Community Enrichment Plan: IOPThrives!
Milestone timeline:
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 | |
| Beverly Miller | |
| Alex Stone | astone@islandrealty.com |
| Bill Skeens | |
| Paige Grimball | |
| Linda Tucker | |
| Susan Hill Smith | |
| Maryanne Chalmers | |
| Rod Turnage | |
| Hugh Swingle | |
| Patsy Hindman | |
| Sarah Vega | |
| Ben Marks | webmarks@gmail.com |
Project Updates
Community Enrichment Task Force Meeting
- David McNair explained the process of sharing ideas and information between the Task Force and staff. There was a review of the work from the last meeting and a discussion of a form that details Task Force recommendations regarding traffic, parking, and advocacy efforts of the same.
- The 4/25 meeting focused on environmental issues. Deputy Administrator, Douglas Kerr, gave a presentation on the City’s efforts in relation to some of those concerns including outfall improvements, the development of a drainage master plan, expansion of in-house stormwater management capabilities, updating of stormwater regulations, the development of a sea level rise adaptation plan, ongoing beach nourishment, the elevation of Waterway Boulevard, and efforts advocated by the Environmental Advisory Committee.
Community Enrichment Task Force Meeting
- The focus of this meeting was parking and traffic management.
- David McNair reviewed the top issues from the community survey: traffic, parking for beachgoers, and short-term rentals. He then reviewed the group’s priorities from an exercise in the previous meeting: visitor/tourism issues, environmental issues, quality of island life, safety, and foundations (budgetary support, City employee compensation).
The focus of this meeting was parking and traffic management.
Community Enrichment Task Force Meeting
David McNair (of the McNair Group) discussed the results of the Community Enrichment Plan survey and key issues found (survey results and previous presentation found here) He also explained the purpose of the group- which is to create a guide for City Council on how to balance tourism and residents’ quality of life by:
- Helping to find solutions on how to resolve tourism and livability-related issues
- Engaging with the community and gathering feedback to bring back to the Task Force
- Sharing their expertise and best practices within their respective areas
- Inviting the community to share their input at upcoming large listening sessions and focus groups
- Utilizing the knowledge of staff on key issues
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