over what homeowners can do to protect their properties.

One beachfront homeowner on the island, Rom Reddy, has taken matters into his own hands by building a wall that he says is protecting his property near Breach Inlet from beach erosion.

This comes after Tropical Storm Idalia hit the Lowcountry coast in August 2023 and a lot of the beach behind homes on the Isle of Palms disappeared.

For some homeowners, like Reddy, this meant part of their property is now regulated by the state because, under South Carolina law, the Dept. of Health and Environmental Control’s (DHEC) division of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (OCRM) oversees critical areas, which includes beaches.

“If Idalia comes in and erodes the property line, they [OCRM] have jurisdiction,” Reddy explained. “Another storm comes in — Nor’easter erodes it further — they have jurisdiction.”

So to avoid losing control of any more of his property, Reddy took action and is building a structure in front of his home aimed at protecting him from further beach erosion. However, DHEC officials said they did not find out about it until a strong storm in December exposed it.

“DHEC investigated, and has since issued the property owner and contractor cease and desist directives related to this unauthorized structure,” the agency said in a statement.

A spokesperson also explained that anything built on critical areas of the coast, like beaches, needs a permit, and erosion control structures have been banned on South Carolina beaches since 1988.

Reddy is in the process of having the structure rebuilt after the storm in December exposed it. He maintains that he is within his constitutional right to protect his property, adding that the wall is landward of the state’s jurisdictional lines known as the setback and baselines that define the beach/dune system.

“So this is a landgrab by the state,” Reddy said. “Where they are saying your property — and it’s just not this — any waterfront property — they say ‘if a storm erodes it, I own it I have jurisdiction — no plants, no bushes, no fences, nothing — I can tell you what to do with it.'”

Rob Young, a geologist and professor at Western Carolina University, said DHEC and OCRM’s regulations are ensuring that everyone’s right to use the beaches is protected.

He explained that DHEC and OCRM have regulatory authorities over the beaches, coastal waters, and the beach/dune system, identified by the setback and baselines which are redrawn every 7-10 years.

“If you are buying an oceanfront property you need to understand what the limitations are and what you can and can’t do,” he explained. “For most beachfront lots in South Carolina that active beach is probably considered or a portion may be private property — but that doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want out there.”

Young said anything an oceanfront homeowner wants to do in the critical areas needs approval.

“This isn’t just a regulation from OCRM this is the Beachfront Management Act, it is the law of South Carolina,” he said.

Young also explained that structures like sea walls are banned from South Carolina beaches because state officials have found they can often do more harm than good.

“One of the reasons we do not permit seawalls is they have impacts on adjacent property owners,” he said. “Just imagine if everybody did whatever they wanted to one lot at a time — it would look terrible and you would have property owner suing property owner.”

Young said if homeowners are concerned about beach erosion, they need to come together and discuss long-term solutions like building dunes, beach nourishment projects, and developing a plan for regular beach nourishment projects.

There is currently a beach renourishment project ongoing near Reddy’s home following the storms in August and December 2023. However, Reddy believes Isle of Palms leaders dropped the ball before then.

“They are supposed to preserve, protect, enhance and renourish these beaches,” he said. “Prior to Idalia, there was not a lick of sand nothing done to this side of the beach since 2017.”

Isle of Palms leaders dispute these claims in a statement to News 2:

“Prior to 2023, the southwest end of the beach had been stable and accretional and only required periodic post-storm emergency berm repairs. The city has monitored this shoreline annually since 2009 and the area in question became highly erosional in 2023 due to numerous storm events and abnormally high tides. As soon as the shoreline eroded to the point that the conditions met the South Carolina regulatory standards to allow emergency work, the city began restoring dunes to provide better protection against structural damage.

The city has assisted with funding major renourishment projects and emergency protective measures. Last year, IOP City Council approved spending up to $1,890,000 to protect the public beach and property through a combination of emergency sand scraping, trucking in beach-compatible sand and placement of sandbags.

The current balance of the Beach Preservation Fund is $8.3M and it grows by approximately $1.8M annually. However, the city is forecasting a total need of almost $30M for beach projects in the next five to six years to be covered between public and private funding efforts.”

City leaders added there are also plans to work with the Army Corps of Engineers on a project that would place around 500,000 cubic yards of sand along the intertidal zone between Breach Inlet and 10th Avenue. They anticipate the project to start in March 2024 and be completed in four months.

However, Reddy is not waiting around for that work to be done.

“Every property owner has the right to protect their property — and no government no one can take it away from us because that’s the supreme law of the land,” he said.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include additional information from the city, including the fact that IOP city does not set prices for the new park area.

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ISLE OF PALMS, S.C. (WCBD) – Construction is underway on a new Isle of Palms waterfront space that will include a pier and other amenities.

Chaundra Yudchenko, who serves as the city’s public relations and tourism coordinator, said the Isle of Palms Public Dock Renovation Project will include a new 16-foot-wide pier with swings and benches.

The project also includes a floating dock with American Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant kayak and stand-up paddleboard launching.

Yudchenko said the public dock is not intended to be used for boat mooring; it will be available to the public for recreational use and passive water activities.

Construction of the public dock is set to begin in March with completion in May.

It’s all part of a 2020 vote by Isle of Palms City Council to improve the island’s marina area.

And while some are excited to have a new area to spend time with their family, others are concerned about potential costs.

“It’ll be nice to have something to bring the grandchildren over to and stuff like that- so, it’ll be nice,” said part-time resident, Dale Johns.

The project is an investment city council member Blair Hahn said was expensive but well worth it.

“The city has gone to great expense to redo the dock and we’re going to have a little green space,” Hahn said.

However, a visit to the park could cost more for non-residents. The plan is to charge visitors for parking and to launch a boat from the public dock. The cost to park is $3.50 per foot of the trailer plus a utility fee per day.

The private marina operators set fees for the new park area – they are not set by the city.

One non-resident who wanted to stay anonymous said many people are upset about this part of the plan. “The city is granting its residents special parking privileges and charging nonresidents exorbitant fees, all while calling this a “public dock.”

Hahn says fees for accessing public parks are nothing new in Charleston.

“It’s no different than Charleston County Park. They charge $20 a car to park on the island so unfortunately, that’s just a reality,” Hahn said.

The nonresident went on to say not everyone will be able to pay the fees.

“The city of Isle of Palms needs to treat residents and nonresidents the same at its “Public park” and charge everyone a fair amount, or allow free parking for everyone,” they said.

The city, according to Yudchenko, has not discussed implementing any feeds for the use of the public dock.

“Marina docks, boat launch fees, and The Outpost marina store are managed by Coastal Marinas, which is a tenant of the city. Fees for boat launching, dockage, and storage are determined by the marina tenant,” said Yudchenko.

Despite the concern, Hahn believes the park will still serve as a popular meeting spot for locals and visitors.

“We are doing everything we can to be resident-friendly and visitor-friendly and to bring people to Isle of Palms, but there’s always a cost to everything you do,” Hahn said.

Additionally, Yudchenko said the city is working with the marina restaurant, Islander 71, on a new parking layout to “increase the number and efficiency of parking spaces available to residents, visitors, and restaurant customers.”

The project is expected to be completed by May of this year.