Storage units in legal box

Charleston has joined Mount Pleasant, Charleston County and other local governments in limiting how long a room-sized portable storage container can sit on a property.

The containers, commonly rented under brand names including PODS and UNITS, have become popular for moving and long-term storage but also are used during home renovation projects. Some Charleston residents had been complaining about neighbors with storage units sitting on their driveways for months.

"Neighbors try to be accommodating about these things but are being abused," Richard Phillips of Chelwood Circle told members of City Council at a recent meeting.

The city's new regulations set a 30-day limit, which can be extended with the city's permission "if there is substantial evidence of need."

Phillips said he can't understand why people don't just fill up the storage units and then have them trucked back to the storage unit facility, which is how the units are designed to be used.

"To ensure the integrity of our neighborhoods, we truly need an ordinance that is strong," Sandy Siegling of the Northbridge Terrace Neighborhood Council said.

Several representatives of portable storage device companies had urged council members to be flexible with the regulations.

Barbara Hensley, business manager for Charleston Portable Storage, raised concerns about provisions of the ordinance that limit storage units to 16 feet in length and allow only one at a time on a property.

Several council members also sought, and received, assurances from city Zoning Administrator Lee Batchelder that the city would be flexible with time limits in unusual situations. Councilman Larry Shirley cited last year's flooding of the Bridge Pointe townhomes as an example of a situation in which people might need storage containers on-site for months.

The council passed and ratified the new rules, which apply in all parts of the city except those zoned for business parks or industrial use.