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New luxury condos help bolster N. Charleston housing
By Dennis Quick
Senior Staff Writer
Two new Ashley River condominium communities will further transform North Charleston from a city primarily of renters to one primarily of homeowners.
Reverie on the Ashley will be an 88-unit, six-building condominium community on 32 acres along the Ashley River near Interstate 526. Each building will be four stories. Units will be roughly 1,800 square feet, with prices ranging from $495,000 to $840,000, the more expensive units being on the higher floors.
Construction began in October and will be completed by Aug. 1, 2006. The first building, containing 15 units, is sold out, according to sales director Dick Stober of Atlantic Island Properties Inc., which is marketing Reverie.
“This will be a landmark for the city of North Charleston,” Mayor Keith Summey said of the luxury condo community, the first high-rise condos on the Ashley River in North Charleston and the city’s priciest condos.
With the addition of the new, high-end condos, North Charleston provides homeownership opportunities for every income segment, Summey added.
The average cost of a house in North Charleston is $124,280, according to the Charleston Trident Multiple Listing Service.
During the past five years, North Charleston’s home renters to homeowners’ ratio has flipped from 60-40 in favor of renters to 60-40 in favor of owners, Summey noted.
Also, the city has tallied about $436 million in residential and commercial building permits this year, Summey said. By year-end that total could reach $500 million and exceed last year’s total by $130 million.
One of the Reverie’s prominent features is its natural surroundings. The Ashley River and its marshes, numerous 100-year-old live oaks and bird habitats will be protected, said developer Ben Gramling III.
“We wanted to make this project as environmentally friendly as we could,” Gramling said.
Four of the property’s 32 acres will be developed. Reverie’s residents will have access to walking trails, a private marina containing 40 boat slips on the Ashley River and a riverside pool and cabana.
The buildings will have stucco exteriors with columns and wrought iron railings. Fourth-floor penthouses will have private rooftop terraces.
Farther up the Ashley River, The Beach Co. is building Summer’s Bend, a 188-unit condominium community consisting of single-story, or “flat” condos, and two-story townhomes. Although located in Dorchester County, Summer’s Bend has been annexed by North Charleston.
Summer’s Bend is being built on 27 acres along the Ashley and offers across-the-river views of Middleton Place. The condos are two- and three-bedroom units ranging from 1,450 square feet to 1,790 square feet for the townhomes. Prices range from about $230,000 to $270,000.
The Beach Co. made its first-phase offering of 32 units in October and attracted about 230 people, according to Glenn Hollis Jr., vice president of The Beach Co.’s development division. As of Nov. 1, about 25 prospective buyers made reservations to participate in a lottery in which homebuyers will be selected. The deadline for placing a first-phase reservation was Nov. 8. The remaining units will be released in two other phases.
The buildings will blend in with the property’s live oaks, marshes and other natural features. Nature and the environment also are Summer Bend’s key attractions, said Hollis, adding that the development got its name from being located near a bend in the Ashley River.
“Instead of buildings designing the site, the site has designed the buildings,” Hollis noted.
Units will have detached garages and gated courtyard gardens at each entrance. Streets winding through the property will be named after area plantations dating back to the 1700s.
The Beach Co. expects Summer’s Bend to be completed in two years. The development is the company’s first residential venture in North Charleston.
Dennis Quick is senior staff writer for the Business Journal. E-mail him at dquick@charlestonbusiness.com.
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