DI History - January 21, 2016
FIVE YEARS AGO
In the January 20, 2011 issue of the Daniel Island News, the entire theme of the paper focused on island clubs and the benefits of participation. The Lowcountry Explorers officially became part of the Daniel Island “club scene” in May 2007, when it was started by island residents John and Pat Dietz. The idea for the group, said John, was inspired by a similar organization called the Natural History Club on Seabrook Island. About 15 people attended the first Lowcountry Explorers excursion, a trip to the Hunley submarine facility and Magnolia Cemetery. In 2011, there are over 200 people involved in the club, which still exists today. Other island news included a report that a Charleston builder was set to build 14 luxury townhomes on the Wando River, priced under $1 million each, adjacent to space near the Daniel Island Real Estate Company, near where the future Marina was planned. The townhome project fell through and the Marina project, which was on hold, may see new life in 2016, as noted by Matt Sloan at the Daniel Island Town Association meeting last week.
TEN YEARS AGO
In the January 19, 2006 issue of The Daniel Island News, we featured several great historical sites as part of the City of Charleston “Be a tourist in your own town” promotion. Included were stories about tourist attractions in Berkeley County: the Old Santee Canal Park and Mepkin Abbey. The Old Santee Canal, built between 1793 and 1800, was America’s first “true canal” connecting the Santee River system to the Cooper River system and is now a great recreation spot for canoeing, hiking, running, walking as well as an Interpretive Center that exhibits archaeological findings of the area. Mepkin Abbey, now home to Trappist monks, is a great place to visit for history and natural beauty, as well as for a tour of the grounds and gardens, the Abbey Church and Monastery and the Abbey Store. In crime news, an apparent brawl between Goose Creek and Wando youths at the Daniel Island Park golf course was under investigation by the Charleston Police Dept., residential burglaries were reported in the Daniel Island Park neighborhoods from unlocked vehicles and homes, prompting Charleston Police to remind people that locking up valuables and using security systems can reduce crimes of opportunity. In development news, the Commercial Corridor Design Review Board gave final approval for construction of an apartment complex on Seven Farms Road and preliminary approval for an office build¬ing at 295 Seven Farms Road but denied conceptual approval for a hotel at River Landing Drive and Seven Farms Road.