Undecided future

The future of McLeod Plantation is still up in the air.

The College of Charleston's board of trustees discussed McLeod in a closed-door session at its regularly scheduled meeting Friday but did not vote on whether to support the purchase of the 40-acre historic property on James Island.

The college is considering purchasing the property from the Historic Charleston Foundation for $4 million, and recently extended its period of "due diligence" from Jan. 13 to Feb. 28.

Marie Land, chairwoman of the board of trustees, said the body is not required to approve the purchase because the school's foundation would actually buy the property. But, Land said, if President George Benson and other school leaders recommend moving forward with the purchase, the board likely will vote on it.

"Whatever that committee decides, I'm behind it," Land said.

If those leaders recommend against the purchase, the board probably won't vote on the matter, she said.

The College of Charleston Foundation's board of directors' next meeting is Feb. 8.

Benson has said college leaders are not certain exactly how they would use the property if they buy it. The school could use the plantation for many academic programs, including archaeology and historic preservation, he has said.

He also proposed possibly building intramural sports fields, which he said the landlocked campus desperately needs.

Friends of McLeod, a 600-member group formed six years ago to preserve and protect the plantation, is opposed to the college using the archeologically sensitive fields for sports.

And the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission issued a statement that said McLeod "should be preserved, protected and interpreted because of its importance to the history and culture of the Gullah/Geechee people." The statement did not specifically address sports fields.

Benson has said he and other college leaders have met with commission representatives and found everybody was largely on the same page.

Land said the college continues to explore the possible purchase as part of the due diligence process. "We all have learned a lot and are looking at it carefully," she said.

Reach Diane Knich at 937-5491 or dknich@postandcourier.com.