PICKENS COUNTY — The Pickens County Council has announced the Twelve Mile River will be developed into a recreational area that will provide a river put-in for whitewater kayaking through the Twelve Mile River Gorge with a take-out five miles downstream.
Pickens County Council has been working with Hulsey McCormick & Wallace Inc. to design and secure funding. The Twelve Mile River is a tributary of the Seneca River within the Savannah River Basin in South Carolina.
Wes Hulsey from Hulsey McCormick & Wallace Inc. will give a prestation on the project at the March 7 meeting of Pickens County Council. That meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. in the Auditorium of the Administration Building, 222 McDaniel Ave. in Pickens.
Visitors will be able to enjoy fishing along the river and lake as well as one of the picnic facilities. Hiking trails will allow visitors to appreciate the scenic beauty along the river and lake. The project is near the Town of Norris, Central and nearby Clemson University.
The project will consist of two parks: the Norris Highway Recreational Area which will serve as the whitewater “put-in” and the Madden Bridge Road Recreational Area which will serve as the whitewater boating “take-out” and lake access for sport fishing and flat-water paddling.
Parks will be constructed with ADA compliant facilities and access for the disabled.
“I am excited for the people of Cateechee who were affected by the PCBs,” County Councilman Trey Whitehurst said. “It is good that clean-up funds from the Lake Hartwell Natural Resources Damages Settlement will bring this project to the Cateechee area.”
The economic benefits of the project will be seen in the creation of a projected 80 jobs in the areas of natural resource guides, recreational outfitters, shuttle services, and increase demand for retail sales employment in convenience stores, groceries, and outdoor recreation stores.
It is forecasted that over 96,000 people, paddlers, and recreational fishermen will visit the parks on an annual basis.
The Twelve Mile River Recreational Area project cost for survey, engineering design, bidding, and construction of both parks is $1,898,060. The Lake Hartwell Natural Resource Trustee Council has committed $1,495,000 out of the Lake Hartwell Natural Resource Damages Settlement.
An additional $403,060 is requested from the Appalachian Regional Commission.