Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Colleton County council rezones 22.2-acre parcel on Grapevine Highway; residents press environmental concerns
Summary
The Colleton County Council voted unanimously to reclassify a 22.2-acre parcel on Grapevine Highway from Urban Development 1 to Industrial after a public hearing in which nearby residents raised questions about past contamination and future mitigation obligations.
The Colleton County Council voted unanimously to rezone a 22.2-acre parcel on Grapevine Highway identified as TMS 195-00-00-068 from Urban Development 1 (UD-1) to Industrial after a public hearing and three readings of the ordinance.
The rezoning corrects a long-standing mismatch between the property's official land-use designation and its historic use, county officials said, but does not approve any specific industrial operations at the site.
At the public hearing, residents who live near the parcel urged the council to ensure that any soil or water contamination linked to prior industrial operations be identified and remediated before new uses begin. "If there were any mitigation issues done in regard to this subject, the property itself, and how it's being cleared up," said a resident who identified himself as David of Cutskill Road, asking whether previous cleanup actions were part of the rezoning process. Michael Kinery, also a nearby resident, said the property sits next to Pringle Creek and said he feared storage or container operations could exacerbate historic pollution and drainage problems.
Council members and staff said the rezoning action only changes the property classification; any specific development would require separate permit reviews by the county and relevant state agencies, where environmental and mitigation questions would be addressed. "What we're doing tonight is changing the zoning designation," the chair said during the hearing. "When the owner decides the scope of their project, they will have to apply and go through the permit process and do whatever agencies are involved." The chair added that the rezoning corrects an administrative error so the parcel's zoning aligns with its historical use.
Council advanced the ordinance through the required readings and approved the rezoning on third reading; the council recorded the vote as carried unanimously.
Next steps for the parcel will depend on any development proposals submitted to the county and on reviews by agencies such as the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control for environmental permitting requirements.
