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Developer outlines plans for major Berkeley County project
By Holly Fisher
Contributing Writer
The number of homes in Berkeley County is quickly expanding. And Cane Bay Plantation is one of the larger developments planned for an area that seems to be getting less rural.
Cane Bay is a 2,000-acre development off U.S. Highway 176, not too far from Goose Creek. Plans for the massive project include 5,000 single- and multi-family homes, three new schools and a commercial area.
Ben Gramling, president of Gramling Brothers Real Estate and Development Inc., outlined his vision for Cane Bay Plantation during a Sangaree/Summerville Area Council meeting of the Berkeley County Chamber of Commerce. Government officials and business representatives filled a meeting room at the Holiday Inn Express Feb. 22 in Summerville to hear Gramling’s plans and ask questions.
Gramling has worked closely with Berkeley County Supervisor Jim Rozier as well as the Berkeley County School District to craft a mutually beneficial development. Gramling says he sees this venture as not just his project but as a community effort.
As a result, Cane Bay Plantation will have an extensive trail system, and Gramling Brothers has donated more than 200 acres for a new high school, middle school and elementary school. The high school will be located on the corner of Marshall Acres Drive and Highway 176. The middle school will be close to the high school so they can share resources, and the elementary school will be more removed from the other schools.
A commercial area is planned for the center of the development, and Gramling says he envisions offices, a grocery store, a church or a daycare center locating in that area. Having such amenities inside the development would be convenient for residents, thereby cutting down on traffic, he notes.
Of the 2,051 acres in the development, almost 1,400 is set aside for single-family housing, 199 for multi-family housing and another 199 for general development.
Gramling highlighted the large amount of green space built into the project. “We’re trying to design this like it used to be…when you could walk out your back door and find a place to play ball,” he says.
Much of the green space will be located at the rear of the homes, also providing a buffer between houses. The development will be subdivided based on the price of the homes, which each subdivision offering two or three price points. Gramling says he will use national, state and local builders and that home prices will run the gamut—ranging from starter homes to $300,000 or more.
Often considered a more rural part of the Charleston region, Berkeley County is seeing substantial growth and development. And Gramling’s project is just one of many coming off the drawing board.
“I think Berkeley County is poised to have some substantial growth over the years. If you look at Berkeley County over the last number of years, it has had success at creating jobs and at obtaining state and federal funds. The infrastructure is basically there for this development,” Gramling says.
To keep up with the growth, the county is planning to institute an impact fee for new building, which will fund several road improvement projects, Rozier explains.
Rozier is recommending Berkeley County Council approve an impact fee of $1,000 per house. It would be charged at the time the developer seeks a building permit and could generate $39 million. “We need to stay ahead of the curve in Berkeley County,” he says.
“In the next 25 years, we could double the number of homes in Berkeley County,” Rozier says. He adds that the county should begin now to widen roads rather than trying to back track once the developments are built.
Rozier’s road project list includes widening Highway 176 to four lanes and ultimately connecting it to Interstate 26, making Highway 17-A four lanes all the way to Moncks Corner, finish connecting North Rhett Avenue to Liberty Hall Road in Goose Creek, and widening Clements Ferry Road to four lanes. Eventually all the four-lane roads would be connected.
It may be 10 years or more before Cane Bay Plantation is fully developed, Gramling says. The school district will begin site work on the new high school this spring and some homes could be ready next year.
Holly Fisher is a regular contributor to the Business Journal. E-mail her at editorial@crbj.com.
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