Moving Company in Nexton

The company that’s building out a master-planned community in Berkeley County that’s as large as the Charleston peninsula is set to come under new ownership.

California-based Brookfield Residential announced this week that it is acquiring Newland, the developer of the 5,000-acre mixed-use Nexton neighborhood between Interstate 26 and U.S. Highway 176 near Summerville.

The sale of San Diego-based Newland, which is involved in 20 large master-planned projects around the country, is expected to be finalized June 1.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

A Nexton spokeswoman declined to comment on the pending sale.

“No major, significant operational changes are expected,” said Brookfield spokeswoman Krista Ellingson.

She said the company’s specialty is supplying homes and lots in constrained real estate markets such as Charleston, where a scarcity of homes on the market has dropped to less than a one-month supply, triggering bidding wars and pushing up prices.

“We just aren’t a homebuilder, we invest in land to build homes and sell to homebuilders,” Ellingson said. “We want to show our partners that we are in it with them.”

Bob McLeod, Newland’s executive chairman, said the Brookfield deal “will provide more opportunities for the continued development of additional mixed-use masterplans well into the future as well as give us significant additional vertical development opportunities.”

As of this week, Nexton has 1,266 occupied single-family homes in four subdivisions — Brighton Park, Del Webb, Midtown and North Creek. About 200 more are under development within the neighborhoods.

Nexton also has about 900 finished apartments in three complexes, with another 600 rental units on the way.

When build-out is completed in about 10 years, Nexton will have about 7,000 residences with about 17,500 residents. That will make it roughly equal to the current populations of Moncks Corner and Georgetown combined.

Brookfield Residential currently has no real estate operations in the Palmetto State. The Newland acquisition will expand its footprint to eight new markets, including Charleston, Raleigh-Durham and Wilmington in the Carolinas, and five other areas where both companies have projects in the works.

Last year, Brookfield’s revenue from home and land sales was $1.74 billion, about $200 million less than in 2019, mainly because of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the company’s annual report.

During the first three months of 2021, total revenue topped $444 million, about 30 percent more than the first quarter last year, when the coronavirus began to spread throughout the overall economy.

Costa Mesa, Calif.-based Brookfield Residential is part of Canada’s Brookfield Asset Management, which oversees investment totaling $600 billion and is headquartered in Toronto.

Newland oversees the development of the Nexton tract for North America Sekisui House LLC. NASH, a subsidiary of Japan’s largest homebuilder, bought the property in 2017 from paper maker WestRock Co.’s former real estate division for $90 million.

BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) - The Nexton community in Summerville continues to see new growth right off of I-26 and Highway 17A.

Nexton Vice President of Operations Brent Gibadlo says the community can expect to see new restaurants, parks, employments opportunities, offices, and a variety of homes coming in the next few years.

“Nexton is already in a really great location, right off of I-26, so it’s very accessible. I think the other thing is a lot of employment here,” Gibadlo said. “So, this isn’t really just about homes, it’s a lot about businesses. So, it’s this idea of integrating where people work and where people live and getting those things more inter-connected.”

The Midtown area of Nexton opened about six months ago and currently has about 100 homes on site, but within the next 10 to 15 years, Gibadlo says they plan to have around 3,000 homes there.

“I think that’s the biggest thing that we’re trying to do at Midtown Nexton is offer housing options across the board,” Gibadlo. “So whether you’re a young person looking to buy your first home or you’re an empty nester looking to downsize, and everything in between.”

Gibadlo says the Midtown space will have apartments, townhomes, and individual houses. They also just broke ground on the Midtown Club which will have a resort pool, lap pools, exercise facilities, and other amenities.

Downtown Nexton is expected to break ground later this year. It will be separate from the existing Nexton Square with restaurants, stores, and offices. It will be about 100 acres along Sigma Drive. Gibadlo says it will have hotels and apartments in a more urban and city-like area of the community.

He says he’s excited for Nexton to also become a health and wellness hub for the area. That includes new offices already and the anticipation of a MUSC Community Hospital expected to open in 2022.

Gibadlo also says they realize the growth of this area may not seem beneficial for everyone.

“You know, it’s very fair for folks to have concerns about growth. What we always think about is we want to make sure that there’s far more positives than negatives associated with growth,” Gibadlo said. “So I think first it starts with a good, thoughtful master plan. And that’s one thing that we’re lucky in the case of Nexton. This is a plan that’s been in the works now for over 10 years.”

He adds that Nexton has a master plan for the road networks and stormwater plans that come with the rapid growth here.

Copyright 2021 WCSC. All rights reserved.

SUMMERVILLE, S.C. (WCSC) - The Nexton community in Summerville is planning to grow in 2021.

The master-planned community has already brought new homes, restaurants, hotels, and businesses to the I-26 corridor.

Nexton’s Vice President of Operations, Brent Gibadlo, says they are creating a community environment where individuals can thrive.

“By making a genuine effort to understand the market and recognizing Nexton’s unique opportunity to positively impact our customers, we have created an ergonomic community plan that applies thoughtful architecture, innovative design and social responsibility in order to optimize human well-being,” Gibadlo said.

Work is expected to begin on more than 500 new homes in Nexton within the next year. Developers hope that some of these homes will be completed by the Summer of 2022.

Developers say the first 250 homes in the Midtown development phase of Nexton are expected to be delivered in 2021.

The Lou Hammond Group says the Birmingham, Alabama-based Capstone Communities recently announced the introduction of 282 single-family, for-rent homes at Nexton. These rental homes are scheduled to be delivered in late 2021 and be completed in the Summer of 2022.

Another 100 lots by TrueHomes are planned for the North Creek neighborhood this year as well.

In February, the Lou Hammond Group says they plan to see the groundbreaking of the Midtown Club. It’s a swim and fitness center that will serve the Nexton Residential Association.

A full-service First Citizens Bank branch is expected to open at Nexton in late 2021. Construction recently began in January on the new bank.

Developers are also planning to break ground on “Downtown Nexton” this year. The downtown area of Nexton will be separate from the existing Nexton Square, where events like the Sounds on the Square have taken place. However, Downtown Nexton is expected to be located within walking distance of Nexton Sqaure.

Downtown Nexton is planned to be 100-acres and come between Brighton Park Boulevard and Sigma Drive.

More specifics will be shared soon on the downtown area, but initial plans show it will have a new gas station and offer multifamily community opportunities.

Copyright 2021 WCSC. All rights reserved.

The master-planned Nexton community will soon become a medical destination for Berkeley County.

Medical University of South Carolina has proposed a $130 million hospital within the Summerville community. The 128-patient bed facility will include four operating rooms, eight labor and delivery rooms, diagnostic testing and imaging, and emergency services, MUSC Health Chief Strategy Officer Sarah Bacik said.

“A large percentage of our current patients originate from Berkeley County, and this is going to really allow our patients to have access within our communities,” Bacik said. “It’s not a surprise to anyone that the growth has outpaced some of the infrastructure.”

MUSC has asked the state for approval to build the community hospital through a certificate of need.

The build is expected to take two and a half years.

Nexton’s Vice President of Operations Brent Gibadlo said a hospital offers a service to the surrounding areas and residents because health care options have become a growing priority for homebuyers.

“There are certain basic things that are important for everyone that don’t change,” he said. “Certainly good schools if people have children and then good health care options. So having a world-class hospital in close proximity is always a wonderful compliment to a community."

Downtown Charleston’s MUSC campus will remain the hub for the educational hospital, while the Nexton campus will book end it with satellite campuses and ambulatory services in between, Bacik said.

“We’re full downtown, and we need to make sure that we can continue to have access to those more acute patients,” Bacik said. “It’s really about getting the patients the right level of care at the right place.”

The need for a community hospital in Berkeley County is critical, said Dr. Dave Zaas, CEO of the Charleston division of MUSC. The hospital’s co-location in Nexton will help with the area’s continued growth.

“That is a lot of our strategy not just in tri-county but around the state,” he said. “Not only delivering the highest quality ... but more convenient and ideally at a lower cost. I think that drives our ambulatory growth as well as our statewide strategy.”

Gibadlo said Nexton is just starting to explore the possibilities with MUSC and its idea of community health care, of being more proactive and going out into the community to initiate health and wellness programs. Preventative care could then decrease the need for hospital visits.

“We’ve had conversations with MUSC on how to incorporate some of those programs into Nexton,” Gibadlo said. “That’s everything from community gardens to community fitness programs to even potential opportunities for some of the coordination between MUSC and some of the companies at Nexton.”

Other suggestions include incorporating companies’ health care programs through MUSC and creating wellness programs employees can participate in.

Bacik is already excited for both caregivers and patients because she believes the best care is delivered conveniently to patients, many of whom come from across the state.

“A lot of our patients and staff travel to the peninsula today to receive care or to care for our patients ... so if they could receive care 30 minutes closer, that’s a benefit for the communities as well,” Bacik said.

Gibadlo is going on 13 years at Nexton and said there is has another 13 or 14 years left in the business plan. He still remembers those early years, though, sitting in a Welcome Center trailer praying that builders and homebuyers would think outside the box.

Convincing people to give Nexton a chance was hard a decade ago given the location.

Over time, Gibadlo has found that if he pushes the envelope to create value, the innovation is well-received.

“I think the potential for Nexton is really evolving continuously. What we used to think was possible we’ve exceeded now. Maybe we can take it another step,” he said. “A hospital was something we only dreamed about 10 years ago. Now that’s happening.”

Nexton now receives calls almost daily from groups, retailers and home builders who want to create something exciting at the community. Gibadlo said the biggest challenge is prioritizing. If he reacts to every call, he risks losing focus of the long-term vision that Nexton is systematically moving through.

“At the same time, you have to be flexible enough that if you get a call, like from MUSC, you change track a little bit because that’s a great opportunity,” he said.

A community with a master plan allowed Gibadlo and his team to be deliberate about adding a hospital. They could look at the map of the 5,000 acres to find a plot that was accessible, wouldn’t disrupt homeowners with traffic and had surrounding space for businesses the hospital could bring in. Gibadlo believes they will come.

As an educational institution, MUSC’s research and development could lead to job opportunities and potential spin-off businesses, he said.

Together, Gibadlo and his team’s vision for Nexton stem from a love for the region. He knows, however, that with any growth, there will inevitably be challenges. The objective then is to figure out how to make those obstacles positive.

“We look at it and say hey, we can create this employment center in the Charleston region, take some of the pressure off downtown, 526, everyone commuting and bring some of the great things that people love about this region from a quality of life and bring them to another location that can spread them out a little bit,” he said. “Maybe we can play a small role in helping this region continue to be a great place to live. At the heart of it, that’s what motivates us every day.”

Reach Teri Errico Griffis at 843-849-3144.

SUMMERVILLE — A pair of Mount Pleasant real estate investors plan to develop a mixed-use project of commercial and residential buildings not far from the new Nexton Parkway interchange on Interstate 26.

Thomas Massey, of SUP Real Estate, and business partner Jason Ray, through an affiliate called CVEA Summerville I LLC, paid nearly $10 million for about 70 acres on four parcels along North Maple Street and Old Dairy Road.

Massey and Ray started acquiring the land from different landowners in September 2020. They also have a nearly 3-acre parcel under contract. The initials, CVEA, stand for the first letters of the first names of each of Ray’s four children.

The property sits just inside the Dorchester County line. About 50 acres were annexed into the town in 2020 under a mixed-use classification that allows a variety of structures, including retail, offices, single-family homes and apartments, Ray said.

The final piece of the planned development, a 21-acre parcel that straddles North Maple Street and abuts Robyn Wynn subdivision to the east, was recently acquired. It was annexed into the town in 2014.

The 73-acre site sits along the beginning of North Maple Street’s newly developed four lanes leading to Interstate 26. The property along the street between Old Dairy Road and Nexton Parkway interchange is currently undeveloped.

Massey and Ray say they plan to see the portion they recently acquired developed correctly.

“We are trying to do something nice and not have a strip mall after strip mall,” Massey said.

By the spring, Massey said a development plan for commercial buildings along the road and a mix of residential uses on the rest of the property will be presented to the town for its review.

Ray said he has been working to put the project together since 2018 and, with Massey’s help, started acquiring the parcels last fall.

He said land contracts took a while to negotiate and then the coronavirus set the project back as well, but he and Massey are now ready to move forward.

Ray said the proposed development is locally based, and he and Massey have a vested interest in making sure it’s in good taste.

“Our priority is to do things the right way and to listen to the people,” Ray said. “I feel like if we start there, everyone wins in the end. ... We are not just going to develop it and leave town.”

The next step is to get engineering work done for water, sewer and drainage before the project goes to the town’s Design Review Board for consideration.