The developers of the 72,000 acre tract of forestland along the Edisto River in Charleston County will be utilizing audience participation technology at tonight’s public meeting on East Edisto. Mead Westvaco Corp. will provide attendees with handheld devices where they can respond to the planners’ questions and provide instant feedback to the multiple choice questions. Is this a sign of the future or will the questions be softballs generated by the designers? Mead Westvaco looks to be the big winner in this contest as they develop the property over the next twenty years.

Tune in tonight at 6:30 PM at the North Charleston Convention Center to participate. No networks have yet picked up this exciting new series – Who Wants to Be a Developer.

Four of Charleston’s premier luxury real estate companies have formed a new company, The Key Partners. Collectively, The Key Partners will be the largest MLS-based company in Charleston which specializes in luxury real estate. The four companies are Akers, Ellis & Truluck Real Estate, Prestige Real Estate Group, Isle of Palms Real Estate, and Places Real Estate.

With just 48 real estate agents, The Key Partners have 250 area-wide listings with close to 100 selling for more than one million dollars. Armed with an intimate knowledge of the luxury home market as well as the high net worth buyers, The Key Partners is providing concierge-type real estate services across the niche markets where high end homes are concentrated including Mount Pleasant, Daniel Island, Kiawah Island, Seabrook Island, Isle of Palms, Sullivan’s Island and Historic Downtown Charleston.

Jeff Akers, Managing Partner of Akers Ellis & Truluck Real Estate, who helped put the group together said, “Being able to partner with other unique and successful companies increases our ability to attract buyers and sellers.”

“The Key Partners brings highly experienced agents together in an environment where peers share market knowledge and work as teams in providing the best possible experience to our clients. In order to best serve our clients, we find it imperative to reach out to our Key Partners who have specific market knowledge about their core areas in the Charleston market” said Chris Anderson of Places Real Estate.

Visit the Key Partners website here.

Can 1,600 residences and 300,000 square feet of office and commercial space co-exist on 287 acres in the suburbs of Charleston County? HPH Properties of Charleston and the City’s planners think so. That’s the plan according to the Post & Courier – oh, and don’t forget the adjacent 1,200+ acres and another 3,000 homes planned by Associated Developers and the SIM Group, known as Long Savannah.

While it may seem good in concept and fit all of the new urbanist ideals, will it really work without an extreme transportation fix to the area. And, I don’t just mean the extension to the Glenn McConnell Parkway – this is going to be a mess without substantial additional changes to the road network in West Ashley. Dover Kohl, the planners for the 287-acre tract and Long Savannah, is well respected across the country and it certainly sounds great on paper but can the system really take the additional traffic which is notoriously under-estimated by TND traffic engineers? Who knows, but I guess we’ll find out someday - maybe when Watson Hill gets developed at the same time. Maybe even on April 23 when the City of Charleston Planning Committee hears the pitch.

Check out the story here.

After quite a lag on posting Charleston’s highest priced home sales, we’re back for a recap of the 1^st quarter of 2008 on the coast of South Carolina – with homes in downtown Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Isle of Palms, Kiawah, and Seabrook making the cut. Since the numbers are mustered from various Charleston real estate sources, SquareFeet does not guarantee accuracy, only something worth your gander – over $1.9 million, that is.

1. 94 Rutledge Avenue – The Jenkins Mikell House – One of the most prominent homes on the Charleston peninsula recently sold along with its over the top salute to Corinthian columns – but its still impressive with more than 9,400 sf. Locale: Downtown Peninsula. The Toll: $4.8M.
2. 23 Meeting Street – One of the Three Sisters in downtown Charleston, this pre-Revolutionary War home - yes, that’s right 1770. – also includes a Secret Garden. Locale: Downtown Peninsula. The Toll: $2.97M.
3. 37 Hasell Street – This Greek Revival residence dating back to 1881 is located in Ansonborough – a now chic area close to all the action in downtown Charleston. Locale: Downtown Peninsula. The Toll: $2.7 M.
4. 32 North Prioleau Street – Coming in fourth and breaking the historic trends of multimillion dollar residences above, this 2002 condominium residence at One Vendue along Waterfront Park offers relatively new construction and an outstanding location – along with a lot of tourists. Locale: Downtown Peninsula. The Toll: $2.4M.
5. 161 Cooper River Drive #161 - Mount Pleasant’s newest luxury condominium project, The Tides, has finally been closing their units and this penthouse unit garners #5 on this quarter’s top 10 list. Locale: Mount Pleasant. Toll: $2.2M.
6. 2290 Marsh Hen Drive – Seabrook breaks into the top 10 with this marshfront 4,200 sf home with views of Cap’n Sam’s Creek.. Locale: Seabrook. The Toll: $2.08M.
7. 31 Georgetown Road – Mount Pleasant’s award winning traditional neighborhood (I’On) is still holding strong after 10+ years with this newly constructed 4,500 sf home with limited marsh /creek views. Locale: Mount Pleasant. The Toll: $2.05M.
8. 121 Charleston Boulevard – this 3,800 sf beach area home with pool and outside entertaining area recently sold amid a glut of second homes on the Isle of Palms. If you are looking for a good buy at the beach, Isle of Palms and Sullivan’s Island are a good place to start. Locale: Isle of Palms. Toll: 2.0M.
9. 3008 Cameron Boulevard – Another 3,800 sf IOP beach area home – this one was new construction and furnished. Locale: Isle of Palms. The Toll: $1.99M.
10. 82 Pitt Street – This 2001 renovated home built in 1843 – The Sanders House– looks like a good buy for the owners – even if it is close to the college kids at MUSC. Locale: Downtown Peninsula. The Toll: $1.9M.
11. 757 Glossy Ibis Lane – yes, a tie for 10^th place adds an extra home to the tabulation this quarter. This recently renovated 3,400 sf 1994 home on Kiawah rounds out the ‘top 10.’ Locale: Kiawah Island. The Toll: $1.9M.

The Charleston Chamber produced a bullish report this week forecasting a 6% increase in home sales for the local market, despite a slow start in 2008. Activity has been increasing in area offices as a survey of local Realtors indicates broad-based acknowledgement of increased numbers for property showings, offers, and contracts. In addition, pressure on local builders to move standing inventories continues to provide downward pressure on pricing and good buys can be found throughout the area for new construction quality homes (Our buyer client recently purchased a home for less than $1 million that was priced at $1.7 million in 2007). Will all this create a trend for the rest of the year or be a blip on the sales charts?

While encouraging, I believe the exuberance may be premature given the January through March local numbers (down 36% through March 21) and continued financial woes on Wall Street. Mortgages are low, but the weakness in the national economy and slow sales across the country translate to potential buyers in the Holy City still unable to sell their out of town properties to allow them to buy here.

For the story in today’s Post & Courier, click here.

The 10,000 sf Patrick O’Donnell house hits the market again after closing in June 2007, setting a record for the most expensive house sold on the historic peninsula. Boston Celtics Owner and Tudor Investments partner Jim Pallotta paid $7.1 Million for it, but most have thought our summers were too warm for his taste.

According to the Post & Courier, The Beach Company is making plans to develop a long, underutilized parcel on Coleman Boulevard in Mount Pleasant, SC. The site currently the home of a Family Dollar store and several closed businesses is prime real estate along this corridor that is likely to see more development under the town’s vision for this area. Look for office, retail, and maybe residential uses.

The 40-year old office building, located near Meeting Street and Calhoun Street in downtown Charleston, SC, has closed.  John Dewberry, an Atlanta developer and local resident, was the winning bidder in an online auction.  The property sold for $15 million.  His plans for demolition or new development are unclear.

Former Georgia Tech quarterback John Dewberry was the leading bidder for a prominent downtown Charleston federal building and its accompanying 2 acres, according to the Post & Courier. Dewberry Capital bid $15 million in an online auction recently for this keystone parcel in the heart of downtown Charleston. Having developed several mixed-use infill developments in Atlanta, Dewberry hopes to have similar success with this high profile property after he takes care of its demolition. Let’s see if he can maneuver the ever-challenging architectural and political hurdles of Charleston.

While the national condo market weathers an economic storm, it’s refreshing to see solid progress happening on The Gatherings on the Ashley River (www.LiveOnTheAshley.com). The West Ashley/Charleston development offers luxury townhomes and condos set among 44 acres of riverfront property including a marshfront dock and river pavilion to watch the herons, a dog park for Fido, & walking trails and a fitness club for those not destined to sit by the pool all day.

Backed by Florida Capital and Carlisle Development Partners, this appears to be one of the few local residential projects moving forward. They appreciate the niche created by its first-class amenities & features, convenient location, and accessibility to the Ashley River Road bike and pedestrian trails and the nearby historic plantations.

Workers are already building the marshfront dock — and clearing for the first residences and club are but a few weeks away, according to sources close to the project. Residences range from $335,000 to $599,000 – let’s hope this is a good sign of things to come for Charleston and the marketplace.