COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - The board of South Carolina's environmental agency has voted to let stand a permit for a planned $35 million cruise terminal in Charleston.
The Department of Health and Environmental Control last month issued the permit allowing pilings at the site of the riverfront terminal. Opponents of the city's expanded cruise industry appealed the permit and wanted a further review.
But the DHEC board meeting in Columbia on Thursday voted to let the permit stand.
The vote came after attorneys for the South Carolina State Ports Authority asked the board earlier this week not to delay things further with another review. The authority says it would save time and allow the permit challenge to head directly to the state Administrative Law Court where attorneys say it's expected to end up anyway.
