Charleston council approves mediation settlement with Clemson that allows demolition of 1936 USDA lab; $25,000 mitigation offered
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Summary
The City of Charleston voted to approve a mediated settlement with Clemson University that permits demolition of a 1936 USDA vegetable research building, after legal counsel described mitigation including a $25,000 contribution toward West Ashley preservation work; opponents urged rejection, saying preservation was not adequately evaluated.
Charleston'0'0'0City Council approved a mediation settlement with Clemson University on Feb. 24 that clears the way for the university to demolish a circa-1936 U.S. Department of Agriculture vegetable research building, city legal counsel said, while the public preservation community urged the council to reject the deal.
Lisa Jones of the Historic Charleston Foundation told the council the agreement "is not a good deal for the public," saying: "For just $25,000 in a marker, Clemson would gain permission to irreversibly demolish an important piece of Charleston's agricultural history without adequate public involvement or sufficient information provided to the public and the council." The Foundation and the Preservation Society of Charleston urged council members to reject the settlement at Tuesday's meeting.
City legal counsel summarized the mediation under South Carolina Code section 6-29-900 and described the elements of the proposed settlement, saying that Clemson will preserve and restore other on-site structures (the head house and greenhouses) and that the $25,000 would be provided "in kind professional, technical, and personnel support towards phase 2 of the city's West Ashley architectural inventory" and a West Ashley Greenway historic marker. Counsel also told council members the settlement and any demolition remain subject to judicial approval in circuit court.
Opponents argued the record does not show a thorough feasibility study supporting demolition. Anna Catherine Alexander of the Preservation Society said negotiating demolition "outside of the public process is bad practice" and that "the settlement agreement inaccurately states that preservation has been determined to be infeasible," adding that the mitigation terms "are not a fair or adequate exchange." Council members asked staff and counsel questions about approvals and the regulatory history.
Legal counsel said the building had been modified over decades and "was retrofitted in the seventies or eighties to allow limited lab use," but counsel also told the council the structure could not be adapted to a modern, ADA-compliant research facility that Clemson needs to support its work without demolition and a new facility. Counsel added that Clemson purchased the property with federal and state authorization and had approval from the USDA.
After brief discussion, council voted by voice to approve the mediation settlement as presented by legal counsel; the clerk recorded that the "ayes have it." The council also noted on the record that the mayor recused himself from the item. The settlement will be presented to the circuit court for judicial approval as required by the mediation process.