DANIEL ISLAND, S.C.–According to Berkeley Co. Councilman Tim Callanan, Daniel Island residents voted to end their annexation efforts from Berkeley Co. Tuesday night. Callanan, who represents Daniel Island, says the decision was almost unanimous.
“I absolutely think it was the smart thing to do,” said Callanan who opposed annexation from the very beginning. “I didn’t think we needed to take this drastic step.”
Many residents of Daniel Island started a petition last year to break away from Berkeley County and join Charleston County, stating that they felt like the county had neglected them. Homeowners spearheading the secession say the final straw came when the school district planned to build a new middle school in the Cainhoy area. They say they were reportedly told the school would be built on Daniel Island if they voted “yes” on the “Yes 4 Schools” referendum. Many Daniel Island homeowners said they felt duped.
“Those motivated by the annexation included a group of people who were fed up with the school situation. The other group wasn’t motivated by the school but by lower taxes by joining Charleston County,” stated Callanan. “There are legitimate issues and concerns that not only Daniel Island has but that entire Clements Ferry Road corridor.”
After the school district eventually decided in October to keep Daniel Island School as is, Callanan said this deflated the interest of most Daniel Island homeowners from wanting to see if the grass was truly greener on the other side in Charleston County.
“Larry Grooms has pretty much set this up to fail from the beginning by influencing opinions and commission structure,” said Dave Williams, the president of Daniel Island’s neighborhood association. “We are dealing with very old laws, a commission made up of only one resident in favor of the move, and possibly years of lawsuits. It just isn’t worth it at this point.”
Williams said that initially Charleston Co. seemed excited to have Daniel Island; however, he says they did a poor job of coming to residents with information about the switch.
“Personally, I feel it is unfortunate that politics has played such a huge role in this campaign and that antiquated laws seem to be winning out over common sense solutions,” stated Williams.
If anything, Callanan says the petition was “victorious” in letting county leaders know that Daniel Island homeowners often feel hugely ignored despite paying taxes like the rest of county residents.
DINA’s president added that Daniel Island would have saved significant tax dollars by joining Charleston County.
“I hope town officials and administrators will now continue to invest both time and energy listening to the residents of Daniel Island, and making our community feel like we are getting equal representation for the tax dollars we are spending,” stated Williams
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