The boundaries of a protected refuge mean little if adjoining land remains open to intensive building.
A 229-acre property in Charleston County, South Carolina, once earmarked for more than 200 homes, is set to be preserved instead. According to a report in the Times of India, the developer Pulte Home Company has agreed to sell the White Tract to the nonprofit Open Space Institute for permanent conservation, settling a dispute that dates back to 2006.
The land sits in the Town of Awendaw, bordering the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge. The original proposal envisaged approximately 208 single-family homes on 182 acres of the tract, and some permits and approvals had been secured. Conservation groups argued that development on that scale would damage wetlands, wildlife and water quality, with particular concern over the septic systems the homes would have relied upon. The South Carolina Environmental Law Project, acting for the Coastal Conservation League, Charleston Waterkeeper and Friends of Coastal South Carolina, challenged the permits through years of legal proceedings.
The ecological case rested on the refuge next door. According to the conservation organisations, Cape Romain provides habitat and feeding grounds for federally threatened migratory birds and holds more sea turtle nests than anywhere else in the state. Its marshes filter water, support coastal fisheries and buffer the coast against storms and flooding. Grace Gasper, executive director of Friends of Coastal South Carolina, described the property as globally significant, citing its role as a stopover for birds migrating between South America and the Arctic.
The agreement was announced on 6 November 2026 in a joint press release. The breakthrough came after the Open Space Institute identified a possible funding source, drawing Pulte into talks with the institute, SCELP and the conservation groups. Under the settlement, SCELP will drop its pending legal challenges once the land is permanently protected, and the institute may later incorporate the tract into the refuge. Pulte has also agreed to additional environmental measures at its Farms at Longleaf community in Hollywood and its Rock Six community in Dorchester County. Leslie Lenhardt, SCELP's senior managing attorney, presented the outcome as an example of parties moving beyond opposing positions.
What is not yet known is when the sale will close. No official closing date has been announced, and until the transaction is completed the transfer remains a proposed step rather than a completed acquisition. The purchase price and the precise terms of the environmental enhancements have not been disclosed in the report. The conservation groups credited state and local leaders, including Governor Henry McMaster, the South Carolina Office of Resilience, the Town of Awendaw and Charleston and Dorchester counties.
The significance extends beyond one tract. The settlement shows that protracted land-use disputes can end in purchase rather than litigation, and that the boundaries of a protected refuge mean little if adjoining land remains open to intensive building. For Awendaw, two decades of argument have produced a different future for the White Tract, contingent now on a signature and a closing date.
