Choose Charleston

Charleston Mayor Joseph P. Riley, Jr. announced yesterday that he will seek a ninth term in the coming election.

I did not personally attend the announcement at Ackerman Park so I can only assume that the gathered crowd kind of looked at him, then at one another, shrugged, and said, “Uh, yeah, Joe… um, well, you ARE the mayor of Charleston.”

Or rather, “…you are THE mayor of Charleston.”

After 32 consecutive years of having him in office, it gets kind of difficult to imagine anyone else doing the job.

Far, far away, beyond Goose Creek and near the shore of Lake Moultrie, there is a quiet place of canals and woods…

If you want the inside scoop on the country charm of Moncks Corner, you could hardly go wrong with Moncks Corner Moments, a personal blog written by the ever adroit and charming Heather Solos. She also manages the local blog round-up, Lowcountry Blogs, for Charleston’s Post & Courier and, together with BigBadIvy, she pens the sassy and savvy Home Ec 101.

In the remaining hours of the day, or so I’ve heard, she also squeezes in a bit of eating, sleeping, and the raising of ch’urns.

The drive to charming Moncks Corner from gentle Charleston can take the better part of an hour so it is best to have your itinerary well planned. There is natural beauty in abundance: Cypress Gardens, Old Santee Canal Park, and the gardens of Mepkin Abbey, as well as opportunities for boating, fishing, or just wandering down a good old-fashioned Main Street.

Now, some folks will claim that Moncks Corner is named for the Trappists who live simple lives of labor and contemplation at Mepkin Abbey. This is actually not true. Moncks Corner is named for George Monck, Duke of Albemarle, who was one of the Lords Proprietors.

The Lords Proprietors, of course, were a group of English gentlemen who helped Charles II regain his throne from the scurrilous Oliver Cromwell. Charles II was very, very happy about having his throne back (wouldn’t you be?) and rewarded the men with land grants in the Carolinas.

Now, all this talk of history makes one hungry.

Luckily, when it comes time to feast, be it midday or ’round about suppertime, there are ample diner-style eateries available in the center of town.

Of course, fair is fair, last time I was Moncks Corner, I was pressed for time so I took the Sonic Drive-In option: BLT and a Tropical Mango Iced Tea, yum yum.

The young lady at the window provided the friendliest service I’ve seen in a good long while.

Pretty much everyone who attended grade school in the greater Charleston area remembers loading up on the field trip bus for an outing at Charles Towne Landing.

It’s where a shipload of English settlers shook out their sea legs and set up camp way back when in 1670: the birthplace of the Carolinas and the first attempt at the establishment of what would become Charles Towne and eventually modern Charleston. History aplenty can be found here, both the established kind and the still-being-discovered kind. Archaeological digs proceed here alongside walking tours and educational programs.

Major renovations have given Charles Towne Landing a whole new look. Those with an interest in learning the inside scoop on the significance of the sights along the History Trail may rent MP3 players at the visitor’s center.

Considering the abundance of English-style gardens, magnolias, and live oaks in the park, it is no surprise that the place is popular for weddings, especially among those with strong family ties to Charleston.

The Animal Forest, a small natural habitat zoo inside of Charles Towne Landing, is a nice place to take a stroll and see a few otters, shore birds, bison, bears, and maybe a puma or two.

Just watch out for the alligators. They like to nibble on your ankles when you sit at the edge of the pond cooling your feet in the water.

This Saturday, June 23, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Animal Forest at Charleston Towne Landing State Historic Site will host Enrichment Day. There will be live demonstrations, games, and activities to show how adding various sights, sounds, scents, tastes, and textures to the habitats of the animals can encourage healthy playing and other natural behaviors.

The idea has been building for a long, long while.

The 20th Century brought many a change to these here United States, including a long-lived love affair with horseless carriages; newfangled contraptions that came to be known as automobiles, cars, jalopies. Chitty Chitty Bang Bangs. We polished them until they sparkled in the sunlight, gassed them up, and hopped inside for a trip from here to practically wherever.

They certainly were convenient when a trip between cities or states was what we needed, but gradually we grew so accustomed to riding inside of them that we would motor up even when we only needed to travel a few blocks down the road.

Somewhere along the way, a few forward-thinking minds thought: “Enough!” They shook one leg, then the other, revisited a few stretches that they learned in gym class many a moon ago, and rediscovered the art of walking. For slightly more distant travels, they dusted off bicycles.

And they soon found that they felt better. Not just in the cardiovascular sense, but also in the sense of noticing things about their towns that they had previously zipped right past.

When the James Island Connector spanned the mighty Ashley River, not only did our marvelous medical students gain affordable island housing that was suddenly just a quick trip over the water, but they also gained a great jogging path with a scenic view.

When the great Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge replaced its older cousins above the Cooper River, a walking and bicycling path was a key component in its design. Walking, running, or bicycling that path has fast become one of the most popular outdoor activities for locals and visitors alike.

Today, it seems like everyone with a bridge nearby wants in on that feel-good fit feeling. A meeting is scheduled for the end of the month at Charles Towne Landing to discuss how the North Bridge, linking West Ashley with North Charleston, could benefit from a dedicated walking and bicycling path, among other improvements.

If this blending of bridges and physical fitness continues, who knows where it might lead? Next thing you know, we might even have to launch a major annual international 10K… hm? What’s that? Oh… that’s right…

Ashley River Road is well known as not only a national scenic highway but also as home to historic treasures such as Drayton Hall, Magnolia Plantation, and Middleton Place.

 Top that off with the road’s position along the ecologically vital Ashley River and the necessity of maintaining a greenbelt for the area and one might think that this would be the last place anyone would dream of gouging out acres of old growth oaks and replacing them with new subdivisions.

Of course, as we all know, the battle to preserve Ashley River Road just goes on and on.

How bad is it already? Try to drive from Summerville to Charleston, or even just from Bees Ferry Road to the peninsula, during rush hour. The cars and trucks are lined up, bumper to bumper, for miles. How much worse will it be if developers are allowed to add even more high density subdivisions along the road?

A few sighs of relief came when the Ashley River Historic Overlay District was created, but now there is a proposal to reduce the size of that district.

Those who wish to make their opinion known on this should attend the meeting: Monday, June 18, at 7 p.m. County Council, St. George.

We just returned from a new adventure, and it was awesome.

I’m afraid our dog, Noah, doesn’t have much of a social life. The only time he ever gets to meet other dogs is when we take a trip and he stays at the kennel. That’s really a shame, because he’s a very social animal and believes that everyone should love him.

Recently, we discovered a new park in Charleston, strictly for our four legged friends. Designed by the Charleston Parks Department, Ackerman Dog Park is a joyful place to be. Dog owners can socialize while their pets run around off-leash. We finally got off our lazy behinds and took Noah to the park. It was one of the best decisions we’ve made in a long time.

We were a little nervous at first, because Noah is a big dog and so friendly that he sometimes scares little dogs, as well as some humans. I was very pleasantly surprised when he behaved like a gentleman… most of the time. There were a couple of minor incidents when I had to direct him away from another dog he was showing too much interest in, so to speak. However, overall, it was a great experience.

Now, I’m inspired.

Ackerman Dog Park is West Ashley, on Sycamore Avenue, behind Ryan’s Steakhouse.

There are other off-leash parks in the area, and I plan to see how Noah handles these as well.

Downtown Charleston is the home of Hampton Park, which has a fairly new off-leash dog park. It is located on the corner of Rutledge and Grove.

Also, while most of the Charleston County Parks are pet-friendly, James Island County Park features the first official off-leash area. It is located behind the overflow parking area and adjacent to the lake. CCPRC says there are plans in the works to expand this offering to some of the other county park facilities.