Fourth Time’s the Charm

The dream that is Daniel Island took another, official step forward last week when at the Wednesday, September 28 meeting of Charleston City Council the 13 members of the group voted unanimously to approve the Fourth Amendment to the Daniel Island Development Agreement, bringing to a tidy close a process that has literally spanned decades.

Much of the amendment details how exactly the City of Charleston, with island development partners the Daniel Island Company, Daniel Island Investments, LLC and Daniel Island Associates, LLC, will pare out the responsibility for the future development and maintenance of enhanced recreational facilities on the island.  

The amendment also addresses the affordable housing requirement put forth in the original Development Agreement, noting that the provision, as well as several park-related obligations, are “terminated, satisfied in full or otherwise waived” and that those provisions would be replaced by the newly revised agreement. Jane Baker, vice president of community services for the Daniel Island Property Owners Association, previously confirmed that the island’s affordable housing goals have been met in full.

Wednesday’s hearing was dedicated to a review of how the respective civic and private entities involved in the complex agreement will handle the continued effort to develop recreational facilities on the island. The “yay” vote approved the establishment of a brand-new 25,000 square foot recreation center at Governors Park.

Along with affirming their commitment to begin construction on that facility within two years of the agreement’s passage, longtime City attorney Frances Cantwell outlined the City’s decision with respect to a series of other potential recreational facilities and park space included in the amendment.

The significance of the amendment’s passage is hard to understate. First introduced and adopted into the official City record on June 1, 1995, the Development Agreement was amended the first time just two years into the process, in 1997. Subsequent amendments, along with the intense design review process, contributed to the lengthy process time of the Development Agreement.

“This was the first development agreement the City ever entered into, and perhaps the first development agreement ever entered into in the state,” began City Attorney Frances Cantwell, who introduced the issue with a quick history of the agreement process. “It laid the groundwork for the development of Daniel Island as we know it now with respect to land uses, zoning, public amenities and the like.”

Turning her attention to the particulars of the Fourth Amendment, Cantwell said, “Fast forward twenty-some years to today, and obviously, just like life in general, things change. As has the landscape over on Daniel Island, we’ve come to look at the Development Agreement and think that there are some better places to spend money where we had agreed to before.”

“There was an area that was earmarked for a…park on the south end of the island, it was programmed for soccer fields, ball fields, things like that. But after the lengthy charrette process, the consensus became that money might be better spent on the community center in the Governors Park area than the land for the park south of the Mark Clark,” continued Cantwell.

She then informed the group that same thing could happen with respect to the proposed community park north of the Mark Clark. In the case of that plot however, the agreement allows for an extended two-year window during which the City could research demand for potential facilities before making a decision on that project.

The City within their two-year window, could opt to construct the park or not, with the money in the latter situation to be like the other, southerly park, dedicated instead to the keystone recreation project tied to the Fourth Amendment, the Governors Park Community Rec. Center for which the City has a base budget for the complex that already exceeds $5.3 million.

Other aspects of the Fourth Agreement transfer responsibility for the improvement, development and maintenance of much of the island’s recreational infrastructure to island-based community groups. The deal mandates that with the finalization of the Development Agreement, responsibility for these facilities will become the responsibility of the Daniel Island Town Association (DITA), explained Cantwell.

“And so what this agreement would do is to allow us to transfer budgets from certain parks to other parks, and to free up land from the City responsibility as far as ownership and maintenance over to the DITA, who would be responsible for maintaining it and developing it, with the caveat that it will always be available for public access.

“At the end of the day,” she concluded, “by the end of two years we hope to have begun work on the community center along with the area north of the Mark Clark, and in return the lands that the City was obligated to develop otherwise will be developed by the Daniel Island community but again anything built will have to be accessible to the general public.”

With Cantwell’s explanation on the table, it was City Council Dist. 1 Councilman Gary White to next to address the body.

“I think it was during a presentation to the (Daniel Island) Neighborhood Association (DINA) seven or eight years ago that I first became involved with this project, and getting to this point hasn’t been easy,” he said. “We’re really wrapping up a document that started out hundreds of pages long,” smiled White. “And here we are today… we’ve actually got this thing down to eight, manageable pages to wrap it up.”

White handed to his Council colleagues copies of a letter of support of the amendment signed by members of the Daniel Island Neighborhood Association (DINA) and gave special recognition to the group, noting that DINA members were ‘big contributors throughout the process.’ Before sitting down to cast his vote, White thanked the group specifically for “being involved from the very beginning.”

“Ultimately, what we’re going to end up with is a lot of public space that’s going to get built out much faster than the City could have done on its own,” explained White.

His tone in conclusion was equal parts optimism and relief. “I think it’s for the public good and it’s going to work out well for all involved.”

“Finalizing the Fourth Amendment of the Daniel Island Development Agreement denotes exciting future opportunities for Daniel Island residents,” added Baker. “The Property Owners Association especially looks forward to working with DINA and the City of Charleston to finalize plans and start construction soon on the Recreation Center, that is so important to residents of all ages.”

Following a short public and Council discussion, the body voted unanimously to approve the amendment.