Controversial lakeside Lexington development withdrawn after public outcry
Plans to build hundreds of houses, a hotel, marina and town-run conference center on the shores of Lake Murray appear to be dead.
The developers behind what would have been a major development at Smallwood Cove sent a letter to the town of Lexington on Wednesday withdrawing their request to be annexed into the town limits. The annexation would have been the first step in plans to put up to 940 townhomes and 160 single-family houses on the 93.5-acre site beside the lake.
Lexington town council had given its preliminary approval to the plan in May. Smallwood Cove would have hosted a 50,000-square-foot, multi-million-dollar conference center owned by the town, as well as a 290-room hotel, restaurants and retail space. All of that goes out the window with the withdrawal.
“The Town received notice today that the Smallwood Cove property owners have withdrawn their request to annex all parcels as well as the application for zoning and the proposed development agreement,” Lexington announced in an email Wednesday afternoon. “As a result, the previously submitted proposal will receive no further consideration from the Planning Commission or Lexington Town Council.”
The law firm Maynard Nexsen, which represents the property owners who had sought the development, sent a letter to the town Wednesday announcing it was dropping its request for annexation and for approval of the plans, apparently coming as a surprise to town officials.
“Therefore, a meeting with Town Council to discuss these matters on Monday is not necessary,” the law firm’s letter concludes.
George Bullwinkel, the attorney who represents the property owners, said the plans for Smallwood Cove would have allowed more members of the public to take advantage of the lakeside property, but the approval process has “overshadowed” that goal.
“The landowner has enjoyed Lake Murray for more than 80 years and only wants the best for the community,” Bullwinkel said. “Regrettably, the annexation and zoning process has overshadowed the thoughtful plans that would have opened up community access to this beautiful location. My client has elected to withdraw annexation and rezoning efforts at this time.”
Last week, an overflow crowd packed town hall for a joint meeting of the town and county councils to discuss the proposal, with many of them raising concerns that Smallwood Cove would add to the area’s traffic and over-development woes.
The development site hugs the coast of Lake Murray along North Lake Drive, above Jake’s Landing and below the Lake Murray Public Park and Dreher Shoals Dam.
Town officials said at that meeting they would seek an outside firm to conduct a traffic study after the initial study submitted with the proposal was deemed “inadequate” and “biased,” in the words of Lexington Mayor Steve MacDougall. Any changes to the proposal would have gone to the town planning commission for review before they could receive approval.
Lexington had been appropriated some $16 million by the S.C. Legislature for development of a conference center on the lake. State Rep. Chris Wooten, R-Lexington, warned at last week’s meeting that the town risks losing those funds if the conference center isn’t built, although the center doesn’t have to be built at Smallwood Cove.
This story was originally published July 20, 2023 at 9:37 AM.
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