Posted On 03 Nov 2022,

As Union Pier shifts from a homeport cruise business to a port-of-call cruise business in 2025, nearly 70 acres in downtown Charleston will open up.

South Carolina Ports Authority and Lowe have been gathering input during four public meetings on what the 70 acres will be turned into.

They have taken the input and formed a potential plan.

That plan shows Union Pier being developed into a mixed-use neighborhood for people to live, work, and enjoy the water.

Green spaces, workspaces, retail, restaurants, hotels, residential and workforce housing, plus an event space, are included in the plan.

"I think it's the most important thing of this whole redevelopment... Is the return and openings, public access to the waterfront," Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg said.

Mayor Tecklenburg says the redevelopment will make the waterfront accessible by extending the waterfront park and creating flooding solutions.

"The sea level is rising, no doubt about it. The development of this site gives us a unique opportunity not only to better manage the water that we already have but to help protect us from the water to come," Mayor Tecklenburg said.

Mobility enhancements and more parking options are also included.

"That opening up of Concord Street is going to create a whole other North South Avenue for vehicles to come and go up and down the peninsula. The redesign will make Washington Street what it was intended to be when it was built in the 90s," Mayor Tecklenburg said.

Plus, designers say the site's history will be honored with past themes, including assets like the Bennett Rice Mill façade and Mosquito Fleet.

"This ruin, this memory of a time period in Charleston needs to be returned to a place of civic presence in the city, both physically, but also its cultural legacy and the history associated," Jeff Williams with Perkins+Will said.

The development will incorporate designs complimenting the neighborhood and blending with the city’s existing architecture.

"It's our intention to extend that fabric in the most responsible way. Giving access to the waterfront, growing the city in a way that grows with the DNA of Charleston, and adding new elements to the city. New landmarks, new views, new experiences that people do not have," Willams said.

The port authority plans to sell the property by the end of 2023.

Revenue from the sale will help fund critical port infrastructure projects.

Original Article : Proposed Future Of The Union Pier Includes Green Spaces, Waterfronts, and More