Congratulations to Sarah Moore, P.E.!

Sarah Moore, P.E.

Seamon Whiteside + Associates is pleased to announce that Sarah Moore has passed the South Carolina Professional Engineers exam.

To pass the professional engineering test, a minimum of four years working under the guidance of a registered P.E. is required. The eight-hour exam covers all specialties of engineering and consists of design, analysis, application and economic questions. It is a significant accomplishment to pass the exam on the first try, which Sarah succeeded in doing.

Sarah is a 2006 Clemson University graduate and has worked for SW+A for the past five years.  She provided project coordination for civil engineering and construction administration services on several large projects including the Roper St. Francis Mount Pleasant hospital and a new education facility and renovated laboratory space for the Clemson University Belle Baruch Institute at Hobcaw Barony in Georgetown.

Seamon Whiteside + Associates now has 12  Professional Engineers on staff.

Governors Park

Governors Park is located on a 40-acre parcel on Daniel Island, just off Interstate 526.  It is a community park owned by the City of Charleston with a program to provide both active and passive recreation opportunities to the public.  The Park will feature a dog park, playground, picnic areas, waterfront trail, two baseball fields, and a nine-acre grand lawn.

New Active Park on Daniel Island

The layout and design of the park is intended to fit into the landscape by minimizing impacts to existing tree canopies and providing homage to Daniel Island’s agricultural history.  The baseball fields are set into the curve of Fairbanks Drive so that existing vegetation will provide a buffer for neighboring residents.  To further reduce impacts to these residents the fields will incorporate high end lighting designed to minimize glare and eliminate spillover of excess light.  A concession / scoring facility is located between the two fields that will offer an agrarian appearance along the edge of the grand lawn.  The grand lawn will accommodate four full-size soccer fields as well as provide open space for public events and festivals.  The pedestrian trails will be field located to minimize impacts to the landscape while providing exemplary views of the Wando River.  A 10-foot wide boardwalk will cross the marsh to connect to the existing Daniel Island waterfront trail to the south of the interstate.

Governors Park Under Construction

Construction of the park is currently underway and if you look down while driving along I-526 you will notice the grand lawn by the distinct white shade of its athletic field mix.  Construction of Governors Park is projected to be complete in early September of 2011.

Charleston Harbor Resort & Marina

SW+A is excited that our work on the Charleston Harbor Resort expansion, a new hotel facility planned for development on Patriots Point, is moving forward. Registered Landscape Architect Glen Deal is heading up the planning effort for us, putting some of his creative designs to good use. You can read more about the project in an article published in the Charleston Regional Business Journal.

Charleston Harbor Resort & Marina

Bee’s Ferry Landfill

Rain gardens are an increasingly popular low impact development tool and are a great way to address stormwater quality and quantity. Using plants to capture water and reduce run-off rates may seem an obvious solution, especially to the gardeners and farmers among us, but using them in a development scenario is a new twist on an old problem. Lowcountry civil engineers have long struggled to manage stormwater run off. Traditionally, detention ponds have been used to solve the problem but more and more civil engineers are incorporating plants into their stormwater management plans. Utilizing the unique ability of plants to absorb and filter pollutants, most notably in their capacity to reduce metals, phosphorous and nitrogen quantities in run-off, in the war against stormwater run-off has proved to be a boon to civil engineers.

Bee's Ferry Landfill Entrance

For the past couple weeks we have been developing a conceptual design for the new entrance to the Bees Ferry Landfill that uses rain gardens to address stormwater. In addition, we hope to include other green development tools such as the use of low maintenance native plants, entrance signs composed primarily of recycled materials and an interpretive trail outlining the benefits of each. It may seem strange to decide to highlight the importance of green development at the entrance to a landfill, but in so doing, it serves as a reminder of the other earth friendly opportunities Charleston County offers in the same location such as recycling and composting services.

Even though most of us remember learning the water cycle in grade school, we often forget that there is a finite amount of water on earth. Water that is here today has always been here, in one form or another. Protecting, preserving, and conserving it in the best way we can and anywhere we have the opportunity is critically important, because it’s all we’ve got.

Summerville Miracle League Annual “BBQ for Baseball” Fundraiser Set for April 8 & 9!

Need something to do this weekend? Mark your calendar to come out and enjoy some smokin’ live music and barbecue and help support some very special kids in their desire to play America’s game in the process. This year’s BBQ for Baseball fundraiser is being held Friday & Saturday, April 8-9, 2011  at 200 Trolley Road in Summerville, SC. Wings are the specialty of the night on Friday followed by Saturday’s ‘all you can eat’ BBQ.

Started in 1999, the Miracle League organization is dedicated to the idea that all children including special needs kids should have the opportunity to play baseball. Today, there are over 240 Miracle League fields in the U.S. Canada, Puerto Rico and Australia. These fields are specially designed to accommodate a variety of developmental challenges and pave the way for children, youth, and young adults to play baseball and experience the joy and camaraderie of team sports.

Chris Campeau with SeamonWhiteside + Associates’s Landscape Architecture department is an active member of the board of the Summerville Miracle League and will be on hand to keep the festivities rollin’. Thanks for all your hard work and dedication, Chris!

For more information, visit the SML website.

There’s No Place Like Home…

This gallery contains 6 photos.

On Saturday (March 26), several SW+A staff volunteered to help the Charleston based charity Operation Home get some things done around the house for a local homeowner. Operation Home works with low-income, seniors, and special needs households throughout the Tri-county … Continue reading →

SW+A Proposes Three Plans for Greenwood Farmer’s Market & Historic Railroad Center

Employees of Seamon Whiteside + Associates (SW+A) and its Urban Edge Studio branch are back in the office today after conducting a week long charrette process in Greenwood, SC.  Three plans were drawn up for a new farmer’s market and historical railroad center in the Uptown region of Greenwood.

Throughout the week, the designers took ideas, suggestions and votes from community members on how they envision their farmer’s market and railroad museum.  Over the next three months, SW+A be inputting the information gathered from focus group meetings into a final design for June.

Take a look at the three proposed plans:

The Green Scheme calls for 42 stalls in the farmer’s market, as well as a multipurpose pavilion, playground and three rail cars relocated from the current railroad historical center to the site.

The Red Scheme provides 32 stalls for the farmer’s market, plus room for additional stalls inside a multipurpose pavilion.  The plan makes room for a demonstration garden and seven rail cars.The last of the three plans, is the Yellow Scheme.  It houses 38 stalls for the farmer’s market, a plaza area, playground and six relocated rail cars.

To follow the design process, give feedback or view more images, become a fan of the farmer’s market and railroad canter on Facebook:  Uptown Greenwood Farmer’s Market Master Plan and Greenwood Railroad Historical Center Master Plan.

SW+A’s Sanders and Anderson’s Complete the Street Committee to hold public meeting

Throughout the country, public awareness of the benefits of biking and walking/running for recreation, fitness, stress relief, and as an alternative form of transportation has been increasing exponentially. As the movement towards healthier lifestyles gains momentum, residents are coming together to plan and build safer networks of bike lanes and walking trails. According to the League of American Bicyclists, South Carolina currently ranks 33 out of 50 for bicycle friendly communities, a ranking that communities like Anderson are working to change.

A group of volunteers came together to form Anderson’s Complete Streets committee, which includes long time SW+A Greenville staffer and biking enthusiast, Blake Sanders, to address the need for bike and pedestrian paths in the city and to plan for where those paths should be developed. On Tuesday evening, March 22, 2011, the group will host a public meeting to discuss the issue will be held at the Anderson Recreation Center.

Local newspaper the Anderson Independent Mail has published an informative article about Tuesday’s meeting and the Complete Streets committee.

Bill Eubanks donates time and expertise to the West Ashley Greenway

SWA’s own Bill Eubanks is using his knowledge on master plans and design to help create much needed improvements throughout the West Ashley Greenway.  All of his hard work recently paid off when the trail received a grant to help fund the project.  Way to go Bill!

SWA Greenville plans Clemson’s street project

Seamon Whiteside + Associates Greenville received a bid from the city of Clemson to design the four-year project that plans to makeover their downtown streets.  SWA plans include designing outdoor living spaces for dining, wider sidewalks, greener spaces and access to Abernathy Park from College Avenue.

Read more about the re-design below.