City of Columbia plans transformation of Saluda Greenway
COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — Columbia’s riverwalk areas are a popular form of recreation, but do not connect in many places.
To expand outdoor fun and economic opportunities along the Saluda River, the City of Columbia and Dominion Energy announced a licensing agreement.
“Where else do you have a river like we have? It has class 2 rapids, Spanish moss, blue heron, red tail hawks and otters,” said Mayor Daniel Rickenmann.
Wednesday afternoon, the city of Columbia and Dominion Energy announced a partnership that hopes to increase tourism and public access along the Saluda River.
“I got a call from Mayor Rickenmann. I went to his office and he said ‘I have a vision.’ The vision that he had was just as aggressive and visionary as the Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens,” said Keller Kissam, Dominion Energy SC president. “This can be exponentially larger because that is 100 acres and what we’re talking about today is 200 acres.”
The license agreement between Dominion and the city is more than 200 acres of public river access on the Saluda Greenway. Mayor Rickenmann sees more opportunities for outdoor recreation in the area.
“We’re so excited about this as a city,” the mayor said. “We continue to use the river and will open it up for tourism, economic development and enjoyment. It is such a big piece of our quality of life in the city.”
This Saluda River area being developed will also allow for more connectivity for the area’s bike trails.
“This helps us complete all the pieces together which is so exciting,” Rickenmann said. “Just think about this, soon you will be able to hop on a bike at the Hilton Hotel Downtown and go all the way to the Lake Murray Dam without getting in traffic.”
While the mayor and others have big plans for the newly acquired land, Rickenmann reminds people that collaboration will be what makes any future development possible.
“We’re announcing this today but there’s 19 other people that are part of it. You are part of the puzzle,” Rickenmann said. “Let’s continue to see what we’re going to do with those pieces to fix it.”
