7
January 2018
KICA Core Functions (Continued From Previous Page)
While KICA’s SLED license provides power of detainment and
arrest to Security personnel, to date KICA has not trained or
authorized them to exercise these powers. Instead, we rely on strong
relationships with the town and CCSO for true law enforcement. should a recipient print additional passes. Close to a third
of Kiawah’s dwellings are rented at least part of the year, so
efficient handling of vacation guests at the gate is paramount
of minimizing delays.
Existing Gate Processes Are Effective If the risks of this abuse were deemed too high, the email pass
program could be eliminated, and additional steps could be
taken to make entering the island more difficult. Rather than
re-create a past problem of member inconvenience, KICA is
looking at gate access systems that offer efficiency and provide
safeguards lacking today, such as limiting the number of prints
on an electronically-issued pass. This is just one of many
improvements KICA seeks that will improve gate control
without compromising member convenience and lifestyle.
Statistically, Kiawah Island is a safe community with rare
incidents of crime. Chris Widuch, Town Councilman and
chair of the Town Public Safety Committee, recently reminded
residents that the committee’s monthly meeting minutes are
posted at kiawahisland.org and contain regular reports and
presentations from CCSO on their island activities, including
crime statistics. After reviewing this information, a member
recently said, “From my reading, it would appear that Kiawah
is one of the safest places on earth.” Law enforcement data
supports this.
That’s not to say there aren’t challenges and opportunities for
improvement in KICA operations. One challenge is managing
perception when incidents do occur. For example, when property
crimes have occurred on the island some have expressed that it
was due to easy and unauthorized gate access, which allowed
undesirable elements to enter and commit thefts. Yet gate access
control actually worked in these instances. The property thefts
that occurred in the fall were linked to employees of reputable
companies with legitimate access credentials, not to persons
improperly entering the island. Those individuals were added
to a trespass list, and not permitted re-entry. One recent arrest
was the result of a gate officer visually identifying someone on
the trespass list who entered as a passenger in a vehicle with
valid access credentials. Personnel notified CCSO, and every
KICA field employee (security, land and lakes management,
maintenance) were given a vehicle description, so more than 50
sets of eyes were alert for the vehicle. It was discovered in short
order and an arrest was made by CCSO for trespassing after
having been banned by Security.
New challenges present themselves routinely, such as with the
popularity of ride-sharing services. KICA now has a contract
with Uber, which streamlines their access process by capturing
driver and vehicle information electronically. A similar contract
has not yet been established with Lyft. Consequently, a Lyft
driver will have to stop at the gate, provide information, and
pay for a pass. Members and guests want to be able to use these
services, as well as taxis and limos, so KICA Security must
balance these desires with the safety of the community. These
are some of the challenges of managing access on Kiawah.
Some suggest the resort’s operations, which allow the general public
access to resort properties, contributes to security challenges. While
seeking to manage this challenge, it must be remembered that
KIGR and other property management/rental agencies operate
rental programs on behalf of members. Further, KIGR is also a
KICA member, paying nearly $1 million annually in assessments,
and has the right to invite guests to the island, just like all members.
They are committed to working with KICA on the exploration of
strategies that will help address some of the challenges.
KICA cannot control situations where legitimate pass holders
become opportunists. However, Security Director Tony Elder’s
work over the past 18 months has identified potential methods
that could help reduce risk. These methods would need to be
implemented with a conscious understanding of the necessity
to balance convenience, lifestyle and cost. No gate access system is perfect, and with a single access point,
a popular public resort, significant commercial and consumer
service activity, and other factors, dozens of judgment calls are
made each day to maintain the appropriate balance between
strict access and member lifestyle. KICA understands that there
are trade-offs with this approach, and is constantly working
on enhancements that strike the right balance between access
control and member convenience.
As an example, in past years when passes were issued at the
gate, one could expect very long lines of traffic during peak
check-in times and holidays. KICA worked with the resort
and other rental agencies on a system to email gate passes
to guests in advance of rental stays, much like a pre-printed
airline boarding pass. This instantly eliminated the long lines
and delays at the gate. Yet, it does run the risk of some abuse Your opinion is important in helping us determine the right
balance mentioned above. Please take a moment to answer
a few questions at kica.us/securitypoll. In the meantime, if
you have any questions related to security, contact Director of
Security Tony Elder at [email protected]. If you have general
KICA questions and are unsure where to direct them, email
[email protected].
Challenges and Solutions
D igest C ontributors
Frances Boyd - M ember V olunteer
Virginia Chapel - M ember V olunteer
Bill Hindman - M ember V olunteer
Shauneen Hutchinson - M ember V olunteer
Sue Schaffer - F eature reporter
Deb Stewart - M ember V olunteer
S taff P roduction T eam
Doug Reynolds - C ommunications