Content area
Full Text
MOUNT PLEASANT -- Life got sweeter Tuesday night for the basket makers and sellers who dot the roadside on U.S. Highway 17.
Town Council gave initial approval to a Sweetgrass Basket Overlay District, which is a joint effort with Charleston County to recognize and protect the art form that has been a part of the community for more than 300 years.
Sweetgrass basket making will be featured at the town's new Memorial Waterfront Park at a Sweetgrass Basket Pavilion. The S.C. Arts Commission a few days ago awarded the town $14,319 for the pavilion, which will provide a place for sweetgrass basket makers to practice their craft and sell their wares. The park is scheduled to open in the summer of 2008.
West African slaves brought sweetgrass basket making to the Lowcounty. Today, their descendants' work stands next to the din of U.S. 17 and the booming commercial and residential growth of the town.
Councilwoman Thomasena...