Clements Ferry Road expansion could threaten 'Meeting Tree'

Roughly one year ago, plans for Phase 2 of the Clements Ferry Road widening project were announced. While many citizens of the surrounding Clements Ferry Road neighborhoods have voiced their joy about the possibility of reducing traffic delays, some shared their discontent with a bevy of byproducts that the road expansion could bring.

Cainhoy area resident Sammy Sanders was one of the first to speak out against the plans because of their impact on what’s colloquially known as the “Meeting Tree.” Upon inspecting the design of the widening project in May of 2017, Sanders saw that the expansion calls for the destruction of the tree, which sits on his property.

“I met with them and said ‘hey, the problem is that we really need to try and preserve this tree,’” Sanders recounted. “And they’re like ‘we will totally look into that and we’ll do everything we can,’ and I don’t think they did.”

Positioned at the corner of Clements Ferry Road and Cainhoy Road, the live oak is estimated to be 300 years old, according to Sanders, and has drawn concern from the Coastal Conservation League (CCL).

“That tree-- not only is it significant for its age and its size, but it is significant for the people that have used it as a gathering place and landmark over generations,” said CCL Communities and Transportation Program Director Jason Crowley. “It’s significant particularly to the Cainhoy and Jack Primus community, and warrants preservation through avoidance.”

Complicating matters further is the protected wetlands that sit on the north side of Clements Ferry Road. One of the primary reasons the road expansion threatens the Meeting Tree on the south side is because of the wetlands. The road is caught between a tree and a wet place, but Sanders believes that expanding into the wetlands, thus saving the tree, is the smarter option because of the ability to create more wetlands.

“If I had to choose between 100 square feet of wetlands, I would choose the tree,” said Sanders. “They could go down there and create some wetlands to mitigate the wetlands they took out.”

The CCL believes that it is a completely viable and legitimate choice.

“It is a reasonable alternative,” said Crowley. “If you can’t narrow the road or work around it and avoid the wetlands, then the best-case scenario would be to do mitigation in that area.”

The public comment period on the road expansion wrapped up on May 11. Berkeley County Supervisor Bill Peagler says that the received comments are still being reviewed and that a decision is still to be reached.

“As part of evaluating the comments we received regarding the impacts to the tree, we are pulling together a detailed description of options, the associated impacts, and anticipated costs for review with the County, SCDOT, and FHWA,” said Peagler. “Once we’ve done that, the County will be in a position to decide what the appropriate path forward will be for the alignment of Clements Ferry Road in the vicinity of the tree.”

Berkeley County Councilman Josh Whitley and Charleston City Councilman Gary White, both of whom live on Daniel Island but represent constituents in the Clements Ferry Road corridor, also weighed in on the tree’s fate.

“I am of the opinion that we should save all grand trees that we possibly can but that goal is secondary to safety considerations,” stated Whitley. “I am anxious to see what the engineers propose after public comment and redesign evaluation.”

“Grand trees like the Meeting Tree are a very limited and precious natural resource,” added White. “I sincerely hope that the designers and engineers of the road widening project can find a way to complete the project safely and preserve the Meeting Tree.”

The Daniel Island News contacted the SCDOT for a response on the tree’s status but did not hear back by the time the paper went to print. For additional information on the project, visit https://www.berkeleycountysc.gov/drupal/engineering/onecent/clemferry2.

Daniel Island Publishing

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Unit 108
Daniel Island, SC 29492 

Office Number: 843-856-1999
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