MOUNT PLEASANT — No new apartment or condominium developments have been allowed since early 2017 in South Carolina’s fourth-largest city, and Town Council members are moving to extend that ban into 2025.

The town’s elected leaders also just slashed the number of homes that would be allowed above businesses, drawing criticism from real estate professionals.

Josh Dix, government affairs director for the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors, said Mount Pleasant has developed a culture “of privilege and exclusion” and is acting more like a homeowner’s association in a gated community than a large town.

Councilman Jake Rambo took offense at Dix’s suggestion that increasing development restrictions have been making housing less affordable.

Mount Pleasant has three or four times the population it had when he was growing up there, Rambo said, but amid all that growth and development the town has become more expensive and less diverse.

The town’s population is more than 91 percent white and the median single-family home price was $750,000 in the least expensive part of the town, according to January figures.

Dix and other real estate professionals acknowledge that newer apartments in Mount Pleasant are far from affordable but say restricting apartment construction can drive up rents in the region.

“When you just stop, there are some unintended consequences,” Rob Woodul, a town resident who is president of South Carolina Realtors this year said prior to the council meeting. “When you choke off supply, it drives up prices.”

But choking off supply is just what Mount Pleasant has done, very deliberately and in response to the wishes of the majority of voters. Controlling residential growth and traffic have been talking points in each recent election.

On Feb. 14 the council made its latest moves, voting unanimously to reduce the number of residences allowed in commercial areas and to give initial approval to a two-year extension of the apartment and condo moratorium.

“We don’t want any more,” Councilwoman Laura Hyatt said after the meeting. “We don’t need any more.”

At the same time, many council members agree that Mount Pleasant needs more housing that people, including town employees, teachers and hospital workers, can afford. The town describes that as “attainable housing” and is relying on the private sector to create it.

Both the moratorium and the reduction in the number of residences allowed in commercial areas carve out exceptions for attainable housing.

“This is a big thing for affordability tonight,” said Mayor Will Haynie.

Real estate professionals have predicted that no such housing will be created under the town’s exceptions because they are too strict and won’t make sense financially.

Specifically, Town Council reduced the number of homes allowed in mixed commercial-residential developments — homes above businesses — from 12 per acre to four, but allowed for four more if they qualify as “attainable” housing for middle-income buyers or renters.

That would prohibit future developments similar to Shelmore Village, a collection of three-story buildings with homes above offices and shops that was built in 2006.

At an earlier meeting about the down-zoning, Daniel Doyle, chief operating officer and director of development for The Beach Co., said expecting developers to make half of the residences in a development “attainable housing” units won’t work financially.

The moratorium on apartments and condos also includes an exemption for attainable housing. That exception has been included in the town’s moratoriums since 2019, and no such multifamily developments have been proposed during that time.

The stated purpose of the moratorium extension is to give the town needed time to complete a rewrite of Mount Pleasant’s zoning code, to match up with its most recent Comprehensive Plan. Earlier versions of the moratorium were said to give the town’s infrastructure time to catch up with development.

The restrictions come at a time when the Charleston area is facing an affordable housing crisis, soaring apartment rents and a shortage of housing for sale.

Mount Pleasant’s neighbors, the cities of Charleston and North Charleston, have seen soaring demand for apartment construction during the time Mount Pleasant has had a moratorium in place. Mount Pleasant and the two neighboring cities are three of South Carolina’s four largest municipalities.

Charleston issued permits for development of 2,213 multifamily units in 2022 and 2021, according to the city, and more than 7,500 since Mount Pleasant’s continuous moratorium started in 2017.

Nearly 48 percent of residences in Charleston are in multifamily developments, according to the city. In Mount Pleasant, multifamily homes accounted for 27 percent of residences as of 2020, and no new ones have been permitted for years.

In North Charleston, 5,631 apartment units were in some stage of the permitting process during the past two years, according to the city. Some of those were under construction and were likely permitted prior to 2021, but had not yet received certificates of occupancy.

“We need all the housing we can get, and at all price points,” said Dix, prior to the Town Council meeting.

“Mount Pleasant is not an HOA,” said Dix, who also chairs Charleston County’s Housing Committee. “If they want to be a gated community, that’s another discussion.”

The town’s prohibition on new apartment developments began in 2016, ended briefly, then came back in 2017 and has remained in place. Apartment buildings developed since that time were either permitted before the moratoriums began, or were allowed due to a legal settlement.

The town also had a permit allocation system from 2001 into 2008, prompted by concerns that home construction was outpacing the town’s ability to keep up with road improvements and public services.

As in 2021, allowing the existing apartment and condo moratorium to expire this year would not have resulted in new apartment buildings because of the existing permit allocation system.

“Even if it does go away, there are no multifamily permits,” said Michele Reed, the town’s Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods director, prior to the council meeting.

The permit allocation system is in place until February 2024, and could be extended, she said.

There have been other South Carolina towns and cities that temporarily halted permitting for apartments, but none have done so for as long as Mount Pleasant.

Another dining venue is coming to a former Mount Pleasant restaurant, and several new shops are now open across the greater Charleston area.

Farm Haus Butcher & Beer Garden is renovating a site at 604 Coleman Blvd. in Moultrie Plaza Shopping Center.

Farm Haus’ menu will feature house-made sausages and burgers using heritage-breed pork and grass-fed beef that will be ground fresh daily.

The space previously housed Asian eatery Bambu.

An opening date for Farm Haus has not been announced. A restaurant representative did not immediately respond for comment. The company also operates a location in Indian Land near Charlotte.

New perk

A new coffee shop is now welcoming customers on the Charleston peninsula, the second in the past month to open.

Big Kick Coffee recently launched at 476-D Meeting St. behind a Sherwin Williams paint store.

The 1,450-square-foot space offers retail, roasting, packing and online orders.

Big Kick comes from Veggie Bin owner Fraser Young, who operates another cafe at 125 S. Market St. in downtown Charleston. It joins the recent arrival of Mudhouse Specialty Coffee Roasters at 375 King St.

Filling up

Two new businesses are coming to southern Moncks Corner, and another opened on May 2.

Fast-food restaurant Wendy’s and Valvoline Instant Oil Change plan to open in Foxbank Towne Center on U.S. Highway 52 near the Publix-anchored Moncks Corner Marketplace, according to Charleston-based developer Twin Rivers Capital.

WenJai Restaurant Group, one of the largest Wendy’s operators in the Southeast, recently broke ground and is expected to open in the second half of 2023.

Kentucky-based Valvoline, with more than 1,500 locations that offer stay-in-your car vehicle maintenance services, intends to break ground later this year and open by year’s end.

Valvoline also plans a new location on Faison Road across from Costco Wholesale in northern Mount Pleasant.

Also, now open in Moncks Corner is a new frozen treat shop.

Alien Cow Flavored Sno can be found at 2033 Old Highway 52. The shop opened Tuesday and offers mixes of “flavored sno” and “sno cream” which are dairy free, lactose free and vegan friendly, according to the new shop’s Facebook page. Business owners say it’s not ice cream or shaved ice. A food truck park also is planned for the future.

On the way

A new discount store is on the way to Goose Creek.

Tennessee-based Dollar General Corp. recently leased a 1.42-acre undeveloped site on St. James Avenue just west of Myers Road, according to Berkeley County land records.

The 15-year lease can be extended up to 25 years, according to terms of the agreement. An affiliate of Coastal Development Partners of Spartanburg bought the land in January for $295,000, land records show.

Now open

A new organic self-care products boutique is now open in Charleston.

Lost River Naturals can be found at 2317 Ashley River Road in West Ashley. Connie and Ricky Young launched the 1,300-square-foot shop in April.

Connie, an herbalist and aromatherapist, started the business online in 2006 after formulating organic, clean-beauty skin care and herbal products for men, women and children.

The shop also carries herbal teas, herbal tinctures and items such as gemstone jewelry, candles and crafts from other small businesses. Hours are 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

Gassing up

An Oklahoma-based convenience store and gas station chain is entering the edge of the greater Charleston market.

Quik Trip plans to open a store at 1857 Bells Highway, just off Interstate 95, in Walterboro.

The Tulsa-headquartered company has two other stores in the eastern part of South Carolina in Orangeburg off I-26 and Hardeeville off I-95. Several other locations can be found in the Midlands and Upstate.

Also, Parker’s Kitchen snipped the ribbon May 1 on its new store at 5644 N. Rhett Ave. in North Charleston. It’s the 75th location for the Savannah-based convenience store and gas station chain.

The company has 12 locations in the Charleston area and 31 in South Carolina. Several others are on the way in the Lowcountry, Grand Strand and North Augusta.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - The cost of lunch and breakfast offered through the Charleston County School District is about to increase for the first time in more than a decade.

On Tuesday, the district’s Nutrition Services Department presented a proposal to the CCSD Audit and Finance Committee to increase lunch to $2.75 and breakfast to $1.50 – an increase of 50 cents and 10 cents, respectively.

However, only students in Mount Pleasant and at Buist Academy, School of the Arts and Academic Magnet will have to pay the new prices. Schools in Charleston, North Charleston and everywhere else in the county will have the same price, but students at those schools will get their meals paid for by the federal government’s Community Eligibility Provision program.

The CEP program allows students in low-income areas to eat for free. This year 22,000 students qualified for the CEP. Now, after a change that allows the state to use Medicaid data to determine low-income areas, more schools have been added. Next year more than 33,000 students will qualify for the CEP.

Walter Campbell, executive director of Nutrition Services, says they were able to apply for the CEP as groups of schools and feeder patterns instead of individual schools that may not have otherwise qualified. However, the schools in Mount Pleasant did not have enough areas with low-income students to meet the threshold to be eligible for CEP.

Campbell says that without the expansion of the CEP, the price increase likely would have needed to be higher to keep up with inflation.

“If you look at the consumer price index since the start of the pandemic in the food area, it has risen 23 percent,” Campbell said. “We don’t see ourselves coming back in the next three years because we are going to put other things in place to strategically keep things balanced.”

The 50-cent increase for lunch would bring the department an additional $437,000 in additional income. Campbell says his staff works hard to cut costs and work as efficiently as possible.

“Nationwide, 16 to 18 meals per labor hour is the norm. We run about 21 meals per labor hour because our folks are efficient. It helps us keep a balanced budget,” Campbell said.

Individual students in Mount Pleasant and the other schools affected by the price increase would still have the opportunity to apply for free and reduced meals. Campbell says his team has an extensive outreach effort every year to help families apply for that program.

The price increase proposal still needs to be approved by the full school board but if it is approved the price change would go into effect next school year.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Given Mount Pleasant’s population growth over the last decade, it’s fairly common upon meeting new people to ask, “Where are you from?” or “What brought you to Mount Pleasant?” So, it was a rare treat to talk with Mount Pleasant native Robyn Jones Hall about growing up on this side of the bridge. This Lowcountry girl loves the land on which she was raised and remembers an idyllic childhood.

Back then, as she put it, “it was more what you think of growing up in a small town where everyone knows everyone.” She recalls crabbing and fishing and taking advantage of a lot of outdoor time throughout her childhood.

After graduating from Wando High School, Hall left to attend the University of Georgia, where she met her husband, Jason. Hall always knew that Mount Pleasant was her home, and it wasn’t difficult for her to convince her husband to move to the area to put down roots and start their family.

Having spent time in both the banking and insurance industries, as well as time as a stay-at-home mother to her two daughters, Hall eventually decided to pursue her dream of selling real estate in the area she knows so well. She’s been with Carolina One for eight years and loves her profession. Her guiding philosophy and vision for her business is for her “friends to become her clients and her clients to become her friends.”

Mount Pleasant — especially North Mount Pleasant in the 29466 area code — has experienced tremendous growth in recent years. Hall credits the healthy job market, superb schools, addition of popular stores and new restaurants for the housing and population boom. Though the gap is narrowing, she noted that you can still get a little more house for your money in locations like Carolina Park and Park West, while still living in close proximity to the beach.

Hall and her family love to take advantage of the scenic beauty and outdoor activities Mount Pleasant has to offer. She and her husband enjoy visiting Shem Creek and Pitt Street Bridge. They also love kayaking or paddling from one of the many neighborhood docks in the area.

“To truly enjoy Mount Pleasant the way it should be enjoyed,” she said, “you need to be outside. I’ve always felt fortunate to live here, even when I was a child.”

She says she’s extremely lucky to be able to live and enjoy, daily, a place where so many people come to vacation. She affectionately refers to it as the “flip-flop lifestyle.”

Hall attributes the lifestyle as the number-one reason for why people are drawn to and stay in Mount Pleasant. She’s seen clients who moved from bigger cities and “watched their blood pressure drop” after being here a few months.

“That’s honestly my favorite part of the job,” she said. “When people move here and their level of happiness increases and their stress goes down, it’s very gratifying.”

By Sherry Whiting

Families That Work: Jason and Jessica Jones Suzie Smith, Realtor with Carolina One Real Estate on this special South Carolina Women in Real Estate Episode

Aspiring Lowcountry entrepreneurs soon will have a new place to build their businesses.

The 22,000-square-foot Mount Pleasant Harbor Entrepreneur Center at 11 Ewall St. in East Cooper will feature 18 offices available for rent, tentatively starting May 1, according to executive director Grady Johnson.

The new facility is a collaboration between the Harbor Entrepreneur Center in Charleston, the SC Research Authority and the town. It includes private offices and co-working space in an open floor plan for startups and support organizations.

Rental rates are still being set, but Johnson said they will range from about $150 a month for a desk to about $650 or so a month for an office. Hourly rates also could be offered.

“Our sponsors are helping to reduce our rents to try to keep them below market rates,” Johnson said.

The center will be in the same building where Automated Trading Desk once operated between Johnnie Dodds Boulevard and Mathis Ferry Road. The tucked-away office complex is owned by an affiliate of Realty Income Corp. of San Diego, which paid $27.275 million for the property in 2011, according to Charleston County land records.

Flowertown financing

Two North Carolina firms recently secured $44 million of transitional financing for the completion and lease-up of a Charleston-area multifamily project.

Madison Realty Capital of New York supplied the loan on the 288-unit Palms at Edgewater Apartments at 1005 Sonoran Circle in Summerville to a joint venture of McKee Homes of Raleigh and Huff Family Office of Fayetteville, according to the Commercial Observer.

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The complex features 13 three-story buildings with one- to three-bedroom rental units. Amenities include a clubhouse with a leasing office, business center, game room, fitness center, walking paths, swimming pool, car wash, playground, pickleball courts, dog parks and gas firepits.

Sharing details

The developer of a shared office space that’s part of a larger project on the Charleston peninsula says the co-working site will be ready for tenants May 1, but workers are experiencing some material delays.

City House Church Street plans to open the rental offices in a three-story structure at 158 Church St. in the historic French Quarter neighborhood. An open house is set for 11 a.m.-4 p.m. April 28.

A property representative said the unfinished state of the building could postpone the opening, but for now it’s still on.

The property will offer private offices for short- and long-term leases, two conference rooms that can be expanded into one larger space as well as indoor and outdoor seating.

Users will have access to amenities that include concierge services, kitchenette and wet bar, food and beverages, reserved parking and access to exclusive discounts with City House’s Charleston partners.

The co-working space is the first phase of development for Baltimore-based Landmark Partners. The next phase will be the $50 million construction of 19 condominiums in City House Charleston along Cumberland Street, next to the shared office site. The residential project is slated to begin soon with construction taking about 20 months.