Home Inspection in Wadmalaw Island, SC

JOHNS ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - A real estate group hopes to revitalize a former tomato packing facility on Johns Island to create a commercial and industrial complex.

Behind a rusted old fence sits the old DiMare tomato packing facility off Main Road. It’s been there sitting empty for a decade and a half, but Johns Island resident Pamela Frazier remembers it in its heyday.

“That’s my very first job I ever had in my life,” she said.

At just 16 years old, she was excited to get to work.

“I worked on the boxes, put the boxes together for the tomatoes to be packaged,” Frazier said.

The Charleston County Finance Committee’s meeting agenda shows Obelisk Real Estate Partners is looking to change that by investing $21 million dollars into the property.

Over the next two years, the plan would be to maintain the existing footprint of the property as well as make upgrades to the structures. They want to retrofit spaces for warehousing, storage, distribution, and light manufacturing use.

However, Frazier is concerned more about how it may affect the already-busy Main Road.

“It’s not going to be a good thing because the traffic on Main Road is awful,” Frazier said. “All my life, I’ve lived here and I’ve never seen so much cars, the road is damaged, you have a hard time getting to, and people are late for work and other things. It’s not needed.”

She and others who have lived on the island for decades said back when the tomato packaging facility was still operating, the road was not nearly as busy as it is now.

Frazier prefers the site stay empty.

“I would hope they continue with what they do. That’s where the firefighters go for their training so I figured they would keep it for that,” Frazier said.

Thursday’s agenda refers to the potential project as an opportunity to bring economic development and jobs to the neighborhood.

The property has not officially been sold yet. Charleston County’s Finance Committee meets on Thursday to discuss the Economic Development Abandoned Building Special Tax Assessment.

The North Carolina-based grocer confirmed May 23 it will take over its current Kj’s Market at Maybank Highway and Bohicket Road on Johns Island.

Both chains are owned by Alex Lee Inc. of Hickory, N.C.

"We're confident Lowes Foods will offer an experience more tailored to this area's unique demographic," Tim Lowe, company president, said in a written statement.

The current Kj’s Market will remain open during the remodel and brand conversion.

Customers are already seeing areas of the store under construction, including at the entrance.

The conversion is expected to be completed by next year, according to Kelly Davis, senior director of guest engagement with Lowes Foods.

Customers should start seeing the chain's food items added to shelves around October.

The overhaul will include a refreshed interior and more higher-end items, like dry-aged beef, more locally sourced products and a bigger specialty cheese section.

Davis said the owners debated at length about whether to remodel the store and keep it a Kj's Market or convert it to Lowes, ultimately deciding to bring a new grocery store concept to the fast-growing area.

“Kj’s locations tend to be in smaller towns, and we felt the area matched Lowes Foods,” Davis said.

The current Kj's Market took over a space that was formerly occupied by Bi-Lo, which is no longer in business.

The supermarket remains one of the main food-shopping destinations on Johns Island. The next-closest option for residents is a Food Lion about three miles away on Maybank Highway.

The conversion will mark Lowes Foods' fifth location in the Charleston area since Alex Lee acquired 20 Bi-Lo stores in 2020 from Winn Dixie parent Southeastern Grocers.

Lowes expanded to the region in 2017 when it opened a supermarket on Dorchester Road in Summerville. Its other Lowcountry stores are in Mount Pleasant, West Ashley and Hanahan.

Davis said Johns Island store is the third former Bi-Lo in the area to become a Lowes Food, following prior conversions in Hanahan and West Ashley. Both stores remained open during construction, closing for just two days "for a final push" before the grand opening.

The Hanahan and West Ashley locations were opened in 2021 to rave reviews, including the ability to shop while sipping a beer or wine purchased from the store.

JOHNS ISLAND — A revised plan to create a 933-acre members-only golf course subdivision on Johns Island calls for the developers to pay more than $2.1 million toward affordable housing efforts and emergency vehicles.

The Orange Hill investment group is offering those and other incentives as it seeks a 10-year development contract with Charleston County, which would lock in zoning and fee rules for a decade.

Such agreements give builders certainty about regulations and costs — that wouldn't change during the life of a contract — and usually offer public benefits in return. Land, money and minor road improvements are the most common concessions offered.

“It was a long negotiation with the (county) staff," said Jordan Phillips, a managing partner at South Street Partners.

South Street in 2013 acquired Kiawah Partners, master developer of Kiawah Island. The nearby Orange Hill development on Johns Island would include a private golf course with up to 120 homes and 68 guest cottages.

Development plans for the former farm date back to 2005, and what was previously approved would have allowed 181 homes. Updated plans with the golf course were rolled out in 2022.

County Councilman Joe Boykin of Johns Island said the plan now on the table "is about as good as it gets" because compared to the previously approved plan it calls for fewer houses and fewer miles of internal roads. It further shifts the entrance path from Bohicket Road to River Road.

The money the developers are offering is also a plus, Boykin said.

"It wouldn't call it 'impact fees' but it's sort of like that with a development agreement," he said. "It's good to have these contributions."

The county does not collect impact fees when new homes and businesses are built, but it has negotiated multiple contracts for large-scale developments, and those have resulted in contributions of land or money for public purposes.

The nearby Kiawah River development, for example, has an agreement with the county that requires construction of up to 117 units of "housing for the workforce" as part of the 1,428-acre project.

“It just has to conform to the state law on development agreements, then it’s up to council," said Andrea Melocik, the county's deputy director of zoning and planning.

Boykin noted that at a May 12 Planning Commission meeting no one spoke in opposition to the Orange Hill plan and that comments submitted by the public were running 10-to-1 in favor. The commission voted unanimously to recommend approval.

The Orange Hill developers are offering:

Phillips of South Street said it made sense to direct some of the affordable housing money to the Sea Island Habitat group because "something like 60 percent of our employees are from Johns Island or Wadmalaw."

The developers are seeking:

Plans submitted to the county say there are 3,125 grand or protected trees on the property, 418 of which would be removed. Phillips said the development group will be "setting up the first Johns Island-specific tree fund" for mitigation efforts, which would involve planting trees to replace those cut down "on an inch-by-inch basis."

Of the 933 acres in the development plan, 305 are wetlands. A 212-acre portion of the property, 90 acres of which are high ground, would be left undeveloped and protected with a conservation easement.

The development schedule calls for the golf course to be constructed first, potentially opening in the fall of 2027, before any homes. The property is currently used as a sporting club, with activities such as skeet shooting.

As an exclusive club, property ownership is required in order to buy a Kiawah Island Club membership. That could be one of the new homes, one of the guest cottages or a share in a portion of undeveloped land that won't be built upon.

The guest cottages are "only for members and sponsored guests of the club," said Phillips, and won't be available to rent by the general public.

The Kiawah Club also operates the River Course, Cassique and other resort amenities on Kiawah Island.

Reach David Slade at 843-937-5552. Follow him on X @DSladeNews.

JOHNS ISLAND — A 30-foot sailboat bobs in a narrow channel cut through the spartina marsh grass along New Cut Creek.

Wind hasn't filled its blue sails since at least August, according to neighbors who nervously watched the vessel drift until Helene's tropical storm-force gusts lodged it in the marsh.

The falling tide reveals an old engine block meant to anchor it in place.

Paw prints muddy the side of the fiberglass hull. A raccoon has taken shelter inside.

The boat, named Rebellion, is owned by state Sen. Matt Leber, R-Johns Island, and is one of over 100 littering South Carolina's waterways.

Not only are these vessels an eyesore, but they can pose environmental and navigational risks. State lawmakers, including Leber, tried to address these concerns with a pair of bills that toughened penalties for those who desert boats and imposed a tax to pay for their removal.

"It's among dozens and dozens in Charleston County, except here, we got an elected state senator that ought to be living by the book," said Shay Stoney, one of several frustrated neighbors who lives across from the derelict Rebellion.

The $3 fee that would have been levied on all South Carolina boat owners failed to reach the House floor for a vote before the session ended. However, a bill that shortened the window for claiming a possibly abandoned vessel and doubled the maximum penalty for dumping a boat made it to the desk of Gov. Henry McMaster, who signed it into law effective May 8.

"How can you vote for it when you're in violation of it?" Stoney asked.

"I voted in favor of being responsible for our boats," Leber told The Post and Courier on May 19. "I'm trying to do that, and we’re going to do that."

Leber said he's hiring a boat towing company to remove Rebellion. TowboatU.S. Capt. Greg Giggi confirmed he was preparing a cost estimate for Leber.

"I don't want the boat torn up," said Leber, reflecting on the decade of memories made on the sailboat. "I've been in session, so it's been a very complicated time, busy. But I think we have the plan together, and then we're going to get it seaworthy again."

Though Rebellion has sat for months in the marsh, with its hatch open to the elements, the S.C. Department of Natural Resources officials don't consider the sailboat abandoned because they already identified Leber as its owner. While neighbors say the senator has made little effort to move it since August, Leber said he has tried to four or five times.

As the state agency awaits guidance on how to enforce the new law, boats like Rebellion continue to mar the coastline.

Neighbors complain for months

For weeks, Rebellion floated in the channel that connects the Wadmalaw and Stono rivers, before neighbors grew impatient and started reaching out to Leber directly.

Leber had been storing the boat at one of the docks lining the creek. An issue with the dock’s owner arose, and the boat was anchored with an old engine block in the middle of the channel.

Angela Shelton said the vessel was hard to see, especially at night.

“No lights, no battery, no nothing,” her husband, Jimmy Dewberry added.

It was August and another hurricane season was underway.

"We've got kids running through here; it's summertime; storms coming," Dewberry recalled telling Leber. "All of the reasons that we could give him to come and get his boat."

"It was always the same thing and just no action," he said.

Dewberry recalled Leber coming by once last summer, circling Rebellion in a pleasure craft wrapped in an advertisement for "Booze Pops," before leaving after about an hour of tinkering. The Post and Courier confirmed a boat matching that description is one of two sitting in Leber's front yard.

Neighbors described one other attempt when Leber, apparently in a borrowed boat, towed the vessel about 150 yards up the channel, where he left it, promising to come back the following weekend.

"I don't go knock on a neighbor's door and let them know what I'm doing," said Leber, who lives about six miles up the Stono River from where Rebellion is stuck in pluff mud. "Maybe they've seen me, maybe they haven't."

On Aug. 12, Leber texted Terry Heinz, one of the neighbors living on New Cut Creek: "moving it as soon as I can."

Four days later, Leber wrote back that he had a "strong lead" on a pier where he could dock the sailboat. But he went on to say that another of his boats was having electrical issues he needed to resolve before it could be used to move the larger watercraft.

Another time, Leber referenced a failed drain plug that kept him from coming, according to text messages both Heinz and Dewberry provided to The Post and Courier.

A month passed and Heinz followed up.

"We're all wondering whatever happened to your plan," Heinz texted on Sept. 21. "I'm sure you're busy with your re-election approaching, but we’re still counting on your word."

Leber again assured Heinz he would "be moving it."

On Sept. 27, Heinz wrote Leber: "it looks like Helene is moving your boat for you."

Attached were a series of pictures of turbulent water jostling the vessel closer to their neighborhood docks.

Shelton said the tropical storm-force winds brought Rebellion within 100 yards of their property.

An hour and a half later, Heinz sent Leber another photo that showed the vessel across the channel in the marsh, where it remains.

Leber said he would come that afternoon. But later he said the father of the "young guy" he had enlisted for help vetoed their trip due to the storm's ongoing effects.

The following day, Heinz told Leber the Rebellion is "so far into the marsh that, even at high tide, it will probably take a commercial salvage operation.

"Barring another hurricane, I don’t think it will be moving at all," Heinz continued.

Leber told reporters May 19 that insurance didn't cover the cost of recovering the boat, which delayed matters.

"I've had other companies go out, make attempts, but I think I've got the right plan now," Leber said referring to his contacting TowboatU.S.

Leber, who had been serving as a state representative, in November was elected to the state senate. Three days later, Heinz texted Leber to congratulate him on his victory.

"Now that the election is over, we are hoping that you will put your attention on your boat, Rebellion, and make good on your promise to remove it from the creek," Heinz wrote. "We urge you to take responsibility for your derelict boat and do the right thing in removing it."

On Nov. 18, Leber said: "I'm not going into January session with this over my head."

SCDNR doesn't consider Rebellion abandoned

On Jan. 17, three days into the legislative session, DNR agents tagged Rebellion as abandoned, photos provided to the newspaper show. The boat was also recorded in the Department of Environmental Services' reporting tool for abandoned boats.

Maj. Michael Paul Thomas oversees DNR marine investigations, including abandoned watercraft. He said the state agency has a backlog of over 100 abandoned and derelict boats in South Carolina waters.

Thomas said in the eyes of the state, Rebellion isn't technically abandoned because Leber affirmed his ownership of the boat after it was tagged. DNR has not issued any fines or penalties to Leber, either.

Several miles down the Wadmalaw River, another derelict vessel, a 120-foot decommissioned Navy ship, sticks out of the idyllic creek.

Residents of Rockville, a tiny community on the bank of Bohicket Creek, have spent years calling on DNR and the Coast Guard to remove the hulking torpedo retriever. Last September, the Coast Guard removed from the ship roughly 3,500 gallons of oil and oily water that neighbors were concerned might seep out.

But DNR doesn't consider the rusted and barnacled HAZAR to be abandoned either, agents told The Post and Courier in March. The agency identified the owner, who is in regular contact with officials discussing plans to remove HAZAR or relinquish its title to the state.

If the agency is made aware of a possibly abandoned boat, the department places an orange tag with a date on the vessel. Before May 8, a 45-day countdown would begin for DNR agents to contact the last known owner. If no one responded within that window, the boat was considered abandoned.

Thomas said Leber made attempts to remove Rebellion, though the agency doesn't keep track of when or what these efforts were.

"We don't really keep a record of that, you know. We are trusting that that's happened," Thomas said. "We don't want to touch anybody's boat that they have the intention to move themselves. We're not in the moving business. We just deem them abandoned."

But that was before the governor signed into law harsher penalties for abandoning watercraft and reduced the number of days a boat can be left on the water before it's considered abandoned.

The Abandoned Vessels, Derelict Vessels, and Sunken Vessels bill received unanimous support from both the House and Senate — including Leber.

The bill defines abandoned boats as watercraft that are left on the water 10 days after DNR tags them. Owners found guilty of abandoning a boat could be fined up to $10,000, jailed for up to 60 days, or both. Previous legislation limited the penalty to $5,000 or 30 days in jail.

Leber also threw his support behind the South Carolina Waterways Protection Act, which would tack on a $3 fee to boaters' tax bills. The money would be used to create a fund for removing abandoned and derelict boats in state waterways, but the bill never made it out of a House committee.

This was the tipping point for the group of neighbors, who had spent months asking the senator to retrieve the sailboat and had offered help moving Rebellion.

"That was the catalyst that really made us upset," Shelton said.

"Is he, being a state senator, either sponsoring or supporting the bill that's going to charge all of us to get his boat out of the marsh?" Dewberry asked.

Leber said May 19 he is planning to pay for the boat's removal.

Reach Ali Rockett at 843-901-1708. Follow her on Twitter @AliRockettPC.

JOHNS ISLAND, S.C. (WCBD) – Kiawah Island developers are proposing a plan to expand a new community on Johns Island.

Orange Hill Tract is about 933 acres of land between Bohicket Road and River Road. Charleston County previously approved development plans there in 2004, but since, it has been sold to South Street Partners. They are requesting approval from the County to build a new residential community and 18-hole golf course, part of the Kiawah Island Club. The group and county are also working on a development agreement, which officials said makes this deal more attractive.

“Our community development was able to secure a significant amount of funding for affordable workforce housing for Johns Island, nearly a million dollars. I think there was another $500,000 for Sea Island Habitat for Humanity. Additionally, St. John’s Fire Department is getting half the cost of a fire engine from the developer and our Charleston County EMS is basically getting half the cost of an ambulance covered,” Joe Boykin, county councilmember for District 8, said.

Also, Developers tell News 2, around 60% of their employees live on Johns Island and Wadmalaw Island. They said this gives their employees another opportunity to make their commute closer to home and be present in the community with their contributions.

The revised plan coming from the South Street Partners includes a greater focus on preservation, by keeping over 80% of live oaks on the property, improving stormwater management, and reducing the numbers of homes originally proposed.

“That was done as a result of site analysis that suggested lower density and more modest home sites rather than big home sites and big homes. More modest home sites appropriate for the setting. More aligned with the character of Johns Island in terms of the nature of homes there,” said Mark Permar, Kiawah Island master planner and architect.

Additionally, by reducing the amount of homes, there will also be less impacts from previously planned roads on the property. The group has also decided to put the community’s entrance on the less congested roadway.

“The access point was instead of Bohicket Road, we felt the more after we did an assessment we felt the more appropriate access point would be off of River Road,” Permar said. “Part of that was a reaction to the ever increasing traffic count on Bohicket Road that we’re all familiar with.”

The Kiawah Partners own and manage the Beach Club and Cassique Club, and Permar said they continue to be a community involved group. When asked about possible resident concerns, Boykin added that this is a better option than allowing for an outside developer to come in and sell.

“The developer’s been pretty sensitive to our concerns as Johns Islanders and wanting to keep our sense of place. So, again the concessions they made in reduction to how many units and the rearrangement of how they’re putting in this development I think were sensitive to our concerns,” said Boykin.