Jasper County’s Chelsea Plantation – the site of a proposed development that drew widespread, vocal opposition from citizens throughout the Lowcountry – has been
purchased for conservation and will now be preserved.
The Nature Conservancy in South Carolina (TNC-SC) today announced the acquisition of the 2,737-acre property, identified as a high priority for conservation and under significant
threat of development.
“Chelsea’s fate was one of this region’s major tipping points for the future of its wildlife habitat, historical character, and water quality,” said Dale Threatt-Taylor, executive director, TNC-SC. “Developing Chelsea would have ushered in a new era of expansion in an already fast-growing region. We weren’t willing to leave it to chance.”
The purchase of Chelsea secures more than seven miles of frontage along Hazzard Creek, which drains into the Broad River and is part of Port Royal Sound watershed. The water frontage also acts as a critical saltwater marsh migration corridor that will help the area adapt to future ecosystem changes and protect the water quality in Port Royal Sound. Additionally, the property expands an existing corridor of protected longleaf pine forests, which are vital for game and non-game wildlife.
The property was highly targeted for development, due to its prime location in the US Highway 278 corridor that connects Hilton Head to I-95 and significant developable water frontage. Residents of the small communities that dot the area and citizens of nearby Beaufort County were largely against those plans.
“Buying Chelsea was a true community effort,” said David Bishop, coastal and midlands director of conservation, TNC-SC. “Groups like ‘Keep Chelsea Rural’ went door-to-door with flyers against developing the property, there were local billboards saying folks wanted to preserve their rural community, and of course, we’re incredibly grateful for the many donors who stepped up and helped fund this acquisition.”
The acquisition of Chelsea was made possible through generous donations from the Gleason Family Foundation, Marshall Field V, Chloe Field, Stephanie Harris and Family, Abby and Lloyd Gerry, Lowcountry Land Trust Capacity Fund, many residents from the Spring Island community, and several anonymous donors; and loan funds from Friends of Chelsea LLC, Newcastle Foundation and Trustees Tim Barberich and Eileen Gebrian, Beaufort County residents Dan and Marty Boone, Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, South Carolina Office of Resilience, and Coastal Community Foundation.
Future plans for Chelsea include TNC-SC placing a conservation easement on the property with Open Land Trust to permanently limit development, then transferring the property to the South Carolina Forestry Commission to create a new state forest open for public access.
The purchase of Chelsea Plantation is the latest effort by TNC-SC to create a conservation corridor between the famed ACE Basin and protected properties along the Savannah River. Other recent projects in the area have included the protection of the 7,300-acre Buckfield Plantation (now part of the new Coosawhatchie Wildlife Management Area) in July 2022 in partnership with Open Space Institute and the 4,409-acre Gregorie Neck property in February 2024.
We’re very happy to see that this pristine land will be preserved in the Lowcountry.
Also Read: Another 900 acres of land in Beaufort now protected
