Commission recommends resource‑extraction rezoning and development agreement for Okeetee Club mining expansion

The Planning Commission voted to recommend a zoning map amendment that would designate an 860‑acre survey boundary as 'resource extraction' (a blue‑line area) for the Okeetee Club property at 1038 Grovefield Road, while clarifying that the immediate mining footprint proposed is substantially smaller (approximately 353.9 acres of proposed future mining and 52.2 acres currently permitted). Staff identified DES (DHEC) permitting, state reclamation bonding and required setbacks (300 ft from property lines and 1,000 ft from existing residences per the draft ordinance language) as required safeguards.

Representatives for Okeetee Club, including Bert Shifflett and Kevin Parker, described a phased approach: an existing permitted operation dating to the 1970s, segmented mapping of future reserves, bonding and reclamation obligations under state oversight, and a claim that demand for fill/dirt from DOT and other local projects makes local mining economically important. Shifflett told the commission Okeetee has been on the state mining registry since the 1970s and that many of the mapped segments are intended as long‑term reserves rather than immediate excavation.

Commissioners expressed concerns about the scale of the rezoning boundary, heavy‑truck traffic on Highway 17 and local roads, long‑term drainage and flooding risks, and whether a 453‑acre buffer area (forested/wetland) would be adequate. Multiple commissioners asked for staged approvals or development‑agreement language that would allow the county to review and approve only specific segments as they become imminent rather than permit unconstrained mining across the full blue‑line area.

The commission’s motion recommended approval of the rezoning to resource extraction and asked county council to pursue a development agreement that (a) phases mining into specific segments, (b) requires traffic and environmental analyses and reclamation plans for each active segment, and (c) gives the planning commission an opportunity to review certain future segments before they proceed. The motion carried by voice vote.