SAVE THE ANGEL OAK ON JOHNS ISLAND, SC
Charleston City Council has just approved a plan to put 600 homes and a shopping center on the property surrounding the Angel Oak, on Johns Island, SC.
This development will surround and imperil the Angel Oak. The developers also want to cut down or harm 55 other grand trees so they can squeeze in as many buildings as possible! The development will also ask to fill in over 4 acres of wetlands, an important habitat for countless species of animals.
Grand trees are supposed to be protected by law, but the developers are seeking a variance from the city's Board of Zoning Appeals so they can cut down these trees anyway.
Tell the Board of Zoning Appeals WE SAY NO! The Angel Oak is one of the most beautiful and important parts of our island -- and our nation!
Please call Samantha Siegel at 843-367-3664 or visit http://www.savetheangeloak.org/ if you want to help out in the fight against this terrible plan. Thank you everyone!
Charleston City Council has just approved a plan to put 600 homes and a shopping center on the property surrounding the Angel Oak, on Johns Island, SC.
This development will surround and imperil the Angel Oak. The developers also want to cut down or harm 55 other grand trees so they can squeeze in as many buildings as possible! The development will also ask to fill in over 4 acres of wetlands, an important habitat for countless species of animals.
Grand trees are supposed to be protected by law, but the developers are seeking a variance from the city's Board of Zoning Appeals so they can cut down these trees anyway.
Tell the Board of Zoning Appeals WE SAY NO! The Angel Oak is one of the most beautiful and important parts of our island -- and our nation!
Please call Samantha Siegel at 843-367-3664 or visit http://www.savetheangeloak.org/ if you want to help out in the fight against this terrible plan. Thank you everyone!
are writing today on behalf of a number of concerned South Carolina citzens, but also a number of citzens from around the country, and around the globe.
The approval of the "Angel Oak Village" plan to put up 600 family homes and a shopping center on the property surrounding the Angel Oak, on Johns Island, SC, is going to be devasting to the historic live oak.
No one knows the actual age of the tree, because the only way to determine the age of a live oak is to cut it open and count the rings. It is rumored to be over 1400 years old.
Whatever its actual age, the tree is colossal, and it is ancient. It stands proudly in an obscure wooded area on Johns Island. It stands sixty-five feet tall; with the longest limb extending eighty-nine feet long and the tree's canopy shading an area of 17,100 square feet.
Imagine the things this amazing live oak tree has lived to see. It is a truly remarkable natural wonder that inspires people daily.
When developing their new community so close to the Angel Oak, builders will have to cut down many trees in the wooded area surrounding the historic tree. In doing so, the Angel Oak will be left unprotected against natural elements it has not been exposed to. The tree will be extremely vulnerable and mostly likely die. I have consulted with numerous forestry experts and soil experts and would urge you to make sure a stringent enviromental case study was performed to verify this as well.
In a town that is so well known for preserving its past and protecting its natural beauty and charm, I find it incredibly surprising and tragic that the Charleston City Council would approve this project.
There has been an almost perfect balance between all of the elements of the forest, which is the only reason the Angel Oak has stood the test of time.
Please help me save this tree from destruction at the hands of men, when it has survived the fury of mother nature for so long. I am sure you are aware of the awe-inpiring power of this tree. Please do not let on of our last natural, historical features to be bulldozed for housing and shopping. There is plenty of land to build on, but only one Angel Oak.
Whether it is the drainage patterns, wind and sun exposure from cutting down similar trees, or the litter and graffitti that will not only come with the construction crews, but from residents of the new "Angel Oak Village" and shoppers alike, the Angel Oak will suffer and chances are, will die.
If this plan goes through, the city of Charleston will loose a lot of respect in the historical preservation and conservation department. It is our responisblity to preserve these landmarks for the next generation.
Thank you so much for your time in this matter.
-Samantha Siegel
This tree can never be replaced. Why would anyone want to bring detriment to this beautiful area?????????
Do you know how long it takes to grow a tree like that? Certainly there are other places and ways so we can avoid looking like what Myrtle Beach has done to their forrests. Save that beautiful work of nature!
The tree has brought many people memories for a lifetime, including me! I try to make a trip to the tree once a year to remember it's beauty and history. Please do not hurt it anymore and let future generations experience it's magnitude!
Please continue to take pride in our history and culture and refuse this proposal. Leave a little of the Lowcountry for us to enjoy,without commercial reproductions that smolder and commonize other communities. Leave Charleston our uniqueness and uphold the laws set forth to protect this community of nature. Leave the trees alone and let everyone live on 61, I know I do.
Not only is Angel Oak a regional heritage, it is a national one. It cannot be emphasized enough that loosing or damaging this heritage in anyway would be a great loss. It is one that can never be replaced. I believe the proposed development will alter the ecosystem enough to harm this cherished heritage. Ecosystems are fragile and in them lies an interdependence that is easily challenged when altering just one element. Haven't we learned by now the devastation of filing in wetlands and cutting down virgin growth. This saids nothing of the aesthetic value that is compromised. It lays a devaluation on our heritage. In doing so, it says troubling things of our respect for what we claim to be cherished. Please, I urge you to reconsider the proposed development. Sincerely, Jayson Bixler
I think what these developers are trying to do is deplorable. They are South Carolinians as well, do they not care about their history? This is one of the oldest things in the country, and deserves all the protection it can get.
Growth will always occur but filling in wetlands and allowing grand trees to be destroyed to do so is outrageous. Please don't allow it!
These trees are part of our lineage. They are like grandmothers and grandfathers protecting us. As a tree is cut, part of who we are will be cut. Go see the movie Avatar and discover what trees really are to humanity...we are far more than just our physical body. We are a part of everything and everything is a part of us. The root system of all of these trees is an intricate grid system of the earth providing a great deal of energy and gorunding that is most necessary at this time. Do not allow them to be uprooted...do we really need our society more uprooted than it has already become. Let's save our planet...save ourselves...save the Angel tree and the forests surrrounding it. Simran Singh, 11:11 Magazine & BelieveSC.com
Please save our remaining trees. James Island has already been over developed Please save what's left of John's Island. Thank you Rosa Chestnut
Have mercy on the Angel Oak and her surroundings!
Please I implore you, keep this land scared and free. Allow nature to live so that we may live. The Angel Oak and ALL of her surroundings are there to serve a greater purpose. PLEASE, do not allow any destruction to these sacred beings!
I love the Angel Oak, she is such a powerful presence, such peace. The tree is also over 1400 years old. a Real Blessing.
Natural Sanctuary
Andria Atwood
I grew up on this island and had visited quite often, when I was younger. I have also taken my daughters there on quite a few occasions when they were younger. I attended Girl Scouts right down the dirt road from this massive tree, and would consider it a real blow to my memory of my child hood to loose this wonderful old Oak, if it needs care, I can certainly understand that , but It should not be MURDERED just because someone wants to put a building, or for any other reason. Please don't take away one of my and many others first glance at what a lifetime of true growth and beauty can mean to someone who only sees small versions of growth. For some, the first site of A Truely Magnificance Vision of Natural Beauty.
Ellen Frisch
We need to save the ANGEL OAK on John's Island. It is so much more than just a tree--It deserves our protection as does the land around it. DO NOT LET them destroy this land. It is precious! Thank you.
Joe, your campaign plank is protecting the grand oaks. It's time to step up to the plate. Angel Oak is THE Grand Oak and its surrounding offspring deserve to be protected from our onslaught of progress.
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The beauty of nature must be preserved. For this tree to have stood this long it only the beginning of its life. Let us not cut it short by destroying its home.
Please don't stir the natural environment around the Angel Oak. It would be a crying shame if we built a development that couldn't possibly last as long as this tree already has. Thank you!!!
I visited the Angel Oak for the first time since I was in high school here in Mt Pleasant. I stood in awe of this magnificent tree and thought of the stories it would tell if it could. Development around this tree is like running a highway through the middle Magnolia Gardens. Please reconsider.
When will we wake up and protect the real treasures of our community...the very things which make life here so magnificent? Take note of what is happening at Shem Creek in Mt Pleasant...the demise of those beautiful and picturesque shrimp boats...will it be worth it to lose The Angel Oak? I think not.
Trees are our heritage. They are the memories of our ancestors. We must preserve them.
Though I appreciate the benefits of living in a free country with a capitalist mentality, we also must have conciousness and a co-exsistance with nature to keep us all alive and prospering in all areas of life. Certainly, more homes are not necessary in this area of John's Island and certainly not with the effect they will have on all of the trees and wildlife that will be destroyed in this project. I have friends who are losing their beautiful self-built home (that was protected land with only 8 homes built) right on the marsh to the progression of I526. Enough is enough. Please reconsider.
So sad, while this city will let dilapitated homes remain standing far beyond the years they should it will allow development in areas that should remain untouched.
I can remember riding my bike to that tree and climbing it as a little girl. It has had to be protected from vandalism, and now needs to be protected from big business!
While exploring Charleston,we learned of Samantha's action through front page of Charleston City Paper about Saving the Angel Oak. In search of the Angel, up close view was impressive as the surrounding was breezy peaceful and definitely should let it be as it was...with Nature and No to development !
I grew up in this area...Please don't destroy it.
The Angel Oak and surrounding area are an important part of Lowcountry history. Please do not clearcut this area.
I may not live in South carolina any more. But I return every year to visit my extended family. Every year I return to the angle to take photo's of my family with this beautiful tree. I have photo's of my parents at the tree before I was born. (1955) my departed grandmother, cousin and here children. And now I share this with my grandchildren and friende that visit Charleston Area. This is one of the main areas that they visit.
