Charleston seeks input on Peninsula Plan update

The city of Charleston is entering a new phase of The Charleston Peninsula Plan that will guide growth from the Battery to the Neck, for decades to come.

Once adopted by the Charleston City Council, The Peninsula Plan will serve as a toolkit for tackling important issues like transportation, flooding, housing, public space, tourism, economic development and quality of life, according to a city news release.

Public input remains central to this process. Starting Thursday, July 9, the city will host Open Studio hours every Thursday from 3-6 p.m. through Oct. 29 at the Charleston Civic Design Center, 85 Calhoun St. Residents can drop in anytime to view work in progress and talk with project staff, with a different related project featured each week and a team representative on hand for deeper questions.

“Our team is hard at work, and we are excited to re-engage the community in this effort,” Chloe Stuber, senior planner for the city of Charleston, said in the news release. “This isn’t a staff or consultant plan, it’s the community’s plan, and we need strong public involvement to get this right.”

The Peninsula has not had a comprehensive update to its guiding plan since the 1999 Charleston Downtown Plan. Since then, the city’s population has grown by more than half, and the urban landscape has changed dramatically, the release said. The Peninsula Plan will extend to the Upper Peninsula and the Neck (previously outside the 1999 boundary, which ended at Line Street), build a complete safety-first mobility network strategy, update the city’s Tourism Management Plan, and unify major projects like the Lowcountry Lowline, Battery Extension, and Project 3500 into one cohesive plan for the Peninsula’s future.

“We have several major initiatives in the pipeline for the Peninsula,” Mayor William Cogswell said in the release. “The Peninsula Plan will help us tie these initiatives together in an efficient and thoughtful way that enhances our community and urban footprint for years to come.”

For more information on The Peninsula Plan, including the full timeline, guiding principles, and a complete list of aligned Peninsula projects, visit https://www.charleston-sc.gov/PeninsulaPlan. The Peninsula Plan team is also available to attend community, business or neighborhood group events. Email [email protected] to schedule a visit.