Open space bond remains at issue

Finally, the voters said yes to conserving open space and park land in Dorchester County, on the fourth try in little more than a decade. The support was overwhelming. A bond might finally be issued to pay for it.

Might.

The referendum that passed Tuesday allows County Council to issue a bond to provide up to $5 million to buy land for water quality, forests, parks and wildlife habitat. But the council that will decide whether to do it includes three new members whose enthusiasm is tempered.

They join a revenue-strapped council already cutting service to avoid increasing taxes, uneasy about just what the money would pay for and unsure whether the revenue-strapped county can afford to keep a program going once it gets started.

A $5 million bond would be paid for with a property tax increase of $5 on a $150,000 home.

Despite approval by seven of every 10 voters, parks and land conservation might still go up in smoke -- just like earlier efforts. Dorchester County currently has 130,000 people but no real county-operated park, and only splotches of open land have been set aside by the county. Twice before, voters shot down referendums. A third try was diverted by council into a vote to build senior centers.

"Now the work begins of trying to persuade council that the public has spoken and overwhelmingly so," said Mike Dawson, a Dorchester County Open Space Committee member.

That might be a tough sell.

Incoming council member Jay Byars said that he would have rather streamlined government costs first, set out spending priorities, then gone to the voters with an overall referendum rather than "nickel and diming it."

"It's not about parks. It's about timing. We're sending a message that it's OK to spend money on this when there are real issues with roads and infrastructure. We don't have the funds to create a recurring expense. We have other issues that

are more pressing than a parks and recreation department," he said.

"There's no doubt that we're going to have to make some cuts or people are going to have to say, we're going to invest in our infrastructure," Byars said.

Incoming council member George Bailey ran a hard, no-new-taxes campaign.

"I think the people have already spoken; I have no problem with it. I just want to see the money is spent wisely," he said. But the referendum was poorly worded; it doesn't spell out where the money should be spent, he said. "I'm going to put the money where I think it needs to be put."

Among the new council members, David Chinnis is maybe the most supportive of the referendum, but mostly as a matter of giving residents a voice.

"From the very beginning, I publicly said I thought our councilmen were idiots for not giving residents a chance to vote on it," he said. But he only cautiously supports the bond. "We're going to have to determine that it doesn't become an albatross around our necks with future costs. I think we owe it to the voters to be cautious."

Committee member George McDaniel said models of how to create and manage open space programs are already in place in Charleston and Beaufort counties.

The referendum was a general interest question, not a blueprint, he said. The committee will now work to create a program for council approval.

"We realize the vote is not an end game," he said. "(A bond) doesn't mean you just suddenly create a recreation department. We will be learning from others how to minimize our recurring expenses. I think (conservation) will happen. Look at the support for this thing, in the current state of the economy, in the current tax climate. While hearing the voices of the opposition, voters spoke 70 percent in favor of it. That's what gives me optimism."

Reach Bo Petersen at 937-5744.