Town staff outline stormwater manual amendments, propose fee‑in‑lieu and expanded inspections

Town staff presented a package of amendments to the Southern Lowcountry Stormwater Design Manual and related post‑construction ordinance changes intended to clarify implementation, broaden enforcement and incentivize on‑site conservation.

Andrea Moreno, the town’s MS4 coordinator, told the commission the changes would align the town with Beaufort County and with updated state guidance and would add specific mechanisms that have been missing from the regional manual. "We are proposing amendments to our Southern Low Countries stormwater design manual and post construction ordinance," she said, and described edits to the 10% watershed analysis, design specifications for bioretention, and the introduction of a fee‑in‑lieu option.

Why it matters: the amendments would change how developers demonstrate they have met the town’s stormwater retention requirements, widen the post‑construction inspection program to pre‑2015 developments, create credits for conserved 'natural' areas in the compliance calculator and establish a unit cost and fund to pay for offsite retention projects via fee‑in‑lieu.

Key elements - 10% watershed analysis: staff proposed clarifying the analysis so applicants are not required to detain a one‑hundred‑year storm if that detention would harm the overall watershed; the change allows engineering analysis to justify alternate approaches. - Bioretention/high water table: staff recommended removing the seasonal high‑water table as an absolute limiting factor for certain BMPs, to expand feasible use of infiltration practices on local, poor‑soil sites with design safeguards. - Fee in lieu: the manual would add a fee‑in‑lieu mechanism (unit cost tied to retention volume) so developers who cannot meet retention on site pay into a local stormwater fund used to build BMPs in the same watershed; the unit cost would be set in the master fee schedule and updated yearly. - Post‑construction inspections: staff proposed formally incorporating older, pre‑MS4 (pre‑2015) developments into the inspection program so communities like Hampton Lake and others must submit inspection reports on a multiyear cycle (staff described a three‑year reporting cycle tied to the MS4 permit rhythm, while still recommending annual overviews).

Commissioner concerns and next steps During Q&A commissioners asked about inspection cadence (annual vs. a three‑year cycle), whether certification should require third‑party inspectors rather than self‑certification, and what the fee scale might look like. One commissioner warned against self‑certification: "if we're letting the fox inspect the hen house, we're going to end up with stormwater issues," and staff responded that they would pursue language and enforcement mechanisms for certification and explore third‑party options.

Andrea Moreno said the town's consultants, including the Center for Watershed Protection (the manual's original author), participated in drafting the edits and that the package will go next to the Watershed Action Plan Advisory Committee and then to council for adoption by resolution, with a target implementation date of March 1 following council action and a FY26 fee schedule update.

Quotes "I'm Andrea Moreno. I'm the MS4 for you. I'm driving that," Andrea Moreno said when presenting the amendments. "This fee in lieu... it's not meant to be a pay‑and‑go — it will be used for stormwater projects in the same watershed," she added.