Port Royal halts new housing developments

by Steven Glover

PORT ROYAL, Sc. (WTOC) -Port Royal is pausing new apartment projects while considering a first-of-its-kind fee for frequent emergency callers.

City council members voted Wednesday night to approve a six-month moratorium on any new large-scale, multi-family housing development applications.

Mayor Kevin Phillips says the temporary pause is necessary to protect the community’s character as South Carolina faces rapid development.

“We recognize the fact that we are living in the fastest-growing state in America, and we’re living in the fastest-growing region in that state,” Phillips said. “There are things about this region in the area that we really cherish and want to protect and preserve. Some of that is the aesthetics of it, the culture of it, the history of it.”

Phillips says the six-month pause will give the planning commission time to gather public input and update its comprehensive plan for Port Royal’s future development.

“We look forward to what they bring to us, what idea they have, what edits they think we should make, what new amendments we should adopt,” Phillips said.

The moratorium does not halt current construction projects already underway, but it stops any new multi-family applications from being submitted for the next six months.

Aside from the housing pause, city leaders also heard the first reading of a proposed “heavy user fee.”

The city-wide fee would charge certain properties extra if they generate an excessive number of emergency calls, aiming to offset costs and protect response times.

“We have a responsibility to every citizen in the town of Port Royal,” Phillips said. “It doesn’t matter if they live in a single-family home... when they call 911, when they need help, we need to be able to provide those services in a timely manner.”

City leaders say the exact cost of the heavy user fee would depend on the type of emergency call. The fee proposal is not yet final and must pass a second reading before taking effect.