North Charleston, South Carolina – Some Liberty Hill residents are concerned about the plans for a new townhome development and a commercial structure that would include retail or office space.
The City of North Charleston will hold a public hearing on the planned development Monday night at 6 p.m. in North Charleston City Hall.
“The community is already full of tenants. So we want to bring back single-family affordable homes in our town.” Valerie Harper Young, president of the Liberty Hill Improvement Council, said.
Liberty Hill is a 154-year-old historic enclave in North Charleston, and many inhabitants are committed to preserving it.
Some are concerned about the impact of new housing construction plans on the surrounding neighborhood.
“It does not fit with the aesthetics of this community,” Liberty Hill Redevelopment Group President Criag Mitchell explained. “We would like for this community to stay intact as many over the country have done so that we can then continue to be proud of our community of 154 years bring it into the next century.”
The Charleston Affordable Development Group has requested that the property at 1657 E Montague Ave. be rezoned from single-family to multi-family residential. The group is made up of developers working to bring more housing alternatives to the community.
“(We’re) looking to work alongside the communities,” Charleston Affordable Development Group’s Ford Smith stated. “Obviously, we want the community members to be happy and, you know, to be able to come together, build a product that suits everybody and ultimately just create good housing opportunities.”
However, some people are hesitant to believe that the development is good for the neighborhood.
“People want to return home. But people want to return home because of what it represents, and we don’t want it to look like other places,” Mitchell explained.
“We would love for them to understand where we are and for them to respect our 154-year-old community,” Young told the audience.
The public hearing meeting will allow all opinions to be expressed in the hopes of finding a solution that benefits all parties.
“We’re excited about the project,” Smith stated. “We really hope we can come together and, you know, find an option that’s suitable for everybody and hope that everybody can see the light and the good that we are trying to do.”
