[0:00] Hello Hanahan. My name is Chrissy Reinwwater and I am blessed to be the

[0:05] mayor of the city of Hanahan. Welcome to the state of the city address for 2026.

[0:11] I am so excited to share with you all that we have accomplished in 2025 and

[0:16] also give some sneak peaks to what's ahead.

[0:32] The first thing you've probably noticed is all the beautifification going on

[0:36] downtown. Well, it's not quite beautiful yet, but we're getting there. The

[0:41] construction going on represents new storm water drainage that is happening

[0:45] throughout the downtown area. We're so grateful for that for some flooding

[0:49] issues that we have faced that this should help rectify, but also the

[0:52] beautiful curb, gutter, and landscaping that will now be aligning all the

[0:57] sidewalks, which will lead you to the really cool new businesses and

[1:01] restaurants that you will find all throughout the downtown area. Well, last

[1:06] year in 2025, we saw an increase of nearly $1 million in business license

[1:12] revenue. What that means is funding is coming into our budget that is not

[1:16] resting on the shoulders of our homeowners. It's people that are coming

[1:20] to live, work, and play here. So, it might be you. You might be enjoying the

[1:24] quality of life by just driving up the block instead of battling traffic all

[1:29] around Charleston to do your shopping or to eat with your family. But it's also

[1:33] other people from other areas coming into Hanahan to do their shopping and

[1:38] dining as well. Everybody gives a little bit and it contributes to the bottom

[1:42] line which helps save our homeowners money in their pockets. Some other

[1:47] things you will also find in our downtown area and throughout other areas

[1:51] of Hanahan is our murals popping up. Art brings life and vibrancy. And we're also

[1:57] offering a grant not only for the murals but also for facade. So if there's a

[2:02] business in our area that is looking for a little facelift, we can help. Now, if

[2:07] you're a business located in the city of Hanahan, or maybe you're a business

[2:10] owner and you do business in Hanahan and throughout the Low Country, well, we

[2:14] want to make sure that you're invited to our business mixers. We've done those in

[2:18] the past and they're about to ramp back up for 2026. We provide space for

[2:23] everyone to network and share the opportunities that we have to support

[2:26] fellow people in the city of Hanahan. You can comment below or reach out to

[2:31] the city to make sure you're on the list for that information. Now, addition to

[2:35] our business owners, we have some other people that have gotten heavily involved

[2:38] in the city of Hanahan through our citizens academy, our very first one

[2:43] that we hosted in 2025. This group of dedicated residents came together every

[2:49] week to do a deep dive into what's behind the curtain. How do we do what we

[2:54] do to accomplish what we accomplish? I'm so happy that they got to learn more,

[3:00] but also get more involved. So many of them have stepped up to volunteer in

[3:03] different ways and have just cheered our staff and our council along now that

[3:08] they know exactly what really is happening in the city of Hanahan. If you

[3:13] missed out on our first, there's a second class coming in 2026 that you'll

[3:18] also want to get on the list for if you so wish. Another crosswalk that you will

[3:23] see appear is going to be right in front of City Hall. Our citizen of the year,

[3:28] Caroline Evans, made a suggestion. She attends all of our council meetings and

[3:33] offers great input. After doing really good research, she came to our council

[3:38] and expressed how she felt not as safe as she could as she came to one of our

[3:43] city council meetings one month and how we can improve that by a crosswalk. I

[3:48] love how she jumped in with research and positive advocacy to get it done. It's

[3:54] something that can be modeled for everyone throughout the city to continue

[3:57] to make a positive difference in our community. There is also a traffic study

[4:01] that's going to be done on the corner of Yemen's Hall and North Rhett. And of

[4:06] course, we don't own any roads in the city of Hanahan. So, I have to give a

[4:10] shout out to our partners at SE DOT and Berkeley County who are assisting with

[4:14] all of these things. You're also going to see a lane widening coming up on

[4:18] Snake Road and a roundabout to get us out of one of our most popular shopping

[4:23] centers where the Lowe's Food is located at the entrance of Tanner. Safety is

[4:28] important. Helping with congestion and infrastructure is important and the city

[4:32] of Hanahan and our partners are working to make life a little easier for each

[4:36] and every resident. One of the most important things we do as your city

[4:40] council and staff is steward taxpayer money. Well, I'm excited to report that

[4:45] we have a strong fund balance. God forbid there were to be an emergency,

[4:49] we've got you covered. And just as exciting is our audit. It came back

[4:54] perfect. So, to know when someone does a deep dive into the city finances and get

[4:58] that result is exactly what you want to hear. Hannah Han's Park and Recreation

[5:03] Department served 5,143 people throughout our community. That is

[5:10] a broad range of people over ages young and old. One of the most exciting things

[5:17] that happened in 2025 was the opening of Hanahan's newest park, Creekide at

[5:23] Stewart. I'm curious, have you been there yet? Have you enjoyed the kayak

[5:27] launch, the fishing from the pier, the fireplace in the pavilion, the

[5:32] all-inclusive park? Whether you're just looking to stroll by for a sunset or a

[5:38] sunrise or looking to take place in one of these activities, we highly recommend

[5:42] you get there if you haven't already. One of the things we're very excited

[5:46] about is the new stadium seating at the Hawks Nest. You can now sit comfortably

[5:51] as we cheer on all the programs, young and old, that are taking place on our

[5:56] turf field. We also have added something for our furry friends. The dog parks

[6:01] located there have new shade structures. Or actually, maybe they're more for us.

[6:06] While the dogs run around, we can sit comfortably in the shade. Throughout the

[6:10] year, we had a variety of community events that brought everyone together

[6:14] for all different reasons. One of the highlights was the Hanahan Artisan

[6:19] Farmers Market. We're going to be shifting some dates and times for 2026,

[6:24] so keep an eye out. But the success that we saw from the farmers market in 2025

[6:29] was awesome. From the smiling faces of the families grabbing food to eat to the

[6:34] vendors selling the things that they had personally made, the live music, face

[6:38] painting, petting zoo, and it was free. So getting there and having fun was

[6:43] awesome. Walking away with some items that have now supported our local

[6:47] vendors, and going home was even better. We invite you to come to our 2026, which

[6:52] is soon to launch. Hanahan's park and wreck program supported sports for young

[6:57] and old in the city. We also had wreck night where we partnered in with Hanahan

[7:03] High School to invite our younger kids in to see what our older kids are doing.

[7:07] It's so cool that we funnel that program from our youth sports into the high

[7:12] school program and continue to partner with them. So, well, our summer camp

[7:17] program was also a hit. The kids got to come every day, go on a variety of field

[7:22] trips, learn different things, and have fun together. It took a whole group of

[7:27] extra employees to host them and they did such a great job. One of the

[7:32] highlights for this year was the introduction of Hanahan's newest

[7:37] resident, Mohawk. The city now has its own mascot that you will find at all our

[7:43] city events. Be sure to come see him in 2026. Snap a picture, post it online,

[7:50] #mohawk. We're so excited to have him as a part

[7:53] of our Hannah family. Hanahan loves their seniors and that's

[7:58] because we have the best ones around every time I step foot in the senior

[8:03] center. They're doing really cool things with big smiles on their faces. If you

[8:08] are over the age of 50, you are welcome to join. Whether using the gym,

[8:11] participating in their programs, or just having fun with the others around you,

[8:16] we encourage you to get involved because it's one of the coolest places in the

[8:20] city. Speaking of the senior center, that location as well as all of our

[8:24] others, the amphitheater, our parks and pavilions, they are up for rent. So, you

[8:30] are welcome to check those out and use them for your next event. If you are

[8:34] interested in renting one of our facilities, you're going to want to jump

[8:37] over to the city of Hanahan's web page and get more information on there. We

[8:41] love our first responders. We are so grateful for the work of the Hanahan

[8:45] Fire Department. In 2025, they saw a 13% decrease in volume with 2,818

[8:53] calls. They saved lives. They got to work. But even more importantly, they

[8:57] did some pretty cool proactive things to help. In 2025, we did see an increase in

[9:03] structure fires. So throughout 2026, we'll have a stronger focus on education

[9:08] with a campaign on fire safety throughout our communities to help keep

[9:12] you safe. The city of Hanahan's fire marshall has had partnerships with

[9:17] service master of Charleston as well as the state farm on Remount Road to

[9:22] provide grant funding for smoke alarms. We've received 150 of those to

[9:27] distribute throughout the community to help with safety and it also provides an

[9:30] opportunity for additional education. We have already installed 35 of those in

[9:35] the city of Hanahan and are happy to do more in 2026. So reach out to the city

[9:40] if that is something that would benefit you and your family. Our firemen are the

[9:44] best with over 10,000 hours of logged training and they have also had a lot of

[9:50] fun in our community. Did you get to go to the haunted firehouse this past

[9:55] October? If not, you're going to want to get ready to go in 2026. We had over 200

[10:00] people come through. Not only did they get a scare, but they had a great time

[10:05] and also had an opportunity to learn about fire safety. The program helps the

[10:10] 1% firefighter fund. So, in addition to being a blessing to our firefighters,

[10:14] it's also a blessing to the community with everything involved. Continuing

[10:19] with our heroes, we also love our Hanahham police officers. They do such a

[10:24] great job of community policing, but also being reactive when they need to.

[10:29] We are up to 32 sworn officers, up from 21 in 2023. That has also allowed for

[10:38] our fulfillment of theou with our drug task force in partnership with Berkeley

[10:43] County. You're going to continue to see awesome community events come from our

[10:47] Hanahan Police Department. This past year, they included the end of school

[10:52] year bash, the holiday police delivery Christmas outreach program, coffee with

[10:58] cop events, and our social media has increased by over 2,000 followers since

[11:03] 2023. The battle of the badges blood drive

[11:07] between both our heroes, Hanahan Police Department and Hanahan Fire was a

[11:11] success, saving so many lives. So many exciting things happened in 2025. And

[11:17] I've already shared so much that is coming in 2026, but I would be aiss to

[11:22] not mention the old Hanahan Trail that will be running from West Veco Park to

[11:27] Bishop under the power lines. It's going to be a great spot for exercise, getting

[11:32] from point A to point B, and just enjoying all that Hanahan has to offer.

[11:37] As I close out our state of the city address, the one thing that I want to

[11:41] focus on is the culture in the city of Hanahan. There are so many projects that

[11:46] we could add and so many things that we could do, but I truly believe that the

[11:50] thing that sets our city apart is the hometown culture, the spirit of having

[11:55] each other's back, the positivity and the excitement of smalltown America

[12:00] right in our backyard. That is something that we'll continue to focus on as a

[12:04] city council and a staff. But I encourage you as residents to hold tight

[12:08] and to continue to be the awesome people that you are, checking on your neighbor,

[12:14] working together, and making Hanahan the best place in the world. So, God bless

[12:19] you, Hanahan. God bless South Carolina, and God bless the United States of

[12:24] America.

Hanahan State of the City 2026

Transcript