WEST ASHLEY, S.C. (WCSC) - Ukrainian Independence Day and six months after Russia first invaded Ukraine both fell on the same day this week, now community members are coming together to honor the country.

Charleston residents who have family in Ukraine, are former citizens of the country or simply care about the conflict occurring, gathered at Euro Foods in West Ashley on Sunday. During the event, attendees reflected on Ukraine’s independence and the importance of not forgetting about the ongoing war.

Maka Aptsiauri, Euro Foods Owner, said she thought it was a great reason for everyone to gather together and show support to Ukraine during this difficult time.

“It’s definitely close to my heart,” Aptsiauri said. “First of all because my husband is from Ukraine and most of his family is still in Ukraine. Also, because I’m from the Republic of Georgia. My country was invaded by Russia in 2008. It was a five-day war, but it was still a lot of damage and a lot of death. I can really feel the pain of people who are in Ukraine right now.”

When the conflict first began between Russia and Ukraine in February, Euro Foods and a team of concerned individuals gathered to try to figure out how they could help. The organization, CHS4 Ukraine, focuses on the immediate needs of the Ukrainian people and putting medical supplies, technology and other essential needs items directly into the hands of those who need them the most, according to the organization’s website.

CHS4 Ukraine Treasurer, Kenneth Marolda, has visited Krakow twice, once in April and again in June, to help transport supplies from Charleston to refugees in Europe. He says the first time he visited, the situation was shocking.

“There’s a train station in Krakow that was being used as a refugee center by the city,” Marolda said. “I met with the city’s coordinator and there were just hundreds and hundreds of people who all have nothing. They are trying to book train tickets and everything else to get to their relatives and trying to find safe places to live, trying to find even something as basic as a shower or food.”

The organization works with aid groups inside the country to deliver relief packages. Marolda and the team at CHS4 Ukraine said the help from the community has been encouraging.

“We were in the airport once and this guy saw our shirts and he just came up to me $50; he said ‘I hadn’t heard of you guys before but I really like to help and this is what I have on me,’ Marolda recalled. “So, he just handed me a $50 bill and the donation was just wonderful. That type of energy and enthusiasm to help.”

The Euro Foods owners contacted artist, Amanda Williams, to create a mural at their business to commemorate the story of Ukraine’s strength.

She said the flag unraveling shows transition, the hands with the needle and thread symbolize rebuilding everything again, and the sunflower fields are indicative of peaceful times.

“It was very important to me because I think that we’ve all been affected by the horrors that are going on over there,” Williams said. “It’s touched the whole world and I just think that every single person, whether you have family over there or you’ve been watching the news or the media, we’ve all just felt the presence of this situation. I was honored when they reached out to me.”

To donate to CHS4 Ukraine, money can be delivered to Euro Foods or donated online. Artist Amanda Williams can be found on social media or on The Traveling Canvas website.

Ukrainian Independence Day is held annually on Aug. 24.

Copyright 2022 WCSC. All rights reserved.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A plan to build a standalone $40 million bicycle and pedestrian bridge across the Ashley River is one step closer to reality, and city leaders say the bridge will be a safer alternative for people to get around.

The City of Charleston’s Traffic and Transportation Committee voted Monday afternoon to authorize Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg to sign an agreement between the city and the South Carolina Department of Transportation. That agreement will go before full city council at Tuesday’s meeting.

“We are going to build, in the City of Charleston, connectivity between West Ashley and downtown that we’ve never had before,” Seekings said, “and it’s going to change the face of this community for the better.”

Seekings said the signed agreement will finalize grant applications for the 20-foot-wide bridge and allows the city to begin designing the structure.

He also said the city will own the bridge under the agreement and will work with DOT on the structure’s long-term maintenance once it’s built.

“In a city where we have mobility challenges, to be able to build a project like this cooperatively with dollars coming in from local to federal and everything in between levels, this is a no-brainer for us. This is something we should have done a long time ago.”

Nicole Farina works in downtown Charleston and drives across the bridge every day.

“It kind of like freaks me out when I see people walking by there, so it would definitely be a lot safer to walk across there,” Farina said. “I’m always really nervous about that. Even people bike down there, too.”

Seekings also said the current versions of the bridges are very dangerous for pedestrians.

“If you had to cross either the north or the south version of the bridges that go there, those are built for cars and cars only,” Seekings said. “There are very narrow walkways that I would not recommend people to use. There is no way to get across that river currently that is safe for bikes and pedestrians, and that’s really too bad.”

The city said they’re looking to finish construction by the end of 2026. They also said the bridge will be able to open in the middle, so larger boats can pass through.

Farina said she is excited for the bridge to be completed and looks forward to using it once complete.

“I love to take walks on my lunch break, but there’s really not too much walking-friendly areas where my office is, so that would be the perfect spot for me to go take a little stroll for like 30 minutes or something.”

Copyright 2022 WCSC. All rights reserved.

The two-story brick home at 8 Stocker Drive in Charleston’s Old Windermere neighborhood seems to have changed little since it was built shortly after World War II, as the suburban growth expanded across the Ashley River.

By the time some of you read this, the house may be gone.

Not because it cannot be renovated, but because Charleston has no rules on the books to slow its demolition, much less stop it. The home is no longer owned by the same family that had owned it since 1946. A new LLC bought it for $1.1 million, pulled a demolition permit last week and plans to tear down the old house and replace it with two new ones.

Neighbors grew alarmed but soon learned there’s not much they can do. At least as far as this property goes. Only time will tell if they rally enough support before another old home is at risk of being lost.

There’s a glimmer of hope: The city plans a public meeting at 3 p.m. Tuesday at the Gaillard Auditorium to talk to residents in Old Windermere, South Windermere and Byrnes Downs about how they can safeguard the character of their mid-20th-century neighborhoods. With rising real estate prices and their close proximity to downtown, the pressure for change can only be expected to grow. If residents show enough interest, the city could hire a consultant to do a historical and architectural survey of these homes, likely early next year, Planning Director Robert Summerfield says.

After that survey is finished, the discussion of potential protections can kick into a more serious gear. Then residents must decide if they want to urge City Council to adopt regulations regarding future demolitions or major renovations or new construction or some mix of all that.

These three neighborhoods appear to share a certain historical character as far as the age, size and style of most homes; an architectural survey would lay the legal groundwork for their possible protection, Summerfield says. Specifically, it would determine how many homes are in their original (or semi-original) state in terms of materials, massing, architectural elements and the like. While a home may look beautiful, it might have been altered to the point where it no longer contributes to the neighborhood’s history.

The city’s preservation groups stand ready to help, but it has to be residents — or more specifically, city voters — who take the lead. “We’ve had our hands bit or stung by accusations of ‘overreaching’ into other parts of the city. We’ve heard comments like, ‘We don’t want your BAR,’ ‘Keep your downtown stuff,’” says Historic Charleston Foundation CEO Winslow Hastie. “The neighborhoods need to be organized, and there has to be some consensus from them before we can get involved on an advocacy front.”

At 8 Stocker, the developer shouldn’t be seen as the bad guy. The lot is unusually large and can comfortably fit a second home (the city needs all the new homes it can get). Ideally, the existing home would be renovated rather than razed, but it’s also possible to design and build new homes that would fit in.

Meanwhile, this issue extends way beyond Windermere. Last year, preservationists drew attention to a vacant, historic cottage on Camp Road.

More recently, others are trying to draw attention to the unusual small stone house that survives at 1731 Savannah Highway, in the city’s auto mile.

And the Preservation Society is trying to safeguard the future of a brick home at 1332 Ashley River Road. The latter was built around 1939 and was home to state legislator and businessman Isaac D. Peek, a key figure in West Ashley’s development. (As a highway commissioner, he helped construct St. Andrews Boulevard, and his company created the Avondale subdivision.)

The Preservation Society notes the home is worthy of National Historic Register status, but its future is unclear. While Stocker Drive remains a desirable place to live, fewer want a home along heavily congested sections of Savannah Highway or Ashley River Road.

The vision stated in the city’s Plan West Ashley says, “Preservation of neighborhood character is a primary concern,” but any new steps toward that must emerge from a rich stew of public opinion regarding property rights and values, accommodating growth and what local history is valued. West Ashley residents must take the lead and make it clear what they want.

Multifamily real estate firm will build 155 single-family townhomes in growing Charleston suburb at Bees Ferry Road as part of expanding Storia platform

“The real work begins now,” added Matthew Beck, RangeWater development director for the Charleston and Nashville. “Our team’s ability to immerse ourselves in the fabric of an existing neighborhood is a defining quality in our process, and one we very much look forward to delivering on.”

RangeWater Real Estate has closed on 17 acres at Bees Ferry Road and Bluewater Way in the vibrant West Ashley community, in Charleston, S.C.

The multifamily developer is planning an all 3-bedroom, 2-bath community of townhomes called Bellerose at Bees Ferry, a Storia neighborhood. The beautifully appointed homes will have one-car garages, 9-foot ceilings, gourmet kitchens with top-end appliances and stone countertops. The community will feature an open-air club house, pool, firepits and planned events to delight residents.

“We’re excited to be part of the thriving West Ashley community,” said Palmer McArthur, RangeWater’s Managing Director of the Carolinas and Tennessee. “The city of Charleston is investing in Plan West Ashley to support this area as a future employment node and commercial hub.”

Charleston Parks Conservancy is planning The West Ashley Greenway & Bikeway and the Charleston International Airport is less than a 20-minute drive away.

“Charleston is one of our favorite places to develop because of the lifestyle and economic opportunity here,” said Steven Shores, Chairman and CEO of RangeWater. “Residents are attracted to the beautiful beaches and waterways of this area, as well as Charleston’s historic charm and plentiful jobs. We’re proud to bring a Storia neighborhood to best serve this demographic.”

RangeWater closed on the 17-acre property and will break ground in August. First move-ins are slated for October 2023. Bellerose at Bees Ferry will be convenient to parks, waterways and popular destinations like Edisto River Brewing Company and Southern Roots Smokehouse.

“The real work begins now,” added Matthew Beck, RangeWater development director for the Charleston and Nashville. “Our team’s ability to immerse ourselves in the fabric of an existing neighborhood is a defining quality in our process, and one we very much look forward to delivering on.”

Privately owned RangeWater was founded in 2006. The company acquires, develops, manages and invests in multifamily communities across the Southeastern and Southwestern United States, with a $6.3 billion portfolio.

RangeWater’s Storia division is deploying more than $800 million in capital across the Sun Belt to build homes for rent (also known as BTR, or build-to-rent). RangeWater launched its first Storia properties in Georgia and has several thousand BTR units in the pipeline, with new communities under development from Atlanta in the Southeast to Boulder, Colorado, in the Mountain West to San Antonio and Fort Worth, Texas in the Southwest.

Today, BTR is more than 15 percent of RangeWater’s portfolio. The company has been awarded 95 projects representing 12,488 homes in communities across the country under management or development in 64 cities in 11 states for more than 28 clients.

Bellerose at Bees Ferry will be the company’s first Storia project in S.C., though RangeWater is active in the Charleston region with conventional multifamily properties. The company recently built and sold The Merchant, an award-winning community in a historic Charleston neighborhood that included 18 buildings spanning several city blocks. RangeWater has 11 communities under management in the state.

About RangeWater Real Estate

RangeWater is a fully integrated multifamily real estate company creating fulfilling experiences for its partners, clients, residents and employees across the Sun Belt. The Atlanta-based company has acquired and developed more than 20,000 multifamily units since its inception in 2006 representing in excess of $6.3 billion in total capitalization. RangeWater currently manages a balanced portfolio of over 86,000 multifamily units across 11 states. With offices in Atlanta, Dallas, Denver, Tampa and Salt Lake City, RangeWater targets high job growth markets with demand for new housing. For more information, visit http://www.liverangewater.com/LiveRangeWater.com.

Pdf Print

The prospect of one of downtown Charleston’s largest surface parking lots getting redeveloped should be a cause for celebration. Nothing can rob vitality from a city’s urban soul as much as a vast expanse of asphalt where otherwise interesting buildings or parks could be.

But some people are understandably anxious at the prospect that the large lot in the middle of King, George, Meeting and Society streets will become a new development rather than a convenient place to park. Obviously, all parking here will be lost during construction, and that’s a lot. And that will pose some headaches, at least in the short term. The lot is close to both the College of Charleston and the heart of King Street’s retail district.

Even when the planned 122-unit apartment building, 50-room hotel and 22-unit condo building are complete, there won’t be as much public parking. According to The Post and Courier’s Warren Wise, the development will include about 144 spaces beneath the apartment structure and hotel and another 137 spaces on level one of the apartment building. But only about 70 of these spaces will be set aside for public parking, which is about only half of what the surface lot has now. Still, the King Street merchants who told Mr. Wise they weren’t looking forward to the parking disruptions agreed that the final outcome would be a positive thing.

The loss of this parking lot to development is a good example of how much more challenging parking can be expected to get downtown. That’s important to keep in mind because it underscores our need to diversify the ways we get around. While it’s going to be more difficult to drive and park downtown, we hope it gets easier to walk, bike and catch a bus there. Improvements to the latter are in the works and are vital to keeping downtown functional.

That’s because this parking lot issue is far from a one-off. The city’s most recent parking study, conducted in 2019, listed 71,196 parking spaces downtown. Of those, 26% were on-street spaces while 11% were in city-owned lots or garages. Another 11% of the spaces were like the George-Society lot: privately owned but available for public use. Most, about 52%, were private off-street spaces.

On-street parking and city-owned spaces are expected to remain stable, but real estate prices and pressures undoubtedly will get more property owners thinking about whether keeping their land as a parking lot is really its highest and best — or most lucrative — use. Indeed, one former parking lot, inside the brick ruins of an old building at Bedons Alley and Elliott Street, now sports a brand new home.

This is positive, provided city and state government keep pace with improvements to other modes of transportation, such as the pedestrian safety audits and improvements being planned for Meeting, King, St. Philip and Calhoun streets, the new bike-ped bridge planned across the Ashley River and the Lowcountry Rapid Transit bus system.

Charleston includes two distinctly different types of urbanism: one, in the suburbs, welcomes cars — it practically requires them. And then there’s downtown, laid out and largely built before there was such a thing as a motor car. Some places, such as the vibrant bar and restaurant scene around Avondale in West Ashley, are a bit of a blend, as the upper peninsula is becoming as well.

Two generations ago, when Charleston’s young mayor Joe Riley was aiming to revitalize downtown, getting more cars and more parking into downtown was the thing to do, and the city’s success in building new garages (largely hidden from the pedestrian’s view) helped revive it. Today, the success of this revitalization continues to eat up some familiar, handy places where we once parked, so we all need to think differently about getting around downtown in the years to come.