Union Pier open house hosted onsite

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – The team behind the future redevelopment of Union Pier hosted an open house onsite Tuesday.

“It’s a site people know of. They see it from East Bay, but very few people have had the opportunity to actually be on the site and go and visit these historic locations,” explained Thomas Woltz with Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects.

The event was a chance for members of the community, like Angel Cobiella, to finally see the site for themselves.

“This is part of my neighborhood and anything that alters the historical, social value of this area is of importance for me and my wife. We will be visiting this area a lot,” said Cobiella, who lives near Union Pier.

Various stations were set up inside the cruise terminal for people to learn more about the opportunities and constraints of the 70-acre waterfront space, as well as provide feedback on its future use.

“There were a couple things I did not know about. I love it. And it’s well organized. It was very useful. Information was practical, straight to the point, and I loved it,” Cobiella said of the open house.

Visitors were also able to take a bus tour which stopped at several historic locations on the property. They were met with culture keepers who shared their expertise about Union Pier’s past.

Woltz is part of the design team and said public feedback has been supportive of incorporating the site’s history into the future project.

“This is something that could give Union Pier, as a larger extension of the City of Charleston, a lot of depth, meaning, and have people’s personal history with Charleston connect to this development,” Woltz told News 2.

Union Pier project officials said public workshops would continue throughout the spring.