Bluffton needs a building moratorium to keep river clean | Letters
Remember the old adage about history repeating itself? The Island Packet just published a warning flare about the May River.
There was a 15% to 16% increase in May River bacterial contamination from 1999 to 2017. The article says it may be due to weather factors and Bluffton’s “building and population boom.”
Nobody has figured a way to change the weather, so that leaves the building and population boom. What can be done?
1) As for water runoff from commercial developments, to me it’s obvious the imperical numbers don’t work. The big-box stores flood the parking lot with merchandise and I still can find a parking place. Therefore, the building “square-footage” formula for required parking spaces is not working. Also, the impervious parking should be revisited.
2) Mandate no clear-cutting for developers, and larger setbacks to preserve the trees.
3) Enact a moratorium on issuing building permits.
I can hear it now: “You can’t do that!” Well, back in the late 1970s it was done on Hilton Head Island until the traffic and roads were planned for.
A scientist warns that Bluffton and Beaufort County have been trying to solve the issue of poor water quality in nearby watersheds, but the problem is getting worse. I don’t know the answer but when building is the cause, stop it until a solution is found.
I think not issuing building permits will get enough attention that a solution will come more quickly.
Frank Barbieri
Bluffton
Hilton Head Mayor John McCann doing a good job
Sometimes I think The Island Packet has morphed into The New York Times. You know – whiney tone and agenda-driven headlines. The latest example: Sunday’s story on Hilton Head Island Mayor John McCann’s expense reimbursements.
It’s not until half through the article you realize the Packet is talking about costs spread across two fiscal years. In the former when his reimbursements hit the budget cap, McCann ceased to submit any. And, for the trip to Verona, Italy – to fulfill an obligation the prior mayor never got to – McCann received Town Council approval.
In the new fiscal year, as an outgrowth of the Verona partnership and at the request of the Italian president to attend a White House reception, McCann asked the town to cover airfare to Washington, paying lodging, etc., himself.
How about a more evenhanded approach? For example, the same facts would support stories like:
▪ “Leadership Style of Mayor McCann Emphasizes Collegiality, Forming Partnership with Key Groups.”
▪ “Morale of Town of Hilton Head Island Staffers Rebounds With Hands-On Leadership by New Mayor.”
Frank Mangan
Hilton Head Island
Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch was not fired and did not deserve to be maligned by Trump
Contrary to a recent letter, former ambassador Marie Yovanovitch was not fired!
Marie Yovanovitch is a career Foreign Service officer who was transferred back to the State Department and offered a prestigious job as professor at Georgetown University. Her salary remains the same, minus the extra percentage she was given for serving in a “hardship” post. If she were a political appointee, this would have been an “immediate termination.”
Marie Yovanovitch has a brilliant career. She certainly did not deserve to be publicly maligned by the president, and she exhibited her courage and intelligence by her recent testimony.
Rosemary Kimball
Hilton Head Island
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This story was originally published November 20, 2019 at 10:01 AM with the headline "Bluffton needs a building moratorium to keep river clean | Letters."