New Charleston Cruise Terminal

[All4fun&fun4all]

So last night on the news I heard about a meeting regarding the new proposed terminal here in Charleston. Had I known about this meeting I certainly would have shown up and given my two cents worth. It appears the majority of the folks who showed up were from the Hysterical (Historical) Society and it gave the impression that Charleston is opposed to having the terminal.

 

In the story, at the end, it says "The public comment period for the project will continue for three weeks." so from what I gather from this, should we, who are "for" the new cruise terminal contact the State Department of Environmental Control as requested on last night's local news?

 

I am not the "something must be done about this" or "let's protest" kind of girl but I am beginning to get strong feelings for keeping Carnival in Charleston as well as moving forward with the much needed improvements.

 

These people are complaining of noise pollution. Well, I arrived at Fleet Landing for a meet and greet with some fellow passengers that I will be sailing with in December at 2pm this past Saturday and the only noise I ever heard from the ship was the announcements at muster and the horn blowing right before muster and after it was over. I couldnt even hear music while it was sitting there.

 

They are also complaining about the pollution itself and how some are having to power wash their buildings in the area because of the air pollution and soot. How did they determine that this "soot" is specifically Carnival soot and not from one of the many container ships that pull into that same port area everyday...several times a day.

 

I have even heard some of them saying that "those types of cruise passengers" wouldnt bring any income into our city because they wont be interested in the history enough to take tours. REALLY? Just what are they trying to say? We all know for a fact that Carnival cruisers are staying in our hotels, eating in our restaurants and taking our tours.

 

I am just really getting frustrated by this lack of forward movement. We, as an internet forum, had a voice loud enough to get cocktail shrimp back on the menu :p, let's expend some energy and email/snail mail as many entities that we can in order to let our voices be heard. I know that we represent a small percentage of the cruising world but even a tiny scream is better than none at all....right?

 

As a person not familiar with govt entities and such...who would we contact to voice our support of the new cruise terminal in Charleston. (Bobsfamily...are you out there?)

 

http://www.live5news.com/story/19581186/proposed-charleston-terminal-prompts-new-hearing

[All4fun&fun4all]

Here is the address to send your letter of support to:

 

Office of Ocean & Coastal Resource Management

Department of Health & Environmental Control

1362 McMillian Avenue Suite 400

Charleston,SC 29405-2029

 

I am sending mine out today. Thanks for listening. :o

[Chris1455]

We will be moving back to Charleston in 2 months. I am sick of hearing from all the people opposed to the new terminal. When are we going to hear from people who want it? The problem with that area is people are too laid back and quiet and let the older generation dictate how that city operates. It is time to bring in the tourism and bring in the cash flow.

Look at the cost of staying in a hotel in downtown Charleston. They are outrageous. That is the type of tourist they want. They want the rich to come to town, the high society. The people who own property in downtown are the ones fighting this. They are rich fat cats who represent every stereotype of a "I'm wealthy and I don't want you lower class trashing my place" person. People need to raise their voices on this. It is good for the city to expand.

[Pinkfloydfan]

So last night on the news I heard about a meeting regarding the new proposed terminal here in Charleston. Had I known about this meeting I certainly would have shown up and given my two cents worth. It appears the majority of the folks who showed up were from the Hysterical (Historical) Society and it gave the impression that Charleston is opposed to having the terminal.

 

In the story, at the end, it says "The public comment period for the project will continue for three weeks." so from what I gather from this, should we, who are "for" the new cruise terminal contact the State Department of Environmental Control as requested on last night's local news?

 

I am not the "something must be done about this" or "let's protest" kind of girl but I am beginning to get strong feelings for keeping Carnival in Charleston as well as moving forward with the much needed improvements.

 

These people are complaining of noise pollution. Well, I arrived at Fleet Landing for a meet and greet with some fellow passengers that I will be sailing with in December at 2pm this past Saturday and the only noise I ever heard from the ship was the announcements at muster and the horn blowing right before muster and after it was over. I couldnt even hear music while it was sitting there.

 

They are also complaining about the pollution itself and how some are having to power wash their buildings in the area because of the air pollution and soot. How did they determine that this "soot" is specifically Carnival soot and not from one of the many container ships that pull into that same port area everyday...several times a day.

 

I have even heard some of them saying that "those types of cruise passengers" wouldnt bring any income into our city because they wont be interested in the history enough to take tours. REALLY? Just what are they trying to say? We all know for a fact that Carnival cruisers are staying in our hotels, eating in our restaurants and taking our tours.

 

I am just really getting frustrated by this lack of forward movement. We, as an internet forum, had a voice loud enough to get cocktail shrimp back on the menu :p, let's expend some energy and email/snail mail as many entities that we can in order to let our voices be heard. I know that we represent a small percentage of the cruising world but even a tiny scream is better than none at all....right?

 

As a person not familiar with govt entities and such...who would we contact to voice our support of the new cruise terminal in Charleston. (Bobsfamily...are you out there?)

 

http://www.live5news.com/story/19581186/proposed-charleston-terminal-prompts-new-hearing

Yes all4fun&fun4all who do we need to contact about cruise terminal in Charleston? Pink Nevermind I see you have posted the address

[All4fun&fun4all]

Look at the cost of staying in a hotel in downtown Charleston. They are outrageous. That is the type of tourist they want. They want the rich to come to town, the high society. The people who own property in downtown are the ones fighting this. They are rich fat cats who represent every stereotype of a "I'm wealthy and I don't want you lower class trashing my place" person. People need to raise their voices on this. It is good for the city to expand.

 

Exactly! As a 3rd generation Charlestonian with DEEP roots in this city you would think that my thoughts might matter but since I am not a richy rich, I guess it doesnt matter. :cool: I am going to try though and see if someone hears my voice.:o

 

I even asked my mother and father (75 years old and 87 years old) what they thought of the cruise ship and a potential new terminal. They are for it because they see the revenue that will be brought in. Even though I will never get them on a cruise ship (not their style with dad being ex Navy in WWII) they are smart enough to see the dollar signs and jobs that are benefitting from the ship being here.

 

SO Frustrating! :mad:

[Chris1455]

All our family and friends in Charleston support the New Terminal. It is really a small group that opposes it but they are loud, they have money, and they have time. Most people who support it do not have the time or money to fight for it but hopefully they can be just as loud or louder.

[CPWhittingham]

I am TOTALLY on board with you. My letter is going out today. If there is anything else I can do to help get this moving in the right direction please let me know.

Paul

[BEACHPAD04]

Need to get a new terminal in Charleston, my family has been there twice in 3 years, we stayed in Chareston day before and day after. So that was money spent, most people that are coming unless they are flying are going to spend time there cause it is such a great city.

Come on people write to support a new terminal would love to see a larger ship there. Will be sending my letter today.

[wrigley80]

A new terminal is definitely needed in Charleston. We cruised out of there in March and embarkation was by far the worst in Charleston than what we have had for any cruise. Waiting outside under that tent for the shuttles to come was a joke

[pirate4me2]

I live in NC and Charleston is the closest Carnival port for us. Since I do not live in Charleston but would love to cruise out of there, what can I do to help? We always opt to cruise out of other ports as we are not fans of the Fantasy, but if the new terminal would help to get another ship in we would start to use Charleston! We love the city and have vacationed there many times.

[ToriB]

Although I don't live in Charleston, I will be sailing on the Fantasy in December. I've never even been to Charleston, and I am more than excited to be able to explore. From pictures I've seen, it looks absolutely beautiful. I would love to take tours and of course we will be staying in a hotel there and getting something to eat.

 

We don't have any ports where I'm from so we have to travel to Charleston or elsewhere. A variety of ships would definitely want to make us travel there more often.

 

Even though I haven't seen the old terminal from what I've read there are many improvements that could be made. If they built the new terminal, new Carnival ships would be able to be docked in port. This would definitely bring in more revenue. While I really enjoyed sailing on the Fantasy's sister ship, the Fascination, some people prefer the larger ships. If there was more of a choice from what sailed out of the port, I feel that more people would come to Charleston.

 

Of course the people with money are going to have a large say in this, but there are more of your "normal" people that live in Charleston or travel there for cruises. That means more voices can be expressed! They can't ignore everyone who is for the new cruise terminal!

 

But anyhoo..my rant time is over because I need to be productive. Everyone have a fabulous day! (:

[proudpatriot07]

We definitely need a new terminal. I've lived here 3 months but cruised from here on the 3rd fantasy cruise out of Charleston. So far I haven't really met anyone here who's opposed to the cruising industry being in Charleston. Then again, I really haven't met too many richy-rich people, just folks at the gym, restaurants, parties, etc.

 

I personally like driving over the bridge some mornings and seeing the cruise ship out there. Tourists do stay before and after cruises and bring money to our city. When we went on ours, most everyone had stayed in a hotel, eaten, etc, for a day or so before, and there were lots of people from many states, not just those from SC/GA/NC who would drive in the day of the cruise.

[Malibubaby]

I just typed up our letter and will mail it on my lunch break. Thanks for starting the ball rolling on this! I really liked the Charleston and Mt. Pleasant area and enjoyed cruising from there, I hope we can make this new terminal happen!! I am booked on the Fantasy again for November 2013 and can't wait!!

[1plus1overXtotheX]

My understanding of the new Union Pier project is that it will:

 

 

• Demolish the current (and horribly ugly) cruise terminal and replace it with natural shoreline and walking paths for locals and tourists alike to enjoy.
  
• Rebuild the "historic landing" at Market Street.
  
• Eliminate all cargo ships from Union Pier.
  
• Replace miles of chain-link fence and acres of industrial storage lots with hedgerows, lighted walking paths, and smaller parking lots.
  
• Build a new cruise terminal that is architecturally consistent with the rest of downtown Charleston (and the current one certainly is not).
  
• Reduce traffic congestion during embarkation/debarkation and improve traffic flow at _all_times_.
  

 

I honestly do not know how anyone could be against this. It significantly improves every part of the Union Pier for both locals and cruisers. I wouldn't be surprised if the goal of the lawsuit was not to actually stop the project, but to get some "hush money" from Carnival.

 

I hope Carnival fights the suit to the end, because having read their objections the case sounds pretty flimsy.

 

This post may read like an advertisement for the Union Pier project but honestly, I'm not affiliated with it in any way. I'm just a guy that likes to visit Charleston and occasionally take a cruise out of there.

[landonsnanny]

Will mail a letter out today.thanks,Nancy.

[jsfromsc]

I'm all for it. I'm in Columbia and it would be great to be able to cruise from Charleston. We haven't so far, but my daughter did. I was actually disappointed that we didn't get a bigger ship. I'm hoping with a bigger, better terminal more cruise lines will want to depart from Charleston.

[COJO1956]

My understanding of the new Union Pier project is that it will:

 

 

• Demolish the current (and horribly ugly) cruise terminal and replace it with natural shoreline and walking paths for locals and tourists alike to enjoy.
  
• Rebuild the "historic landing" at Market Street.
  
• Eliminate all cargo ships from Union Pier.
  
• Replace miles of chain-link fence and acres of industrial storage lots with hedgerows, lighted walking paths, and smaller parking lots.
  
• Build a new cruise terminal that is architecturally consistent with the rest of downtown Charleston (and the current one certainly is not).
  
• Reduce traffic congestion during embarkation/debarkation and improve traffic flow at _all_times_.
  

 

I honestly do not know how anyone could be against this. It significantly improves every part of the Union Pier for both locals and cruisers. I wouldn't be surprised if the goal of the lawsuit was not to actually stop the project, but to get some "hush money" from Carnival.

 

I hope Carnival fights the suit to the end, because having read their objections the case sounds pretty flimsy.

 

This post may read like an advertisement for the Union Pier project but honestly, I'm not affiliated with it in any way. I'm just a guy that likes to visit Charleston and occasionally take a cruise out of there.

 

I believe at least some of those opposed are developers that would like to build mega dollar condos or apartments in place of the cruise terminal. Interesting that they didn't make this meeting known to the public so those in favor could show up at the meeting. It appears only those against knew when the meeting was taking place. My letter will be going out as well, and I hope we all make our voices heard! I know the Market vendors, restaurants, hotels, carriage tour guides, etc have increased business when the Fantasy is in town. Many cruise passengers either come a couple days early, or stay after the cruise to enjoy Charleston.

[1plus1overXtotheX]

I'm all for it. I'm in Columbia and it would be great to be able to cruise from Charleston. We haven't so far, but my daughter did. I was actually disappointed that we didn't get a bigger ship. I'm hoping with a bigger, better terminal more cruise lines will want to depart from Charleston.

 

I agree with you that more ships in Charleston would be great. However, the SCPA has committed in writing to home-porting only one ship at a time in Charleston.

 

My understanding is they don't have enough parking to handle two ships at the same time.

[ffmack]

IT'S A PORT!!. It has been for a couple hundred years now. Isn't the purpose of a "Port City" is to attract boats and tourist into there area. If I owned a business in the City I would be begging for Carnival to increase the amount of people coming in and out. Cause guess what lots of people bring? Lots of freaking money for my business. By the way I work for a city in The Great State of NC, and I can tell you that no matter how many people complain, they are still going to build it because it will bring in more tax revenue. Charleston can't afford to turn them away. They can't keep fire trucks and police cars on the road by turning down money from a company like Carnival.

[All4fun&fun4all]

Just typed up my letter and mailing on my lunch break too. I think the more tiny voices that are heard the better the end result. If they dont know we are for it then how will they know unless we tell them!

 

Tell all your cruiser friends and come visit our city! The new terminal is going to be so stunning. It should have already been built by now. :(

[bobsfamily]

Hey ALL I am here and completely agree... it's amazing that online they talk about all the people that were opponents of it, yet the only one shown on TV talks about the "snobs"... LOL!

 

For those of you not from the Charleston Area "snob" is a sorta inside joke... It stands for Slightly North Of Broad and is a name of a restaurant downtown and also refers to people that are "wannabes", in that they live above Broad St. and want to live below it where some of the more influential "families" and expensive homes are. Also the area is traveled by the Horse drawn carriages, walking tours and various Bed/Breakfast's that give flavor to the town. It is some of the most historic parts of the peninsula and is wonderful to walk thru.

 

So these "snobs" want the city to be above the "Carnival types" and are in the vast minority. I to will be sending a letter off to the Coastal office. You can also write to the South Carolina Ports Authority (SCPA).

Here is the website where you can leave comments:

 

http://www.port-of-charleston.com/UnionPierPlan/index.html

 

Thanks all for considering supporting the new cruise terminal and especially thanks for All4fun&Fun4all for bringing it up here!

[All4fun&fun4all]

And, I have already made a blunder. It is the Preservation Society, not the Historical Society. My apologies. I am new to this "having a soapbox" thing. :o

 

The DHEC office and address are correct however so write away!

[time4fun]

I mailed my letter this afternoon. Lived in Charleston for 18 yrs - children and grandchildren are still there. Many cities much older than Charleston co-exist with working harbors and cruise ships (Barcelona, Venice, Naples, etc), so surely they can find a way to make this work in Charleston. Every port we visit, we shop, take tours, and usually dine - all money that Charleston cannot afford to ignore!

[wrigley80]

Just typed up my letter and mailing on my lunch break too. I think the more tiny voices that are heard the better the end result. If they dont know we are for it then how will they know unless we tell them!

 

Tell all your cruiser friends and come visit our city! The new terminal is going to be so stunning. It should have already been built by now. :(

 

I will send out a letter but what should we say in it. Is there certain points that should be mentioned???

[KroozFoolz]

And, I have already made a blunder. It is the Preservation Society, not the Historical Society. My apologies. I am new to this "having a soapbox" thing. :o

 

The DHEC office and address are correct however so write away!

I actually thought Hysterical Society was more accurate. :D

 

We have considered cruising from Charleston but, after reading the horror stories of boarding the ship there, no way until they build a better facility.