Historic District on new watch list
For the first time since it began taking shape 81 years ago, Charleston's historic district has been labeled one of the world's threatened cultural sites.
The World Monuments Fund placed the city on its 2012 Watch List because of the threat posed by the rising number of cruise ships visiting here.
"Like many port towns, Charleston has experienced an increase in the number of cruise ships that arrive in its harbor, threatening to undermine the very character that entices visitors to come to the town in the first place," the fund's listing said.
The listing calls global attention to Charleston's cruise-ship debate -- and how some feel the city considered the birthplace of the nation's preservation movement is not doing enough to protect its future.
The announcement, made Wednesday at the nonprofit's New York headquarters, comes four months after the National Trust for Historic
Preservation put the city on its watch list for the same reasons.
Both lists are designed to call attention to challenges facing significant architecture and heritage sites.
And both lists drew the ire of Charleston Mayor Joe Riley, who said no one at the World Monuments Fund contacted him to discuss the contentious cruise issue.
"That designation has nothing to do with reality," Riley said. "I know they were lobbied, lobbying choreographed by (Coastal Conservation League executive director) Dana Beach and so they've been sold a bill of goods. ... It's very unfortunate."
The Preservation Society of Charleston submitted essentially the same application to the fund that it had to the trust, Executive Director Evan Thompson said.
"What we're trying to prevent down the road is having cruise ships and mass tourism dominate our downtown," he said. "So many places around the world have been tarnished by mass tourism. ... I think they're looking to Charleston to figure this out."
While Charleston's historic district is just one of 67 sites on the World Monuments Fund list, it is listed first in its press release and was the first mentioned in USA Today's report.
Riley said Charleston continues to get accolades as one of the nation's most desirable cities to visit. He also noted that the city is scheduled to see fewer cruise ships next year than this year. "It's in balance," he said. "This group doesn't know what they're talking about."
State Ports Authority spokesman Byron Miller said he also has not heard from -- or of -- the World Monuments Fund.
"They've not requested any information from us about the Union Pier plan, which would open up 35 acres of the city to the rest of the city while keeping a modestly scaled cruise business," he said. "Scale and balance is all through our plan."
He noted that only 3 percent of Charleston's tourists arrive via cruise ship.
However, it is the possibility that the percentage could rise that motivated the Preservation Society to seek the listing, and to join with other neighborhood and environmental groups in suing Carnival Cruise Lines, a lawsuit still pending.
Miller said that legal action is having a chilling effect on the Port Authority's ability to promote the state. "Jobs, contractual commitments and investments all hinge on this matter getting resolved quickly," he said.
The fund said it hopes its Charleston listing will help bring about "a balanced and sustainable plan that will enable both tourism -- including by cruise ship -- and the Historic District to thrive."
