Flooding will get worse.
The current plan puts roughly half of all homes in the Tidal Flood Risk Zone and fills 180 acres of wetlands that naturally store and filter 180 million gallons of floodwaters. Charleston's own City Plan now restricts development in floodplains; yet the Cainhoy Development proceeds under the outdated 1996 agreement.
Traffic will reach crisis levels. Recent studies show the Cainhoy Development alone would triple traffic volumes on Clements Ferry Road by 2040, pushing it to a failing grade despite the millions recently spent to widen it. Emergency response times will suffer.
700 - 900 docks will be strewn across the marshes. This pristine peninsula will be covered with up to 900 private docks, damaging marsh ecosystems and navigability around the peninsula.
Historic communities will be harmed. The Jack Primus settlement community, home to over 200 residents living in homes built on family land passed down for generations, will suffer from increasing traffic and taxes, while losing access to historic burial grounds and churches.
Wildlife habitat will disappear. Endangered species like the Northern long-eared bat and red cockaded woodpecker will lose critical forest habitat as the Cainhoy Development spreads across thousands of acres.
The City of Charleston has the legal authority and moral obligation to apply modern standards to this project.
