By Lauren Ratcliffe
lratcliffe@scbiznews.com
Published Jan. 8, 2013

The first phase of a controversial Mount Pleasant housing development could begin as early as next month, according to an application for a discharge permit.

Oyster Point Developers LLC, which owns the approximately 620-acre tract of land, and D.R. Horton, which will develop the property, applied for a stormwater discharge permit with the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control Jan. 4.

The permit would allow construction to begin on the first phase of the Oyster Point neighborhood. A public notice filed Jan. 4 said infrastructure work for the 200 single-family residential lots would include drainage improvements and utility extensions.

The work is estimated to impact 1.07 acres of federally non-jurisdictional wetlands. The entire tract features approximately 200 acres of buildable, higher land and 400 acres of marsh.

Mount Pleasant Town Council gave final approval last year to the annexation and zoning of the 620-acre property amid public outcry from some residents of the adjacent Six Mile community and residents in opposition to the new development.

While many residents approved of the town’s annexation, they expressed concerns that plans to develop the property would not do enough to protect Fort Palmetto. According to the National Register of Historic Places, Fort Palmetto was the easternmost position in the Christ Church Parrish line of defense during the Civil War.

Plans for the property include 593 residential units including townhomes, single-family detached homes and large single-family residences. The property sits at the end of Six Mile Road.