DHEC approves Awendaw park mining permit, neighbors appeal - Charleston Post Courier

Charleston County Council Chairman Elliott Summey has received a permit from the state's Department of Health and Environmental Control to mine dirt to create a park in Awendaw, but neighbors have appealed the decision.

Under the permit, Summey is allowed to disturb 82 of the property's 290 acres to mine dirt and build a lake, which will be the park's central feature.

But Summey said he's not going to resume work until the matter is resolved. "We're doing nothing," Summey said. "We're waiting on DHEC."

The plan for a park on Doar Road has been in the works since 2009. That’s when Summey joined the majority of County Council to approve $5.2 million in Greenbelt money to purchase the property. Then, in 2014, Summey’s company Jackson Development placed the low bid to build the town park. He signed a contract that gives him the right to mine and sell dirt in exchange for developing a lake, trails, open grassy areas and unpaved parking lots, and supplying potable water.

Summey began dirt-mining work with an initial permit from DHEC that allowed him to mine 5 acres while he worked on obtaining a permit to mine a larger portion of the site. But he consistently mined beyond that 5 acres, despite consequences from DHEC.

The department required Summey to provide a $123,000 bond for reclamation of the site. It also fined him $9,000 for violating the S.C. Mining Act, the terms of his general permit and an administrative order for engaging in mining activities outside the 5 acres. Summey paid the fine Sept. 21.

According to the permit documents, Summey has said the mine will operate for three years, with the actual mining work running through 2017. Once the mining work is completed, he has 18 months to complete the reclamation work. But the documents state the duration "can be adjusted with minor modifications to the permit."

DHEC received two appeals on Summey's permit, one from the Bulls Bay Overlook Community Association, an upscale development across the road from the site, and the other from nearby residents Dr. G. Theodore Davis and Kristin L. Kron.

Bill Wallace, Awendaw's town administrator, said he is meeting with the Bulls Bay group hoping to come up with a compromise so it will drop its appeal and allow the stalled park to move forward. But he hasn't reached out to Davis and Kron.

The Bulls Bay group previously had complained about a plan to create an 80-acre lake instead of the 50-acre lake in the original Greenbelt application. 

Wallace said the lake ultimately will be 50 acres but Summey has to disturb some of the surrounding land to build the lake.

Allen Rioux, the association's president, said he thinks Summey shouldn't have been granted a permit because he hasn't repaired the damage from previous violations. "So it's our view that DHEC acted improperly in granting the permit," he said. 

His group is meeting with Wallace, he said, and it is open to a compromise.

He and others have concerns about operating hours of the mine and whether trucks would begin lining up on Doar Road in the morning before mining work begins.

"We're alleging DHEC hasn't take things into consideration," Rioux said. "We want the park, but it needs to be done properly and responsibly."