Nearly 500 acres of Conway area land being marked for conservation

Nearly 500 acres across the water from Conway’s River Walk will soon be marked for conservation.

The forests and wetlands are being purchased by the Nature Conservancy, an international organization dedicated to protecting key lands and waters. Maria Whitehead, the Conservancy’s Winyah Bay/Pee Dee project director, told Conway City Council this week that the nonprofit plans to purchase the property this month, then transfer about half of the land to the Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge and the remaining acres to the city.

“We have great news,” she said Monday night. “After many years of working on it, we are going to be closing on the 494-acre tract … We will close before the end of the year.”

The reason the refuge is only accepting a portion of the land is because its boundaries don’t extend farther. Officials plan to designate the property for recreational activities. They envision carving out walking and biking trails there.

“We’re thrilled to take this important next step in connecting our community and schools to nature and outdoor recreation opportunities,” Mayor Alys Lawson said in prepared remarks. “The city has been working with with the Conservancy and the Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge since 2009 to promote the Waccamaw River as an economic asset and protect local wetlands.”

During Monday’s council meeting, Whitehead announced that the city had also been awarded a $100,000 grant from Duke Energy’s Water Resources Fund. About $40,000 of that money will go to the purchase of the property and the rest will be used for site maintenance (i.e. roads, gates), signage or recreation planning.

The property falls on both sides of Conway’s Main Street bridge.

This story was originally published December 8, 2015 at 1:02 PM with the headline "Nearly 500 acres of Conway area land being marked for conservation."