The Lowcountry Lowline is a planned linear park in Charleston, South Carolina to be located on 1.7 miles of old railroad roadbed. It will run from Mt. Pleasant Street to Courtland Street.
23-581: The park was first proposed in 2015 by a nonprofit group, the Friends of the Lowcountry Lowline (FLL). The FLL has already done much of the planning for the park. However, in 2022, Charleston city officials were awarded a $ 7 million grant from the federal grant to be used exclusively for planning purposes. As of August 2024, city officials have not used any portion of that grant because if they do, federal planning requirements will add approximately 3 to 5 years to
46-586: A Master of Science in Real Estate Development from Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation in 2003. A member of the Republican Party , Cogswell served in the South Carolina House of Representatives from the 110th District from 2016 to 2022. Cogswell was elected mayor on November 21, 2023 after defeating incumbent John Tecklenburg in a runoff. He is
69-468: A prior Norfolk Southern rail line, and that company along with other rail lines historically used arsenical herbicides to slow plant growth along rail lines, a National Environmental Protection Act review will have to be conducted. In 2011, the average amount of time it took public projects to complete the NEPA review process was longer than six years. The city of Charleston has long had issues with flooding and
92-504: A private entity such as FLL. In 2021, the City announced it was looking to spend $ 4 million on the Lowline to help complete the first phase from Line Street to Huger Street due to the development the line is expected to spur. City council members believe that funding the Lowline now will increase tax revenues in the special tax district in which it sits. The increase in tax revenue would then allow
115-675: Is currently advocating for phased construction of the park. Completed in the early-1830s, the line was originally part of the South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company . The railroad operated the first regular trains pulled by steam locomotives in the United States. During the American Civil War , the successor company ( South Carolina Rail Road ) maintained the supply line into the city’s downtown. Some contextually important railroad and warehouse buildings still exist. In 2015,
138-499: Is the first Republican mayor of Charleston since 1877. William Cogswell was born on January 14, 1975, in Charleston, South Carolina . He is a distant relative of Colonel Milton Cogswell , who was named a provisional Mayor of Charleston in 1868. Cogswell graduated from The University of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee in 1997 with a Bachelor of Arts in history and English. He earned
161-598: The United States . LCRT is expected to eventually consist of 24 buses that will ferry people between the medical district in downtown Charleston to Summerville at $ 2 per fare. The current plan is for the system to traverse approximately 22 miles, making it one of the longest rapid transportation systems in the United States. The system will start with 18 stops, a large portion of which are likely to be on Rivers Avenue in North Charleston. The exact locations for many of
184-418: The 2024 Republican presidential primary race. On December 15, 2023, Cogswell announced his appointment of senior staff: This article about a South Carolina politician is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Lowcountry Rapid Bus System The Lowcountry Rapid Transit system (LCRT) is a bus rapid transit system in development which will initially connect downtown Charleston to
207-600: The Exchange Park in Ladson, North Charleston (also known as the Ladson Fairgrounds). Plans are for the system to eventually reach Summerville , South Carolina. The LCRT is the first mass transit project in the history of South Carolina . Construction is slated to begin in 2026 and the system is expected to begin operating by late 2028 or early 2029. When completed, the system will be among the longest rapid transit systems in
230-463: The Friends of the Lowcountry Lowline (FLL) reached an agreement with Norfolk Southern to purchase 1.7 miles of land along the ridge of Charleston's peninsula within two years. The former railroad right-of-way had existed in Charleston since the 1820s but hadn't been used for over a decade. In 2017, Norfolk Southern and the city of Charleston met the terms of the agreement at a price of $ 4.6 million which
253-498: The Lowline is believed to be capable of alleviating storm runoff in some areas of the city. One park proposed for the Lowline is the Newmarket Park which would be a "storm water wetland" that would create an outlet for the nearby New Market Creek. Additionally, the proposed Poinsette Park would be a large, open space capable of holding water. The conceptual study for the Lowline states that capturing and treating "all runoff created by
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#1732868641996276-662: The Lowline will have an estimated economic impact in Charleston of $ 4.8 billion. Community feedback was sought by the Friends of the Lowcountry in February 2020 after the release of the park's conceptual study. In early 2021, preliminary funding of the park began. The Charleston City Council voted in April, 2021, to spend $ 250,000 to help the Friends of the Lowcountry Lowline design and plan the park. Several council members representing portions of West Ashley expressed concern about allocating money to
299-422: The Lowline. William S. Cogswell Jr. William Scott Cogswell Jr. (born January 14, 1975) is an American politician and businessman who is mayor of the city of Charleston . A member of the Republican Party , he previously served in the South Carolina House of Representatives from the 110th District from 2016 to 2022. Cogswell was elected mayor in 2023 after defeating incumbent John Tecklenburg and
322-449: The area. As of July 28, 2023, BCDCOG and officials for the bus rapid transit system are hosting public input meetings for the project. Currently, the project is planned to begin construction in 2026 with a late 2028 or early 2029 finalization date. In 2024, BCDCOG began conducting a feasibility study for a separate bus rapid transit system along the Highway 52 corridor. Preliminary plans of
345-400: The city to make stormwater upgrades in other parts of the city, particular the eastern portion of the Charleston peninsula. The project secured $ 10 million in funding in 2022, which consisted of $ 7 million in federal grants and $ 3 million in city funding. The Friends of the Lowcountry will use the funding, in part, for community engagement and strategy. Moreover, because the park will run along
368-599: The development of the LCRT in 2014. Due to the area's geographic population spread, BCDCOG determined that rail was impractical. Costs for LCRT are estimated to be $ 625 million. In 2018, the Federal Transit Administration provided a $ 880,000 grant to aid in planning for development along the line. In 2021, the administration provided another $ 860,000 to BCDCOG for key development tools. A transit framework plan also determined other potential bus transit corridors in
391-442: The elevated roadways" is a priority of the project. Plants on the Lowline will be native to the area and a key component of the park's water management function. Charleston has also had issues with cyclist safety. In Charleston's first ever bicycle infrastructure study, the Lowline was the central component on the plan for a "robust urban bikeway system" on the peninsula. The bikeway down the Lowline will have two 6-foot wide lanes at
414-549: The first Republican mayor of Charleston since 1877. Endorsements for Cogswell included South Carolina Senator Tim Scott , state Representative Mark Smith , and state Senator Larry Grooms . South Carolina Republican Party chair Drew McKissick said in a press statement that Cogswell's victory represented a "shifting momentum," referencing Republican mayors elected in South Carolina's largest cities: Greenville , Columbia , and Charleston. Cogswell endorsed Nikki Haley in
437-601: The minimum, separated by a median and with designated crossings. Additionally, the Lowcountry Rapid Transit System could possibly have a transit hub near the Lowline on Mt. Pleasant Street and the city is looking to build affordable housing units on F and H streets. The planned pedestrian bridge over the Ashley River connecting the West Ashley Greenway to downtown Charleston may eventually connect with
460-472: The park's construction timeline. According to Logan McVey, the current chief policy officer to Charleston's mayor, William S. Cogswell Jr. , the park "has been on the shelf for so long that people aren't sure it's ever going to happen." Nonetheless, in 2024, city officials visited Atlanta to meet with representatives of the nonprofit that helped build the Atlanta Beltline to learn how they did so. The FLL
483-512: The peninsula's ridge. It will also be a flood management project that will have a "wetland park" to be a reservoir for storm water. The project is often compared to the New York City High Line or Atlanta's fledgling BeltLine . The Lowline is expected to cost $ 30 million to complete. It is expected that the park will be constructed over the next decade in phases. A study conducted in 2016 estimated that after twenty years of operation
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#1732868641996506-549: The stops have not been determined yet. The scope of the work for the project currently includes adding dedicated bus lanes to the medians along key streets such as Rivers Avenue, adding traffic signals to give buses priority at intersections, constructing twenty bus stations and several park-and-rides, as well as overall road improvements. The system will use existing infrastructure from Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA) when possible. The Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments (BCDCOG) started
529-426: Was significantly below previous cost estimates. The city also purchased two additional properties adjacent to the former railroad line from Norfolk Southern which may be used for affordable housing units. In May 2018, work began to remove the land's abandoned rails and switches. When completed, the Lowcountry Lowline will be downtown Charleston's second largest park. It will consist of pedestrian and bicycle paths along
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