Mortgage Broker in Daniel Island, SC

Coastal areas in South Carolina have long been prized for their scenic location and proximity to the ocean, but recent years have witnessed a growing concern among homeowners regarding the availability and affordability of home insurance.

Hurricanes and flooding, fueled by changing climate patterns, have made it harder for homeowners to obtain affordable insurance, forcing many to consider alternative plans or even pull out of their existing policies.

“Our prices have been going up every year for the last 10 years,” local homeowner Jason Salas said. “I’m considering changing plans to a higher deductible based on risk tolerance and personal factors pertaining to my home.”

According to Michael Dew from Daniel Island’s Taylor Agency, this strain is due to the skyrocketing costs of reinsurance – insurance for insurers – aimed at reducing the financial risk in the event of large payouts for claims. As a result, many insurance carriers have opted to cease writing policies in coastal regions, redirecting their

focus to more profitable inland areas that are less susceptible to hurricanes and flooding.

Dew points out, “Just about every carrier that I represent has had steep rate increases as well due to these storms and increased cost of reinsurance.” The result is that homeowners are now paying more for their insurance policies, with some experiencing rate hikes as high as 100-150%, Dew noted.

Insurance agencies have also become more selective, considering factors such as roof age, plumbing systems, and even the age of hot water heaters, making qualifying for insurance harder for homeowners. With availability and affordability working in tandem to make it difficult for the consumer, carriers are pumping the brakes and

slowing down sales to new homeowners, according to Sam Schirmer of Schirmer Insurance Group.

“Some carriers are non-renewing due to reinsurance issues, some are non-renewing as they want to move further back from the coast,” Schirmer said. “Some carriers are stopping new sales altogether.”

With increased home values and the increase in the cost of natural disasters, the industry has renewed its focus on its strategies to manage its risk in certain areas, especially those prone to coastal catastrophes. Other factors contributing to the rate increases have to do with inflation, higher repair/rebuild costs, and rising labor and material costs.

Russ Dubinsky, executive director of the South Carolina Insurance Association, notes that the silver lining in South Carolina is that companies are still willing to ensure those risks and there are more companies entering the market today.

The South Carolina Department of Insurance (SCDI) has also taken steps to support homeowners facing increased insurance costs and risks. The South Carolina Safe Home program offers matching and non-matching grant funds to help coastal property owners retrofit their homes, making them more resistant to hurricanes and

For homeowners concerned about their ability to secure affordable and comprehensive home insurance coverage in the face of rising weather-related risks, Michael Wise, director of the SCDI, advises all South Carolina consumers to “find an agent they trust and shop their insurance at least yearly to make sure they are receiving

Any consumer who has concerns about homeowners insurance may contact the SCDI Office of Consumer Services at 1-800-768-3467 or visit doi.sc.gov for more information.

This week there are several developments coming before the various City of Charleston boards and committees. Below are those items as well as results, if any, from the prior week’s items specific to Daniel Island and the Cainhoy area. More detailed agendas and results can be found at charleston-sc.gov/agendacenter.

UPCOMING: CITY OF CHARLESTON TECHNICAL REVIEW COMMITTEE

June 29: Del Webb Entrance Road – Road construction plans for a new road for future residential subdivision at 1236 Clements Ferry Road.

June 29: Point Hope Parkway North Phase 1 – Two items: Preliminary plat and road construction plans for 26.5 acres at 1698 Clements Ferry Road.

RESULTS: CITY OF CHARLESTON TECHNICAL REVIEW COMMITTEE

June 22: Mankiewicz Expansion Phase 1 – Site Plan for 16.06 acres at 1024 Clements Crest Lane, Cainhoy. Addition of a warehouse building and logistics building and the filling of a pond on site. Results: Revise and resubmit to TRC.

June 22: The Waterfront Phase 3 - Site Plan for 41 units on 2.2 acres at 610 Waterman St. involving three buildings, parking lots and utilities. Results: Open pending delivery of comments from Zoning and Stormwater Management.

June 22: Woodfield Point Hope 3 – Site Plan for 24.9 acres at 1260 Clements Ferry Road for early site work including tree removal and rough grading. Results: Revise and resubmit to TRC.

REGULARLY SCHEDULED CITY & COUNTY MEETINGS

Berkeley Co. Bd. of Education meets the first and third Monday of each month. Executive Committee meets at 5:30 p.m.; meeting starts at 6:30 p.m.

Berkeley Co. Council meets fourth Mon. of each month, 6 p.m., Berkeley County Admin. Blg., 1003 Hwy 52, Moncks Corner.

City of Charleston Council typically meets the second and fourth Tues. of each month, 5 p.m., City Hall, 80 Broad Street, Charleston, SC and/or virtually via Conference Call #1-929-205-6099; Access Code: 912 096 416. Exceptions: Summer Schedule - 3rd Tues. of June, July, and August; December meetings on the 1st and 3rd Tues. Dates and locations subject to change.

City of Charleston Technical Review Committee meets every Thurs. at 9 a.m.via Zoom.

City of Charleston Board of Zoning Appeals – Site Design meets the 1st Wed. of each month at 5 p.m. via Zoom.

City of Charleston Board of Zoning Appeals – Zoning meets the 1st and 3rd Tues. of each month at 5:15 p.m., except for January and July when no meeting is held on the 1st Tues.

City of Charleston Design Review Board meets the 1st and 3rd Mon. of every month at 4:30 p.m.

City of Charleston Planning Commission meets the 3rd Wed. of every month at 5 p.m.

City of Charleston Board of Architectural Review – Large projects meets the 2nd and 4th Wed. of every month at 4:30 p.m.

City of Charleston Board of Architectural Review – Small projects meets the 2nd and 4th Thurs. of every month at 4:30 p.m.

For more information visit charleston-sc.gov/AgendaCenter/.

Compiled by Suzanne Detar

The city of Charleston will be voting Monday and Tuesday night on the approval of a $2 million replacement bridge on Daniel Island.

DANIEL ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - The city of Charleston will be voting Monday and Tuesday night on the approval of a $2 million replacement bridge on Daniel Island.

The Beresford Creek Bridge is one of the only two ways to get onto Daniel Island, but officials say the bridge is in need of demolition and replacement after years of use.

The final approval of the project from the city council would include adding a pedestrian and bike lane since the current bridge is very narrow.

Charleston City Councilman Boyd Gregg has been pushing for approval of the project to reduce dangerous traffic conditions on the bridge.

“More than anything, right now, I’d say pedestrian access,” Gregg says. “There’s not a really safe path for pedestrians cross or bikers to cross; the new bridge will have much improved pedestrian access.”

The bridge experienced damage to its infrastructure about three years ago, forcing load limits on the bridge for heavy trucks.

More recently, fire vehicles and ambulances are no longer to access the island from the bridge due to its current condition.

City of Charleston Director of Public Service Tom O’Brien says the bridge was built in the 90s, and it used to be the only way to access Daniel Island before Interstate 526 provided another entry point.

“Obviously with all the development with the homes and the town center, traffic has increased,” O’Brien says. “The bridge we will be replacing it with will be a very solid bridge and will provide great access for the people.”

Daniel Island is also working on another project to build a pedestrian and bicycle bridge over Nowell Creek.

“I think it shows the city’s commitment to provide these passages and safe ways to allow for pedestrians and bicycles to use the city,” O’Brien says.

Both O’Brien and Gregg are pushing for the project to finish before the next school year.

“There’s a significant amount of school traffic on this road, particularly for those traveling up with Phillip Simmons High School,” Gregg says. “We really wanted to try to get this done as much as we could during the summer to try to alleviate some of that school traffic and take advantage of school being out.”

In efforts to address traffic concerns, the city will be holding a meeting in the next month to explain the entire construction process and answer questions from nearby homeowners.

The project will be voted on at Monday night’s Public Works and Utilities Commission meeting and Tuesday’s city council meeting.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Itching to expand for several years, Daniel Island’s only supermarket will be demolished to make way for a larger store.

Publix plans to demolish its longtime store on Seven Farms Drive and build a 50,472-square-foot store and pocket park in its place in the same location, according to plans presented to the city of Charleston.

The new location will likely include a few new offerings that will be announced later, company spokesman Jared Glover said.

Plans to expand the existing 29,618-square-foot supermarket have been in the works since 2017, but the expansion never materialized after the city asked the grocer to include windows, tweak its facade and come back with more renderings.

The Florida-based grocer maintained the inclusion of real windows interfered with freezer space, displays and storage. The company withdrew its expansion plans in 2019 and submitted a new proposal for a larger store the following year.

The new design, which includes demolition of the existing building, has been working its way through various government approvals and is now ready to move forward with permitting.

Glover pointed out construction is more than 18 months away. That pushes initial development into 2025, and he said it will take another 12-18 months to build the store.

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“We don’t want to set a date because anything can happen,” he said.

Glover said the company will announce further details on how the construction phase will affect customers and where they will shop before development gets underway.

“We want people to get excited about the new store and not be worrying about where they will buy their groceries,” he said.

The store, which Publix opened in 2002, is the only supermarket allowed on Daniel Island under an agreement with the developer of the master-planned community.

The nearest option for shoppers is across the Wando River — a Harris Teeter five miles away on Long Point Road in Mount Pleasant. Publix has another store about 7 miles north in the Point Hope development off Clements Ferry Road.

The supermarket chain bought the 5-acre Daniel Island Town Center property where the store operates in 2016 for $13.83 million, according to Berkeley County land records. The company also bought the neighboring undeveloped 1.23-acre parcel on Island Park Drive the same year for $900,000.

Publix operates 16 stores in the Charleston area. Two others are in the works for Carnes Crossroads in Goose Creek and Nexton near Summerville. Another has long been planned for the Summers Corner development south of Summerville.

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This week there are several developments coming before the various City of Charleston boards and committees. Below are those items as well as results, if any, from the prior week’s items specific to Daniel Island and the Cainhoy area. More detailed agendas and results can be found at charleston-sc.gov/agendacenter.

July 20: Woodfield Daniel Island 3 – Review of revisions to previously approved site plan for new multifamily development, 175 units on 6.3 acres at 2058 Daniel Island Drive.

July 20: Woodfield Point Hope 3 – Site plan for a mixed-use development on 44.6 acres with 360 units at 1260 Clements Ferry Road.

July 20: Berkshire on Clements Ferry (Point Hope-Goldfinch Tract) - Site plan for mixed-use development, 192 units on 62.86 acres.

July 20: Point Hope Medical Building - Site plan for medical office building on 10.2 acres at 1236 Clements Ferry Road.

July 20: Point Hope Site 10A – Site plan at 1260 Clements Ferry Road for five commercial buildings with associated parking and utilities.

July 20: Point Hope Townhouses (Ashton Residential) – Two items: Preliminary plat and road construction plans for townhome development at 1236 Clements Ferry Road, 110 units on 42 acres.

July 20: Tuxbury Farm Tract - Concept plan for major subdivision, 83 lots on 15.1 acres.

July 27: River Landing – Sit plan for new town home development with stormwater ponds, and amenities at 56 Fairchild Street, 30 units on 8.056 acres.

July 18: 51 Watroo Point - Request variance from Sec. 54-263 Daniel Island PUD Master Plan zoning regulations to allow a 12-sf. porch addition encroachment into the 20-ft. visual buffer zone. Results available next week.

July 17: Fairchild (at the I-526 east bound ramp) - Conceptual approval for a new townhome community with 30 units, 18 two-story units and 12 three-story units. Results available next week.

Berkeley Co. Bd. of Education meets the first and third Monday of each month. Executive Committee meets at 5:30 p.m.; meeting starts at 6:30 p.m.

Berkeley Co. Council meets fourth Mon. of each month, 6 p.m., Berkeley County Admin. Blg., 1003 Hwy 52, Moncks Corner.

City of Charleston Council typically meets the second and fourth Tues. of each month, 5 p.m., City Hall, 80 Broad Street, Charleston, SC and/or virtually via Conference Call #1-929-205-6099; Access Code: 912 096 416. Exceptions: Summer Schedule - 3rd Tues. of June, July, and August; December meetings on the 1st and 3rd Tues. Dates and locations subject to change.

City of Charleston Board of Zoning Appeals – Site Design meets the 1st Wed. of each month at 5 p.m. via Zoom.

City of Charleston Board of Zoning Appeals – Zoning meets the 1st and 3rd Tues. of each month at 5:15 p.m., except for January and July when no meeting is held on the 1st Tues.

City of Charleston Design Review Board meets the 1st and 3rd Mon. of every month at 4:30 p.m.

City of Charleston Planning Commission meets the 3rd Wed. of every month at 5 p.m.

City of Charleston Board of Architectural Review – Large projects meets the 2nd and 4th Wed. of every month at 4:30 p.m.

City of Charleston Board of Architectural Review – Small projects meets the 2nd and 4th Thurs. of every month at 4:30 p.m.