Update on the Eastern Transition Area: Thanks to you and more than 1600 others who signed our petition, the “Eastern Transitional Area" has been eliminated from Aiken County’s Comprehensive Plan and the area has been re-identified as a zone of “Rural Preservation.” In the first of three required readings, County Council voted unanimously to approve the plan; we expect the Comprehensive Plan to receive final approval on May 19. When that happens, we will declare success and close this petition.

Update on Gas-Fired Power Plant (GFPP): In spite of our success on the Comprehensive Plan, rural landowners still face threats in Aiken County. This is because the majority of the Rural Preservation area is zoned Rural Development (RUD), which is the least restrictive. In fact, an out-of-state power company has optioned multiple properties comprising more than 560 acres in the New Holland area as possible sites for construction of a gas-fired power plant. This is a bad fit for our rural community.

PACE Aiken is a new grassroots organization that is fighting this threat to our rural, agricultural, and equestrian way of life. We hope you will visit their website here. Please sign their petition opposing the gas-fired power plant by following this link and sign up for their email updates here.

We are not anti-industry -- we just believe that industries belong in industrial parks and other areas specifically zoned for industrial uses. We hope you’ll support PACE Aiken in their fight to protect Aiken’s rural communities. 

Thank you for reading!