Photo Provided

Conceptual rendering of the possible layout of the riverside property currently being negotiated by County Council. The illustration was done pro bono by Thomas & Hutton under the direction of Kevin Shoemake.

Photo by: Jay Byars/for The Journal Scene

Pictured is a pond view from the dock.

Photo by: Jay Byars/for The Journal Scene

A covered gazebo dock is already in place on the property.

Photo by: Jay Byars/for The Journal Scene

Infrastructure already in place, like this floating dock, will save the taxpayers money, according to Byars.

Photo by: Jay Byars/for The Journal Scene

The footbridge is already in place for the proposed park.

Photo by: Jay Byars/for The Journal Scene

Pictured is the trail leading to the footbridge in the distance.

Photo by: Jay Byars/for The Journal Scene

Pictured the roadbed already in place that needs to be paved.

Click here to see a larger image of the illustration.

Dorchester County Council is poised to pull the trigger on more than 80 acres near Bacons Bridge Road adjacent to Richard Rosebrock Park.

Dorchester County Council has been in negotiations with a national bank to buy the property for several months. Council Chair Larry Hargett said council is actively negotiating with the bank but has not closed a deal yet.

“I’d say we are very hopeful that we can make the purchase,” he said. “Right now, we know we would like to acquire this property. It has quite a bit of river frontage we would like to preserve for the citizens of Dorchester County, never to be developed. But it’s not final yet.”

Councilman George Bailey has been acting as the point man in negotiations with the bank and said the county and bank have negotiated to within $60,000.

“We’re not going to lose the property over $60,000, but I don’t want to spend $60,000 of your tax dollars unless I have to,” he said.

The county would use funds from the $5 million parks and conservation bond to buy the land, Bailey said.

Because the land had been slated to be developed into dozens of homes, it is a conservation project, he said.

The property consists of a two-acre parcel on Bacons Bridge Road adjacent to Richard Rosebrock Park and another 80 acres next to that parcel off Bacons Bridge Road.

Parks and Recreation Commission Members Rita May Ranck and Mike Montei both say the property fits very well with the commission’s county wide green space goals.

“The property is just beautiful,” Ranck said. “It will be a wonderful asset to the citizens of Dorchester County. Some residents could literally be back to nature within the space of a five minute drive.”

More specifically, the park offers a unique opportunity to preserve a major green space in what is a heavily populated area of the county. The property has a number of natural amenities, including a very large pond with a dock, some preliminary infrastructure in place – including a trail – and some 3,000 feet of frontage on the Ashley River.

Bailey called the land “a jewel for Dorchester County.”

“This would be a passive park, more for outdoor and nature activities, but not as rustic as Rosebrock Park,” Dorchester County Councilmember Jay Byars said. “By the same token, it’s not going to be soccer fields and ball parks either.”

In fact, this park would likely be designed in a similar fashion as Charleston County’s James Island or Wannamaker Park, with large picnic shelters, campsites, and finished trails. The pond could conceivably be used for kayaking and canoeing activities as well as fishing and nature education, he said.

Councilman David Chinnis said the property has great conservation and possibly historic value.

“I feel even better about this than I do Pine Trace,” he said.

People began asking about using picnic shelters or pavilions at Pine Trace as soon as the acquisition was announced, but Pine Trace is more of a long-term project, according to  Chinnis.

The Ashley River site, however, already has roads, walkways and bridges so would need less preparation to be ready for the public, he said.

The property is the perfect place to leave green and let people get outside, Chinnis said.

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