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NORTH CHARLESTON — Union Heights was among several African American communities negatively impacted by the construction of Interstate 26.

Now, decades after the highway sliced through Union Heights, residents say there’s an opportunity to right that past wrong.

Land that was once part of the interstate will be transferred to the city of North Charleston, likely sometime next year. When that happens, Union Heights representatives want the city to then give the property to the neighborhood so the community, in collaboration with a local land trust and housing nonprofit, can build affordable single-family homes in an area that’s become increasingly threatened by gentrification.

“We want to create affordable housing so that families can create generational wealth,” said Skip Mikell, president of the Union Heights Neighborhood Council.

Two streets in Union Heights were removed through eminent domain when I-26 was built in 1960, Mikell said. At the time, the predominantly Black neighborhood was about 70 percent owner-occupied. Today, less than half of those living in the neighborhood own their homes.

“Now, there’s a chance to make that right and put (the property) back into the community,” Mikell said.

The property, a stretch between Joppa and Irving avenues, formerly served as the Spruill Avenue Exit 218 for I-26. The exit was removed during construction of the Port Access Road that leads to the new Leatherman Terminal.

The land likely won’t be transferred to the city of North Charleston until the second quarter of 2022, state Department of Transportation spokesman Pete Poore said.

Residents said this is one of the last chances they see at preserving affordability in the residential community, since from the south, pressure is being applied as the city of Charleston redevelops the last of its territory in the Neck Area. From the north, pressure is increasing as the Park Circle area, now a haven for the professional class, stretches westward and southward.

White homeowners have moved into Union Heights since a developer constructed several single-family homes that range in price from the low-$170,000s to high-$190,000s.

The neighborhood says it can help address the housing need. That’s why Mikell sent a letter to city officials requesting the Exit 218 land be transferred to the neighborhood council. The council would then work with the Community First Land Trust and Habitat for Humanity to build affordable houses.

The land trust has already completed one house and will finish a second home in about six weeks, Mikell said.

The land trust’s approach allows families to build generational wealth, Mikell said.

“We’ll put people in four-bedroom homes for $160,000,” Mikell said. “The reason [the land trust] can do that is because we don’t have to pay $30,000-$40,000 for a lot. The community owns the lot. The family leases the lot from the land trust, but they own their home. We want to see them pass the value of the home from one generation to the next generation.”

City spokesman Tony Tassarotti said the mayor and City Council are working on a plan for the Union Heights property, though Tassarotti didn’t address the neighborhood’s specific request to have the property transferred to the community.

Mayor Keith Summey has previously spoken about his desire to see affordable housing on the property. He said the site could be an ideal spot for senior housing. The mayor has also said he wants to see Union Heights, a neighborhood split by highway infrastructure, reconnected.

Summey previously said he intended to get input from the community.

Union Heights isn’t the only neighborhood in the area to have witnessed displacement.

Farther north, North Charleston’s Russelldale, Ferndale, Liberty Park and Highland Terrace neighborhoods will be impacted by the state’s billion-dollar plan to widen Interstate 526. Those same neighborhoods were disrupted by the construction of I-26 years ago.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) — Creativity - it's what these students live for. But, a turn on the catwalk may be coming.

The Charleston County School of the Arts costume and fashion design major may be redesigned.

"We didn’t really know what was happening until we got an email that they wanted to turn the fashion major into overall design," said Beatrice Criscuolo, an 11th grade student at the School of the Arts.

The classes max out at 12. Over the last five years, there hasn't been consistency when it comes to a full class.

"One of the challenges we have had is that that major has continued to have lower numbers, so in order to sustain that major and move forward we are looking at ways we can broaden it and strengthen it and still keep fashion as part of that design major," said Dr. Shannon Cook. She's the principal over at the School of the Arts.

When the maximum amount of students isn't hit it means another class somewhere else in the school has to make up the difference by packing in more students to a class, like math or science.

For reference, allocations from the Charleston County School District for teachers are based on a ratio of 21 students to a teacher.

Dr. Cook is now looking into ways to broaden the major to be more inclusive so more students apply.

Although the potential change would not impact current students, it still has some students nervous.

"We are also worried about space – there really is almost no space," said Ellison Holland, a junior at SOA. "The freshman class this year has more students than it has in the last four years and the room is so overcrowded that we physically don’t have the space for 20 students."

Dr. Cook says she's gotten advice from a top art school.

"We reached out to SCAD, Savannah College of Art and Design, and said if you were receiving our students into your design programs, what kind of high school experience would you want them to have? The dean of the school said we would want them to have a stronger design base so that they know the options and the opportunities out there," said Dr. Cook.

Still, some students are pleading for one thing,

"I would probably ask them to reconsider changing the major and maybe take a look at it for what it is," said Lilian Thomas, an 11th grade student at SOA.

The change is not set in stone yet.

The School of the Arts still has to present a proposal to the school district.

Dr. Cook says she plans on doing that by the end of the year.

NORTH CHARLESTON — High Water Festival is back in 2022 after two years off due to COVID-19, and organizers have announced the anticipated lineup for the two-day North Charleston event put on by local duo Shovels & Rope.

Headliners are Jack White (who has played with The White Stripes, The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather in his career), along with My Morning Jacket.

Other acts on the roster are Modest Mouse, Black Pumas, Shovels & Rope, Old Crow Medicine Show, Caamp, Mavis Staples, Local Natives, Sharon Van Etten, Bahamas, Delta Spirit, Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors, Jade Bird, Amythyst Kiah, Felice Brothers, Adia Victoria, Shannon and the Clams, Cedric Burnside, Palm Palm and Jeremie Albino.

The festival, produced by Shovels & Rope, AC Entertainment and C3 Presents, is slated for April 23-24 at North Charleston’s Riverfront Park and will feature food and beverage experiences and vendors in addition to live music all weekend long.

“High Water is coming out swinging with a lineup that we are personally thrilled about,” Cary Ann Hearst and Michael Trent of Shovels & Rope wrote in a statement to The Post and Courier. “It’s the mix of family, friends and heroes that we aspire to and have achieved in spades. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to bring this fest back to Charleston.”

Two-day tickets are on pre-sale now and available at noon Dec. 2 at highwaterfest.com/tickets. General admission tickets are $145, with options to upgrade to VIP for $550, Platinum for $1,300 or Weekender starting at $9,500 and up to $17,500.

The high-priced Weekender tickets are for two and come with all the Platinum perks, like VIP areas and all-day complimentary drinks, in addition to a Friday night cocktail social, chef-prepared breakfast Saturday and Sunday mornings, unlimited snacks, golf cart transportation to the festival gate and an overnight stay on festival grounds at the Admiral’s House or Gate Keepers Inn.

The overnight stay option is a new festival feature, and will likely draw in some well-off out-of-town guests to join the crowd of around 10,000 attendees.

And while single-day tickets were promised for the 2020 festival, it looks as though that option is no longer on the table.

As for the music, the lineup originally set for 2020 was nixed, though a few artists are in the overlap. That includes Mavis Staples, Sharon Van Etten, Delta Spirit, Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors, Felice Brothers, Shannon and the Clams, Cedric Burnside and Palm Palm.

Not returning in 2022′s lineup are previously announced 2020 headliners Wilco, Nathaniel Rateliff and Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes. The original lineup’s Andrew Bird, Drive-By Truckers, Rufus Wainwright, Angel Olsen, Wilder Woods, Liz Cooper & The Stampede, Strand of Oaks, Seratones, Indianola and She Returns From War will also not return.

The High Water Festival was founded in 2017. That first year, headliners were The Avett Brothers and The Shins, with additional performances by Margo Price, Charles Bradley, Dawes and more.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C., Nov. 29, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Capital Development Partners is pleased to announce the acquisition of 135 acres adjacent to SC Ports' Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal in North Charleston, S.C, for the development of high-speed port logistics infrastructure to serve import and export customers.

Shipyard Creek Logistics Center — a modern industrial park adjacent to a world-class deep-water port will include cross dock terminals, container storage, high velocity warehousing and logistics support facilities. Total project investment is expected to exceed $250 M, create 200 direct jobs and thousands of indirect jobs while serving customer throughout the East Coast of the United States.

"Shipyard Creek Logistics Center is an opportunity to develop and invest in one of the most efficient logistics facilities in the United States. North Charleston and the State of South Carolina have an outstanding labor base, strong leadership and world-class port infrastructure that can quickly serve a large part of the U.S. population. We are excited to be a strategic partner with SC Ports and to provide our customers a big competitive advantage." Said John Knox Porter, CEO of Capital Development Partners.

Shipyard Creek Logistics Center is adjacent to the newly opened, state-of-the-art, deep-water Leatherman Terminal, which offers import and export customers highly efficient operations and 700,000 TEUs of capacity in Phase I with expansion capability to 2.4 M TEU's of capacity in Phase II.

"SC Ports' Leatherman Terminal provides cargo capacity, fluidity and speed to market for shippers' supply chains," said Jim Newsome, CEO of SC Ports. "We are pleased to have Capital Development Partners as a strategic partner as they develop the adjacent site into Shipyard Creek Logistics Center. This is a unique opportunity to develop a port-dependent logistics center next to the country's newest container terminal. Future tenants will benefit from Leatherman Terminal's efficient operations, as well as the proximity to SC Ports' future rail-served intermodal cargo hub."

Construction on the site infrastructure and the initial cross dock terminal will start immediately, with fast-track delivery expected in 2022.

Shipyard Creek Logistics Center is an A+ site location in a booming industrial real estate market. The location offers proximity to infrastructure assets designed to swiftly move containers to and from the SC Ports' Leatherman Terminal, SC Ports' future dual rail-served intermodal cargo facility and Interstate 26.

"Major job creation and a huge capital investment are on the horizon for the City of North Charleston. We have patiently supported, waited, and watched over the last two decades to see the site transform to a community benefit, and we are happy to see Capital Development Partners tackling the challenge. Once the project is complete, this economic development endeavor will support the State Ports Authority's ever-growing logistics needs, provide good jobs to our citizen's and further strengthen the supply chain within South Carolina." Said Keith Summey, Mayor of North Charleston.

Massive demand for modern logistics facilities on the East Coast of the United States is fueled by the booming Southeast consumer base, emerging e-commerce economy and supply chain bottle necks created by the pandemic.

About Capital Development PartnersCapital Development Partners is a national industrial real estate and infrastructure developer headquartered in Savannah, Georgia with a strong track record of success and delighted customers. The company is developing major projects, creating jobs and investment in the US port markets of Savannah, Charleston, Newark and Houston, each critical to the local markets and US economy.

Media Contacts:John Knox Porter, JrCEO Capital Development Partners, Inc. M: (404) 229 4852E: [email protected]

Lee Lineberger Managing Director-Development Capital Development Partners, Inc. E: [email protected]

SOURCE Capital Development

NORTH CHARLESTON — The city’s Park Circle community has become increasingly attractive to young families seeking to live in a safe community near restaurants and recreational amenities.

But local residents say increased truck traffic along North Rhett Avenue is threatening the community’s safety. Residents and city officials say trucks coming from the southern end of the old Navy base, which houses a few trucking companies and the State Ports Authority’s North Charleston terminal, frequently use the avenue to access Interstate 526.

Park Circle residents are working to raise awareness around the issue, hoping for solutions that could involve rerouting the trucks off residential streets.

Patrick Johnson addressed City Council on Oct. 28 about the problem. Johnson moved to North Rhett Avenue two years ago. When he started working from home during the pandemic, he noticed the frequency of semi-truck traffic.

“Some days it’s not that bad,” he said. Other days it’s every five to ten minutes, he said.

The trucks often speed, he said, sometimes traveling up to 50 mph.

“It shakes the windows and doors of our house,” he said. “It feels like a freight train coming through.”

It poses a safety hazard for pedestrians, he said. It’s also not uncommon for people to commute throughout Park Circle using golf carts, Johnson said.

“As a 33-year-old young professional looking to raise a family in a safe environment, I’d like to advocate for many other young residents and new families into the area,” he said.

City Councilman Bob King said the traffic has been an issue for several years, noting he frequently fields calls from people complaining about the 18-wheelers.

King said the vehicles are traveling from the south end of the old base. The trucks then go north on Spruill Avenue before turning left and ending up on North Rhett Avenue to get to the interstate.

“It’s like a major thoroughfare,” King said. “It’s been a constant problem.”

Mayor Keith Summey pointed out the city is in the process of obtaining ownership of Spruill Avenue, currently a four-lane roadway, to address the problem.

North Charleston wants to reduce the number of lanes to two, he said. Summey said the city has also tried to cut off trucks access to North Rhett, though he didn’t clarify exactly how the city had tried to do that.

He said North Charleston intends to work with trucking companies to find an alternative route to the interstate.

North Charleston neighborhoods seem to have an ongoing fight with increased traffic from 18-wheelers. In 2019, four neighborhood groups in Chicora-Cherokee reached a community benefits agreement with Frontier Logistics to keep truck traffic off Reynolds Avenue.

Frontier, a transportation and warehousing company that built a 556,000-square-foot warehouse at 1840 and 1850 Reynolds Ave. to transport containers, agreed to prohibit tractor-trailers from entering and exiting the warehouse’s Reynolds Avenue entrance, the settlement agreement states.

This came after neighborhood leaders expressed concerns about heavy truck traffic, noise, dust or odor pollution and increased risk of truck cargo spills.