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The Town of Mount Pleasant's revised Code of Ordinances, effective May 1, hasn't been well received by a group of residents in the Indian Village section of the Old Village due to modified restrictions for accessory structures. These comprise Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and office-over-garage builds, as limits for each have increased from 15 feet to 25 feet and 20 feet to 25 feet respectively. Sean Barnes has been especially vocal about the changes potentially impacting his Barbara Street residence and other nearby homes with incoming construction of larger homes that he feels will invade people's privacy.
The Docks Unlimited business owner cited an ongoing construction on Barbara Street that he projects to occupy 6,000 square feet at completion. "I mean, they're getting ready to build this massive thing. He's going to be able to look into my pool in my yard.
I might as well invite him over for dinner," Barnes quipped. Taller ADUs and other accessory builds, he added, will interfere with large oaks in the neighborhood, as well as blocking out the sun and views of Mount Pleasant. In an ideal scenario, as told to the Moultrie News, the Town would "reinstate" restrictions on detached structures to 15 feet, along with cutting the current 6-foot setback in half to 3 feet.
"The problem is where we are in the Indian Village, or Old Village or whatever you want to call us now, we don't have any overlays (an additional layer of zoning applying specific guidelines to a designated area). We're not protected like the Old Village," stated the Isle of Palms native. Another concern he voiced was developers who circumvent the waiting period for an ADU permit by building "frogs," which feature the same ADU footprint, but doesn't include kitchen spaces.
Despite prohibited kitchen areas, however, Barnes advised that after an initial Town inspection, a corporate investor can provide water, electricity and kitchens to make the units rentable to employees. Responding to these claims was Town of Mount Pleasant Planning Director Michele Reed, who addressed Barnes' request to reinstate old restrictions. The 3-foot setback, she maintained, isn't problematic, as it was implemented a long time ago.
As for the increased heights of accessory structures in the neighborhood, Reed reasoned that Town government is trying to create uniformity vis-à-vis ADUs and office-over-garage structures. Since Old Village Historic District homeowners were previously mandated to keep office-over-garage builds to 20 feet, it forced people to apply for ADUs they didn't necessarily want, but would offer them five extra feet. Outside of the Old Village, property owners would be able to go from 15 feet for office-over-garage structures to 25 feet for ADUs.
"Legally, there's no compelling reason to do an ADU at 25 feet, but not do an office over a garage," reasoned the Town staff member. And with Town Council seeking to cap ADUs due to an allocation system in place, continued Reed, the governing body recently sought to even the playing field relative to ADUs versus office-over-garage projects. The end result of those discussions saw council vote in favor of setting the limits of any accessory structure at 25 feet or no taller than the primary edifice.
But while the first draft of the ruling impacted Mount Pleasant in its entirety, council later opted to apply the modified the restriction to the Old Village exclusively, according to Reed. "Now that doesn't mean if my primary structure is 35 feet, I can go 35 feet," she added to dispel reported misinformation on local social media channels. "It means I can go no higher than 25 feet.
But if my [primary] house is only 20 feet, I can only go 20 feet." For areas outside of the Old Village, conversely, the limits are 25 feet across the board irrespective of the primary structure. When asked about developers who seek to evade the paperwork involved with building an ADU by constructing a detached non-ADU, Reed noted that strict constraints are on the books for those builds.
The new zoning code for a kitchen in non-ADUs now reflects the Town's strict building code by forbidding any counter space that may be converted into a kitchen area down the road. The loophole of converting a non-ADU after the fact has been closed, she assured. "We feel good about it as far as staff is concerned," concluded Reed.
"I understand his concerns. But this new code is it." The only way Barnes and other residents can see structure heights go down is if council chooses to reverse course and lower elevations.
This topic has been added to the May 5 Mount Pleasant Planning Committee meeting agenda for discussion. Meanwhile, Barnes remains skeptical of local government's intentions, stating that allowing larger builds will only encourage the influx of large $4 million properties that generate more tax dollars than $1 million homes..
