Press Release
About 22 acres in McClellanville will be permanently protected after the owners opted to grant a conservation easement to the Lowcountry Land Trust. Known as Taylor's Farm, the Pinckney Street property is in the Santee River Focus Area, one of 12 focus areas in the state identified for wildlife protection and land conservation.
“We are happy to have put our property in McClellanville into a conservation easement,” said property owners Charles and Frances Geer. “We are grateful to the Lowcountry Land Trust for enabling us to protect this natural area for the benefit of future generations.”
The protection of Taylor's Farm expands a network of existing privately and publicly protected lands near McClellanville, including the Francis Marion National Forest, the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge, and several other conservation easements. Taylor's Farm is also visible approaching the Robert E. Ashley boat landing, a public access point to Jeremy Creek.
The property is primarily used as a residential retreat and is managed for passive recreational and forestry purposes. It offers protected views from the Intracoastal Waterway and Pinckney Street, in McClellanville, further protecting the rural character of the village of McClellanville.
With about 615 feet of creek frontage, the protection of Taylor's Farm promotes scenic viewshed protection, biological diversity, and preservation of downstream water quality in the Intracoastal Waterway and Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge.
“We're incredibly grateful to the Geers for donating a conservation easement on this significant property,” said David Ray, acting CEO & chief conservation officer of Lowcountry Land Trust. “Taylor's Farm is an important addition to the network of existing protected lands in the McClellanville area. We are actively working to protect places like this that preserve views and water quality for Lowcountry communities like McClellanville, particularly where they intersect with nationally significant places like Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge.”
Lowcountry Land Trust has protected nearly 148,000 acres of land across 14 South Carolina counties. In 2019, the Land Trust protected seven properties in four counties, totaling 3,402 acres of protected land, including the protection of Boone Hall Plantation in Mount Pleasant and Big Snooks in the Savannah River watershed.
About Lowcountry Land Trust
Founded in 1986, the Lowcountry Land Trust is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with the mission to honor the relationship between people and land by protecting irreplaceable Lowcountry lands and treasured places. Lowcountry Land Trust has protected nearly 148,000 acres across 14 counties in coastal South Carolina. More information about the Lowcountry Land Trust is available at www.lowcountrylandtrust.org.
