Planning commission defers Parkers Ferry overlay change to allow vehicle storage

The Charleston County Planning Commission voted to defer consideration of a proposed text amendment that would add vehicle storage as an allowed use in the Parkers Ferry Community Overlay, requiring applicants to pursue approval through the county’s special-exception process.

The item would add “vehicle storage” to Table 5.12.0.5 of the Parkers Ferry Community Overlay use table for business service nodes and commercial properties, with staff recommending the use be allowed only when approved as a special exception and restricted to properties with frontage on Highway 17 (Savannah Highway). Staff said six written comments in opposition and no written comments in support were received during the public notice period.

Marshae Miller, a staff presenter on the item, told the commission the change would add the proposed use to the overlay’s use table and that the special-exception approval criteria would apply. Miller said the Parkers Ferry overlay was adopted in 2017 after a community planning process that emphasized low residential density and limited commercial scale; the overlay already allows some more intensive uses in its business service node and commercial areas but requires special exceptions for higher-intensity operations. Miller said staff recommended approval of the text amendment if it is subject to the special-exception procedures and the additional condition limiting the use to parcels fronting Highway 17.

Applicant Christopher Leneve said he owns the parcel and businesses near Highway 17 and proposed a gated, well-lit RV and boat storage facility on about 1 acre to serve both longstanding residents and new subdivisions nearby. “I propose building on my 1 acre an RV and boat storage, well lit, well secure, gated with a code,” Leneve said, adding his lot would provide about 25 spaces and that he had reduced use of the rear area to provide a plant buffer.

Several residents and community leaders urged postponement until the applicant met with neighborhood groups. John Cobb, a resident who identified his address and said he and neighbors had not seen specific plans, urged caution over “unintended consequences,” including expansion of the use and noise, erosion of roads, and early-morning heavy-equipment activity. Willie Johnson, a Will Town Community Center board member, said the community had not been fully briefed and expressed concerns about concentration of large vehicles on a one-acre site: “I mean, I can’t put but one house on an acre. Yet you can park 15 or 20 or 30 vehicles, heavy equipment — to me that is not fair,” he said.

Commissioners asked clarifying questions about buffers and permitted items. Joel Evans, director of zoning and planning, said a 25-foot landscape buffer is the typical starting point for commercial uses adjacent to noncommercial properties, and that the overlay’s use table language is specific to recreational vehicles, boats on trailers, and similar storage — not heavy industrial equipment. Andrew Miller (staff) clarified that the applicant’s original request did not include the Highway 17 limitation; that condition was a staff suggestion to restrict the use to major corridors and prevent the use from spreading deeper into residential areas.

After public comment, a commissioner moved to defer the application so the applicant could meet with the local community organization (the applicant agreed to attend a meeting at the Will Town Community Center on Monday, March 24 at 7 p.m.). The motion to defer passed by roll call (Commissioners Logan Davis, Gary Lesane, Chair Cindy Floyd, Warwick Jones, David Kent, Adam McConnell, Luke Morris, Vice Chair Pete Pilatos and Commissioner Susan Cox all voted aye). Staff told the applicant to notify staff after the community meeting and the county will schedule the item for a future planning commission meeting once notification requirements are met.

If the text amendment is returned to the planning commission, staff said it would remain a multi-step approval: (1) the text amendment to the overlay to allow vehicle storage as a listed special-exception use, (2) the parcel must be in the overlay commercial or business node and front Highway 17, and (3) a successful special-exception application to the Board of Zoning Appeals would still be required before operations could begin.

Ending: The commission deferred the proposal to give the applicant time to meet with the community and return with details; staff emphasized that the Highway 17 frontage restriction and the special-exception process are separate filters that would limit where vehicle-storage facilities could be sited if the amendment is ultimately approved.