Andell Annexation

NOTICE OF WITHDRAWAL
Prior to the Town Council meeting on August 22, 2023, the Town of Seabrook Island received a letter from Bohicket Creek Investors, LLC, withdrawing its application for annexation. ​Due to the withdrawal of the annexation application, Town Council voted to postpone indefinitely any further consideration of the pending ordinances (Ord. 2023-06 and Ord. 2023-07). Because those ordinances were tied to a specific application which has now been withdrawn, no further action will be taken on either ordinance. 
The town has received an annexation request from Bohicket Creek Investors, LLC, the owner of Charleston County Tax Map Number 204-00-010. The nearly 18-acre site, commonly referred to as the "Andell Tract," sits between Bohicket Marina and Betsy Kerrison Parkway, directly across from Kiawah Island Town Hall. This is the first annexation request received by the town in more than 30 years. 

Any request to annex and rezone property must go before the town's Planning Commission for review and recommendation prior to being forwarded to Town Council for consideration. By law, annexation and rezoning requests must be approved by Town Council by ordinance. This process is scheduled to commence on July 12, 2023. For a full schedule, please see the Project Timeline section below. 

This page is intended to serve as a resource for residents by providing public access to all available application materials, supplemental materials, meeting information (including agendas, minutes and videos) and project timelines in one central location. Individuals wishing to submit a public comment on the request may also do so via the Online Comment Form at the bottom of this page.

Please check back regularly as new information will be posted on this page when it becomes available. If you have any questions about the pending annexation and rezoning request, please feel free to contact Town Hall by phone at (843) 768-9121 or by email at [email protected].

Background Information

The Andell Tract was acquired by the applicant, Bohicket Creek Investors, LLC, in April of 2021. The property is under common ownership with the neighboring Bohicket Marina site, which is already in the town limits of Seabrook Island.

The site, which is currently vacant, contains a total of approximately 17.75 acres. Approximately 12.53 acres (70%) is buildable high ground, while the remaining 5.23 acres (30%) is covered by marsh critical areas. According to current FEMA flood maps, the majority of the buildable high ground is in the Shaded X zone, while areas closest to the marsh are in the AE 11 flood zone. 

The property is located outside of the county's Urban Growth Boundary (UGB), but is surrounded on three sides by parcels which are within the UGB, including Kiawah Island Town Hall to the east, Bohicket Marina to the west, and an undeveloped PD-zoned parcel along Seabrook Island Road (within the town limits of Kiawah Island) to the south.

Under the county's Zoning and Land Development Regulations (ZLDR), the property is currently zoned Agricultural Residential (AGR). The county's AGR zoning district allows a wide variety of uses on the property, including those listed below. Some of these uses are allowed by right, while others may only be permitted subject to site-specific conditions or as a special exception. 

  • Agricultural uses (including production, processing, sales and related services);
  • Single-family dwellings (1 per acre);
  • Manufactured dwellings (1 per acre);
  • Affordable and workforce housing units (2-4 per acre);
  • Group homes;
  • Short-term rentals (limited to 72 days/year);
  • Public safety services;
  • Primary and secondary schools;
  • Libraries and museums;
  • Country clubs;
  • Parks and recreation facilities;
  • Religious assemblies;
  • Utility services;
  • Recycling collection;
  • Charter boat and recreational watercraft rental services; and
  • Marinas, boat yards, boat ramps and water transportation services.

The applicants are requesting that the property be rezoned, upon annexation, to the town's the Mixed-Use (MU) zoning district. As stated in their application package, the applicants are proposing to develop the following uses on the property:

  • Yacht club (to include social and cultural gathering spaces, dining spaces, pool house, boat house, and docks);
  • Up to 10 hospitality cottages; and
  • Open space features (to include an extension of the boardwalk along Bohicket Creek, a marsh-front pathway, community crabbing dock, and meandering green spaces).

Pursuant to the town's Development Standards Ordinance (DSO), the applicant has proposed a list of development conditions to be attached to the rezoning. If approved by Town Council, these development conditions will become part of the rezoning ordinance and will be binding on the current owner and any subsequent owner of the property. These conditions set forth a number of project-specific restrictions and provisions that would not otherwise apply under the blanket MU zoning designation, including:

  • Prohibiting all types of residential uses on the property; 
  • Limiting the number of hospitality cottages to no more than 10 units; 
  • Prohibiting development which would exceed 40 equivalent residential units (ERUs) of sewer demand (previously 45 ERU), according to generally accepted industry standards; 
  • Requiring an enhanced streetscape buffer along Betsy Kerrison Parkway;
  • Requiring temporary construction access to the site be provided from Betsy Kerrison Parkway;
  • Requiring that all structures be constructed of high quality architectural materials including brick, stone, fiber cement siding, stucco, and similar materials; and
  • Permitting limited setback encroachments to allow the proposed access driveway to be lined up with the existing entrance to Kiawah Island Town Hall, and to allow for construction of the proposed boardwalk extension, docks, crab dock, and outdoor gathering areas within the setback area. (Note: No building or structure may encroach into the critical area itself unless permitted by SCDHEC-OCRM)

Significant deviations from these development conditions will be considered a “major modification” and will be processed as a new application. Any such requests will be required to go back through the full rezoning process. 

Currently, the property has no rights or obligations to tie into the town's sewer system, and any future development on the property would be served by either a septic system or private utility. If the property is annexed into the town limits, future development would be able to tie into the public sewer system, subject to the willingness and capability of the Seabrook Island Utility Commission (SIUC) to serve the property, the SIUC's review and approval of the proposed disposal systems, and the payment of all fees imposed by SIUC. On July 18, 2023, SIUC provided a "willingness to serve" letter indicating that "as long as the ERU's for this development does not exceed 40 ERU's as agreed, SIUC has the adequate utilities to provide the needed sewer service for the proposed development."

The providers of other public services, including water (St. Johns Water Co.), police (Charleston County Sheriff's Office), fire (St. Johns Fire District), and emergency medical services (Charleston County EMS), will remain unchanged regardless of whether the property is annexed into the town or remains in the unincorporated county.

​For additional project details and supplemental materials, please view the attachments below.

Application Materials

Supplemental Materials

Draft Ordinances

Ordinance 2023-06: An ordinance annexing Charleston County Tax Map Number 204-00-00-010 containing approximately 17.75 +/- acres at 4484 Betsy Kerrison Parkway

PLEASE NOTE: Due to the withdrawal of the annexation application, Town Council voted to postpone indefinitely any further consideration of Ordinance 2023-06. Because this ordinance was tied to a specific application which has now been withdrawn, no further action will be taken on Ordinance 2023-06. 
​Ordinance 2023-07: An ordinance adopting a Mixed-Use Concept Plan and Development Conditions for the Andell Mixed Use project

PLEASE NOTE: Due to the withdrawal of the annexation application, Town Council voted to postpone indefinitely any further consideration of Ordinance 2023-07. Because this ordinance was tied to a specific application which has now been withdrawn, no further action will be taken on Ordinance 2023-07. ​
  • View Draft Ordinance -- Updated to reduce sewer capacity from 45 ERU to 40 ERU; updated exhibits B-F
  • Previous Versions:
    • June 27, 2023​​​
    • July 12, 2023 -- Scrivener's error corrected; updated "Exhibit C" to reflect the proposed development conditions included in the application package received on June 12, 2023 and addressed in the Zoning Administrator's Staff Report​

Project Timeline

​WED. MAY 17, 2023 @ 1:30 PM -- COMPLETED
  • Town Council and Planning Commission Joint Work Session
    • Pursuant to Sec. 7.4(C)(3)(b) of the DSO, an applicant may request a joint work session with Town Council and the Planning Commission to provide an opportunity to present their application and respond to any initial questions that members may have regarding the proposed mixed-use development. The joint work session took place on Wed. May 17th. The joint work session was for informational purposes only; no decisions were made and no final action was taken.
    • View Meeting Agenda
    • View Meeting Minutes
    • View Meeting Video
MON. JUNE 12, 2023 -- COMPLETED
  • Application Package Received and Processed
    • A full application package was received from the applicant and processed by town staff on Mon. June 12th. All application fees were paid in full and the request was forwarded to the Planning Commission for review. Copies of the application materials may be viewed above in the Application Materials section. 
WED. JULY 12, 2023 @ 1:30 PM -- COMPLETED
  • Planning Commission Meeting
    • During its meeting on Wed. July 12th, the Planning Commission received an overview of the pending annexation and rezoning request and reviewed the criteria established in state law and the DSO for considering such requests. The Zoning Administrator then provided members with a summary of the staff report and recommendation. The applicants were allotted 30 minutes to present their request, and a further 30 minutes were set aside to receive public comments. A total of 544 public comments were received prior to the meeting and were made available to members of the Planning Commission and Town Council. After a question and answer period, the planning commission voted to make the following recommendations:
      • Recommendation #1: By a vote of 4-1, the Planning Commission recommend in favor of APPROVAL of the ordinance annexing Charleston County Tax Map Number 204-00-00-010 containing approximately 17.75 +/- acres at 4484 Betsy Kerrison Parkway.
      • Recommendation #2: By a vote of 4-1, the Planning Commission recommended in favor of APPROVAL of the ordinance adopting a mixed-use concept plan and development conditions for the Andell Mixed-Use project, subject to the proposed development conditions and conceptual site plan included in the applicants' submittal, and subject to the following additional conditions: 1) revisit trip generation assumptions in the TIA to reflect maximum project impact, specifically, if the maximum number of trips (based on building occupancy) were to take place during the peak traffic hours;  2) explore the feasibility of providing a right-turn deceleration lane at the project entry from Betsy Kerrison Parkway; 3) confirm the design and feasibility of the internal road connection to Andell Bluff Boulevard; and 4) require final site plan approval by the Planning Commission prior to the issuance of development permits.
    • The Planning Commission's recommendations will be transmitted to Town Council prior to first reading and an official public hearing.
    • View Meeting Agenda
    • ​View Meeting Minutes
    • ​View Meeting Video​
TUES. AUGUST 22, 2023 @ 2:30 PM -- REQUEST WITHDRAWN BY APPLICANT

Public Comments

Individuals who wish to submit a public comment may use the Online Comment Form below. All comments received prior to the Public Hearing date will be forwarded to members of Town Council.

Public comments (including those with attachments) may also be emailed to [email protected] or delivered to Seabrook Island Town Hall (2001 Seabrook Island Road) by mail or hand delivery. If submitting comments by email, mail, or hand delivery, please include your name and address. 

Submit an Online Comment

Town Council will accept written comments on the proposed annexation and rezoning request is now closed. 

​Comments received through this portal were forwarded to members of Town Council in advance of the public hearing. Comments will not receive a written response, but may be addressed or discussed by members during the meeting.

Please note that all comments will become part of the public record and may be subject to release under the requirements of the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act. ​

Online Comment Form

The online comment period is now closed. 
Notice is hereby provided that a Public Hearing will be held on Tuesday, April 25, 2023 at 2:30 pm at Seabrook Island Town Hall, 2001 Seabrook Island Road, Seabrook Island, SC. During the public hearing, Town Council will receive comments on the following ordinance:

Ordinance 2023-03

An ordinance authorizing and directing the Town of Seabrook Island to enter into an intergovernmental agreement relating to South Carolina Local Revenue Services; to participate in one or more local revenue services programs; to execute and deliver one or more participant program supplements; and other matters relating thereto.


Copies of the proposed ordinance may be viewed by clicking the links above. The ordinance may also be viewed at Town Hall during regular business hours (Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.).

Participate Virtually
​
Individuals who wish to participate in Public Hearing via Zoom may call (843) 768-9121 or email [email protected] for log-in information. 
 
Submit a Written Comment

Individuals who wish to submit a comment in advance of the Public Hearing may do so in writing by 12:00 pm on the day of the meeting using one of the following options:
​
  • Online:  Please use the Online Comment Form below
  • Email:  [email protected]
  • Mail or Hand Deliver:  2001 Seabrook Island Road, Seabrook Island, SC 29455

Watch Live Stream Video

The meeting will be live streamed on the town’s YouTube channel:  Click here for Live Stream.

More Information

For more information, please call (843) 768-9121 or email [email protected].
Town of Seabrook Island

2001 Seabrook Island Road
Seabrook Island, SC 29455
Phone: (843) 768-9121
​Email: [email protected]

Town Hall Hours:
M-F 8:00 am to 4:00 pm

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