EDGEFIELD, SC – On November 10, on behalf of Horse Creek Nature Preserve and the Savannah Riverkeeper, the South Carolina Environmental Law Project (SCELP) filed an appeal of the Edgefield County Planning Commission’s October 9 decision to approve the preliminary land development application for an RV park proposed upon an environmentally sensitive parcel in a rural neighborhood.

Blackston Custom Homes, LLC is proposing to construct an RV park designed to hold 70 RVs on a 17-acre property at the corner of Edgefield Road (U.S. Highway 25) and Bream Oak Road. The intention is for this RV park to serve as temporary housing for workers, such as those helping construct the nearby Meta data center.

However, the parcel where this RV park would be located has very steep slopes, underground spring heads, undeveloped forest land, and habitat for various species of plants and animals. The developer’s plan to clear-cut, grade, and flatten this parcel will have serious consequences for the site’s natural features, water quality, flood prevention, resilience, and stormwater management, creating direct harm to the neighboring and downstream homes, ponds, dams, wells, and more.

To make matters worse, Blackston Custom Homes’ development proposal fails to comply with Edgefield County’s ordinances, including the specific standards that must be met for an RV park to be permitted. The Planning Commission acknowledged the community’s concerns, the project’s deficiencies, and the overall lack of site-suitability for the RV park proposal when it unanimously denied the application on July 10, 2025. Despite this clear and well-reasoned vote, the Planning Commission improperly reconsidered the land development application again in October. This time, two Planning Commissioners still voted to deny, echoing many of the same reasons they had in July, but three voted to approve the application without providing any reasoning for their decision or how the unchanged development proposal met the concerns they had each raised just a few months earlier.

“This RV park development threatens the beautiful, rural spaces that we call home, that we invested in, and that we want to see protected from environmental destruction,” said Randy Dedrickson, President of Horse Creek Nature Preserve, whose own property is just 22 feet away from the proposed RV park. “Our group is comprised of members of the neighborhoods along and downstream of Bream Oak Road that would be on the frontlines of this development. We engage with our local government officials to protect what we hold dear, and we are deeply troubled that the Edgefield County Planning Commission didn’t stand by its own rules when reconsidering and approving the RV park.”

“Developing this site in the manner proposed would create significant environmental and public safety harm to Horse Creek and the surrounding community,” said Tonya Bonitatibus, Executive Director of the Savannah Riverkeeper. “Because of the streams onsite, the soil will expand and retract with water levels, causing unstable ground and sinkholes. Further, the steep drop-off from the proposed RV park parcel, which will be clearcut, will lead to severe stormwater runoff and erosion risk, harming downstream properties, ponds, high-hazard dams, and overall water quality. Simply put, this is not the right site for this project.”

“Planning commissions have a vital responsibility to uphold their land development regulations—not as a formality, but as a safeguard for our communities and environment,” said Emily Poole, Staff Attorney at SCELP. “When decisions are made without full regard for the applicable procedural rules and substantive elements for a development project, the consequences can be irreversible. Challenging the Edgefield County Planning Commission’s approval for the RV park project, which did not follow the proper process nor adhere to Edgefield County’s specific requirements for RV parks, allows the community that will be most affected to keep fighting for their homes, properties, and the surrounding environment before it is too late.”

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MEDIA CONTACTS:

Emily Poole, Staff Attorney
South Carolina Environmental Law Project
emily@scelp.org, (843) 527-0078

Randy Dedrickson, President
Horse Creek Nature Preserve
hcnp2025@gmail.com

Tonya Bonitatibus, Executive Director
Savannah Riverkeeper
riverkeeper@savannahriverkeeper.org

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