Council approves Kiawah mediation settlement, eliminates Cape Point Road extension and sets parking plan for Cape Club

The Town Council voted to approve a mediation settlement that resolves long-running development disputes related to the Cape Club on Kiawah Island, abandons the proposed Cape Point Road extension and establishes a 75-space parking plan intended to limit neighborhood traffic and protect maritime forest buffers.

Council member Kaye moved to approve the mediation settlement agreement and Council member Luke seconded; the motion passed and the council directed staff to file a consent order with the Charleston County Clerk of Court to make the settlement public. The mayor stated he would abstain from the vote consistent with a prior recusal.

The agreement deletes the proposed Cape Point Road extension and calls for maintaining—and in places increasing—vegetative buffering to avoid further impacts to the maritime forest. Council member Boerner said the extension will be abandoned and the area will be maintained with “very, very robust buffering” to reduce visual and environmental impacts.

Under the compromise, 75 parking spaces will be provided for the Cape Club, split across multiple locations. Boerner described the allocation as including 8 spaces accessed via Duneside (four handicap spaces and four for cottages), 59 accessed off Beach Walker (the Ocean Pines site) and 16 overflow spaces at an Upper Beachwalker parcel (Parcel 9). He said the 16 overflow spots may be relocated within a future planned development for Upper Beachwalker but will not be double-counted against the 75-space total.

Boerner also described site-plan changes that reduce density: two buildings will be removed at the Ocean Pines site; the “penthouse” upper dwelling unit on Parcel 11 (Upper Beachwalker) will be removed; and one of four planned buildings on the church parcel will be removed. A council summary of the agreement noted previously contemplated units (56 on Parcel 11 and 16 on the church parcel, 72 total) will be reduced to 48 and 12 respectively, a net reduction to 60 units.

Boerner said all outstanding lawsuits between the parties will be dismissed with prejudice as part of the settlement, preventing the same claims from being relitigated. The council asked that formal drawings accompany any public release of the settlement so the public can see how the verbiage maps to the plans; council members scheduled a follow-up meeting with the project partners to refine drawings.

The mayor said the town would be prepared to issue a temporary certificate of occupancy for operation of the Cape Club once the applicants submit a temporary parking plan for the 30 spaces originally envisioned in the site plan. The town also indicated it will make the settlement agreement a public document once the consent order is filed with the court.

Public commenters thanked the council for preventing the Cape Point Road extension and expressed concerns about beach appearance over time. One commenter raised unrelated concerns about the town’s investment vehicle and audit cadence; council members responded with an explanation of the municipal investment vehicle as a short-duration cash-like fund invested in U.S. treasuries and agency discount notes.

The council adjourned after closing public comments and confirming follow-up steps, including further drawing reviews with the partners and filing the consent order that implements the settlement.