A popular Beaufort Co. boat landing is closing for repairs. More upgrades are in the works

Island Packet - 8/27/2021

Aug. 27—Eddings Point Boat Ramp on St. Helena Island, used regularly by commercial fishermen and crabbers, is closing Tuesday for up to four months to fix structural damage.

The work comes as Beaufort County prepares to study the conditions of the 25 boat landings it operates countywide, some of which are inaccessible to people with disabilities.

Beaufort County announced in January that it would be closing the ramp at Eddings Point because of a concrete failure. The launch provides access to Jenkins Creek and the Morgan River.

Signs went up notifying that use of the ramp "is done at one's own risk."

O'Quinn Marine in Beaufort is scheduled to begin the repairs Tuesday, so the ramp and parking lot will be completely closed, Tanner Powell, a special project engineer with Beaufort County Public Works, said Friday. The public will not have access to the property for the duration of the construction, which has a Dec. 31 deadline but could be completed sooner, Powell said.

Repairs will be made to the underwater portion of the concrete ramp used to back up vehicles when boats are launched or pulled out of the water. No work is planned for the floating dock.

A crack has developed on a quarter of the ramp, Powell said.

The $49,950 cost of repairing it includes paving the parking lot with asphalt, he said.

In a related effort, Beaufort County is in the process of hiring a consultant to study the state of each of the county's 25 boat landings, said Chris Ophardt, a county spokesman.

That work will lead to a comprehensive plan that will recommend improvements.

"There's absolutely no appetite to close" the boat landings, Ophardt said.

Some facilities currently are not accessible to people with physical disabilities, Ophardt said. They will be upgraded as part of the dock and ramp improvements, Ophardt said.

The study will take about six months.

For a list of county docks, visit the Public Works Department's website.

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