Plumbers in Awendaw, SC

AWENDAW, S.C. (March 23, 2024) – The ETSU men's golf team will look to make it three straight wins at Hootie at Bulls Bay. The Bucs, who have won on their last two trips to Bulls Bay Golf Club, begin tournament play on Sunday morning in Awendaw, S.C.

The Bucs will be eyeing to join South Carolina and NC State as the only teams in tournament history to win at least three times.

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION Name: Hootie at Bulls Bay Dates: Sunday, March 24 – Tuesday, March 26 Location: Awendaw, S.C. | Bulls Bay Golf Club Course Info: Par 72 – 7,349 yards Format: 18-18-18 (Sunday-Tuesday) Live Scoring: Golfstat Weather: Sunday – 62°, Sunny, Winds NNE @ 12 mph; Monday – 64°, Partly Cloudy, Winds ENE @ 7 mph; Tuesday – 67°, Mostly Cloudy, Winds E @ 9 mph

THE FIELD · The tournament field features South Carolina, New Mexico, Kentucky, NC State, Kent State, Furman, Purdue, College of Charleston, West Virginia, Missouri, Marquette, LSU, ETSU and Toledo · Eight of the teams in the field of 14 are ranked in the top 75 of Scoreboard Men's Golf Rankings powered by Clippd – No. 15 ETSU, No. 19 New Mexico, No. 33 Purdue, No. 35 Missouri, No. 37 LSU, No. 59 South Carolina, No. 71 College of Charleston and No. 72 Kentucky

ETSU's LINEUP · ETSU's lineup features #1 Mats Ege, #2 Algot Kleen, #3 Matty Dodd-Berry Chartier, #4 Jenson Forrester and #5 Remi Chartier · Ben Carberry will be playing as an individual · Pairings have yet to be released … Tee times for the first two rounds begin at 9 a.m., while Tuesday's final round will begin at 8 a.m.

COVERAGE · Fans can follow live scoring all weekend at Golfstat.com. · In addition, live tweets will be available by following the Bucs on Twitter @ETSU_MGolf.

For more information on Buccaneer men's golf, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men's golf page.

The town is also considering rules to increase protection of large trees — including pine trees, which some governments exempt — and those rules would be enforced with larger fines.

Rural Awendaw is largely surrounded by the Francis Marion National Forest and the Atlantic coast, but it also shares a border with South Carolina’s fourth-largest municipality, Mount Pleasant.

With about 1,400 residents, Awendaw’s population could more than triple due to developments that already have been approved. One subdivision alone, known as the King Tract, could have 965 homes on 1,354 acres under a 2009 development agreement with the town .

The town has no sewer system, and construction of so many new houses with septic systems has raised concerns about pollution. Awendaw’s government has gone from welcoming and encouraging development to applying the brakes, after changes in leadership.

On March 7, Town Council gave final approval to a moratorium — a temporary freeze — that would:

Developments that already have been approved would see no impact from the moratorium.

The freeze on most subdivisions and rezonings has been in effect since early January, because it was initially approved then, and was applied under the pending ordinance rule. That allows municipal rules to take effect while awaiting a final vote.

Next, the town will consider nearly doubling the amount of land required to build a single-family home, from 12,500 square feet to 21,500, roughly a half-acre. That’s a strategy other South Carolina towns and cities have used to reduce the density of development.

If that rule is adopted, it would take nearly twice the amount of land to build the same number of new homes in Awendaw.

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Town planner Mark Brodeur told council members the rule change is intended to reduce “development intensity” and septic systems on smaller lots. At a public hearing March 7, no one spoke in opposition to the concept.

At the same meeting Brodeur laid out proposed tree-protection changes, saying the town’s current rules are unclear and need to be more robust.

What’s proposed it reducing the size of hardwood trees such as Live Oaks that would be protected, from an 18-inch diameter at chest height to 12 inches. Softwood trees would also be protected if they are at least 30 inches in diameter at chest height.

Removing a protected tree without a permit would, under the proposal, result in a $250-per-day fine until mitigation steps are taken. That would mean planting new, native trees to compensate, or paying into a town tree fund at $100 per inch.

“The current ordinance doesn’t have a stick attached to it,” Brodeur said. “An ordinance is only as good as its enforcement.”

Some Awendaw residents said the proposed fine should be much higher. John Brubaker suggested $500 per diameter inch, and said Georgetown County has such a rule.

“I would encourage you to consider that,” said resident Grace Gasper, echoing Brubaker.

Carol Riggs was displeased to hear the planned tree rules explained.

“So, I have to ask permission to cut a pine tree on my own land?” she said. “Who are you to tell me if I can cut a tree?”

Brodeur said residents should rest assured that damaged or diseased trees, or those within 10 feet of a home’s foundation, would be permitted for removal. Brodeur said he’s never refused such a permit.

Both the tree protection rules and the minimum lot sizes for new homes are proposals that would require action by Town Council.

AWENDAW, SC (WCIV) — For weeks, Awendaw residents have been expressing concerns about the potential of hundreds of new homes coming to their community.

"Town council has approved 822 new residences with more on the docket tonight," Awendaw resident John Cooke said. "Those residences come with a population that will at least double our current population."

Read more: Awendaw residents fear housing boom could threaten town's rural charm

However, Mayor Miriam Green says the population will not be doubled.

"It's not the truth," Green said. "It's not a total of 800 homes. And if it is, they still have to go through planning."

"I can't say it's 800, 9,00, or 1,000 homes because I don't know," she continued. "But in the preliminary plan, yes, it did say certain amount of homes will be built up there."

Green describes the development plans as "smart growth".

"We are following ordinance and processes of procedures and state guidelines," she said.

In response to the concerns about the development plans being too much in too little time, Green says the town has to follow guidelines and the rules.

"Just because someone comes to you and says 'This is what we want,' doesn't meant that's what the majority of the citizens of Awendaw want," the mayor said.

Residents have also expressed concerns about how new developments may affect Awendaw's roads and infrastructure.

Read more: Ten Mile Neighborhood Association challenges proposed approval of development along Seafood Road

"Last meeting, I heard emergency services people talk about the fact that they were concerned about their ability to support the town," Cooke said. "The roads, the infrastructure might not be able to support (new development). The roads that were made in the early 1950s-60s are still the ones being used today and could fail."

Green says the infrastructure, road, and traffic issues are being analyzed as part of the development plans.

"We're looking at all that stuff," the mayor said. "We have a traffic study in place, but it doesn't happen overnight."

Another concern is the septic tanks that will be used for the new development, which Green says the town is working on with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC).

Read more: Zoning denial a 'win' for some Awendaw residents

"20 years when all these systems start to fail, you could have an ecological disaster that could affect a lot of bulls bay and the intercoastal waterways," Cooke said.

The evening of Aug. 21, the Awendaw Planning Commission reviewed the Harper Valley proposal. It was denied in a 5-1 vote.

Cooke says people who live in Awendaw are banding together in opposition and they are asking for a moratorium to slow down the development.

"It's a growing pain in Awendaw," Green said. "It's not the people that live here. It's the people that came here."

AWENDAW, S.C. (WCBD) -A proposed development, the White Tract Development, in Awendaw has some neighbors calling for a time-out.

Pulte Homes, one of the nation’s largest homebuilders, is seeking the Town of Awendaw’s approval to build a 200+ home subdivision on approximately 148 acres. The planned location is just down the street from the intersection of Seewee and Bulls Island Roads.

Some neighbors say they’re worried a large subdivision could cause future problems for the area.

“If you go down Bulls Island Road right now, it’s very peaceful and tranquil…a pretty little country scene.,” said Greg St. Pierre, an Awendaw resident. “They’re gonna exploit every bit of that.”

St. Pierre and his neighbors understand growth is inevitable, but they’re hopeful Awendaw leaders will do it in what they call “the right way.” St. Pierre says there should be proactive plans for stormwater drainage, traffic mitigation, improved roadways, and more before the neighborhood is built. Additionally, the proposed spot is close to a National Wildlife Refuge and neighbors say it could be harmful to the species that thrive there.

On top of that, he says residents weren’t informed about the possible development until very recently and are now being asked to voice their opinions in a public hearing next week.

“Basically, the people are just asking for a little bit more time to understand what’s happening here.”

“You can’t stop people from selling their land, you can’t stop development from happening. It’s gonna happen, but do the right thing and don’t cram a bunch of cookie-cutter houses on postage-stamp-sized lots,” said St. Pierre.

Another concern by St. Pierre is the town’s lack of a full-time planning director. Currently, the town only has a part-time interim planning director in-house four hours per week.

News 2 contacted the Town of Awendaw with some of the questions posed by St. Pierre. The questions and answers are below.

Q: Are you aware of the concerns of Awendaw residents about the potential White Tract development? If so, what is your response?

A: The Town is aware of the concerns about the White Tract development. The White Tract Development is being developed under the auspices of a Planned Development adopted by Town Council in 2006. The approval of that Planned Development document also raised many of the concerns the Town is hearing today. A Planned Development is utilized in order to allow the Town to allow flexibility in development that will result in improved design, character, and quality of new developments and preserve natural and scenic features of open spaces. The Town of Awendaw provides for the establishment of planned development districts as amendments to a locally adopted zoning ordinance and official zoning map. The adopted Planned Development map is the zoning district map for the property. The planned development provisions must encourage innovative site planning within planned development districts. Planned development districts may provide for variations from other ordinances and the regulations of other established zoning districts concerning use, setbacks, lot size, density, bulk, and other requirements to accommodate flexibility in the arrangement of uses for the general purpose of promoting and protecting the public health, safety, and general welfare.

Q: We are hearing concerns about infrastructure surrounding the area (roads, water drainage, etc.) should a subdivision be built in the listed area. Does the town have proactive plans to address possible future problems (deteriorating roads, a lack of turning lanes leading to traffic safety concerns, water drainage) as a result of a large neighborhood?

In collaboration with the County of Charleston, the Army Corps of Engineers, DHEC and other jurisdictions, the Town is assured that roadways, stormwater drainage and traffic concerns are addressed. The Town may request additional plans and specifications of the developer of the land should they feel that something might need to mitigated in an appropriate fashion. The applicant has submitted plans to subdivide the three parcels of approximate 148 acres in to 204 parcels.

Q: I understand the Town of Awendaw only has a part-time (4 hours per week) Planning Director. Can the town handle a development of this size?

A: This is correct. The BCDCOG is contracting with the Town to provide an experienced Planning Director on an Interim basis. The Director is on-site at Town Hall for 4 hours per week, however, the Director spends upwards of 10-16 hours per week on Awendaw business. The past Town Administrator, Bill Wallace, is also actively working part-time for the Town and has over 4 decades of urban planning experience. Between the two individuals, the Town feels we have more than adequate experience to handle this project.

“If we can’t stop the neighborhood, we’re going to try to push for more green spaces, road improvements, anything that’s gonna help in the community,” said St. Pierre.

A public hearing is set for March 21st at 6 p.m. at Awendaw Town Hall for residents to share their opinions on the proposed development. St. Pierre says many people plan to come out and voice their concerns in hopes that the application for development will be denied.

It's more important than ever that town officials recognize the growing importance and intensity of their planning work — and rise to the occasion to protect the relaxed, rural ambiance that has defined this part of South Carolina's coast.

There are some encouraging signs.

A year ago, we lamented proposals to develop two large subdivisions, with 249 and 204 homes respectively, to be served by individual septic tanks since there are no sewer lines in the town. Those are still in the permitting stages and we hope they will be scaled back if they're built at all. They certainly underscore the need for state regulators to consider the cumulative impact of large subdivisions with dozens, even hundreds, of septic tanks that can compromise nearby waterways, as they have done along Shem and James Island creeks.

But the encouraging news is when yet another septic-tank subdivision was proposed recently, the Awendaw Planning Commission voted unanimously against Sewee Landing's 72 homes on 50 acres. At the same meeting, the commission recommended an update of the town's planned development ordinance that these subdivisions had relied on.

Awendaw Town Council could consider both the subdivision proposal and the ordinance rewrite as early as this week, and we urge council members to follow their planning commissioners' advice.

Even when a septic system is well-maintained, it can face problems if the water table is too high, and rising groundwater can carry the resulting contaminants to rivers and marshes, a problem that's expected to grow more acute as climate change pushes sea levels higher. Awendaw's proximity to the pristine Cape Romain makes it a desirable place to live, but too many septic tanks too close to the refuge (and too close to each other) could taint the very thing that makes the area an attractive place to visit and to live.

These developments don't pose a threat simply because they would rely on septic systems. They also would increase the amount of impervious surface and stormwater runoff, exacerbate habitat loss and degrade the community's rural character.

Awendaw is a small town that seems to have been pushed around at times. Its deal for a new park to be created by then-Charleston County Councilman Elliott Summey in exchange for Mr. Summey's right to mine dirt on the park site ended badly. The mining stopped in 2019, but the town had to sue to try to get an accounting of what was done there; the park itself is still a distant dream. In another part of town, the King Tract mine was allowed to expand even though it had been hit with more than a dozen water quality violations.

So we're encouraged that there's a proactive solution in the works. Awendaw is drafting a new comprehensive plan to replace one that's 13 years old. This process will provide town leaders, residents and others a perfect chance to forge a shared vision of how the town should manage growth, and they should make sure they make the most of this chance.

After all, the pressures on their town are only expected to intensify in the years to come.

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