Two years ago today, the first edition of The Johns Island Advocate went out to 750 subscribers. That has now grown to over 2,800 subscribers. Thank you for subscribing!
The Johns Island Advocate came into existence to keep residents informed. As its name implies, it also takes advocacy positions for smart growth on Johns Island and to maintain the rural character of the Island outside the Urban Growth Boundary. You can find out more about The Johns Island Advocate in the sidebar at the end of this newsletter.
As stated on our website, "The future of Johns Island depends upon an informed citizenry". In the past, one often heard "I didn't know about that meeting". For readers of The Johns Island Advocate, that is no longer the case.
Whether you are a binya or cumya, thank you for engaging in the future of Johns Island. You emailed and called councilmembers. You attended and spoke up at Council, Planning Commission, and Board of Zoning Appeals meetings. You attended community meetings. You responded to surveys. You voted.
As the saying goes, you win some and you lose some, but thanks to your involvement, our winning percentage has improved these last two years. Johns Island is a force to be reckoned with and that is all thanks to you.
Going forward, what can you do to help Johns Island?
Continue reading The Johns Island Advocate. Encourage your friends and neighbors to subscribe to the newsletter. When an action alert comes out, reach out to your Councilmember and attend meetings. If you hear of something that will impact Johns Island, contact us. Attend community meetings such as the ones for the Johns Island Council. And vote.
There will continue to be proposed developments that need to be addressed. These include the good developments that improve our community and deserve our support as well as the bad developments that deteriorate our community and deserve our opposition.
Beyond individual developments, we cannot lose sight of the strategic issues that will present themselves in the next year or two. These include:
- The 2024 half-cent sales tax referendum, which will include $1.8B for the Mark Clark Extension (aka 526).
- The rewrite of the City's zoning ordinances, which is expected to include restrictions on construction in low-lying areas and higher housing densities on high land.
- Changes to the County's zoning ordinances to reflect changes to their comprehensive plan. This plan is currently going through the Council approval process.
Again, thank you for reading The Johns Island Advocate. We look forward to another engaging year with you.
John Zlogar
Publisher, The Johns Island Advocate
Background on The Johns Island Advocate
- It is a Johns Island-based, grassroots, all volunteer endeavor. It is not affiliated with any other organization.
- It is entirely self-funded, to the tune of about $1,000 per year for the newsletter and website. To maintain its independence, outside funds are not accepted.
- It does not endorse political candidates, but it does keep readers informed on how Councilmembers vote.
- 71% of the subscribers are from Johns or Wadmalaw Islands. 25% are from Kiawah or Seabrook Islands. The remainder are primarily from other areas of Charleston County.
- The newsletter and website are published using the applications Mailchimp and GoDaddy.
|
|
