BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) – The Berkeley County Council recently voted to establish the creation of a Berkeley County Conservation and Greenbelt Advisory Commission.
The nine-member Commission will be to provide advice and recommendations to Berkeley County Council on “Greenbelt Preservation Projects”.
Each Council member will nominate one member from their respective district.
These projects will be apart of the Greenbelt Preservation Plan, which aims to keep green spaces intact.
The commission will develop a master plan for the expenses of Greenbelt funding received as a result of the Berkeley County One Cent Sales and Use Tax Referendum.
Last year 72% of residents voted to pass the penny sales tax for both road improvements and the Greenbelt plan.
The plan gets 10% of the penny sales tax and will last for seven years.
County officials anticipate about $ 60 million in Greenbelt funds over the next seven years.
The commission will also educate the public and conduct any studies, plans, activities, or projects assigned by the council.
Berkeley County Council member, Josh Whitley, shares how helpful the commission will be.
“It’s another tool in our toolkit to make sure that we are preserving quality of life in Berkeley County. We all know growth is coming. It’s here. It happens every day. And its income and there are good things that come with growth these funds for example, but we need to make sure we’re trying to balance quality of life and infrastructure pressure with that growth,” Whitely said.
The council is expected to close on their first greenbelt project, which is the preservation of North Island.
The nine members should be selected in the next month or two.
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