Lake Conestee Nature Park

The Conestee Foundation, a 501(c)(3) conservation organization, was established in 2000 with a mission to spearhead the revitalization of the Reedy River properties and surrounding community directly downstream of the City of Greenville.  From inception until April 2005, the Foundation was run entirely by a volunteer Board of Directors.  In April 2005, the Conestee Foundation entered into a partnership with the Environmental Research & Service Division of the Institute for Public Service & Policy Research for Dr. Jeffery Beacham to serve as Executive Director of the Conestee Foundation.

One of the first Foundation actions was the acquisition of Lake Conestee which serves vital functions in the health of the Reedy River. The 145-acre Lake Conestee property is comprised of the former Lake Conestee lakebed.  Over the course of many years, this lake has undergone a natural ecological progression as sediments and soils have filled approximately 90 percent of the lake.  As a result, nature has created a lush bottomland forest containing wetlands, sloughs, 1.5 miles of the Reedy River, and a rich diversity of wildlife habitat.  The sediments that were deposited in the lake contain pollutants from the Reedy watershed’s industrial past.  The Conestee Foundation has entered into a Voluntary Cleanup Contract with the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control to safely manage the legacy contaminants in place, while creating a public wildlife and educational park for the citizens and children of Greenville County and upstate South Carolina.

The Conestee Foundation is working jointly with Greenville County, area municipalities and other stakeholders to extend the developing Lake Conestee Nature Park boundaries to 600-800 acres, creating a joint public access park and environmental education center that also will serve as a major hub to the developing Reedy River Greenway System.  Several recent planning efforts, including Greenville Vision 2025, the Clemson Saluda/Reedy River Study, and the County Recreational Needs Assessment, have endorsed the concept of such a park at Lake Conestee and a public access greenway along the Reedy River.

The Foundation has now extended its boundaries to 260 acres through the support of the South Carolina Conservation Bank, Greenville County, the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT), the Graham Foundation, the Duke Energy Foundation, and the John I. Smith Foundation.  Hiking/biking trail construction, supported through grants from South Carolina Parks Recreation & Tourism and SCDOT, will begin in 2006.  

Conestee Foundation Website:  www.conesteepark.com