It was too close to call the first time and even closer the second time. In a special election to fill a vacant seat on the Isle of Palms City Council, Rusty Streetman gained his second term, taking 51.2 percent of the votes in a runoff against former councilwoman Susan Hill Smith.
“It feels good to be back,” said Streetman. “I won on the issues that I thought mattered to the residents, including the short-term rentals referendum from last year, which I stand firmly behind.”
Streetman’s re-election came one full year after losing to Elizabeth Campsen, who then unexpectedly resigned from council last August.
In the general election Nov. 5, with 68 percent voter turnout, neither Streetman nor Hill Smith polled a majority, thereby forcing a runoff on Nov. 19. The second race was practically neck-and-neck until the end, when Streetman finished with 650 votes to Hill Smith’s 620 out of 1,270 votes cast.
“We certainly appreciate all IOP citizens coming out for the runoff, especially since it came so soon after the main election,” said Matt Dillane, marketing and communications manager with the Charleston County Board of Voter Registration and Elections. “Voter turnout was 27.57 percent, just over one in four eligible voters, which is about what we expected. But even with the drop-off from the main election on Nov. 5, it was still a pretty good turnout for a runoff.”
Streetman, an IOP resident since 1984, will serve out the remainder of Campsen’s term, which ends in early 2028. He intends to pick up where he left off at the end of his first term: to represent all residents in an independent manner and to handle current and future issues tied to island progress, continuity and visitor attraction.
“During my first term, our council accomplished many things,” Streetman said. “But there’s still much to do.”
Going forward into 2025, Streetman specifically cited these island concerns for council members to address and/or complete:
- IOP’s comprehensive drainage plan to handle stormwater issues
- Cleaner beaches and waterways
- More effective enforcement of our livability issues
- Protecting “our right” to govern through Home Rule
“Our city council has been addressing these priorities for some time now and have accomplished major improvements with many of them,” Streetman said. “But there’s still work to be done to continue to improve our residential quality-of-life issues.”
At the height of the island tourist season, visitors often outnumber residents by a ratio of more than 4-1 and sometimes nearly 16-1 – with as many as 60,000 visitors during the July 4 weekend.
Over the past year, the city council has been looking into different ways to handle the growing influx of visitors, such as more efficient public parking, improved roadways and drainage, stronger police enforcement of beach rules and mainland busing to alleviate an overflow of personal vehicles on the island.
Streetman said while visitors are always welcome, too many can put a strain on resources if not properly managed.
“And we must also continue to improve access to our beautiful island through effective compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act to ensure everyone can enjoy our beaches and public accommodations,” Streetman said.
Council members at times have been divided over the best ways to handle specific island problems and concerns, such as the short-term rentals issue from 2022 and 2023; the ban of wildlife feeding from summer 2024 and the ongoing issue of a workable noise ordinance.
Streetman reiterated that with all the island’s current issues and others held over or pending for 2025 and beyond, effective collaboration among council members and between members and IOP residents is still as crucial now as when he last served on council.
“And now with the main election and runoff over, I want to continue to work on the things I was doing when I left,” Streetman added. “To this end, I pledge to promote and improve civility and teamwork and more involvement collaboratively with all residents of the island, including regular community meetings. Our residents are an unlimited source of great ideas and we need to encourage more feedback and input from them. Through this approach, I think we can make IOP an even better place for residents and visitors alike.”
By L. C. Leach III
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