Wide-eyed, caffeine-fueled constituents pack Coffee with the Mayor event

Taking a seat in the middle of a crowded coffee shop and armed only with a cup of joe, Charleston Mayor William Cogswell invited Daniel Island constituents, one by one, to sit next to him – and talk.  

Problem-minded residents, many of whom arrived by 7:30 a.m. to sign in their names and scribble their talking points, were escorted to Cogswell's table and given two to three minutes to bend his ear. 

A bystander called it the "Airing of Grievances." 

One resident pleaded about parking.  

Another about traffic.  

A woman, waiting for her turn, said too many dogs were off the chain. 

"Our city parks are becoming dog parks. There's no leashes, no enforcement," she said. 

Most of those with a prized seat next to the mayor had to lean to be heard above the noisy room of onlookers. 

Scott Noonan had no doubt circled this March 5 "Coffee with the Mayor" event on his calendar after it was rescheduled from February. 

The Daniel Island resident, who regularly belts out songs in his cover band, knows how to be heard at a loud venue. 

His grievance? 

Taking aim at a proposed city ordinance to take e-bikes off sidewalks and keep them on the streets. 

He called it weak. 

"I hated it," Noonan said, moments after his time with Cogswell. 

"We've been talking about this for six months, and it's getting worse and not better." 

Noonan has been vocal about the safety of riders on e-bikes, many of them under the age of 16, who he says are too young to be on a motorized vehicle. 

"Kids are coming up at an intersection and not looking. They don't know any better. The number one job of government, in my opinion, is the welfare and well-being of our community." 

Noonan said the ordinance, which will ticket and fine violators $50 for riding on pedestrian paths and trails, doesn't have enough teeth to not only protect younger e-bike riders but other adjacent motorists, bikers, and walkers. 

"I don't think what they are passing is going to make a difference. It's not going to move the needle," he said. "They are under 16, with no experience, no prefrontal cortex development. They are operating a 45-mile an hour motor vehicle through traffic. Why not just give them a car? It's probably safer to let them drive a car." 

The majority of those in attendance also had e-bike grievances, many of whom waited their turn until time ran out. 

At 8:40 a.m., the event ended, and Mayor Cogswell stood up and spoke to the remaining crowd. 

It finally got quiet. 

"We are going to start enforcing where we can enforce," he said, noting that two new police-equipped e-bikes will be used by officers to patrol on Daniel Island. "Not to go after and cuff and stuff, but if you're an 8-year-old or a 10-year-old and you are doing something stupid that is going to endanger people's lives…  we are going to hold them, and we are going to call their parents." 

Cogswell answered a few more questions and noted that, with every city concern, a step forward is at least a step forward. 

He then looked at his empty coffee cup, turned to the crowd, and smiled: "I don't need any more caffeine."