Carolina Coastal Review

Village Update

On Friday, officials at Wild Dunes Resort celebrated the pouring of the final concrete slab atop one of the company's new condominium buildings.

Lowe Destination Development, a subsidiary of the property's owner and operator, broke ground for five buildings of luxury condos in December 2005. The $183 million project is named The Village at Wild Dunes.

About 40 percent of the project's 256 condos have already been sold, Senior Vice President of Development John Steele said.

The building's first residents will likely move in by the end of the year.

The complex also includes about 30,000 square feet of space for office, retail stores, restaurants and a fitness center. LS3P Associates Ltd. designed the project. R.J. Griffin and Co., the Atlanta-based general contractor for the project, partly sponsored the event.

As reported in the Post & Courier - January 29, 2007

Isle of Palms Residents Debate Growth Issues

A number of Isle of Palms residents gathered before the city council this week to let it be know that they are uncomfortable with the pace of growth on the island. For some, they like the small bungalows and would just as soon keep visitors (aka, rental guests) away. 

In my view, the 36 homes that have been moved or razed to make room for new ones this past year was positive progress.  Responsible growth is needed and I am not an advocate of building the huge monstrosities, but continued growth is healthy. New structures, of reasonable size, go a long way to upgrading our island. We have ordinances on the books that limit the size of these new structures and there are ordinances that deal with other liveability issues, like noise, parking, etc.  As long as enforcement of existing rules take place, this will continue to be a great place to live and vacation.

Read more…

IOP Residences voice growth worries  Post & Courier 1/24/07

Draft of IOP Planning Commission recommendations on short term rentals

Tear-downs a Growing Trend

The Charleston Post & Courier ran an interesting article this morning on the growing trend of tear downs. Last year, Isle of Palms had 36 homes taken down to make room for new ones, nearly one percent of the universe of 4,100 island homes. It’s a growing trend that’s likely to continue, as there are a limited number of vacant lots remaining, but an abundance of small, older homes sitting on some very valuable land.    Read the article.