The following is a statement submitted by homeowner John Albrecht in response to concerns about a proposed dock potentially impacting the surrounding neighborhoods of Shem Creek. As promised yesterday, I am sending you this response to your article from August 18, 2024, regarding my dock application. My points will be brief and succinct as I am extremely busy, like many of us these days.
1. Neither you nor your staff attempted to contact me for details on this article. If you had, your article would not have been published.
It is riddled with false, inaccurate statements and mischaracterizations. 2. Personally, my background is environmental engineering.
As a formerly SC-licensed Professional Engineer practicing in environmental sciences, I understand the concerns of some residents. I pick up dog poop on my yard and dispose of it properly. I walk Sullivans Island collecting waste from the beach on morning walks.
These things are vitally important to me. When we kayak on Shem, we routinely remove debris and dispose of it. 3.
We understand responsible development from an environmental perspective. I have spent the last 11 years renovating homes in Old Mt. Pleasant.
We preserved the character of the ranch homes but revitalized and updated them. 4. My family has been here in Charleston since the 1800’s, and I believe we are on our sixth or seventh generation now with grandchildren.
I grew up and have spent my life in East Cooper, and my kids live within a mile or two of us. 5. We moved to this side of town to build our dream home in 2019.
The two lots here are both deeded out to Shem Creek and comprise multiple acres from a deed dating back to the 1950’s or 1960’s. They are both on deep water and we have received numerous offers to sell. We appreciate the green space, and are saving the other lot for future use, if needed as we get older.
6. The fact that the project was never publicized is another false statement. The original application was submitted to Department of Environmental Services (DES) in January 2024.
The Adjacent Property Owners were not notified until August 2024, which is completely out of our control. It is puzzling why this took so long. The permit was placed on public notice long before that, the date we are not sure about, but most likely in January.
This application falls within every single guideline currently in the regulations. If you don’t like the regulations, why don’t you put your efforts advocating for change in those guidelines? 7. To think Shem Creek, a beautiful creek, is a pristine waterway is simply false.
It is pretty to look at and I’m blessed to enjoy every morning here, but it is highly polluted, and I’m sure it ranks as one of the most polluted creeks in the state. Personally, we don’t let our dogs swim in this creek. 8.
It does not surprise me that a 34-year “anonymous” resident commented that we bought our lots “not priced ‘creek front’”. They were marketed as “deep-water” when we initially walked the property. I can attest this property was purchased for fair market value from people we knew personally.
This was a good deal for them, and a good deal for us. That is a process known as Capitalism. 9.
For this person to further comment we would be “sharing this with ourselves” doesn’t know my family and doesn’t know how we roll. We have owned and enjoyed a dock at deep water property in Longpoint. We shared it will all our friends, and neighbors were always welcome.
That, Mr. Mancini, is what locals do here. 10.
If only you had called, you may know my wife is a private person and wanted nothing to do with this application, which was insinuated by your “anonymous” source. You have personally assaulted her with your publication. You do not know that she quietly does amazing things with charities all over Mt.
Pleasant, not only monetarily. She has spent hours each week volunteering on Sundays playing tennis with disabled kids and young adults. 11.
Finally, it is disheartening that we see the media publish things, and they do not seek the truth. In this case, both sides of the story were not investigated. Long before your article published and all the vitriol, we decided to forego the pursuit of a permit for this long dock based upon the fact the cons outweigh the pros.
As I tell my kids many times, “So there you have it”, so why doesn’t everyone just calm down? Sincerely, John Albrecht Editor's Note: The editor doesn't entirely concur with this statement. The focus of the article wasn't to disparage or "assault," but rather to communicate concerns. In the interest of transparency, this paper has agreed to share the homeowner's comments.
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