Berkeley Co. vote lifts two moratoriums on Black Tom Road

BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) - The Berkeley County Land Use Committee has lifted two moratoriums on Black Tom Road, kickstarting months of discussions before anything begins construction.

These decisions come after both votes were postponed in the last few months.

With the majority of the committee and public comment in favor of lifting the moratorium under certain restrictions, developers still can’t shy away from making some changes to their plans.

In a 420-acre Indigo Oaks project, developers have decided to make this area predominantly commercial. They say they hope to add medical offices, retail spaces and things that would support the surrounding residents on Hwy 176 at Black Tom Road.

With committee members calling this road a “nightmare,” Councilman Josh Whitley has made amendments to this moratorium lift: asking for the county attorney to secure legal opinion on restricting utility access across the Black Tom Road Extension and addressing the timing of development to complement planned infrastructure.

For the second project, Tamarama Capital LLC is trying to build a water-based recreation facility in the Black Tom Road area, commercial land and 250-350 residential units on about 78 acres.

In a similar conversation to the previous project, the committee has concerns about how the infrastructure is going to keep up with the development. They have strongly encouraged the developers to reduce the residential space or take it out entirely, but no official amendments were made.

Each of these moratoriums was lifted in a majority vote with only one no each.

Berkeley County Assistant Public Information Officer Taylor James says these approvals authorize each applicant to begin coordinating with county staff to develop a draft Planned Development proposal to submit to the planning commission and, ultimately, the county council.

For more information on the moratorium process, click here.