Thought y’all might be interested in an article I did recently for the Summerville Journal Scene
2000 SeaPro 180CC w/ Yammy 115 2 stroke
1966 13’ Boston Whaler w/ Merc 25 4 stroke “Flatty”
www.ralphphillipsinshore.com
Well done.
Pioneer 222 Sportfish
Yamaha 250
That is a great article. They were supposed to put a landing on the old Navy base but it never happened. They put a marina there that is very nice but really only useful for sailboats because they do not sell fuel. The county has no trouble collecting taxes on boats but will not invest money on landings. The lack parking at existing landings and the lack of landings in general has been an issue for 15 years. There is plenty of land on the old navy base and that would be a great spot for a landing. The construction of a landing would be very expensive but a very small percentage of the taxes that are collected yearly. They could even put in a toll booth to help recover some of the cost and maintenance. I would gladly pay for a decent landing in that area and feel sure that most people would be as well.
Charlie
www.tidedownsportfishing.com
(843)312-2981
Well done. Thank you.
Jack Taylor
Keep it the way it is. If they have to run for a while, so be it. Seems like everyone who moves here has to get a boat, regardless of their boating knowledge. Back in the day when we made those runs to the Cooper, why we just added a few more jerry jugs of fuel.
quote:
Originally posted by chuck141wThat is a great article. They were supposed to put a landing on the old Navy base but it never happened. They put a marina there that is very nice but really only useful for sailboats because they do not sell fuel. The county has no trouble collecting taxes on boats but will not invest money on landings. The lack parking at existing landings and the lack of landings in general has been an issue for 15 years. There is plenty of land on the old navy base and that would be a great spot for a landing. The construction of a landing would be very expensive but a very small percentage of the taxes that are collected yearly. They could even put in a toll booth to help recover some of the cost and maintenance. I would gladly pay for a decent landing in that area and feel sure that most people would be as well.
Charlie
www.tidedownsportfishing.com
(843)312-2981
To this point: All manufacturers of fishing gear (for example, mine: Ralph Phillips Inshore, makers of Trout Eye jigs) pay a 10% Federal Excise Tax for each sale of a product. Huge tax! Its embedded in the price of any fishing tackle you buy. It goes to the government and is sent back to the states for use for things like: BUILDING NEW BOAT RAMPS! The question we need to be asking, is where is that money going? Well, for one, its going to dredging the privately owned city marina. Or, its kept quiet until it can fall into the general fund. Folks, the good old boy network is alive and well, and as citizens if we don’t make our voices heard that money will continue to be used for other purposes. Call you Tri-County Delegation representative and ask where is that money going and why isn’t it being used for more and better access to our waterways.
Here is an excerpt from an article about Sportfishing Fe
Along with the lack of public water access, I see another problem.
We are developing waterfront land without mandating local community/private ramps.
If each community had their own ramps the demand on public ramps would decrease.
Since very few communities provide private water access, people that live on the water are towing boats to the public ramps.
This is a regulatory problem and development permits should be blocked until sufficient water access and parking is provided. Boat ramps go in before you can build any houses. A small green space and parking should also be included.
Even if this means the developer has to give up a premium lot.
Solutions:
Finish building out the Cooper River Marina like the people asked in the beginning. 4 lanes with 2 floating docks. Expand the parking area.
Alternate to this:
Build a large ramp facility on the land at the end of Romney St past the Republic Services facility. I believe that is Dept of AG land (between Coal Tipple and Cooper River bridge).
At minimum, remove the trestle from RM Hendricks Park. Add more lighting in the parking area.
Build a ramp at Yeamans Hall Rd and N Rhett next to the bridge.
Build a ramp near the upper end of the Goose Creek Reservoir. Maybe behind the Primary School on the back side of the fields.
Leave Bushy Park Saltwater side to the kayakers and daredevils.
Build new Bushy Park ramp on “Big Island”. Between Current boat ramp and Bushy Park Industrial Park.
Lots of solutions land left to build suitable sustainable water access.
Excellent points, friogatto. Thanks
2000 SeaPro 180CC w/ Yammy 115 2 stroke
1966 13’ Boston Whaler w/ Merc 25 4 stroke “Flatty”
www.ralphphillipsinshore.com
With todays waterfront land values, and the cost of permits to disturb wetlands, dock permits and so on, its no wonder there are fewer landings being built today.I would say most waterfront property is owned by private citizens who want nothing to do with the crowds and issues with boat landings. Most have to remember this area was not heavily populated not that long ago, and the ramps were sufficient for those using them.
One also has to consider access to the landing from vehicle and boat, is the creek deep enough at all tides? what size boats would be able to use it? The 31’ Contender owner has the same right to the landing as the guy with 18’ flats boat, and the guy with the 14’ jon boat.
Some things to consider before criticizing .
The added expense going through regulatory bodies has not made it easy to build private boat ramps but I don’t see developers having problems building houses on that same land. Where there is a will there is a way.
The truth is they wont make as much money so they just don’t do it. More over people are stupid enough to pay for houses on/near the water with no access. It only encourages the developers to avoid building water access.
I do agree that the ramps must meet the needs of reasonably sized boats for that body of water. The problem now is that none of the existing Cooper River ramps allow access for large boats. Bushy was built to accommodate larger boats, but has silted in, severely diminishing it’s original capability. Virginia Ave ramp has never allowed large boat access since the train trestle is in the way.
From what I have read they wanted to put a ramp in near Shipyard Creek but the local industry partners blocked it saying there would be to much boat traffic or some other excuse.
Look how big Goose Creek is. It runs from NAD road all the way to the Cooper River. There is 1 public ramp to the GCR and zero public access to Goose Creek itself even though it is surrounded by neighborhoods.
Daniel Island has Zero public boat landings that I could find. Now is the time to put on in before the whole island is developed.
Wando River has 2 public ramps, Shem Creek has 1. 68,000 people in Mt P have to share 3 public ramps. Not counting all the people from other areas that drive to Remleys, Shem, or Paradise Island. This is the rich part of town and even they cant get adequate boat ramps.
Cooper River
2 severely degrade public boat ramps.
Ashley River
WO Thomas Jr for all of West Ashley, Charleston, and North Charleston. Ladson gets Herbert H Jessen ramp.
Stono River
Limehouse, Riverland terrace, Wappoo Cut service Charleston, North Charleston, James and Johns Island along with surrounding areas.
Estimated close to 700,000 residents living around the 4 main rivers and we ha
AMEN!!!
2000 SeaPro 180CC w/ Yammy 115 2 stroke
1966 13’ Boston Whaler w/ Merc 25 4 stroke “Flatty”
www.ralphphillipsinshore.com
Why is it the developers fault for no landings on waterfront properties? Not everyone building a custom home wants the added headaches of a neighborhood ramp, and not everyone owns a boat. County and Govt officials knew the growth that was slated for the tri county area, looks to me like they dropped the ball.
I don’t think some realize the actual cost of a double or triple lane boat ramp. The link below will show some ramp construction costs and what it takes to maintain them. Yes its out of Florida, but we aren’t that far behind them as far as property values go, which seems to be the bigger hurdle.
http://myfwc.com/media/1564634/RUM-FinalBoatingAccessConferencePresentation.pdf
I must be coming apart. I find myself agreeing with poly ball almost all the time lately. Really troubles me
This is a regulatory problem, not just a developer problem.
It is in the Developers interest to provide neighborhood ramps. I’m pretty sure a neighborhood ramp built by the developer the way they wanted (mostly) would be much less money than if we started enforcing further regulations for “greenspace” and developed a mandatory water access regulations.
There is plenty of money, it’s just being used for “other”. That has been addressed above.
Money was allocated to Bushy Park dredging, they had already paid for the surveys and probability testing. This is not a money problem, it’s a priority problem.
quote:There may be plenty of money in the form of government taxation, but I still don't see how you claim its in the developers best interest to construct a boat landing.. Again, not everyone building a custom home wants to deal with a boat ramp in their community. If the developer cant pass the cost to the homeowner , he has to eat it.
Originally posted by friogattoThis is a regulatory problem, not just a developer problem.
It is in the Developers interest to provide neighborhood ramps. I’m pretty sure a neighborhood ramp built by the developer the way they wanted (mostly) would be much less money than if we started enforcing further regulations for “greenspace” and developed a mandatory water access regulations.There is plenty of money, it’s just being used for “other”. That has been addressed above.
Money was allocated to Bushy Park dredging, they had already paid for the surveys and probability testing. This is not a money problem, it’s a priority problem.
A lot of waterfront property being developed in the area is obtained from individual owners or their family members. Many of those selling to developers have added in the contract what can and can’t be built, I know of one in Mt.Pleasant, on a tidal creek that would have been deep enough. The family selling looked at the final plan, and asked the developer to scratch the boat ramp, they didn’t want to see that on their property, period.
There’s one being built by 5-26 on the Wando side of Daniel Island.
21 Contender
And with this (read below - I’m in the international shipping industry, hence the report) in the works they should highly consider the amount of people moving our way within the next few years and boats coming with them… Not to mention the Super Port going in beside North Charleston Terminal!
South Carolina Will Get Boost From Expanded Panama Canal
Inland Greenville-Spartanburg region, called the Upstate, gears up for business boom
By
Erica E. Phillips
June 23, 2016 5:30 a.m. ET
THE UPSTATE, S.C.—When the Panama Canal opens up a new lane for bigger ships this month, much of the cargo they carry will be headed for this quiet corner of the Southeast, some 200 miles inland.
In the past few years, the rolling hills and farmland surrounding Greenville and Spartanburg have given way to massive warehouses and industrial parks. Restaurants in Greenville, S.C.’s formerly neglected downtown cater to corporate managers and engineers from Germany and Japan. Trucks clog the two main interstates, carrying engine parts and finished goods to and from the region’s growing number of manufacturing plants.
More development is on the way: over six million square feet of warehouse space is under construction in the Greenville-Spartanburg region, a scale typically seen in major cities like Philadelphia and St. Louis, according to CBRE Inc., a real-estate brokerage.
The construction frenzy is being fueled by developments at the Panama Canal, nearly 2,000 miles away. The new, wider ship channel will allow bigger ships to pass through, lowering the cost of bringing Asian-made goods directly to the East Coast.
Cities from the Gulf Coast to New York are also trying to lure more Asian imports once the canal opens. Economists and developers say the Upstate’s low labor costs and acres of cheap, undeveloped land, give the region an edge. They also cite its manufacturing base, as the auto industry draws suppliers to locate closer to factories, and growing auto exports require bigger ocean vessels to reach customers ar
I don’t know how well advertised most boat ramps are but I did happen to see this one a few months back while looking for projects to bid. ( https://bids.dorchestercounty.net/Index.aspx?show=spec&id=160f330d-502a-47b7-818c-34ced8b6b84d ). The beginning of the RFQ reads “The Dorchester County Parks and Recreation Department (DCPRD) is seeking qualification statements from design firms/teams to provide assistance with planning and design, development of construction documents, bid process assistance, and construction administration for two canoe and kayak launch sites on the Ashley River.”
Still in design phase and not for boats but it’s better than nothing.
Lets face it guys. The Charleston area as a whole has been poorly planned. Municipalities should have been buying land for better infrastructure 30 years ago for improvements to make today and buying land now for improvements in 30 years. Honestly roads and ramps will only get worse, likely much worse, before things are improved.
This is what we get when there’s too many politicians making decisions and not professionals (engineers, teachers, scientist, etc) that can provide more informed decisions on many topics.
First, Most, Biggest
quote:
Originally posted by friogattoAt minimum, remove the trestle from RM Hendricks Park. Add more lighting in the parking area.
The lighting is possible…the trestle is another problem. I ask about the trestle and was told (not sure if it true) but there is a gas line that runs across the trestle and the cost to remove or relocate it would be too high. Plus I notice when I went out the other day, another post must have fell because the center pylon has only 2 instead of 3 post.
https://www.instagram.com/charlestonskiff/
Grand Slam…What!!! Do you mean at Denny’s! Man do I love pancakes!