Buy a home at a reasonable rate with a VA loan in James Island, SC

JAMES ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - The site of a proposed preschool on James Island is causing some neighbors to worry about what their yards will look like during a storm or what the traffic will look like during rush hour.

The city of Charleston’s Design Review Board approved the basics, like what kind of building materials and plants the developer wants to use, for example, at the proposed Goddard Preschool located at 1137 Folly Rd., at Tuesday night’s meeting.

However, neighbor Matthew Pertuset says he’s more worried about what the city will review later on.

“How is that going to affect the, not just the people that back up, but the entire neighborhood?” Pertuset said.

The proposed preschool sits directly behind Pertuset’s home in the Queenborough neighborhood. He says he’s worried about the design of this building’s drainage because of how it already acts during storms.

“We’re already holding water,” Pertuset said. “So, for that to come up even more, I’m not sure. So, it’s a huge concern.”

But Robert Summerfield, the director of planning, preservation and sustainability for the city of Charleston, said because they have some of the most comprehensive stormwater regulations in the region, no project could make the problem worse but could only improve it.

“They’re working very hard to make sure that they are utilizing the existing wetlands on site and enhancing that as a stormwater catchment area,” Summerfield said.

But that’s not the only concern.

“If it is going to be a pickup, you know, we’re right here on Folly Road, how does that look during rush hour traffic in the mornings and the afternoons?” Pertuset said. “Is it going to get pushed into our neighborhood for us to deal with or is it just going to come to a stop on Folly Road?”

Summerfield said the city has already thought about it.

“We have created a drop-off low space so that cars, as they come in and drop their children off or pick them up, will actually flow through the site so that there’s a queueing situation that will occur so that people aren’t ideally not queueing out on Folly,” Summerfield said.

Neither the Goddard School nor the applicant, AAG Architects for Vista 26, LLC, have responded to requests for comment.

However, Pertuset said no matter what comes on this property, he just wants the city to be thorough with their plans.

“It is something that the community needs,” Pertuset said. “I think James Island could afford to have another preschool.”

Summerfield said the city will discuss more drainage specifics once the developer submits the next step to the Technical Review Committee. They will have to pass all initial designs before that is done and there’s currently no timeline of when that might take place.

Copyright 2024 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Discount grocer Aldi plans to beef up its presence across the Lowcountry.

The no-frills food chain filed plans with the city of Charleston recently to take over part of the space once occupied by the now-defunct Bi-Lo supermarket on Folly Road on James Island.

Aldi plans to lease 22,000 square feet of the roughly 40,000 square feet of empty space in the former grocery store building, according to Mark Hoffman, director of development for New Jersey-based Garden Communities, which has owned the 4.5-acre retail center since 1994.

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An Aldi representative did not immediately respond for comment on projected time frames for the renovation work and an opening date. Hoffman said he expects work to begin within the next six months with a possible opening by 2025 "if not earlier."

Last year, workout chain Planet Fitness leased and renovated 25,000 square feet on the east side of the former supermarket.

It’s the second new site in the works this year for the German-owned grocery chain in the Charleston area.

In May, the company leased several acres at U.S. Highway 17 and KOA Campground Road for a second Mount Pleasant location. Aldi signed a land lease with property owner Oakland Associates LP for 20 years with the option to renew up to 25 years.

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The penny-pinching Aldi doesn’t provide free shopping bags and requires a refundable quarter deposit for a shopping cart.

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The chain stocks a variety of standard products, mostly under its own label, as well as fresh meats and produce.

The grocer launched its first store in the Charleston region in 2015 off Dorchester Road on the edge of Summerville and North Charleston. The company then followed with a second store on Johnnie Dodds Boulevard in Mount Pleasant in 2017. Both locations were former bowling alley sites.

Aldi opened its third Lowcountry location in 2020 on North Main Street in Summerville, just south of the Earth Fare supermarket. The company added a fourth site later that year in the former Barnes & Noble Booksellers space on Rivers Avenue in North Charleston. A fifth store opened in 2022 on St. James Avenue in Goose Creek.

The low-budget grocer, with its U.S. headquarters in Batavia, Ill., is one of America’s fastest-growing retailers. It will add 120 stores this year. By the end of 2023, it will have 2,400 locations across the nation. It has 48 stores in South Carolina.

Lidl, its competitor that is also based in Germany, opened its first Charleston-area location on St. James Avenue in Goose Creek in 2017. A second location opened in 2022 in Cedar Grove Shopping Center on Dorchester Road in North Charleston, east of the Aldi location.

Lidl signed a lease in 2021 to outfit a former kitchenware shop in Bowman Place Shopping Center on Bowman Road in Mount Pleasant for the region’s third location but later scuttled plans.

In September, specialty grocery chain The Fresh Market took over the lease from Lidl. The Greensboro, N.C.-based supermarket chain has submitted plans to the town, but it has not announced an opening time frame.

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CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - One concerned resident living on James Island says there is a lack of communication on a traffic project that was designed to improve the safety and flow of traffic.

The Central Park Road and Riverland Drive Intersection Improvements Project was made to improve the safety and traffic flow of Riverland Drive and Central Park Road for all modes of transportation while minimizing impacts on adjacent property and grand trees. The project officially began in 2018 and is still in the works.

More than 11,000 vehicles a day commute on Riverland Drive, according to the Charleston County Transportation Department, and the lack of turn lanes and significant delays have prompted a plan to relieve traffic congestion at the intersection of Riverland Drive and Central Park Road.

The need for more crosswalks, signs and designated areas, frequent accidents, narrow lanes and delays for school traffic are just a few reasons officials say the project is needed. The funding for the project comes from the second half-cent sales tax.

Eric Lundcrum lives on Terrabrook Lane on James Island and says the road hasn’t been upgraded and the growth continues to climb in the area.

Charleston County spokesperson Kelsey Barlow says the county intends to install crosswalks and a flashing light at the Central Park and Riverland intersection. The project will also add a right-turn lane with refuge on Central Park and a sidewalk along Riverland Drive that will extend to the future Woodland Shores sidewalk to the Riverland Drive multi-use path.

“We should have some consideration on completing some of these projects that are way overdue,” Lundcrum says. “The Charleston County Council is always 20 years behind upgrading infrastructure to satisfy the growth. The other solution was just to put a traffic light there, but they didn’t even do that. Year after year of more growth and year after year no solution to the very busy intersection.”

We reached out to officials from Charleston County who told us the South Carolina Department of Transportation has approved the right-of-way plans, and they are currently in the right-of-way acquisition process. They are scheduled to advertise construction in the third quarter of this year. Currently, officials say the project team has made contact with impacted property owners and working with them for the right-of-way acquisition process.

If you know a road that’s driving you crazy, you can submit your concern here.

Copyright 2024 WCSC. All rights reserved.

California-based Auberge Resorts Collection plans to debut its first planned luxury hotel in South Carolina come 2024 in the form of The Dunlin, located within the Kiawah River master-planned community on Johns Island.

In partnership with real estate developer The Beach Co. and private investment and management company McNair Interests, the project is set to have a January groundbreaking.

“The Dunlin will offer an unforgettable escape where guests can immerse themselves in the pristine natural setting of Johns Island and the culturally rich attractions of Charleston,” Auberge Chairman Dan Friedkin said in a statement.

The Dunlin property will include 72 cottage-style guest rooms and suites and 19 villas, as well as a main lodge and porch, great rooms and a library lounge. Amenities encompass a pool with cabanas, full-service spa, community farmstead, and access to the community’s Spring House riverfront swim and fitness facilities.

A riverfront restaurant with outdoor deck will also be available, as will two event spaces, including a 10,000-square-foot indoor-outdoor event hall.

“We are pleased to partner with Auberge Resorts Collection to create The Dunlin, which will be one of the most remarkable new resorts in the country,” Beach Co. CEO John Darby said. “Auberge has a terrific track record of creating the most unique hospitality experiences in the world, and this endeavor’s intimate setting will bring highly personalized service with a coastal experience inspired by the local environment.”

Built into the Kiawah River community, which puts emphasis in natural surrounding elements, The Dunlin will consist of 2,000 acres of land with 20 miles of riverfront nature trails and marshlands. Guests will be able to participate in nature excursions on the property, including fly fishing, crabbing and boating, as well as paddle boarding, hiking and biking.

Architect Robert Glazier was chosen to design the resort, and Amanda Lindroth of Lindroth Design will lead the interior design of the property.

Construction financing was provided by United Bank’s Charleston offices.

Auberge Resorts Collection has 22 other hotels and resorts across the globe, recently winning accolades from Travel & Leisure’s 2021 World’s Best and Conde Nast’s 2021 Readers’ Choice awards.

JAMES ISLAND — She was left for dead.

Unconscious. Bleeding from a puncture wound to the back of her head and a gash arching from her hip to the top of her rib cage toward her spine. Fractures to her skull and neck.

On June 21, 2023, Jenn Drummond was found lying in the middle of the roadway, just steps from her James Island home. Eight months later, after relearning to walk and talk, Drummond wants to thank all those who have helped her recover from what authorities suspect was a hit-and-run collision.

The case remains unsolved. But it prompted county officials to lower speeds and add speed humps to the road.

"I'm alive, thank goodness," Drummond said Feb. 7 in her first interview since she was injured. "It could have been worse."

Drummond thanked them all: doctors and nurses at Medical University of South Carolina, where she spent six weeks immediately after the crash; staff at the Shepherd Center, a private hospital in Atlanta that specializes in spinal cord and brain injuries where she relearned the basic functions of daily life; the West Ashley dentist who repaired her broken front teeth, restoring her smile and her confidence; the community that rallied to donate money to help pay her medical bills; and the neighbors who petitioned Charleston County to make the street where this happened safer.

A lot has changed in her life, she said.

She's moved in with her sister, Ashton Stover, who is six years younger than the 35-year-old Drummond. The injuries to the left side of her brain have affected motor function and feeling on the right side of her body. She continues physical therapy three times a week and hopes to get back to running soon. She cannot taste or smell. She has no memory of the collision, nor does she remember much of the past year.

But her wry sense of humor remained intact.

"I don't recommend it," she said. "Getting hit by a car."

Drummond met with reporters at Maybank Public House, where she used to enjoy the tacos when she lived and worked nearby. Two of her former neighbors on Woodland Shores Road also attended the press conference. Soon, they might be able to walk to the popular restaurant without fear of something similar happening to them.

Last week, Charleston County Council voted to lower the posted speed limit along the mile-long stretch of road from 30 to 25 mph and install eight speed humps between Maybank Highway and Riverland Drive.

Construction could start as early as March, said Adam Friend, who has lived along the road since the 1990s. The day before the public thank you, Friend met with Councilwoman Jenny Honeycutt, who represents District 9, which covers most of James Island, he said.

While thrilled that the traffic-calming measures they have been asking for are finally coming, Ashley Riser, who lived next door to Drummond when she was hit, struck a note of regret.

"It should not have taken this," Riser said.

Drummond said she hopes the safety measures help.

Woodland Shores Road forks off of Riverland Drive, offering drivers a shortcut to the eastern part of Maybank Highway. Cars routinely speed down the road, typically driving 15 to 25 mph above the posted limit, a 2021 traffic study found. Because the speed limit was above 25 mph, the road wasn't eligible for traffic calming measures such as the installation of speed bumps, according to emails between county officials.

The county also has plans this year to add an 8-foot, raised sidewalk on one side of Woodland Shores. Currently, there are none. Some neighbors will continue to traverse the busy two-lane road to get to their mailbox, Friend said.

The morning of June 21, Drummond, who ran a dog-walking service, had an early client. Her uncle and an attorney the family hired believe Drummond likely crossed the road to go to her mailbox or to throw something in the trash bins lining the street for pickup before going to her appointment.

She left her home at 5:13 a.m., according to data from her phone and Apple watch. Her final step was recorded at 5:18 a.m., when a security camera across the street captured blurry footage of what appears to be an SUV headed south from Maybank Highway. Drummond was found on the roadway around 5:40 a.m.

The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office released the surveillance footage hoping it would lead to a suspect. Investigators chased more than 20 leads with no results, said Lexi Douglas, spokeswoman for the Sheriff’s Office.

"We have exhausted all potential leads stemming from evidence at the scene, as well as from tips from the community," she said, declining to say what evidence was collected at the scene. It was initially reported that no vehicle debris was recovered and that fire crews who responded to the scene hosed down the road before forensic investigators arrived.

Douglas said medical reports indicated Drummond was already on the ground at the time of impact, a fact that was never shared with the family, they said.

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"We release that information with the hope that we can trigger a recollection of a driver who perhaps hit her when she was already on the ground, rather than hitting an upright person," Douglas said. "These types of cases are incredibly difficult to investigate for a variety of reasons, including vehicles being mobile and very easy to hide, making evidence fleeting."

The sheriff's office only responds to a portion of one-mile stretch of road, according to Douglas. There have been 25 crashes reported on Woodland Shores since 2022, according to figures Douglas provided. Last year alone, deputies investigated more than 250 hit-and-run crashes.

The sheriff's office asks anyone with information about the case to contact Master Deputy Colt Arrington at 843-529-5343.