Groove to the Music with Dance Classes Near James Island, SC

Updated with visitor information on Friday, Oct. 13

Something green is coming to Charleston, and we’re not talking about St. Patrick’s Day. A new state park is in the works at the tip of James Island. We spoke with SC State Parks Director Paul McCormack for the latest on the project.

The waterfront park will be located on 23 acres at the end of Fort Johnson Road, adjacent to the Fort Johnson historic site. The parcel is managed by the SC Dept. of Parks, Recreation & Tourism.

In 2021, the state purchased the land from the Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy for $23 million. The May Forest Convent located on-site is expected to be converted into an event venue that will be the main component of the new park. Funding has not yet been secured for the venue construction project.

Charlestonians can look forward to a day-use recreation and picnicking area with views of the Charleston Harbor, the Ravenel Bridge, and Fort Sumter. There is an existing gazebo and bench swing. Conceptual images are not yet available, but stay tuned.

An event space, lodging, and a dock may be added in the future. A structural assessment of the property is expected to determine park features down the road. What would you like to see this new park offer? Let us know.

In addition, there is a master plan that envisions the entire ~100-acre Fort Johnson area that is separate from the state park project.

The park is expected to open this spring or summer. There is currently no timeline for potential future amenities, but keep an eye on the newsletter for updates. The plans for Fort Johnson, which surrounds the state park area, are long-term.

May Forest launched its soft opening phase. The new state park on the northeast waterfront of James Island offers views of the Charleston Harbor, Ravenel Bridge, and Fort Sumter, plus woodland and fields abutting the shore.

The park is far from finished — but you can stroll for yourself now.

The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources bought the 23-acre park land from the Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy for $23.25 million in 2021.

May Forest State Park and the ~100-acre Fort Johnson area make up a long-term development plan including updated trail access, greenspace, historical interpretation, and research campuses.

The park is located at 424 Fort Johnson Rd. Since it occupies one tip of James Island, navigating is easy: just follow the road to its end and follow the signage for visitor parking.

During the soft opening phase, the park is open from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. on weekdays, grounds only.

May Forest is currently hiring a park ranger. Once they do, you’ll be able to visit on weekends, too.

Currently, May Forest offers walking trails and four picnic tables to unwind by the water. Pets are welcome in most areas, but you’ll need to keep them leashed.

As the park grows, look forward to an event space at the old May Forest Convent, overnight accommodations, and dining options.

Those who live on or travel through Johns Island say they have mixed feelings about a new road designed to connect Maybank Highway to two other roadways.

JOHNS ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - Those who live on or travel through Johns Island say they have mixed feelings about a new road designed to connect Maybank Highway to two other roadways.

Work is continuing on what is called the Northern Pitchfork, which will connect Maybank Highway to Fenwick Hall Allee and River Road. That work will require lane closures from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday on Maybank Highway at River Road.

Some residents are hopeful it can be part of a solution for what they say is horrendous traffic but others say it’s just a Band-Aid on a bullet wound.

There is also frustration surrounding the daytime lane closures for Friday, as residents believe it will be a nightmare, and the work should be done overnight instead.

Charleston County Construction Project Manager Sheila Parker said this has to get done in a specific window of time and they don’t want project delays. The new road is something the city and county have been working on bringing to life for years, with the goal of alleviating congestion and moving traffic along on the island.

“People coming off of James Island onto Johns Island using the Maybank Highway corridor will be able to take the Northern Pitchfork road and kind of bypass the Maybank Highway and River Road traffic light,” Parker explained

Byhira Thorn, who frequents the island often, said she thinks the new road will cause confusion for drivers, and it’s not addressing the root issue.

“I think another lane in general needs to be added,” Thorn said. “I mean, they did it with the bridge which was awesome, but they need to do it with the island. The island itself all around, roads need to be doubled for sure.”

Johns Island resident Kristin Nolan said she hopes this will help, but wishes it was done sooner.

“First of all, I think they should have thought about this before all of the building that went on and the extra light that was put here,” Nolan said. “I feel bad for people that go to James Island in the morning if Maybank and River are backed up for miles.”

Earlier this month, Charleston leaders said they are working on a $30-million project to improve traffic on Johns Island, part of which includes widening Maybank Highway to four lanes from River Road to the Stono River Bridge. But funding for that has yet to be nailed down and those plans are years away.

The construction on Friday is weather-dependent and drivers are asked to use caution while driving through the area.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Any local high school football fan that loves offense would have enjoyed Friday night’s Class AAAA second-round playoff game between visiting Hartsville and unbeaten James Island.

Touchdowns and yards were piled up by both teams, but James Island had a bit more offense in the tank. The Trojans scored on five straight first-half possessions and improved to 12-0 with a 45-21 win.

James Island ventures into the third round next week and will host an undefeated Irmo High team.

James Island’s defense gave up yards but had two fourth-down stops, one early in the first quarter and another in the third quarter. Hartsville came into the game averaging better than 300 yards rushing per game, but it was James Island’s run game that dictated the outcome. The Trojans rushed for nearly 350 yards in the game.

“When we see something working early, we stick with it and we were having a lot of success running the ball,” James Island head coach Jamar McKoy said. “The O-line did a great job tonight. Backs ran hard, physical. It was a really good performance overall, but now it’s on to the next one.

“We’re the underdogs. A lot of people thought we would lose tonight,” McKoy said. “We just keep playing for as long as we can. We expect another challenge next week.”

In a wild first half that saw eight touchdowns and nearly 700 total yards between the two teams, the Trojans took a 35-21 halftime lead. The Trojans scored on five plays on their first possession with Amontrae Scott capping a 66-yard drive with a three-yard run.

After stopping Hartsville on downs, the Trojans went 61 yards on five plays and Tank Scott scoring on a 14-yard run for a 14-0 lead.

Hartsville answered on two plays, getting a 79-yard screen pass that Hakeem Watters took 79 yards for a score.

James Island needed seven plays to score a third first-quarter touchdown, but also needed some luck. A fumble on the Hartsville 1-yard line bounced into the hands of receiver Wushi Ravenel, who broke a tackle and fell into the end zone for a touchdown.

On the first play of the second quarter, Watters went 49 yards for a touchdown, cutting the James Island lead to 21-14. But the Trojans had yet another answer, using nine plays to go 70 yards with Amontrae Scott scoring on a 14-yard run.

Hartsville went 80 yards on eight plays with Carmello McDaniel pushing in from the 2-yard line to make it 28-21 Trojans.

Just before halftime. James Island scored again. A 45-yard pass from Braxton Scott to Ravenel set up Tank Scott’s 3-yard run for a 35-21 halftime lead.

James Island finished the first half with 360 total yards, while Hartsville totaled 311 yards.

“Hartsville has a high-powered offense so it’s hard to expect to shut them down completely,” McKoy said. “We challenged the defense at halftime and they responded. No points in the second half. Proud of those guys.”

James Island opened the third quarter with a fourth-down stop of Hartsville near midfield. Facing a third-and-20 from its own 44, James Island’s Braxton Scott, under pressure, found Jaden Singleton near the sideline. Singleton turned on the jets and beat the defense to the end zone for a 42-21 lead.

The Trojans threatened to score another touchdown late in the third but settled for a Gray Dangerfield 20-yard field goal with less than a minute remaining in the third quarter, pushing the lead to 45-21.

In other games:

• Oceanside Collegiate rolled past Woodland, 49-0, in Class AA as Tanner Swisher and Aiden Manivian each threw two TD passes, and Gavin Gaspar caught three scores ... Yannick Smith caught two touchdown passes and threw for another as No. 1 Summerville ousted Berkeley by 34-14 in Class AAAAA.

• Fort Dorchester, Stratford and West Ashley were all eliminated in AAAAA. Fort Dorchester went down 50-7 to White Knoll, Carolina Forest beat West Ashley by 28-21 and Sumter took out Stratford 27-6 ... In Class AAA, Gilbert raced by Hanahan by a score of 49-35, and Crestwood knocked off Philip Simmons by 34-14 ... And in Class AAAA, Lancaster ousted Lucy Beckham by 38-20.

• In Class A, Cross remained alive with a 28-18 win over Allendale-Fairfax ... In SCISA, Laurence Manning took out Porter-Gaud by 48-20; Patrick Henry eliminated Dorchester Academy by 17-13.

PREP FOOTBALL

SCHSL Playoffs

Second Round

Lower State

Class A

Bamberg-Ehrhardt 41, East Clarendon 13

Cross 28, Allendale-Fairfax 18

Johnsonville 35, Lake View 14

Lamar 23, Carvers Bay 20

Class AA

Andrew Jackson 51, Kingstree 20

Barnwell 31, Marion 25

Hampton County 48, Andrews 14

Oceanside Collegiate Academy 49, Woodland 0

Class AAA

Brookland-Cayce 34, Philip Simmons 14

Camden 35, Dillon 21

Crestwood 44, Beaufort 0

Gilbert 49, Hanahan 35

Class AAAA

Irmo 55, Myrtle Beach 24

James Island 45, Hartsville 21

Lancaster 38, Lucy G. Beckham 20

Class AAAAA

Carolina Forest 28, West Ashley 21

Summerville 34, Berkeley 14

Sumter 27, Stratford 6

White Knoll 50, Fort Dorchester 7

Upper State

Class A

Blackville-Hilda 28, Wagener-Salley 0

Christ Church Episcopal 43, McBee 21

Southside Christian 21, Calhoun County 7

St. Joseph 7, Lewisville 0

Class AA

Abbeville 41, Newberry 28

Gray Collegiate Academy 62, Chesnee 14

Silver Bluff 22, Fairfield Central 21

Class AAA

Belton-Honea Path 44, Pendleton 28

Chester 58, Chapman 24

Clinton 38, Broome 7

D.W. Daniel 35, Wren 21

Class AAAA

Greenville 24, Greer 21

Midland Valley 24, South Pointe 17

Northwestern 55, Greenwood 7

Westside 49, York Comprehensive 13

Class AAAAA

Dutch Fork 31, T.L. Hanna 28

Gaffney 24, Clover 12

J.L. Mann 17, Spartanburg 7

SCISA Playoffs

Semifinal

Class A

Patrick Henry Academy 17, Dorchester Academy 13

Robert E. Lee Academy 35, Thomas Heyward Academy 19

Class AA

Bethesda Academy, Ga. 32, Northside Christian 6

Williamsburg Academy 41, Beaufort Academy 6

Class AAA

Wilson Hall 21, Florence Christian 7

Class AAAA

Laurence Manning Academy 48, Porter-Gaud 20

The residents of James Island are now seeing and hearing coyotes throughout their community following a rise in coyote interactions on Sullivans Island.

JAMES ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - The residents of James Island are now seeing and hearing coyotes throughout their community following a rise in coyote interactions on Sullivans Island last month.

“Obviously, they’re here in our neighborhood, and we all need to be vigilant,” Lighthouse Point Neighborhood Association President Brook Lyon says.

Those who live in the Lighthouse Point community on James Island say they have recently seen and heard coyotes sometimes in broad daylight or in their backyards.

“I’ve had several reports over the last few weeks of people actually seeing the coyotes,” Lyon adds. “One last week was seen going across Schooner Road in broad daylight. Another photo was taken in the backyard of someone who has a chicken coop, and there’s live chickens there, which could be a potential food source for coyotes.”

Photos recorded on home security cameras show the coyotes on the island, concerning the community about their personal safety and their pets’ lives.

The Charleston County Sheriff’s Department says there is one reported incident with coyotes on James Island back in June.

Sullivans Island also reported five coyote attacks involving dogs in August, making the community on James Island even more worried.

“We are one town, one island, and we don’t want animals to start getting snatched or people getting attacked, like what has happened in other areas,” Lyon says.

Lyon and James Island Town Councilmember Troy Mullinax says they reached out to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources and was told there was no program to help them with coyotes in the neighborhood.

“My next step is to contact Governor McMaster because it’s a natural resource issue, and at this time, the town does not have any wildlife management people,” Lyon says.

“DNR does not have anything in place,” Mullinax adds. “This is something we’re going to address at our upcoming meeting this Thursday, and just let people know that there’s something we’re working on.”

To keep the coyotes out of your neighborhood, they recommend not feeding the wildlife or keeping any potential food source outside for them to find.

If you run into a coyote, you’re advised to react loudly, throw small sticks or cans or spray the animal with water.

The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources has not yet responded to a request for comment.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Trident Medical Center has submitted a Certificate of Need to the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control to build a $277 million hospital on Johns Island. The application is for a 50-bed acute care hospital between Maybank Highway and Cane Slash Road, across from the Live Oak Square development.

Projections for Johns Island Hospital show that within the first three years it will create nearly 300 jobs, contribute $10 million in non-income taxes to support the community and pay $70 million in salaries, wages and benefits, the organization said in a release.

“We are excited to continue making medical care more accessible to residents in our historically underserved communities,” Trident Health President and CEO Christina Oh said in the news release. “Currently on Johns Island and neighboring communities, it can take residents 30 to 45 minutes to drive to their nearest hospital, and often longer in heavy traffic and inclement weather. Our goal is to increase access to timely, high quality and affordable health care services.”

Trident Medical Center’s chief of the medical staff and medical director of emergency services, Dr. Scott Hayes, said he sees firsthand the results of delayed care.

“For residents who live far from emergency medical care and who may be experiencing a medical emergency like a heart attack or a stroke, minutes can mean the difference between life and death,” he said in the news release. “Access to care close to home is critical, especially in areas like Johns Island and the surrounding communities, that have frequent traffic delays.”

Trident Health surgeon Dr. Thomas Litton, who lived on Johns Island for 20 years and recently moved from there largely due to increasing traffic congestion and limited access routes off the island, said, “The rapid population growth and development of Johns Island, as well as its role as the sole gateway to Kiawah, Seabrook and Wadmalaw Islands, has created a strong need for a full-service hospital in the area. Residents on those islands have never had a full-service hospital. Trident’s hospital on Johns Island and their freestanding ER on James Island will greatly improve residents’ access to much-needed medical care.”

Johns Island Hospital will be located seven miles from James Island Emergency, Trident’s new freestanding ER at 945 Folly Road, Charleston, that will open in the next few weeks.

Plans call for Johns Island Hospital to have 50 beds with space to expand to 150 beds, 40 medical/surgical/stepdown beds, 10 ICU beds, 20 ER rooms, four operating rooms, two endoscopy suites and a cardiac catheterization lab. The hospital also would have two CT scanners, an MRI, two diagnostic radiology suites and a fluoroscopy room.

In addition to the hospital, services would include medical offices for primary care and specialists as well as outpatient imaging and support such as breast imaging, rehabilitation and other outpatient therapy services.

“From our first discussions about building a hospital on Johns Island, we have been committed to creating a thoughtful plan that preserves the natural beauty of Johns Island,” Oh said in the release. “We will honor the strong Gullah Geechee cultures of the community; we will partner with the areas’ community and businesses; and will promote the important and unique contributions of Johns Island’s agricultural community.”

The proposed Johns Island Hospital is in addition to nearly $140M in capital investments currently underway at Trident Health’s hospitals, Trident Medical Center and Summerville