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SULLIVAN’S ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - Residents of Sullivan’s Island could be just months away from losing their primary source of water if the town doesn’t resolve a billing dispute.

At the focus of the years-long battle between Sullivan’s Island and the Charleston Water System is nearly $640,000 the water utility claims the town owes. The Charleston Water System has said it will cut off the town’s access if the bill isn’t paid by July 20.

The threat is leaving residents like William Wright feeling like they’re stuck in the middle over a problem that isn’t their fault.

“I mean, you got like kids and other people that don’t have no say so in the money due that’s going to be out of water and everything. So, I don’t think that’s fair,” Wright said.

Charleston Water claims Sullivan’s Island changed how much they paid for water in 2017 and has accumulated unpaid volumetric and capital charges.

If Sullivan’s Island doesn’t pay all outstanding balances, the utility says the island will have to find an alternate water source.

The town of Sullivan’s Island disagrees on who should pay for certain expenses and refuses to pay.

Resident Curt Moore is hoping for the best.

“From what I understand there was a breach of contract there somehow. You can’t shut off Sullivan’s Island from water. And if there is a problem, I think there is a solution for it,” Moore said.

The town released a statement in which it claimed the Charleston Water System wants the town to ignore the terms of the signed agreement they entered into almost 30 years ago. The town says it is hard for them to accept what it called a “baseless claim” from Charleston Water that the town is being subsidized when Sullivan’s Island paid almost $2 million in 1994 to support the infrastructure and gifted Charleston Water an easement through public parks and playgrounds. That easement, the town claims, allowed Charleston Water to sell water to neighbors on the Isle of Palms and in Mount Pleasant.

Charleston Water plans to send out delinquent notices to state agencies and the town warning that the water will be shut off starting July 20, when the contract is up.

Copyright 2024 WCSC. All rights reserved.

SULLIVAN’S ISLAND, S.C. (WCBD) – The future of water service on Sullivan’s Island remains uncertain amid a contractual dispute between the town and Charleston Water System.

“The island has the ability to generate taxes and they need to figure it out because what they did in 2017 was, they just quit paying,” said Sullivan’s Island resident, Dave Spurgin.

A 30-year water supply contract between CWS and the Town of Sullivan’s Island went into effect on July 19, 1994.

Based on letters provided by CWS, there has been a disagreement over the rates since 2017. The water system claims the town owes them $1,078,000 as of last month.

“Years ago, Charleston Water System decided to raise our rates as if our signed contract did not exist. The town disputed that rate increase and has continued to pay the undisputed amount owed in accordance with our longstanding signed agreement,” said Sullivan’s Island Town Councilman Justin Novak on Monday night during a special council meeting.

The statement was part of a longer motion read aloud before council voted to pay $227,361 to satisfy the disputed portion of the amount owed. Island leaders said the amount was calculated by a nationally recognized rate consultant.

CWS CEO Mark Cline released the following statement to News 2 on Tuesday.

“Charleston Water System does not agree with the Town of Sullivan’s Island’s viewpoint or its recollection of the historical facts. We fully intend to discontinue the Town’s water service July 20 unless their past due amount is fully paid and they have entered into a new contract that appropriately covers the costs of providing water service to their community. It’s not fair that our other customers have been subsidizing the Town’s service for years now, and that would continue under their terms.”

Spurgin, who has lived on Sullivan’s Island for nearly 30 years, said he is not concerned about the potential water shut-off.

“No, because we’re going to need our water. They’re not going to shut the water off. The town’s going to have to figure out, the town council is going to have to figure out how to come up with the money,” Spurgin told News 2.

Sullivan’s Island Mayor Pat O’Neil released the following statement.

“Apparently CWS is having very-late-onset buyer’s remorse about a legally binding contract they willingly entered into almost 30 years ago. When we entered into this agreement in the aftermath of Hurricane Hugo, the Island was at one of its most vulnerable points in its centuries-long history. Nonetheless we have abided by the language of this contract. It’s hard to accept that CWS (or anyone else) is “subsidizing” SI when we paid almost $2 million (in 1994 dollars) to support the infrastructure that allowed them to sell water to us and to our neighbors on the Isle of Palms, and when in 2020 we gave them an easement through our public park and playground so there would be additional capacity to sell water to our neighbors in Mount Pleasant.”

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - From West Ashley to Sullivan’s Island, businesses spent the day recuperating after heavy rains and strong winds caused them to temporarily lock their doors.

Many of the exterior windows at Hay Tire Pros, off Savannah Highway, shattered, and a large part of their ceiling collapsed on the inside.

Vice President Bill Sekula said that they have always expected severe storms to come through with being in Charleston, but that they have never had this much damage before.

“I guess it was like a microburst or something to that effect, but apparently it was raining harder than usual and then the windows started to buckle and snapped over. These windows on the side just kind of came apart and came out of the building,” Sekula said.

Sekula said glass from the windows was even in the back part of their building which is almost 30 yards away. They had to close the business for the day and return all of their customers’ vehicles. He said the incident happened during hours of operation as employees notified him at around 8 a.m.

The next-door business, Etto Leisure Cars, a golf cart dealer, also saw significant damage. Will Harton, chief executive officer, said that part of their awning was ripped off and hit their power box causing them to lose power.

“I said ‘Oh my goodness.’ You know, you live in Charleston long enough, you know a storm is going to happen. Usually, it’s a hurricane. It’s not a microburst like this, but we will be fine and we will move on from here,” Harton said.

He added that he’s glad that all of his employees are safe and that the building and golf carts can be fixed.

First Alert Chief Meteorologist Bill Walsh said the damage could have been from a potential microburst or straight-line wind, but the National Weather Service has not yet confirmed that.

The Co-Op Frosé and Eatery on Sullivan’s Island had around two feet of water inside their restaurant. Their staff members spent the day using buckets to help get rid of the water. They said they have had flooding in the past, but never anything over a foot, so this is the worst they’ve seen.

“This morning, we lifted everything off the floor because we were expecting rain and heavy floods, but we didn’t know it was going to get this bad. So, as we were lifting things off the floor, it started coming in through the back door. Next thing you know there is water all over the place and we started getting buckets and mops and throwing water out. We’ve been throwing water out for the past three and a half hours,” employee Havannah Malan said.

She said that they have had to get their floors redone three times, and she expects the business will have to get them redone a fourth time after Saturday’s flood.

The businesses said they hope to repair the damages quickly, so they can return to normal operation as soon as possible.

Copyright 2024 WCSC. All rights reserved.

SULLIVAN’S ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - The mayor of Sullivan’s Island fired the latest salvo Wednesday afternoon in a battle over how much the town owes the Charleston Water System for service as it faces a July deadline.

Mayor Patrick O’Neal released the following statement Wednesday in response to the water utility’s blasting of a proposal that would have the town pay a fraction of what Charleston Water System says is the balance due:

Charleston Water System wants the town to ignore the terms of the signed agreement we entered into almost 30 years ago, after Hurricane Hugo devastated our independent deep water well system. We entered into that agreement at a significant cost to ensure that our residents would have certainty as to the source of our water for decades to come. It’s hard now to accept the baseless claim that CWS (or anyone else) is “subsidizing” Sullivan’s Island when we paid almost $2 million — in 1994 dollars — to support the infrastructure that allowed them to sell water to us and to our neighbors on the Isle of Palms, and when in 2020 we gifted them an easement through our public park and playground so there would be additional capacity to sell water to our neighbors in Mount Pleasant.

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The Charleston Water System on Tuesday responded to a motion passed during Monday night’s town council meeting that proposed the paying of $227,361 to “satisfy in full” the disputed debt. Charleston Water System CEO Mark Cline said the utility “does not agree” with the town’s viewpoint “or its recollection of historical facts.”

“We fully intend to discontinue the town’s water service July 20 unless their past due amount is fully paid and they have entered into a new contract that appropriately covers the costs of providing water service to their community,” Cline said. “It’s not fair that our other customers have been subsidizing the Town’s service for years now, and that would continue under their terms.”

The utility claims the town owes a total of more than $639,000. That figure includes $197,468 in billed but unpaid volumetric charges and $442,478 in bill but unpaid capital charges.

Copyright 2024 WCSC. All rights reserved.

SULLIVAN’S ISLAND, S.C. (WCBD) — The town of Sullivan’s Island could have its water supply cut off this summer, amid a dispute with the Charleston Water System.

According to a letter sent to the town from Charleston Water System (CWS) in October 2023, when Sullivan’s Island purchased 750,000 gallons per day of capacity from the Charleston Water System in 1994, it was a 30-year term which expires on July 19, 2024.

The water system tells Sullivan’s Island leaders that if there is not a new contract by then, service will be disconnected for the town’s 2,000 residents on July 20.

In addition, in the letter, the water system said the town has been paying $0.88 per thousand gallons of water since 2017, and calls that rate “arbitrary and unsupported by facts.”

Charleston Water System says the rate in 2017 was $0.96, and each year, there is a new projected rate for the town. For example, the rate last year was $1.53 per thousand gallons. At the end of the year, an adjusted rate was given which amounted to $1.11.

CWS also said in the letter to Sullivan’s Island that they are willing to provide water service to the town as long as it pays all outstanding amounts owed to the water system. As of February, that amount totaled $1.08 million.

In previous letters responding to Charleston Water System, Sullivan’s Island Mayor, Patrick O’Neil, said they have been paying the correct rate and that a memorandum of understanding on a rate formula was never approved.

“SI (Sullivan’s Island) has been paying the undisputed portion of the volumetric rate since 2017. SI does not owe capital charges unless SI purchases additional capacity which SI has not done.” a letter dated June 30 to CWS reads.

Sullivan’s Island leaders claim that the contract with the water system is clear that capital charges should not be charged on top of the initial capacity the town purchased in 1994. The town also adds that “because SI has not given written notice to CWS not to renew the contract, the contract will be automatically renewed for 15 years or until July 19, 2039, as set forth in the contract.”

In its October letter responding to the town, CWS CEO, Mark Cline, said CWS cannot agree to a rate formula that does not include capital charges or a perpetual term.

As of now, Sullivan’s Island and Charleston Water System are in legal remediation for the issue.

On Friday, Sullivan’s Island leaders released a statement to News 2:

“It’s disappointing that the leadership at Charleston Water System has apparently decided to ignore the confidentiality agreement put in place during the mediation of our long-standing dispute.

Years ago, CWS decided to raise our rates as if our signed contract with them did not exist.

As CWS knows, we’ve simply been continuing to pay the undisputed amount set in our long-standing, signed agreement.

We hope everyone will understand we’re standing firm on the principle that signed contracts are signed contracts. It’s the right thing to do for our citizens.

We will continue our good faith efforts to reach an appropriate agreement through mediation, or if need be, in the court.”

– Sullivan’s Island town leaders