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Board approves variance for Ladies Island Oyster event space; neighbor stormwater concerns raised
Summary
The zoning board approved a variance allowing parking and a front-yard event pavilion at Fair Road Farms/Ladies Island Oyster, subject to staff review of stormwater; neighbors and staff raised questions about runoff, but the applicant's engineer outlined a gravel parking plan and a multi-stage treatment approach.
Julie Davis, farm manager at Fair Road Farms and a representative of Ladies Island Oyster, told the board the farm operates the state's only oyster hatchery and sought a variance to locate parking and a 12,000-square-foot open-air event pavilion in an existing cleared field at the front of the property to keep runoff farther from oyster operations.
Davis said the proposal would allow modest "value-added" activities such as tours and small events without converting the entire farm to commercial use. Nathan Sturry, the project civil engineer, said the design tried to avoid disturbing live oaks and placed parking in the existing cleared area; he described a stormwater approach using a sequence of vegetated basins and regenerative features to improve water quality before discharge.
County staff and some board members questioned whether the parking belongs in the front under the CP zoning rules and asked whether parking in front violated code preference for rear parking for assembly uses. Neighbor Jack Volkerts urged caution, citing recent standing water at the road and concern that large parking areas could worsen flooding. Volkerts asked how many spaces the plan included and requested review of proposed spillway paths.
Sturry said the plan uses gravel—not asphalt—and that the treatment train of basins and native plantings would reduce sediment and pollutant loads compared with current conditions; he also said moving parking closer to the critical area could increase risk. The board voted to approve the variance; members and staff said the project would be subject to staff-level stormwater and site reviews, and that neighbors would be invited to participate in the review process.
