GOOD NEWS: Community raises concerns about carriage horses

Community concerns raised about carriage horses in heat

Thousands now say horses should not be used in Charleston to pull wagons, according to a News2 poll started Friday. As of 7 a.m. today, more than three in four votes said carriage horses shouldn’t be used, compared to 1,394 (21.4 percent) that approved of the practice.

• See the poll.

The poll came Friday after a carriage horse collapsed on a Charleston street after apparently spooked by a cement mixer. More attention is now being focused on the wisdom of carriage animals operating in Charleston’s hot, humid days.

“We are calling for an independent review of today’s accident,” said Joe Elmore, chief executive officer of the Charleston Animal Society. “We have an ongoing concern for the health and welfare of, not only this horse, but all of the horses that are pulling wagons downtown.  We are equally concerned about the safety of both residents and visitors in our city when they are walking the streets and riding in the wagons.  We hope that the horse recovers, but the horse nor the citizens and tourists, should have been placed in harm’s way in the first place.”

Publisher Andy Brack was more pointed in April 2009 in a column pushing for better carriage rules: “”Charleston City Council needs to revisit rules that govern the carriage industry and try to ignore all but certain shrill complaints by the industry…. Our city’s leaders should craft more conservative and transparent regulations that take the animals’ welfare into account more than the pocketbooks of their owners.” Another commentary.

Activists are calling on those concerned about the plight of carriage horses to phone the office of Charleston Mayor Joe Riley (843.577.6970) to ask for a complete, transparent review of the accident.

Week of baseball is ahead. The Charleston RiverDogs will offer a week full of minor league baseball starting Wednesday with a 7:05 p.m. game with the Delmarva Shorebirds, an affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. After other games on Thursday and Friday, the RiverDogs open a four-game series Saturday with the Greenville Drive, an affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. More info: www.RiverDogs.com

Help sought for pedestrian, bike mapping project. A county-wide bike and pedestrian improvements plan in development since 2012 is now moving into its final phase. At this stage, area residents are encouraged to submit input towards an existing facilities satisfaction survey as well as a web-based wiki-mapping survey that will highlight potential bike/pedestrian routes. Provide input here by July 31: www.surveymonkey.com/r/people2parks.

Hats off to restaurateurs. Charleston area restaurateurs raised almost $600,000 last week through the “A Community United” event on July 9 that was profiled here. “The event was one of the proudest moments of my career. as you saw people of all walks of life, all faiths and all colors stand together under a “blanket of love”  as Reverend Novell Goff said that evening,” organizer Mickey Bakst wrote.