Endorsements

Mike Sottile, Former IOP Mayor and Former State House Representative

“Phillip Pounds has the ability to deal with various problems faced by the City working with Council members to establish consensus. Phillip Pounds has established good rapport with local and state leadership and is an effective communicator with both the public and the media. Phillip Pound's leadership at this juncture in City of Isle of Palms is what residents need to solve problems facing our community. He is passionate about serving the community and has a solid understanding of the City's structure, laws, and procedures. Phillip Pounds works tirelessly with members of council and has the ability to include ideas from the residents to blend policies and strategies for a positive future. Phillip Pounds is the Mayor we need for the City of Isle of Palms. His tireless energy, professionalism, and strategic thinking abilities will serve the city well.”

Dick Cronin, Former IOP Mayor (2009 – 2017)

“Please vote for Philip Pounds. IOP voters who care about Public Safety and preserving our ever changing beaches have a clear champion as candidate. With first hand experience I know that City leadership requires listening to those represented and working closely with those off the Island who influence our daily lives. Over the past 4 years Philip has demonstrated he is all in , focused on improving our unique island.”

Jimmy Carroll, Former IOP Mayor (2018-2021)

“Over the last 14 years, I find myself saying that the upcoming election is the most important, and again, this fall’s election will truly define the future of our island. We are at a precipice of either having someone who is willing to fight for the lifestyle we all enjoy or having new leaders who do not think like islanders. They want a private resort like atmosphere, that is not who we are. Heck, just recently, they fought like mad to hire a town manager of a small resort island to replace our city administrator, when we had someone who has worked for the island for 28 years. He knows our island like the back of his hand, he knows the drills with storms, flooding, and the challenges of day visitors. The candidate they proposed was from an island that was private, that has no police force, or great recreation center like ours, or a budget anywhere near ours, it was such a simple decision but they made a fight out of it, publicly humiliated our acting administrator, is this the type of mayor we want? I had a nice breakfast with Phillip to make sure that we were on the same page. He truly understands the diverse makeup of our island, how we, the year round residents are subsidized by tourism. And please, do not listen to several council members who use statistics to sway how the percentages of year round home owners, second home owners and vacation rentals are. You have to take out the built to rent condominiums out of the equation. We have to look at just the single family home statistics. Because of the ever increasing price of raw land or tear down homes, and then the cost to build, the return on investment is not there. So we are slowly seeing the number of single family owner occupied homes increasing, we are seeing second home ownership increasing, and we are seeing the number of single family rentals decreasing. Please remember, as owner occupied homes, we pay on a 4% assessment. Both second homes and rentals pay on a 6% assessment, it seems like they pay 50% more but in actuality, they pay 300% more because they pay for the Charleston County School bonds. 6% assessed properties keep our taxes at the lowest mileage rate around, while having the best city services around. In essence, they are the goose that lays the golden egg for the residents. I talked with Phillip about the unbridled growth across the the tri-counties and the burden of traffic, congestion, trash and yes, even violence due to our having the best beach serving Charleston. He promised to fight for and protect our 2015 parking plan, one that keeps day visitor cars out of the interior of the island, where 95% of us live. We should be thankful he is willing to serve another term, there will be no new learning curve and he is someone who is independent, does not have outside influences directing him, he knows who his bosses are, us, the residents of the island. It’s a hard, thankless job, yet, he is willing to serve again. Because of his promises to me and to you, let’s re-elect Phillip Pounds.”

“As long time residents of Isle of Palms and parents of young children in this thriving island community, we are proud to offer our full support for Mayor Phillip Pounds as he seeks a second term in office. Over the past 4 years, Mayor Pounds has proven himself to be a dedicated, pragmatic and transparent leader, not because he speaks the loudest, but because he listens first, considers all voices, and then acts with purpose and integrity.

We have watched Mayor Pounds take the time to meet and engage with our unique demographic of homeowners and residents, valuing every voice and ensuring that all perspectives are part of the conversation. He has hosted meetups at The Refuge, round table discussions at the rec center, and he and Laurie can be seen at countless local and family island events. To put it simply, Mayor Pounds makes himself accessible. He is not only a leader for the community, but he and Laurie are truly part of the community.

Isle of Palms has been lucky to have him at the helm, and we believe his vision for maintaining environmental and economic stability, coupled with his commitment to resident quality of life are exactly what we need to protect this special island we call home.”

— Nancy and Pete Lempesis, IOP Residents

“To the Isle of Palms Residents:

Over the past several years, I’ve had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to work closely with your Mayor, Phillip Pounds.

We’ve collaborated on issues that are important to the island, and this has enabled me to take those specific concerns and issues to the statehouse when we’re in session.

I count on the communication and feedback coming to me from Mayor Pounds and his Team to be invaluable as I work for you as your SC HR 112 Representative.

I’ve found Mayor Pounds to be a very competent leader, and he works hard, along with the City Council, to address the high priorities that the island faces every day.

Among those issues are… Drainage, Safety, Traffic, Beach Nourishment, Livability, and he is facing them effectively with the Council, City Administration, and his Statewide Representatives.

I am confident Phillip Pounds is the right choice for another 4 years as Mayor of the Isle of Palms, and I look forward to continue working with him and his Team during his next term.”

— Joe Bustos, SC House of Representatives

“It has been a pleasure to work alongside Mayor Pounds for the mutual benefit of our neighboring communities. He has continued and enhanced the tradition of cooperation we have enjoyed for years. Phillip led the organization of our regional beach traffic group including local and county governments and agencies to better manage the impacts of the growing numbers of beach visitors. He is certainly an effective voice for his city in local and statewide groups.”

— Pat O’Neil, Sullivans Island Mayor

“On November 2, 2021 the City was blessed to have Mayor Pounds elected although no one truly knew what the future would hold. What his actions have shown over the last four years is a leader guided by kindness, patience, genuine willingness to listen and unbiased consideration of viewpoints from all stakeholders.

His leadership is not one of division or extreme agendas. Instead, he remains grounded in moderation, striving for thoughtful solutions. While no one issue will rarely receive unanimous agreement, Mayor Pounds has proven that he listens before making decisions.

He offers multiple opportunities for community involvement from his open office hours multiple times per week, City Council meetings, City workshops, Mayor Coffees, Community Task Forces, Listening Sessions or anytime you want to just ask him a question, he does so with an open ear.

He is honest, has the utmost integrity and leads with inclusivity to all community members and among Council. He alongside his wife Laurie are the ideal representatives for what IOP means to us – kindness, harmony and gratitude. I am thankful for Mayor Pounds to be running for re-election and wholeheartedly would encourage everyone to vote on November 4th to re-elect Mayor Pounds.”

— Hugh and Krista Swingle, IOP Residents

“My wife and I have been residents of the Isle of Palms for over 50 years. As such we have seen many Mayors come and go. We particularly like our current Mayor, Phillip Pounds because he is fair, a good listener and goes out of his way to be sure both sides have been heard. He has exhibited good leadership qualities during his term as Mayor.

Mayor Pounds on many occasions has held off from making a decision until all of the parties involved and affected by Councils actions have had an opportunity to voice their opinions and concerns. Mayor Pounds has weekly office hours to which he invites the citizens of our Island to drop by and share their thoughts and ask question of him. He also has weekly meet and greets for citizens to have coffee with him where he again learns of differing opinions on issues coming before council. We call this “Being a good Listener”.

We have both seen the Mayor go out of his way to allow Citizens to go past their allotted time at council meetings during Citizens Comments to be sure that they get to speak their piece. This is a great example of a Mayor who genuinely cares about the residents opinion’s and allows them a voice.

For these reasons and many others we hope you’ll join my wife and myself in supporting and voting to re-elect Phillip Pounds for our Mayor.”

— Sandy and Peggy Stone, IOP Residents

“Phillip Pounds has been a very good mayor. He has helped IOP through some difficult issues. I have personally known every mayor of the IOP. All have been excellent leaders but Phillip stands out. Nobody cares more about our beautiful island than Phillip and his leadership and guidance proves it. The IOP needs his continued leadership.”

— Tommy Hartnett, Former US House Representative and Long Time IOP Resident

“Mayor Phillip Pounds has gone above and beyond in his commitment and duties as Mayor of Isle of Palms. His integrity has never wavered in spite of negative and divisive tactics. We are honored to endorse Mayor Phillip Pounds to his reelection. Our Beach community would be so fortunate to have him lead us again.”

— Lisa and Billy Lempesis, IOP Residents

“I’m George Reeth and have visited and lived on Isle of Palms for over 15 years. It is truly a special place and I am confident that under Mayor Pounds leadership IOP will continue to be a special place to both visit and live.

I know that Mayor Pounds cares about what is important to running a successful city - prudent budgeting and fiscal management, ever important focus on risk mitigation relative to natural perils, supporting law enforcement and being transparent and accessible to all community members.

I would also point out that Mayor Pounds has substantial experience with local issues. which supports his efforts as Mayor. Prior to becoming Mayor he served on our city council, the public works, public safety, and ways and means committees.

Finally, what may not be as apparent but so important to our success is his purposeful efforts to reach out to other government agencies who can provide resources and funds to support our coastal community.

I am very pleased to endorse Mayor Pounds and would ask you all to vote for Mayor Pounds in the upcoming election!”

— George Reeth, IOP Resident and Founder of The LENS Foundation

“I have the opportunity to work closely with Mayor Pounds on regional efforts in addition to serving alongside him on the board for the Association of SC Mayors where he serves as President. It is not uncommon for me to ask for wisdom on situations or collaborate on efforts. His strong leadership is a blessing to Isle of Palms and our region.”

— Christie Rainwater, Mayor, City of Hanahan

“I am 100% in support of Phillip Pounds’ candidacy to be reelected as Mayor of Isle of Palms. During his first term he has successfully presided over the handling of a number of very important issues for the Island including, but not limited to, drainage problems, beach erosion and restoration, and the hiring of City staff in important leadership positions. Prior to becoming Mayor he was Chair of the IOP Finance Committee where in that role, as well as subsequently as Mayor, he helped to keep the Island fiscally sound without an increase in City taxes. He has calmly endured, with dignity and patience, more than a few personal attacks from a few people who seek to harm his political reputation with unfounded criticism. He is one of the most transparent people I have ever met, making himself available to his constituents with weekly office hours and monthly coffees where he willingly chats with those who come to see him. His leadership has IOP in good shape and his continued leadership will keep the Island going in the right direction.”

— Patsy Hindman, IOP Resident

“I’ve had the opportunity over the past several years of serving with Phillip Pounds on the Isle of Palms City Council, both as fellow council members, and under his mayoral role.

I enthusiastically endorse Phillip for re-election to the office of Mayor this November, and I firmly believe our beautiful island will be better served as a result of his continued leadership.

Phillip has a deep understanding of the critical issues we face on the Isle of Palms and he has worked tirelessly with others on City Council, City Administration, Residents, and adjacent communities, to meet those issues and challenges head on.

Phillip understands his role in a “Council” form of government, which, by law, dictates the Mayor has an equal vote to all others on Council. No more, no less.

As such, the Mayor must have excellent communication skills, leadership skills, collaborative skills, and the ability to pull a team together.

Phillip has aptly and effectively demonstrated his abilities to do just that during his tenure as Mayor, and I personally have no doubt that he will continue to be a highly effective leader when he’s re-elected for a 2nd term.

Phillip has also earned the respect of others throughout the State, and has served in leadership roles on the Municipal Association of South Carolina and other organizations. His opinions and ideas are actively sought by other municipal leaders.

Additionally, Phillip puts in the time and effort to regularly meet with island residents at community events, monthly “Coffee with the Mayor” and office hours twice weekly at City Hall. He is always accessible and has outstanding listening skills.

In closing, Phillip has a clear vision of the future, and he has demonstrated he has what it takes to continue to lead the IOP in the future.

I humbly ask that you join me in November by giving your support and vote, to Phillip Pounds for another term as Mayor of the Isle of Palms.”

— Rusty Streetman, Long Time IOP Resident