|
New downtown planned for Berkeley County
By Dennis Quick
Senior Staff Writer
Berkeley County’s booming residential growth is about to take on a new dimension.
To accommodate the thousands of houses being built and planned in the county, the Daniel Island Co. is creating a master plan for a 2,300-acre, mixed-use development within the Goose Creek city limits.
The development, at the intersection of Highway 17A and Highway 176, will be a kind of downtown area including residential units, retail stores, restaurants, corporate offices and perhaps even a hospital and an elementary or middle school.
The development is the brainstorm of the Daniel Island Co., which acquired the property in February. Construction could begin in 2007.
“We aim to create what will essentially become a sister community to Daniel Island—a smart-growth community that responsibly combines residential and commercial uses and evolves as a gathering place for the area,” said Matt Sloan, chief operating officer of the Daniel Island Co.
The company will apply what it learned in developing the 4,000-acre, 1,080-home Daniel Island to this new venture, Sloan said.
For instance, investing more money in the land to provide parks and green spaces and to make the development pedestrian-friendly—a major Daniel Island attraction—has proven to be profitable for the company, Sloan pointed out.
Because the master plan is still in the works, Sloan could not talk specifics about the development.
However, the new community will have room for “several thousand” homes, with home prices starting in the $300,000 range and a “tremendous” amount of office and retail development, Sloan said. He added that the development could become the largest commercial corridor in Berkeley County.
As with Daniel Island, greenways, parks and trails will be key recreational components to the Berkeley County development.
“We view this as an economic vehicle that will have a positive impact on the quality of life of the citizens of Berkeley County and a significant impact on our tax base,” said Goose Creek Mayor Michael Heitzler.
Of the roughly 170,000 homes being built and planned in the Lowcountry, 95,000 are in Berkeley County, according to Charleston Southern University economist Al Parish.
The Daniel Island Co.’s development will be at the center of Berkeley County’s residential growth and a gathering place or “downtown” for the surrounding new subdivisions, Sloan said.
The company purchased the land, a former tree farm, from a local family. Sloan would not disclose the family’s name or the price the Daniel Island Co. paid for the tract.
The forthcoming development is an example of “suburban infill,” where suburban land is transformed into a community where people can live, work and play, thus helping reduce the Lowcountry’s traffic congestion—the concept of “smart growth” and the hallmark of Daniel Island, Sloan noted.
“The project is in the right location for growth, and the Daniel Island Co. has proven that it can design and realize communities that are environmentally sound, efficient and equitable,” said Dana Beach, executive director of the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League.
Dennis Quick is senior staff writer for the Business Journal. E-mail him at dquick@charlestonbusiness.com.
|
E-Mail This Article
Printer-Friendly Version