Tree Service in West Ashley, SC

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - More than 130 feet below homes and businesses in West Ashley, a team of experienced construction workers are not-so quietly at work tunneling across the region.

Back in June, the r down a massive shaft to start work on the West Ashley Sewer Tunnel Extension project. It’s CWS’s most expensive project ever and promises to fix sewage overflow issues that are common in the area.

Kathleen Wilson is the vice chair of the Charleston Water System Board of Commissioners.

“The total cost is about $135 million, but what it will accomplish is fantastic. It’s going to take all of the problems that we’ve had in West Ashley with sanitary sewer overflows. Those will be eliminated,” Wilson said.

The tunnel itself is 8 feet wide and will be nearly 4 miles long. Water system officials say it should last at least 150 years and keep up with the surging population growth in the area. Inside the tunnel, a 5-foot-wide sewage pipe will be placed. They will then fill the remaining space with grout and refill the shaft.

“It’s built to a large enough diameter and size and scale that we can handle all of West Ashley and even out beyond, getting into Hollywood and Ravenel. So, it’s a fantastic project that’s very much needed,” Wilson said.

The project is made possible by a geologic feature called the Cooper Marl that starts about 70 feet below the ground and protects deep aquifers from pollutants.

Professor Norman Levine is an expert in geology at the College of Charleston. He says the marl is a major geological feature, or unit, unique to coastal plains.

“The Cooper Marl is a dense clay that keeps water from flowing through it,” Levine said. “The Cooper Marl is the perfect place to put the West Ashley pipe since it is a thick unit, and it’s a very tight unit, meaning anything that might leak will not penetrate through the unit.”

SAK Construction crews are currently about half a mile into the project. They’re able to go anywhere from 60 to 100 feet a day. The tunneling is expected to take several more months, and then several more years for the infrastructure to be finalized.

“Most people have no idea what’s going on, and they’re very, very surprised upon learning of it. So, in a sense, no news is good news because we haven’t had complaints about the drilling or noise or any problems related to construction. And it’s going beautifully, and it’s going according to plan,” Wilson said.

The tunnel starts where the West Ashley Greenway begins on Albemarle Road near the Porter-Gaud baseball field. It will follow the Greenway all the way down to the end of Interstate 526.

It’s expected to be completed Jan. 1, 2028.

Rendering shows potential concept for "state-of-the-art facility" according to Mayor Cogswell. (provided by the City of Charleston)

CHARLESTON , S.C. (WCIV) — Monday the City Of Charleston held a public meeting to discuss its plans for newly purchased land in West Ashley. The city recently bought the site on Ingram Road, and the plan is to bring services a little closer to the people who live there.

“We're going to deliver something not just people from West Ashley, but citizens of Charleston can be really proud of,” Charleston Mayor William Cogswell said.

The city bought the building in an effort to avoid large growth in an already overwhelmed area and said over the past several years the space has been used as storage for nonprofits. Mayor Cogswell said the new vision aims to bring city services and resources closer to West Ashley communities.

"We need more office space and we need to make some more investments in West Ashley,” the Mayor explained. "So this kind of takes care of two of those things right off the bat.”

Charleston leaders are asking for public input on what’s next for the property.

"We really got excited about this when we were working on the Sumar Street redevelopment and looking around at how the city could help participate in opportunities for the revitalization of that part of West Ashley, which I think is long overdue. This was a great opportunity,” Mayor Cogswell said.

The land will soon be home to a new municipal office building. The site currently hosts a small chapel that hasn’t been used in years.

"We looked at different opportunities to save the buildings, to redevelop the buildings, but when you dig into the cost associated with that and just how dated those facilities are, and of course the environmental considerations, it makes more sense to start fresh and build new,” Mayor Cogswell said.

City officials say the structure has been changed so much over time and asbestos was found inside, so abatement will be part of any renovation or demolition.

“I think this is going to be a state-of-the-art facility,” the Mayor said. “It'll cover us in terms of our office needs between what we have downtown and this facility for the next 20 years. So this is a long-term investment for the city."

Before the city stepped in, this same property was being marketed for a hundred-unit apartment complex. Leaders say that would’ve meant major traffic headaches for an already congested area.

"Traffic is something that we need to pay close attention to,” Mayor Cogswell said. “It's not like it won't have any traffic coming in and out of it, I think it would be significantly lower than what was the alternative.”

Mayor Cogswell said the city will also work to make safety improvements to the area along with the new construction.

“We're well aware of the suicide merge, it needs some work, and we are committed to working with our partners at the state and the county to make sure that happens to the tune of putting additional lights up, timing the lights so that the area is more safe," he said.

This isn’t the first time the city’s taken this approach. Earlier this year, the city purchased a different West Ashley property now slated to be used for first responders.

"We're putting in a new fire operations facility at West Ashley Circle. That too was slated originally for over 300 apartments. I think that'll be a great use for that site too,” Mayor Cogswell said.

Mayor Cogswell said they expect the project to be completed by July of 2027. In the mean time, the community is encouraged to share their opinions throughout the public comment process.

Tammy Jenkins is a senior mobile home owner in West Ashley, and could now face homelessness due to a lack of income and the rising cost of repairs. (WCIV)

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) — Tammy Jennings is a senior mobile home owner in West Ashley, and could now face homelessness due to a lack of income and the rising cost of repairs.

"I don't have the money to do the small things that I need to do, much less the larger things for my repairs on my home because this is the only home and at my age I don't believe I'll ever be able to buy anything to live out the rest of my life," Jennings said Sunday.

The problems all came to a head two years ago after she called Trident Area Agency on Aging, a publicly and privately funded program that supports the elderly. Jennings called to request repairs to her home, which needed some wood paneling replaced.

According to Jennings, the agency sent out a repairman.

"He came to my home, put two pieces of board up outside, put a small piece of board in the middle of my kitchen floor, and that was all he had performed," she said.

The wood paneling on the outside of the home is now molding, and the one in the kitchen is now sagging.

"My hands are becoming tied. My house is still in neglect from disrepair," she said. "I've reached out to two other agencies in the last two years and no one either had the funds and you have a list or they've run out of funds," Jennings said. "I could lose my home due to the fact that I just do not have the income."

Jennings receives her income from social security, and with the cost of living on the rise, she barely has enough for herself, much less for repairs on her home.

"I live on $967 a month. It's impossible. It's hard to pay a light bill," Jennings said. She owns her mobile home but doesn't own the property it sits on, which she rents.

"My rent takes nearly half of my income a month," she said. "So I have to live off of $400 a month. I just don't know where else to go."

Jennings does take pride in her home, and used to own a cleaning company. "I've tried every avenue I know to fix my home and make it livable. It's not Taj Mahal, but it's my home. I believe I have human rights," she said.

According to Jennings, her home is sinking into the ground, putting it at an awkward slant. Jennings said she found out her house was sitting above a broken water pipe, which caused the ground to oversaturate. "I got the water company knocking at my door one day, telling me, We have a few questions. Have you had problems with your yard being wet? And I said, yes, I've seen it."

Her home sagging and her income nearly depleted every month, Jennings commented on the difficulty of finding help as a senior.

"It's really almost impossible as a senior to receive any assistance," she said. "It's become a rude awakening that seniors, once you get in your sixties, it seems that you become a third-class citizen."

Jennings has turned to her community for help, asking her local church for any aid they can provide.

"I approached the church that I also have been attending, and they actually came and started paying, help me with a light bill, and I was trying to slowly put some money together just for the materials for repairs," Jennings said.

Jennings's son moved in with her three months ago, found a part-time job, and is helping with bills. But Jennings said it's still not enough.

" I feel like a homeless person every day, no matter where I go. It's basically feel like everyone just said, well you know what? Good luck. 'cause you're not gonna get the assistance no matter what," she said.