Mortgage Broker in Irmo, SC

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - While the senior boys baseball team from Irmo just got back from the World Series in Easley, South Carolina, the junior team from the same Little League is ready to take their best swing in the World Series in Michigan.

Both the juniors and seniors won the Southeast Championship in their respective divisions, earning the right to compete at the highest level, in front of a national television audience.

Justin Baxter the Irmo Little League President said this type of success is unprecedented.

“After the (Juniors Softball) girls did it last year.. to send two more teams this year- we’ve never done it. It’s amazing!”

Donning their World Series jerseys, the seniors said even though they came up short in Easley - it was the chance of a lifetime.

“It’s great seeing everyone play. It’s the big stage you always wanted to go to,” said a senior ball player from Dutch Fork High School named Parker Brown.

Now it’s the junior’s turn, as players and coaches alike hope will continue their success on the national stage just outside Detroit.

Pat Gravelle is the coach of the juniors.

“You go out and practice hard and try to win a few games in your district, and region and state- and you get to go to the World Series, it’s unbelievable. It’s crazy,” Gravelle said.

Tonight- the juniors signed autographs on baseballs- just like big leaguers. Each player and coach was treated to a hero’s welcome.

Josh Rector, a junior player from Chapin said, “It means a lot. We each just gotta fight hard to win. There’s gonna be some good teams. We gotta play like we did at regionals and hope for the best.”

The love and support here in Irmo is the X factor for these young players, knowing they’ve got each others’ backs, and the community has got theirs too.

“The support we get from the community is - I mean it feels so good as a coach, you wanna hug everybody… it’s amazing,” said Gravelle.

Chase Ellis, another junior player said, “I think the biggest thing is just - stick together as a team. Have fun and just enjoy the moment.”

The junior team departs for Michigan on Friday, August 11.

Anyone can catch the Irmo Junior Boys in action in the World Series on Monday, August 14 at 8 p.m. on ESPN.

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IRMO — The small Midlands town known for its annual Okra Strut is moving forward with plans to build a “Main Street” downtown district to create a more vibrant restaurant, bar, retail and hotel scene.

“All the municipalities that touch our borders, they have a vibrant Main Street, said Kerry Powers, president of the Irmo Chamber of Commerce. “When Irmo was planned, we were just a little railroad town that supplied the folks that built the (Lake Murray) dam back in the early ’20s. So nobody thought to plan a Main Street district, and Irmo just grew up and it really doesn’t have a central focal point.”

Irmo, which has 11,600 residents in both Richland and Lexington counties, has the requisite chain stores and a number of sprawling residential developments through the town.

What it lacks is a central business district that neighboring cities use to attract residents and visitors. A Main Street will make Irmo a destination, as opposed to a passage point on the way to Lake Murray, Irmo Town Councilman Bill Danielson said.

Irmo’s proposed downtown is planned for a wooded area next to the Community Park of Irmo, where the okra festival is held.

The location was selected because of its accessibility to the park. Town Council members picture people grabbing a beer at the nearby brewery, stopping in for ice cream on the same street and catching a concert in the neighboring park, all in one trip.

However, the proposed downtown currently stands as a narrow and unpaved road, surrounded by residential neighborhoods, presenting the town with a project unlike most other downtown developments in the state.

“We’ve got to give people a reason to come here,” Powers said. “We keep trying to put lipstick on a pig here. Let’s put the money in it, and do what we need to do to make people spend their dollars here.”

Irmo’s council took first steps on the Main Street development in a Dec. 20 meeting, approving the purchase of a neighboring property and hiring of a real estate acquisition firm to help with the project.

The initial idea for a downtown in Irmo came in 2020, after the local chamber sent a survey to residents asking what improvements they would like to see. Residents said they wanted a reason to stay in Irmo for entertainment and food, instead of driving 10 miles south to Lexington or 10 miles east to Columbia, Powers said.

Irmo is looking for inspiration from its neighbors as well as towns in the Upstate that recently did some downtown work, including Greenville, Greer and Fountain Inn, members of the council said. But those cities were revamping existing downtowns.

“I mean, you’re kind of creating a downtown out of nothing, right?” said Bryan Beal, a Greenville-based real estate developer who has spoken with Irmo about opening a brewery on its planned “Main Street.”

Irmo Mayor Barry Walker said downtown location is ideal because of its proximity to residential neighborhoods that will see property values rise.

“This is very unique what they’re trying to accomplish here, which is great, and the city’s being so proactive with it,” Beal said.

Although the idea has been bounced around for a couple of years, a bump in town funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, federal pandemic relief funding that was distributed across the nation’s state and local governments, propelled the plan forward.

In addition to ARPA money, Danielson said, the town will fund the project through hospitality tax collection and bonds. Because Irmo does not charge residential property tax, a boost in business licenses, hospitality tax and permitting fees would provide the town with some additional money, he said.

Danielson said he hopes to open the street in two years, but Beal predicts the project will take between four and six years, depending on the town’s strategy.

“This is something that they’re gonna have to decide: Do they want it to be incremental growth … or do they want it to be all at once just have this, you know, huge kind of grand-opening type of thing?” Beal said.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - A tight-knit community of first responders mourns the loss of one of their own after a service call turned to tragedy.

A fire broke out at Tropical Ridge Apartments off of Stoneridge Drive around 4:15 p.m. Friday.

Fire crews from Columbia, Irmo and Cayce responded to the fire — which was eventually declared a 3-alarm fire — that claimed the life firefighter James Muller, a 25-year-old husband and father.

Once inside, Columbia Fire Chief Aubrey Jenkins said several firefighters were trapped when the building collapsed in multiple places.

“We ended up transporting about seven firefighters,” Jenkins said. “It was five of them from Columbia and and two from Irmo and they were transported.”

Muller — a driver, operator and recent graduate of the Fire Academy — didn’t make it.

“Unfortunately, Mr. Muller succumbed to his injuries while in the line of duty,” Richland County Coroner Naida Rutherford said.

This fire is a sobering reminder of the dangers first responders face on every call to service.

Almost immediately after the announcement of the Muller’s death, tributes poured in from around the community.

South Carolina State Fire posted on Facebook, “Our thoughts and prayers are with the Irmo Fire District and the friends and family of Firefighter Michael Muller.”

WIS News 10 spoke to Justin Dilger-Ewing who attended a firefighter training with Muller put on by Soda City Training. “I knew James from a truck day class, that man left such an impact on me in 8 hours. More than anyone in the fire service has,” Dilger-Ewing said.

The South Carolina State Firefighters’ Association said in a social media post, “It is a difficult night for the statewide fire service. We ask that you join us in a prayer for peace and comfort for Muller’s family, Irmo Fire, Columbia Fire, and all those who loved him.”

A search of Muller’s name on Facebook pulls up dozens of posts from around the country.

Jefferson Fire Department in Athens, Ga. posted, “Our thoughts and prayers go out to Irmo Fire Department, Columbia Fire Department (SC) and to the friends and family of fallen FF James Muller.”

Rep. Jay Kilmartin, who represents South Carolina District 85, posted, “It is with great sadness that we mourn the life of James Muller of the Irmo Fire District, who bravely lost his life in the line of duty today. Elizabeth and I send our prayers to James’ family. We ask that you also keep the six others who were injured in the apartment fire collapse in your prayers.”

Local law enforcement also showed their support with a post on Twitter that said, “Our hearts are broken for Irmo Fire Service and all of the responders on this scene.”

Our hearts are broken for Irmo Fire Service and all of the responders on this scene. Irmo & @ColaFire, you are in our prayers. https://t.co/vNK05L7tOR

— Richland County Sheriff's Dept. (@RCSD) May 27, 2023

WIS News 10 crews observed crews from Lexington and Richland show up to the Irmo Fire District to pay their respects to Muller.

As more memorials are expected to continue to pop up for Muller, the community also waits to find out the condition of the other injured firefighters and a possible cause.

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Homeowner Philip Herterick tells News 19 that there was a terrible storm that brought the wall down in May 2020.

IRMO, S.C. — An Irmo neighborhood has been in a three year battle over a partially collapsed brick wall. Upset residents have reached out to News 19 for help in reaching a solution.

Back in May of 2020, homeowners in Carmel Commons explain they came home to a giant problem: a fallen brick wall. "It's about eight feet, nine feet tall," Irmo homeowner Philip Herterick said.

"The bottom of this (wall) is pushing out," Herterick said. "There was a storm (that) came through. We got a phone call from Bonnie Cosper, who lives here next door, that the wall fell."

A group of about four to seven homeowners have been trying to get it fixed ever since. "They have not maintained this (wall) at all," Herterick said.

Philip Herterick lives to the left of the wall with his 95-year-old mother. He tells News 19 back when this happened, they reached out to their homeowners insurance company and their HOA.

The neighbor to the right, Bonnie Stewart, reached out to Lexington-Richland School District Five because they share the back side of the wall.

According to a Lexington County GIS map, the wall sits right on top of the property line.

"One of the things that the insurance companies were saying is the wall was a privacy wall and you had all this dirt on the back side of it. It should have been a retaining wall and because of all the pressure from the dirt, the rain, the wetness, all of that, the growth that's all there created more pressure behind the wall and eventually it fell," Herterick said.

Herterick explains the homeowners insurance company said the loss wasn't covered. He adds the HOA said they weren't involved. And Stewart said Lex-Rich 5 refused to do anything.

That's why they say they felt their only option was to pursue it from the legal side of things.

News 19 reached out to Lex-Rich 5 and they say since this is pending litigation, the school district cannot comment.

News 19 also reached out to the Carmel Commons HOA. They sent us a statement saying in part, "The wall is not Carmel Commons Homeowners Association property and are not on Common Area (land owned by the Association). The wall is on the property lines of the individual Lot/Homeowners."

"We're trying to figure out next steps. We've had brick masons, engineers, people come out here that we've paid for out of our money to look at the wall, try to make ideas of how to resolve the problem," Herterick said.

He explained that the group of homeowners just want a reasonable answer.

Herterick tells News 19 he plans to meet with his lawyers in the next couple of weeks to game plan their next steps. They expect another mediation later this year and hope there can be some resolution.

For nearly two decades, Midlands residents have delighted in the cookies, biscuits and other treats that have come out of the ovens at Blue Flour Bakery in Irmo.

But soon those ovens will be turned off for the final time.

Blue Flour owner Teri Pringle recently announced she will close the bakery, located at 7703 St. Andrews Road in Irmo, after 17 years in business. It will be open two days next week for its finale, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, May 11 and Friday, May 12.

Pringle said customers can begin making online cookie pre-orders for those final days at 6 p.m. Friday, May 5, at blueflour.com. There also will be a limited amount of cookies available for walk-in customers on May 11 and May 12, and they will be sold on a first come, first served basis.

While Blue Flour has made its mark on the Midlands culinary scene for the better part of two decades, Pringle said the time was simply right to retire the Irmo bakery.

“I just want to spend more time with friends and family,” she told The State. “I’ve got two girls in grad school, so this gives me more time to go travel and visit with them.”

Aside from the Irmo shop, there also once was a Blue Flour location on Main Street in Columbia. It was open from 2016 until fall 2020.

Before going into the bakery business, Pringle had a career in the hotel and hospitality industry. She worked for the Marriott corporation and the Hilton corporation, working in roles in catering and as a director of sales. She was later able to meld those business capabilities with her personal love of baking.

“I had a lot of background in marketing, branding and food and beverage,” she said. “Baking, I just did it for fun. It wasn’t something I went to school for. But, it seemed to all work out.”

Anyone who has ever had one of Blue Flour’s sweet, decadent cookies can confirm it did, indeed, work out. The cookies are, frankly, massive, with Pringle confirming that some of the cookies weighed in at nearly a half-pound each.

Customer loyalty has been a key to Blue Flour’s popularity through the years, Pringle said. She has seen generations of folks come through the Irmo shop’s doors.

“They are the ones who have made us successful,” Pringle said. “For all those years, the same people kept coming in. We have seen people who have been pregnant and their families come in and now their kids are 10, 12, 15. It’s like ‘Oh, my goodness.’ I think that’s the hardest thing to leave. It’s the customers that come in daily. It’s not so much that I’ll miss the actual baking part. It’s the seeing our customers every day.”

While it is exiting the Midlands scene, the Blue Flour name will live on in another part of the country. Pringle’s brother, Brian Florczyk, plans to use the name and offer baked goods at farmers’ markets in the Syracuse, New York, area.

Pringle admits there is a mix of feelings as she prepares to close the doors at Blue Flour.

“It’s always hard to close something you worked so hard to create,” Pringle said. “That’s the hard part of it. That, and missing the customers. But the great part, that I’m super excited about, is to enjoy some time doing what I’d like to do. As a bakery, we are working the holidays, we are working seven days a week. So it will be nice to wind down, do some projects at home. So, it’s like the whole bittersweet thing.”