'Uptick' in Building Permits, Business Licenses

It was a bit of news that was too good not to hedge in the current economic environment. 

"This uptick that we're seeing now may stop as soon as it started," Mayor Bill Collins said. 

Town Finance Director Belinda Harper reported to during its regular Finance Committee meeting Monday that the town was well ahead of projected revenue for the year, thanks in part to business licenses and building permits.

The good news is the town is at 94 percent of its projected revenue for the year, Harper said.

At a little more than 80 percent through the year, the town has collected 110 percent of projected revenue for business licenses and 138 percent of projected revenue for building permits. 

Another bright spot was the local option sales tax the town collects from Charleston and Berkeley counties, Harper said. The numbers are twice what the town projected for this year's budget, which runs on a calendar year and not on a fiscal year. 

Gahagan gate fees have also doubled, unexpectedly. 

One of the only dull spots on the bright picture is court fines, which are "lagging," according to Harper. That may be due to people doing the time instead of paying the fine, she speculated. 

And with increased revenue, there's also keeping on budget. All departments within the town are currently operating under their projected budgets for the year, Harper said.

"It's the culture here," Harper said. "The department heads take pride in budget and coming in under budget."

During the committee meeting, Councilman Aaron Brown said he'd like to create even more accountability among departments. For example, having departments set forth clear goals for their budgets. 

"We should spend the people's money like we're running a business. It is a business," Brown said. "We should have more expectations for the departments."

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