North Charleston, SC - The South Carolina State Ports Authority (SPA) today joined community leaders near the site of the new Navy Base Terminal to announce the second installment in a ground-breaking $4-million community mitigation project.
In a ceremony at Gethsemani Community Center in the Union Heights neighborhood, SPA President & CEO Bernard S. Groseclose Jr. presented a $300,000 check to North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey. Last year, the SPA presented $750,000 in first-year funding and is contributing $300,000 annually to the community through 2013.
The SPA is providing the funds in partnership with the City of North Charleston and the Lowcountry Alliance for Model Communities (LAMC), a group of seven neighborhoods near the terminal site.
LAMC worked with the SPA over several months to ensure that the new container terminal will have the greatest positive impact on the surrounding area. The resulting Community Mitigation Agreement calls for the SPA to fund $4.08 million in community, neighborhood and economic development projects such as scholarships, affordable housing and revitalization plans.
"LAMC's partnership with the Ports Authority means great things for our community," said North Charleston City Councilman Michael Brown, who serves as president of LAMC. "For example, we were able to provide educational opportunities for our residents, with thousands of dollars in scholarships awarded just last month. We will soon begin work on a comprehensive community plan that will serve as a roadmap for revitalizing and strengthening our neighborhoods."
While virtually all major port development projects include traditional 'green' mitigation for wetlands and other impacts, this is one of the first port expansion projects that included both community and environmental programming as part of the formal mitigation plan.
Specific priorities in the Community Mitigation Plan include:
The community mitigation is part of a larger $12-million mitigation program to offset direct and indirect impacts of the SPA's new container terminal at the former Navy Base. To learn more about the SPA's environmental initiative, please visit www.pledgeforgrowth.com.