Ashley Bridge District

Upcoming Meetings/Events:
The next ABD Board Meeting will be sometime in August. Please call Christopher Morgan at 724-3774 for more information.

District Overview:
In the mid-1990's, the neighborhoods that compose the Ashley Bridge District (ABD) began to work with the City of Charleston to develop a plan to protect and enhance the livability of the District's residential areas and improve the quality of its commercial centers. Several areas of focus were identified in the Ashley Bridge District Plan, including the commercial centers of Avondale Point (at the intersection of Magnolia), Moreland Center (around the intersections of Savannah Highway, Wesley Drive, and St. Andrews Boulevard), and the South Windermere Shopping Center. Other priorities are to humanize and beautify the busy arterial streets that flow through the area - Savannah Highway, St. Andrews Boulevard, and Folly Road.

At a recent Town Meeting organized by the Ashley Bridge District, 49 citizens filled out a survey and expressed the following concerns for the area:

WALKING/BIKING 59%
TRAFFIC 57%
COMMERCIAL AREAS 43%
CRIME 18%
LITTERING 14%
PARKS 12%

Current Efforts:
The ABD Board of Directors is very active and has a variety of projects underway. This year the ABD Board has been working with the City to design medians and landscape improvements on St. Andrews Boulevard. Stantec Consulting Services, Inc. has proposed a plan for medians along the section of Highway 61 from Wesley Drive to Riverdale Drive, that fully considers traffic and pedestrian flow.

Establishing a physical identity has become a priority for the Ashley Bridge District. As an initial step in this direction, the ABD has worked with the City to design and locate 'gateway' signs at the major entrances to the district. The first such sign is already in place, and planning is underway for signs at two more entrances to the District.

The City has recently taken over the maintenance of the medians and right-of-ways at the 'gateway' to the Ashley Bridge District at the western end of the Ashley River Bridges. Proper maintenance of such areas is very important in establishing a sense of character, beauty, and arrival within the City.

Improving pedestrian safety is also a major priority in the Ashley Bridge District, and is something the ABD Board hopes to accomplish soon with improvements to Windermere Boulevard and to the intersection of Savannah Highway and Magnolia Road. Specific enhancements to Windermere Boulevard will include a traffic circle and angled parking, designed to improve traffic flow while increasing safety of pedestrians in the shopping area. A plan to realign the intersection of Magnolia Road and Savannah Highway has been developed with the hopes that it may ease traffic and pedestrian issues near the Avondale businesses. Funding for pedestrian improvements at this location will be received this year through a federal transportation grant.

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