Public Works and Utilities Committee

City of Charleston JOSEPH P. RILEY, JR. South Carolina LAURA S. CABINESS, P.E. Mayor Director Department of Public Service PUBLIC WORKS AND UTILITIES COMMITTEE AGENDA There will be a meeting of the Public Works and Utilities Committee on September 9, 2014 to begin at 3:30 p.m. in 2nd Floor Conference Room at 80 Broad Street. The following items will be heard: A. Invocation B. Approval of Public Works and Utilities Committee Minutes August 19, 2014 C. Request to Set a Public Hearing None D. Acceptance and Dedication of Rights-of-Way and Easements 1. Daniel Island, Parcel E – acceptance and dedication of a portion of Lesesne Street (50-foot right-of-way), a portion of Brailsford Street (50-foot right-of-way), a portion of Originall Lane (20-foot right-of-way), and a portion of Aera Furnace Lane (20-foot right-of-way). a. Plat b. Title to Real Estate c. Exclusive Stormwater Drainage Easement d. Exclusive Stormwater Drainage Easement 2. Fenwick Hills, Phase I – acceptance and dedication of a portion of Killifish Road (right-of-way varies), a portion of Dunwick Drive (50-foot right-of-way), a portion of Fishbone Drive (50-foot right-of-way), and a portion of Shellring Way (50-foot right-of-way). a. Plat b. Title to Real Estate c. Exclusive Stormwater Drainage Easement d. Exclusive Stormwater Drainage Easement 75 Calhoun Street, 3rd Floor, Charleston, SC 29401-3506 · Phone (843) 724-3754 · Fax (843) 973-7261 E. Requests for Permanent Encroachments None F. Temporary Encroachments Approved By The Department of Public Service (For information only) 1. 1307 Smythe Street – installing irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. 2. 1521 Willtown Street – installing irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. 3. 1549 Willtown Street – installing irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. 4. 2447 Louisville Street – installing irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. 5. 2457 Louisville Street – installing irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. 6. 2644 Augustus Street – installing irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. 7. 1547 Wando Landing Street – installing irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. 8. 1323 Smythe Street – installing irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. 9. 4 New Town Lane – replacing two existing concrete driveway aprons with decorative brick and concrete encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. 10. 338 King Street, Unit A – installing 40”x15’-4 ½” awning encroaching into right- of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. 11. 259 Meeting Street – installing 24” x 18” right angle sign encroaching into right- of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/22, 2014. G. Miscellaneous or Other New Business None Councilmember Perry K. Waring Chairperson  PUBLIC WORKS AND UTILITIES Tuesday, August 19, 2014 A meeting of the Public Works and Utilities Committee was held this date at date at Gibbes Museum of Art at 135 Meeting Street, at 4:04 pm. Notice of this meeting was sent to the news media. PRESENT Committee Members: Councilmember Perry K. Waring, Mayor Joseph P. Riley, Jr., Councilmember Aubry G. Alexander, II, Councilmember Rodney Williams and Councilmember Marvin D. Wagner. City Staff: Mrs. Laura Cabiness, Director of Public Service, Mr. Tom O’Brien, Deputy Director Public Service and Mr. Michael Metzler, Deputy Director of Public Service. A. Invocation Chair opened the meeting with a moment of silence. B. Approval of Public Works and Utilities Committee Minutes: 1. July 14, 2014 On motion of Councilmember Alexander, seconded by Councilmember Wagner, the Committee voted unanimously to approve the minutes as distributed. C. Request to Set a Public Hearing None D. Acceptance and Dedication of Streets None E. Requests for Permanent Encroachments None F. Temporary Encroachments Approved by Department of Public Service – for information only 1. 3271 Middleburry Lane – existing 6-foot wooden fence encroaching into drainage easement. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 7/25, 2014. 2. 2128 Ashley Cooper Lane – installing 6-foot wooden fence encroaching into drainage easement. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 7/25, 2014. 3. 69 Woodford Street – installing irrigation and salt-finish concrete driveway encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 7/25, 2014. 4. 1426 Smythe Street – installing irrigation and salt-finish concrete driveway encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 7/25, 2014. 5. 449 Island Park Drive – installing irrigation and salt-finish concrete driveway encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 7/25, 2014. 6. 79 Dalton Street – installing irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 7/25, 2014. 7. 85 Wentworth Street – installing 24”x24” angle sign encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 7/25, 2014.  Public Works and Utilities Tuesday, August 19. 2014 Page 2 of 5 8. 82 Church Street – installing 3.08’ x 2.58’ right angle sign encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 7/25, 2014. 9. 3052 South Shore Drive – installing landscape plantings within the 30-foot drainage easement. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 7/25, 2014. 10. 73 Wentworth Street – installing two 29-inch diameter concrete planter pots encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/8, 2014 11. 2634 Augustus Street – installing irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/8, 2014. 12. 289 Island Park Drive – installing salt-finish driveway and irrigation encroaching into right-of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/8, 2014. 13. 341 Lesesne Street - installing salt-finish driveway and irrigation encroaching into right- of-way. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/8, 2014. 14. 2420 Thaxton Street – installing retaining wall in ditch encroaching into drainage easement. This encroachment is temporary. Approved 8/8, 2014. Mrs. Cabiness conveyed they have reached an agreement with the owner of 2420 Thaxton Street whereby a retaining wall can be installed without blocking the drainage. The Chair thanked staff for their efforts to assist this applicant. On motion of Councilmember Alexander, seconded by Councilmember Williams, the Committee voted unanimously to accept this report as information. G. Miscellaneous or Other New Business 1. Update on Belle Terre – for information only Mrs. Cabiness conveyed that between July 24th and 25th emails were exchanged between staff and Mr. Feldman the original developer. He reported the neighborhood board did meet on March 4, 2014 to discuss the issue of a compromise on the length of the time of the gate and how long it would remain closed. Mr. Feldman replied it was discussed but without much interest in changing the present plan. Mrs. Cabiness confirmed with Dany Dissemine, Community Association Manger who conveyed they have four homes completed and four under construction. Councilmember Alexander asked how many houses have to be completed before the gates remained opened. The chair replied 21 homes have to be completed and currently they are two and a half years into this project. In reply to a question from the Chair, Mrs. Cabiness replied the issue with Belle Terre was vandalism within the neighborhood so they came to the City and requested to build a temporary gate to protect the property until 80% of the homes are built within the neighborhood because they didn’t have anyone out there. The request was heard, staff spoke with the Police Department. The encroachment was granted. Then the applicant began constructing the gate with brick and mortar. The adjacent neighborhood felt it was more substantial and felt that the neighborhood would ultimately be looking at maintaining the gate in perpetuity. Mrs. Cabiness stated the encroachment is very clear that when the 21st house is constructed the gate can stay but it has to be propped open. 2. Briefing on Freeboard Ordinance – for information only  Public Works and Utilities Tuesday, August 19. 2014 Page 3 of 5 Mrs. Cabiness stated this would come up for first reading tonight before City Council however she wanted an opportunity to explain it to this Committee. FEMA has a Community Rating System (CRS), an opportunity for communities to participate in the system to reduce flood insurance rates for those covered by the FEMA flood insurance program. For every point achieved there is a 5% reduction in flood insurance premium; the City is currently at seven (7). This year’s visit from FEMA will probably be in November. Staff is working to obtain more points and/or to remain at seven. One of the ways we can do this is by adopting this “Freeboard Ordinance.” The Freeboard Ordinance which speaks to new structures being constructed in a special flood hazard area that the minimum floor elevation has to be 1-foot above the base flood elevation, basically 12-inches higher than you had to be prior to this ordinance. The definition for Substantial Improvement has been changed to the following, Substantial damage means damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the cumulative cost of restoring and/or repairing the structure to its before damaged conditions would equal or exceed fifty (50) percent of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred. The reconstruction and repairs are counted cumulatively for 5 years. This change would prevent people from piecemealing repairs to their house. It’s geared at making businesses and structures more resilient, more resistant to flooding and it will decrease flood insurance rates for our citizens. In response to a question from Councilmember Wagner, Mrs. Cabiness replied basically the builder has to increase the height to 12-inches above base flood elevation and however they choose to achieve the required height is their choice. If a home is not located in a flood zone area there are no changes. Councilmember Wagner stated though initially he did not live in a flood zone area, after the maps were redrawn he now resides in a flood zone area. The Chair stated that happened to him as well. Councilmember Wagner asked, as the maps are redrawn what will be the potential effects. Mrs. Cabiness replied that some people were pulled out and others put in the flood zone. It depends upon the updated maps. Councilmember Alexander asked what it will take to get to a six (6) rating and what type of discounts will citizens realize by its implementation. Mrs. Cabiness replied Charleston County has already moved to this for new construction. Councilmember Alexander noted that this can be extremely expensive for older properties so he wasn’t comfortable applying this ordinance to existing homes. Mrs. Cabiness replied this ordinance will not affect pre-existing homes unless there is a 50% increase in property value due to substantial repairs. With regards to Charleston County, this ordinance is exactly the same as the one they and the City of North Charleston adopted. The Town of Mt Pleasant has a different strategy; they accumulate improvements over a ten year period whereas the City of Charleston accumulates improvements over a five year period. For clarity, Councilmember Alexander asked if Mrs. Cabiness meant the Charleston County is in favor of both the existing and new construction. Mrs. Cabiness replied yes, for existing and substantial new construction. The language was taken directly from the County’s ordinance.  Public Works and Utilities Tuesday, August 19. 2014 Page 4 of 5 In terms of height requirements, Councilmember Alexander asked what affect the Freeboard Ordinance would have on the City’s height regulations. Mrs. Cabiness replied Mr. Batchelder, Zoning Administrator City of Charleston is working on an ordinance change that will address this issue. Councilmember Alexander asked how the proposed ordinance would apply to Historic properties under major renovations that are on slabs. In response, Mrs. Cabiness replied there were a couple of things that needed to be considered, such as an existing property that is in the code enforcement process to meet code. All cost expended to bring a structure into compliance are subtracted and is not included in the 50% substantial improvement. The Chair was concerned with homes in low to moderate income areas seeking to bring their homes up to code may reach the 50% threshold sooner than in affluent areas. It may eliminate a house due to cost constraints. As an example, he referred to the Rosemont area, how this ordinance would help them not get to the 50% threshold sooner. Mrs. Cabiness relayed any improvements that were geared to bring the house up to code such as electrical mechanical, windows, plumbing, walls and roofs would not be counted as part of the 50% substantial improvements. The Chair felt they must have been calculating it wrong a number of years ago. Mrs. Cabiness said the one thing was that it had to be under code enforcement actions. There are a lot of houses under code enforcement action and if that were the case the home can be placed under code enforcement. The Chair felt areas with such a low to moderate income may show greater impact than those of affluent areas. Councilmember Alexander restated an earlier question, what is the benefit for the property owner? Mrs. Cabiness replied each point is equivalent to 5%; currently the City receives a 15% discount. If the City received another point there will be another 5% reduction totaling 20%. When a house is not at base flood elevation higher premiums are assessed to the property owner. The overall savings is $3.5M savings per year. Also present from the public was Mr. Bob Fleming, a Contractor, who wanted to make sure that the wording is accurate. He referenced an incident whereby he was forced to include the windows, etc., in the 50%. He was told by staff that the historic homes would be exempted via a specified process. The Chair asked for the methodology of putting a depreciated value on a renovated structure and was that within the City’s jurisdiction or rather FEMA. Mrs. Cabiness stated she would check with Edye Graves, from Inspections for the City of Charleston. She added incremental improvements were permitted, however the new ordinance stipulates that the incremental changes if added cannot exceed 50% over a period of five years. Councilmember Alexander asked how many meetings were had prior to bringing this matter before Council. Mrs. Cabiness replied they did not meet with the building community recently. She added that if they do not have this ordinance on the books by November the City will not qualify for the CRS points until the next visit. Councilmember Alexander asked how long staff had worked on this project. Mrs. Cabiness replied since the first of the year. The Chair asked if there was any way this could be deferred to the September meeting to receive further information. Mrs. Cabiness preferred to receive first reading and continue to  Public Works and Utilities Tuesday, August 19. 2014 Page 5 of 5 work on some of the issues, keeping staff on track if at all possible. The Chair didn’t realize there was no input from the community until such time Councilmember Alexander asked the question. He stated he didn’t want to rush this process. Mr. Fleming felt staff should look at how many realize this is all driven to save money for all constituents across the board but also think how many may be impacted negatively by acting and going above and beyond the federal guidelines. The Chair was concerned with unintended consequences. Councilmember Alexander asked if the City could write ordinances that exceed federal standards. Mrs. Cabiness replied they can but they could not write ordinances were less than the federal standards. Councilmember Alexander asked if this could be challenged in court. Mrs. Cabiness stated this has been done all over as a mechanism to making flood insurance more affordable. The Mayor felt this was a value to the citizens within the community. He felt by giving it first reading it would allow Mrs. Cabiness and staff to meet with the builders within the community for feedback on the issues that were raised today. There would be no prejudice and no time lost. The Chair thanked Mr. Fleming for his input. On motion of Councilmember Alexander seconded by Councilmember Williams, the Committee voted unanimously to accept this report as information. There being no further business the meeting adjourned at 4:39 pm. Vanessa Ellington Clerk of Council’s Office