Story last updated at 6:29 a.m. Thursday, March 4, 2004

Welcome vote for James Is. oaks

The remaining oaks on James Island's Ellis tract are, as a landscape architect put it, "the only oasis left on Folly Road." The city of Charleston's Commercial Corridor Design Review Board was right to turn down an office project that would have adversely affected their health.

Four four-story office buildings were proposed for the site, just off the James Island Expressway. But residents strongly opposed the project for fear that the trees would be damaged by construction and paving for the project.

"Folly Road is going to look like Rivers Avenue if those go away," Shirley Hudel, a landscape architect, said.

James Island resident Margaret Fabri told the board that a national land trust had sought a conservation easement on the property, which would have provided a substantial tax break for its preservation. Retaining the grove undeveloped would be the best solution for the island's scenic purposes.

While that's a decision for the landowner, the city should ensure that any development on the property should meet the requisite standards for preserving the remnant of live oaks that once covered much of the now largely developed tract.

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