Chimney Sweep in Mount Pleasant, SC

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCSC) - A major anchor of the Mount Pleasant Town Centre says a proposal to change what can be built there is unnecessary and speculative since the store has no plans to leave.

Belk is taking a strong stand, writing multiple letters to the town during the planning process ahead of the council meeting, opposing a rezone of parts of the Town Centre shopping complex.

In the proposed zone change, the landowner is asking for the ability to build mixed-use, including office space and housing, in the areas where the Belk department store and the Palmetto Grande movie theater currently operate.

Belk executives wrote to town leaders that they feel this proposal is an effort to push them out, since it applies to the space if the tenants leave unexpectedly. In their letters, Belk executives lay out how they have operated in the complex for 27 years and have a lease for the department store through 2053 and the corresponding men’s department store through 2043.

A senior vice president argues that the proposed uses in the plan are not even allowed under Belk’s lease, and that complicates the future of the land when the lease comes up, potentially pushing the retailer out in favor of other development.

Leaders would have to revise the original development agreement from the 1990s to make the proposed changes. That includes raising the building height allowed from 35 feet to 55 feet, in addition to the usage changes.

Belk leaders wrote that proposing the changes now creates speculation about the long-term presence of the store for no reason. And, the letters say if the changes were ever to be made, housing and office space would change the fabric of the center for the worse, removing foot traffic, lowering visibility and reducing retail options.

Mount Pleasant’s Planning Commission recommended approval of the zone change, but the Planning Committee that also reviewed the proposal did not because not enough members were present to make a recommendation to the council.

Mount Pleasant leaders will meet at 6 p.m. for the regular meeting, where this proposal is on the agenda.

MOUNT PLEASANT — At odds over a 1.3-mile road, town officials are considering pulling municipal consent for the $245 million expansion of S.C. Highway 41.

Residents have spent weeks encouraging Mount Pleasant to revoke the town’s approval for the widening of the state highway, concerned with impacts to wetlands and disruptions to the 745-acre Laurel Hill County Park.

After a nearly 45-minute closed-door meeting between town committee members, lawyers and transportation staff on Aug. 4, the committee directed Mount Pleasant's attorney to "proceed as discussed in executive session."

“I want to say I’m very sympathetic to the public comments that we’ve heard today, and I agree with them,” Councilman Daniel Brownstein said before making the motion.

At the transportation committee meeting, the committee went into executive session to receive legal advice for an agenda item considering denying municipal consent for the Highway 41 road improvement project. Executive sessions are confidential meetings for elected officials to receive legal advice, negotiate contracts and discuss personnel matters.

Little was said outside of Brownstein’s comments, though committee members Mike Tinkey and Howard Chapman both voted in favor of his motion. Mayor Will Haynie, who chairs the committee, was absent from the meeting.

The parkway is a 1.3-mile road that will connect Park West Boulevard to Highway 41 that runs along the outskirts of Laurel Hill County Park.

According to permit applications submitted to the state’s Department of Environmental Services, the parkway would disrupt about 10 acres of wetlands in the park. A handful of residents called on the committee to revoke municipal consent for the Laurel Hill Parkway portion of the Highway 41 expansion, decrying the environmental disruptions to the park.

"This isn't just about a road. It's about protecting park land that residents rely on. It's about defending our town's right to decide what gets built within and adjacent to its boundaries, and it's about sending a clear message that Mount Pleasant will not sit quietly while the county pushes through a plan that we believe is unnecessary, harmful and out of step with our values,” Park West resident Patrick MacAdams told the committee at the meeting.

According to South Carolina’s Code of Laws, work on state highways must be completed with the "consent and approval of the proper municipal authorities." A section of Highway 41, a state-owned road, must tie into Dunes West Boulevard, which Mount Pleasant maintains.

But Charleston County leaders and those closely involved with the highway expansion, which is funded through the county’s 2016 transportation sales tax, have indicated that there is no other solution.

This was the almost unanimous consensus at a July 17 County Council meeting, where county leaders reiterated their stance on the project.

“The best alternative we have right now is the plan, the compromise plan. No better plan has been presented,” Councilman Herb Sass, whose district encompasses parts of Mount Pleasant, said at the July 17 meeting.

Dubbed the “Road to Compromise,” the planned expansion minimized impacts to the Phillips Community in Mount Pleasant. Instead of a five-lane highway through the historic Black neighborhood, leaders opted to expand the two-lane highway to mostly four lanes, with a three-lane section running next to the Phillips Community.

County Council settled on the current expansion plans in 2021. Project managers previously told the Post and Courier that Laurel Hill Parkway is a “vital piece” of the Highway 41 project.

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCSC) - Construction for a new retail development could soon be underway off North Highway 17 in Mount Pleasant.

The retail village project, which includes plans for four commercial buildings with five tenants each, will be up for consideration at the town’s Commercial Design Review Board meeting Wednesday night.

The development’s proposal outlines more than 20,000 square feet of retail space and nearly 6,000 square feet allocated for restaurant or bar use with a 155-space parking lot.

The site is located by a church and just down the road from an already-busy shopping plaza anchored by Publix and several other businesses. That’s part of the concern for longtime residents like Vanessa Trice, who has lived in Mount Pleasant for over 60 years.

“It’s not like the old little Mount Pleasant it used to be. It’s way overcrowded. The roads are awful. It’s awful,” Trice said.

Trice said her main qualm with the development is the increase in traffic and congestion in the area.

“Just to get to Town Center, it takes me 15, 20 minutes now, and it used to only take me only like 10. So, it’s really bad. You know, 30 minutes to get down to the bridge.”

Other residents, however, say they’re excited by the potential for new shops and dining options. Employees from the church next door to the development say they can’t wait for more growth in the area because it may bring more people through their doors as well.

But the development isn’t without environmental impact; about half an acre of wetlands would be disturbed and several trees would be removed to make way for construction.

The project comes amid a surge of development in the area. A new ALDI opened directly across the highway in June, adding to the growing number of commercial spaces in this stretch of Mount Pleasant.

The review board, which oversees commercial construction and renovations within the town’s Design Review Overlay District, said that they will learn more information about the development as the specific uses for the building are determined. For now, they provided this information in a statement:

“The proposed development consists of approximately 30,000 square feet of mixed-use commercial space on a vacant parcel zoned Areawide Business (AB). These are ‘grayshell’ commercial retail buildings. That means, the exterior will be complete but the interior will be unfinished so that tenants can come in and upfit the interior to their liking as leases get signed.”

The review board will assess whether the project meets town standards for construction during its meeting, scheduled for 5 p.m. on Wednesday. More details about the proposal are available

MOUNT PLEASANT — After months of waiting, a new tenant is moving into the empty Harris Teeter grocery store in The Shoppes at Seaside Farms.

Construction Resources has announced it will be opening a CR Design Center next spring where the supermarket chain operated for 12 years before closing at the end of May.

The new tenant said the space will provide "designers, builders, remodelers, and homeowners with a seamless one-stop destination for every stage of their project and an unparalleled selection of premium brands.”

The location sits at the back of the Mount Pleasant shopping center — bordered by Rifle Range Road and the Isle of Palms Connector — and is adjacent to the Seaside Farms residential subdivision and multiple apartment and condominium buildings. A Target store sits at the other end of the shopping area.

Harris Teeter’s closure deprived that section of the shopping center of much of its foot traffic, said Todd Weiss, owner of Top Hat Wine & Liquors just steps from the former grocery store.

“Without them, it’s been a ghost town,” he said. “Without them here we’ve been down at least a third of revenue.

The Yamato Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar, which had been the second-largest business in the rear portion of the shopping center, also shut down earlier this year. Plans to redevelop that property as a hotel have been rebuffed by Mount Pleasant Town Council.

Weiss said seeing a new tenant in the large, vacant grocery store space should help his business, though not as much as a high-traffic supermarket would.

The more than 45,000-square-foot CR Design Center will be Decatur, Ga.-based Construction Resources’ newest location, the company said. Last year, it opened its flagship showroom in Atlanta, and the company has been expanding in the Southeast.

Construction Resources said it held a roundtable discussion with top Charleston-based designers earlier this year to help shape the Mount Pleasant location.

“The region’s design influence is nationally recognized, and Seaside Farms offers an ideal setting to become part of a vibrant community where people live, shop and create,” CEO Mitch Hires said in a prepared statement.

Harris Teeter expanded into Seaside Farms in October 2013. Previously, the space with 40-foot vaulted ceilings was anchored by the former Piggly Wiggly Carolina franchise, which built it in 1996.

The former supermarket property joins numerous other sites in Mount Pleasant and elsewhere throughout the region where shuttered grocery stores have been replaced by other types of businesses including gyms, pickleball courts and specialty retailers.

At nearby Sweetgrass Corner, for instance, part of a former Bi-Lo that closed in 2019 near Highway 17 and the Isle of Palms Connector now houses a Trade Joe's store. Two other retail tenants, Golf Galaxy and Homesense, are backfilling the rest of the space.

New mahogany doors and uplighting along the corner of North Shelmore Boulevard and Civitas Street now welcome visitors to the refreshed O’Brion’s Pub & Grille, a longtime Irish pub at the entrance to the I’On neighborhood in Mount Pleasant.

The restaurant and watering hole has been part of the community for 25 years.

Owner Christopher Betros — who also owns Spirit of I’On, a curated wine and spirits store one street over — bought the business two years ago. He said the restaurant underwent a full-scale renovation inside and out over three months, closing for only 10 days during the process.

“We put in close to $1 million — it wasn’t just a bunch of paint on the walls,” Betros said. “There are brand-new bathrooms, a new ceiling, new patio areas — everything from culture to menu to aesthetics to flow.”

The pub still features menu favorites, such as Philly cheesesteaks and chicken tenders, but the look and feel has shifted.

“When I first purchased O’Brion’s, it was a successful dive bar,” Betros said. “When we renovated, we said, ‘Please excuse us, we’re busy putting the I’On in ‘O’Brion’s.’ The fact we were able to flip it around is great and we’re proud of it.”

This is Betros’ first restaurant venture after years working as a real estate investor. Chad Frierson is the day-to-day operating partner.

The restaurant, though alike in spelling, is not affiliated with the O’Brion’s Sports Pub that closed earlier this year on James Island.

Lucky number six

An anticipated Mexican restaurant is now serving on Johns Island.

El Molino La Taqueria has officially opened in the former El Colectivo space at 2901 Maybank Highway.

The concept from Jaime Tinoco and Pamela Sierra has already found success in the Lowcountry, with five existing locations in West Ashley and North Charleston.

Menu staples include tortas and scratch-made tortillas, along with the taqueria’s signature lineup of authentic Mexican street food favorites. The Johns Island location also has a small freezer with freshly made frozen fruit popsicles.

More room for coffee

A Folly Beach coffee shop has moved and expanded, now offering patio seating.

Center Street Coffee, which had been a staple on Folly Beach’s Center Street as an indoor shop with sidewalk seating, unveiled a large outdoor seating area slightly off Center at 103 Cooper Ave. It serves kosher menu items and fresh baked goods along with beer, wine and frosé.

Let them eat cake

A popular chain of ring-shaped cakes is coming to North Charleston. David Artuso, owner of Nothing Bundt Cakes in Summerville, signed a lease for another location at 7800 Rivers Ave. across from Northwoods Mall. It is expected to open in early 2026 and will be the Lowcountry’s fourth location.

Cookie closing

The Great American Cookie Co. has closed in Tanger Outlets in North Charleston and the location has been removed from the national chain’s list of active locations.

The mall staple still operates three other Charleston-area spots at Mount Pleasant Towne Centre, Azalea Square in Summerville and Westwood Plaza Shopping Center in West Ashley.

It’s the latest closing for the outdoor Tanger property, which also lost a Claire’s Jewelry store following the chain’s bankruptcy. The mall announced four new tenants coming soon, including the state’s first Shake Shack fast-food restaurant.

Waiting for bagels

The expected opening of a new Jeff’s Bagel Run location in Mount Pleasant has been pushed back. The fourth local store of the fast-growing Florida-based business, at Indigo Square Shopping Center, was initially scheduled to open Aug. 27, but is now expected to welcome customers in mid-September. The company said they originally hoped to open Aug. 22 but the date was pushed back due to permitting delays.

Boulevard Bazaar

More than two dozen vendors will gather for an artisan market on Sept. 7. The Boulevard Bazaar event is a collaboration between Celadon and Navy Yard Charleston, which first launched in 2024 to celebrate local makers.

Attendees can enjoy a rotating lineup of live music, food trucks and local merchants offering artwork, candles, pet products, cut flowers and more. The market will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. along Noisette Boulevard.