Roofing Contractor inGoose Creek, SC.

GOOSE CREEK — Lydia Wright squealed and giggled uncontrollably as her brother Michael pushed her on a swing at Central Creek Park in Goose Creek.

The 4-year-old, who has epilepsy, was belted securely in the swing by a plastic harness designed to hold children in place as they fly through the air.

Lydia’s family was one of the first families to use the city’s new 13-acre Central Creek Park, a barrier-free park and playground designed to accommodate everyone, including children and adults with disabilities. That was important for her parents, Rob and Bethany Wright, who say it’s extremely hard to find activities that accommodate their 22-year-old daughter Lissy, who has autism.

“We have been driving all the way to downtown Charleston” from their home in Cane Bay to participate in the city’s inclusive parks and rec activities, said Bethany Wright. “And when COVID came on, they stopped all their programming.”

The new Goose Creek park’s playground includes wheelchair-accessible swings, equipment designed to aid people with sensory processing issues and other features that appeal to “kids of all abilities,” said Mayor Greg Habib.

The park officially opened to the public on Dec. 16 after nine months of construction. Habib said it was a community effort — more than $1.3 million of the total $9.5 million cost came from private donations.

Hannah Miller, the city’s therapeutic recreation coordinator, and Nicole Herrera Murray, assistant recreation director, both advocated strongly for inclusive playground equipment.

“A lot of the pieces are intentional,” Miller said. “Like, we have a seesaw that you can put a wheelchair in. You can wheel somebody up so that they can experience the motion that you wouldn’t typically find at another park.”

While still not widespread, inclusive parks are becoming more common throughout the Lowcountry. Both North Charleston and Summerville opened playgrounds for children with disabilities in the spring, and North Charleston is working on a $5 million, 50,000-square-foot recreational space accessible for both children and adults.

Last month, Moncks Corner opened its long-awaited Home Telecom Miracle League baseball field, an inclusive, wheelchair-accessible field for the town’s Miracle League team to play sports. The field’s grand opening was attended by baseball fans throughout the Lowcountry. Like Central Creek Park, the $1.5 million project was funded partially by donations.

“We are excited about having our first season this spring,” said Moncks Corner Recreation Director Becky Ellison in an email to The Post and Courier.

The movement goes beyond the Lowcountry to other parts of the state. Greenville has several parks accessible for those with disabilities. The newest, Unity Park, opened in May with features like smooth, wheelchair-friendly turf, supportive swings with extra straps and interactive elements to the toddler playground, said Loren Thomas, the city’s multimedia communications specialist.

“Unity Park was really about bringing everyone together and giving everyone a place to play, a place to fellowship, a place to just enjoy the city of Greenville,” Thomas said. “Part of that was making sure the playgrounds, which are going to be a feature of the park, were accessible to all and inclusive to all.”

Berkeley County Supervisor Johnny Cribb, who attended the openings of both the Miracle League field and Central Creek Park, said it’s exciting to see places that everyone, regardless of age or ability, can enjoy.

“I look at this park, it’s like cradle to grave,” he said. “It’s (for the) really, really young, all the way up to old, and everyone in between.”

Goose Creek Parks Director Crystal Reed said the city worked closely with the special needs community and the rest of the public when designing Central Creek Park. The parks and recreation department already has a therapeutics program in which children and adults with disabilities participate in bowling, dance, music, art and fishing. Lissy Wright and her family has participated in the program for several years.

“When we started those programs, we started getting connected with a lot of the day programs in the area that serve a lot of the adults, and we started working closer with the schools, you know, their special education programs,” Reed said. “It’s really this close-knit community ... We feel like we got a lot of feedback from these groups as we started planning and we have sessions where we kind of were able to hear what the public wanted, what our community needed.”

The park also fits into a larger push by Goose Creek to expand its recreation and entertainment options as the city’s population and surrounding area grows. Last year, John McCants Veterans Memorial Park opened on Anita Drive, and the city has plans to break ground on a $4 million amphitheater behind the municipal center in April.

“I want to create as many opportunities for people to leave their home, go where other people are and have fellowship with one another,” Habib said. “I believe that’s how you build community. That’s how a hometown is built.”

Deborah Grace is a newcomer to the city, having recently moved from West Ashley, and said she thinks the park as a whole will be a great place for the city to hold events that she can take her family to.

“It’s just unique,” said Grace. “And I don’t think there’s any other park around the area like it that I have seen even in the tri-county area.”

In addition to the two playgrounds, Central Creek Park includes eight pickleball courts, a basketball court, a volleyball court, a food truck court, a splash pad that will open late next spring, a field and stage, and half-mile walking trail around the perimeter. The park also has the Casey Pavilion, where the city expects to hold events like farmers markets, craft fairs, movie nights and concerts if the weather is too rainy to hold them on the stage.

GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCIV) — A Goose Creek family may have lost their home, but they've found a community that cares.

Dustin Aleff was at work when his house caught fire, but his family was fast asleep. They were saved by their fire alarm. Once they woke up from the fire alarm going off, they ran out of the back of their house with their animals.

Read more: Several animals rescued from burning home in Goose Creek

The Aleffs are glad that no one was hurt and are grateful for the people who offered to help.

"All our neighbors have stopped by to help and most times I don’t really know what to tell them, but it’s pretty amazing and overwhelming all the help," Dustin said.

Friends and family - even strangers asking what they can do to help.

Dustin Aleff was at work when his house caught fire, but his family was fast asleep. They were saved by their fire alarm. (WCIV)

Dustin said, "A couple of restaurants in the area were reaching out and a couple of the schools. We do a lot with the athletic programs but having all them reach out and say hey anything we can do to help is overwhelming."

One local business is making it its mission to raise money.

Read more: Crews extinguish house fire in Goose Creek; no injuries reported

Caroline Elkins, a lead bartender at Sapphires in Goose Creek said, "You can do a monetary donation and I'm not sure what all they need, but go on social media and we'll definitely have a box here for people to drop off for whatever household items that are needed."

The Aleffs have a lot of work ahead of them, but they've quickly realized they are surrounded by a community that cares. Two of the Aleff kids wrestle for Stratford's youth wrestling team and the team is taking donations to help the family.

A GoFundMe was created by Dustin's sister that has already raised over $8,000.

GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCSC) - Christmas came early for a young man in Goose Creek but not before a couple of Grinches got in the way.

After realizing he dropped more than $1,700 in cash while riding his motorcycle down Highway 52 as he was headed to the store, 20-year-old Kyle Kons got to his destination Wednesday afternoon only to find his money missing. He retraced his steps to see several cars pulled over on the side of the highway - people were grabbing his cash and driving off.

“By the time I got there, the last car was pulling off,” Kons says. “I felt hopeless. I thought ‘I’ll never get this money back.’”

Kons says he had just bought a car with the cash and had put the leftover money in an envelope from the bank.

“I thought my front jacket pocket was zipped up all the way, but I guess not,” he says. “I thought I had felt something fall out and hit my leg, but I didn’t question it because nobody behind me was stopping.”

“My heart sunk. I felt like I was the laughingstock of the town,” Kons says. He says he moved to Goose Creek last year for his career in the Navy. He’s currently a Petty Officer.

In a Facebook post of his own in the group, Kons wrote, in part:

“I didn’t realize my money was gone until I arrived at Walmart, and by the time I got there, the last car was scooping up my money… I ask people to be decent human beings and return the money to the owner. I earned that money that you got for free.”

In addition to expressing his frustrations, Kons left his phone number on the post to see if anyone had extra work, so he could earn some money during the Christmas weekend.

He says he never would have thought the community would use his phone number to find his payment apps, like Venmo, CashApp and Zelle, and gift him his money back… and then some.

“I came home from work Thursday, and I had $300 in my account,” Kons says. “I was like ‘no way,’ and it was maybe five people total at the time sending money and saying ‘this sucks but have a great Christmas.’ I was so touched, like, oh my gosh, thank you, thank you, thank you!”

Kons says most of the payments appeared to be coming from other military members in the area. The payments ranged from a couple of dollars to $250.

In total, Kons tells us he’s been sent over $2,000 through the payment apps, and he doesn’t want to get any more notifications or payments.

He spent Friday with his roommates, John VanTatenhove and Tyler Roton, picking up litter on Highway 52 where he lost his money as a way of giving back to the Goose Creek community.

Copyright 2022 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Central Creek Park is dubbed “a park for all” and so far it has been just that since opening on Dec. 16, 2022. The site on Old Moncks Corner Road has been a big success and the only real problem is finding a parking space.

It’s the three-month anniversary for Central Creek Park and it is as welcoming as envisioned when plans got rolling on the park over two years ago.

It was once just an idea for a playground but the 13-acre site is now a top destination.

The area offers pickle ball and basketball courts, a massive pavilion, a stage for concerts and movie nights, walking trails, greenspace and a giant playground that offers enrichment to the special needs community.

“The park has been packed,” said Hannah Miller, the Therapeutic and Community Programs Coordinator for Goose Creek. “I think everyone is a bit surprised about having this kind of resource. Everybody jokes we don’t have enough parking spaces. You pull up there in the morning and everyone is playing pickle ball, or getting an early start on the playground.”

And it’s not just early in the day, Central Creek Park is busy both day and night because there is such a variety of things to do.

“Then you drive by in the evening and the basketball courts are packed. I don’t have exact numbers but we have a few hundred different parking spaces and they are practically always full,” said Miller.

The $9.5 million park was built with the help of major donors and the business community. The spot is for everyone of any age or ability.

“We get a lot of compliments about how beautiful it is and how well it was organized and about how well it’s running,” she said. “We get a lot of thanks and a lot of praise for like, ‘My children haven’t always been considered so now they have a place they can go and feel safe and have a place to play.’ It’s been all compliments which is kind of overwhelming.”

The park, on the old site of the old Casey Recreation Center, is not only popular with Goose Creek residents, those from outside the city have been arriving as well.

“Not a day goes by that somebody is like, we drove here from North Charleston or we drove here from Summerville. It is really an attraction point and people are utilizing it,” said Miller. “It’s been a joy to have in the community, it’s been an honor to work there and be a part of the project. I think it’s going to be a staple for really long time to come.”

GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCIV) — Tonight, the City of Goose Creek is expected finalize its plans for a new 300-unit apartment complex coming to Henry Brown Boulevard, as the city’s Board of Architectural Review will make its final recommendations to the developers for adjustments.

The complex will take up 24 acres adjacent to Henry Brown Blvd. With 10 three-story buildings surrounding a central pond. The complex will include amenities such as a dog park, pedestrian walkway and a five-story garage.

Read More: City of Goose Creek board to review plans for 300-unit apartment complex

However, it has been a long time coming to get to this point. The conceptual design was initially approved over a decade ago. The development is zoned under a “Pre-Existing Development” which outdates projects which were approved by the current city council and Goose Creek Mayor Greg Habib.

But with the population in goose creek growing by over 25 percent over the past decade, the main concern for residents is making sure the infrastructure is in place to fit the current state of the city.

“I feel that we're kind of at the mercy of the builder at this point, because they were approved so long ago, before the vision of what it should be for Goose Creek. So, anything that the [Board of Architectural Review] recommends or anything like that, it's kind of limited what they can do,” Goose Creek Resident Eric Bennett said.

How a new 300-unit apartment complex will shake up the Goose Creek area in the future. (WCIV)

“I really think that the city council, I think that the mayor is working with these builders and talking to them, and seeing how they can come to some middle ground and anytime that you're able to communicate, anytime that people are willing to meet in the middle, then everybody wins," Bennett continued.

Since the project was approved already the BAR can’t stop or reject the apartment complex from being built. The board of architectural review will make recommendations including lighting, signage and elevation at tonight’s meeting.

But the question for a lot of residents remains how those in charge will handle the project which was approved in a very different Goose Creek than we are seeing today.

There are already some changes in the works as the city has is nearly two years into their project to expand a portion of Henry Brown Blvd. from a two lane road to a four lane road.

Read More: Does Goose Creek need more apartments? Leaders, community members weigh in

The bigger concern for residents is the infrastructure around the building, with one of the key elements being storm water management. This has been a problem for the city and greater Berkeley County area for a while, especially after we saw flooding impacts from Hurricane Ian and Tropical storm Nicole hit those areas.

While some say the complex isn’t a negative for the city, residents do say they want to see the right steps made in the implementation of this new building to fit into the city’s current structure.

“The challenge that you have, though is where does the money come to get that infrastructure put in place? And the answer to that is to the growth, right? Putting these projects and the impact fees that come from these projects towards that infrastructure, the tax revenue, and everything else from the property taxes and stuff is what's going to drive the ability to improve that infrastructure,” Bennett said.

Read More: Proposed plans for downtown Charleston apartment complex causes controversy

In a statement provided to us from the City of goose creek officials says in part quote:

All stormwater requirements required by the county will be in place for these or any developments.

But there was no statement on whether the city or county as a whole would plan to change any of those with the new building in place. It is important to note most of the Stormwater Management or external infrastructure management comes from Berkley County and not the city of Goose Creek.

City officials also said developers now need to have any new apartment complex approved by the current mayor and council for full approval. Something which was not in place when this complex was approved.

The city's Board of Architectural Review meeting is scheduled for Monday at 6 p.m.