James Island officials outline deferred ditch maintenance, coordinate with county and DOT

James Island officials on Wednesday described a series of deferred ditch-cleaning and outfall repairs the town plans to start immediately and asked residents to help identify problem locations while the town, Charleston County and the South Carolina Department of Transportation coordinate work.

“James Island is, a multi jurisdictional island. It's a challenge,” Mayor Bridal Lyon said, describing why some drainage fixes require cooperation among the town, county and state. Town and county staff and state DOT maintenance engineers were present to talk through which agency would handle specific sections and what residents should expect as crews begin work.

Town drainage coordinator Melissa Flick said crews and an approved private contractor will begin excavation and hand-cleaning on several short, deferred-maintenance sites rather than large capital projects. “These are some deferred maintenance items that we need to get, taken care of,” Flick said. She listed initial sites as a section of Bradford between Shandon and Wilton, Kentwood (to finish both sides where prior volunteer work began), Dill Avenue (outfall/ditch toward the camp), Chandler and Trinholm/Trendhome. Flick said the town has asked the contractor to have utilities marked before excavation and that residents in affected streets should expect door-hanger notices and hand excavation to locate shallow utilities before heavy equipment arrives.

Officials emphasized dependencies on Charleston County and SCDOT for work under roadways. Flick and other staff said the town can clear roadside ditches and hire contractors to do yard- and ditch-side excavation, but under-road cross pipes on Folly Road, Holly Road and other state-owned roads require DOT traffic control and equipment. “We need their help and get it to flow under the road where there's enough room to hold it to the retention ponds,” Flick said, noting the town had submitted requests to DOT and continued to follow up.

Several residents described persistent standing water and blocked pipes at specific addresses and outfalls. One resident asked about a long-standing blocked pipe where “the water sat there for 2 months,” and staff said the contractor would inspect the pipe after hand-cleaning and could push rods or take other measures to clear blockages. Staff and a contractor named Josh Evans were specifically referenced by residents as the person expected to inspect and begin work on some sites.

Town staff asked residents not to put yard debris into roadside ditches. “If you see your neighbors or, you're ever visiting someone in another neighborhood and witness the ditches getting filled in with your yard debris, please ask them not to do that, because all of that clogs up the pipe very quickly,” Flick said.

What the town will do next: staff said they are issuing door-hanger notifications in each affected block, marking utility locations and beginning hand excavation to find and protect shallow utility lines before mechanized ditch excavation. The town will clear vegetation and remove trees, trash and accumulated dirt and then inspect cross pipes; where cross pipes run under state roads, the town will continue coordinating with DOT on traffic control and equipment.

Officials said they will continue biweekly site walks and meetings with county and town representatives; residents were given contact information and encouraged to submit a drainage input form or call town hall between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to report unresolved problems.

Residents raised site-specific concerns about outfalls near Bishop Gadsden, the ditch running to Sierra Drive, and an outflow behind a local church; staff said those addresses are in the town's work list and will be revisited for updated status. One resident also noted recent new construction near Stone Post Road and expressed concern filling and grading there could affect downstream ditches; staff said they would check the established project areas and coordinate with the responsible jurisdictions.

No formal votes or ordinance actions were reported at the meeting. The session functioned as a public coordination forum: staff described approved contractor work, identified dependencies on county and state agencies, collected resident reports, and scheduled follow-up inspections and notifications.

The town asked residents to watch for door-hanger notices and to contact Melissa Flick at town hall for status or to report additional locations.