Crowfield Targets Abandoned Shopping Center

Crowfield homeowners are the latest to tell the University of South Carolina to clean up the abandoned shopping center at the edge of the large residential community.

The school has been trying to sale the vacant site at the corner of Crowfield Boulevard and St. James Avenue for years. Now, nealry every door and window is covered in metal panels.

It's also in the midst of an area the City of Goose Creek is banking on for a commercial revival. The only thing this shopping center is inviting is vagrants, vandals and the occasional commuter looking for a cut-through to avoid the light at St. James Avenue.

The issue comes up monthly at City Council meetings.

"It's a blight," said Goose Creek Mayor Michael Heiztler. "It's a dangerous blight."

Heitzler has pursued several avenues to get the property cleaned up. He's courted the school to annex into the city and he has sent a letter to the county to enforce its ordinances.

"I hate to defer these problems, but that is where it belongs," Heitzler said.

Now, the Crowfield Homeowners Association is collecting signatures for a petition asking that the school maintain the property and keep it well-lit to avoid vandalism and illegal activity.

HOA representative Barbara King told City Council at a recent meeting that the petition was prompted by the frustration of its members. "We're letting them know our displeasure with the condition of the property," she said.

USC did not return a message seeking a comment.

Mayor Pro-Tem Kimo Esarey has implored residents to contact the school and USC alumni to voice there displeasure. He was encouraged by the Crowfield petition. "That doesn't mean they have to give (the property) away," he said. "At least clean it up."