The next time healthcare executives experience a surge in employee turnover, they might consider consulting Donnie Pitts for a solution. Pitts is retiring this spring after 23 years as director of Isle of Palms Public Works. In all that time with him at the helm, the department has never had to fire or replace a single worker due to malcontent, job inefficiency, incompatibility or a career change.
“We’ve had some retirements and one death due to COVID,” said Pitts, whose last official day will be May 5. “But of all the accomplishments and the changes we’ve implemented in the last two decades, the near-zero turnover rate in our department is the thing I am most proud of.”
And that’s saying something, considering the increased scope of duties and expectations that residents and city leaders have come to expect from Pitts’ crews in the last decade.
For example, when Pitts started as director in 2003, he had many of the same duties he has now: picking up household trash and yard debris; maintaining a fleet of vehicles; managing stormwater runoff and maintaining all the city’s beaches, green spaces and rights of way. Pitts also oversees the staff, develops an annual budget and keeps up with the island’s commercial contracts.
Additionally, in times of routine island emergencies, such as hurricane weather, king tides and flooding, Pitts and his team are called on to clear inundated roads for safe and expedient passage, repair damaged storm drains and ensure that sewer systems are either working properly or fixed as soon as possible.
But the difference now, Pitts said, is the growth of these duties. In July 2025, his team of 11 picked up a monthly high of 360 tons of household garbage – 70 tons more than in 2023. That’s for a population of approximately 4,400 residents, with a good chance of this number increasing another 300 tons by 2035.
With visitors now numbering as many as 20,000 per day at the height of the summer season, it’s a daily race for Pitts and the team to meet the rising demand for their services and keep the island’s environment clean and healthy.
If this all sounds like too much to handle, Pitts said it’s just all in a day’s work because of the relationship and trust that team members have. “The management style of friendship with staff and also knowing the supervisor role as well is critical,” he said. “Treating all of the staff as adults and allowing them to successfully complete their assignments without micromanaging is a main reason for our employee longevity.”
When asked why he is leaving, Pitts simply said it’s time. “My career goal and plan was 25 years of service to retirement age,” he said. “And if there is one thing I would like to pass on to my successor, it’s that every situation, event, storm is different. And you must adjust to the real-time, unique circumstances that require different solutions to those issues.”
By L. C. Leach III
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