Mt Pleasant SC Neighborhoods

I’On Village in Mount Pleasant is often referred to as a mixed-use New Urbanist Traditional Neighborhood Development (TND), and is one of the first full-time communities of this kind in the United States.

I’On was named after Jacob Bond I’On, the first mayor of Sullivan’s Island back in 1823. When first proposed, the I’On community was a real controversy. Initial plans consisted of having a more urban and diverse village of over 1,200 units, which included multi-family homes.

Today, the neighborhood is a full community with 756 home sites and plenty of local businesses such as I’On Inn, Grind & Squeeze Coffee/ Juice Bar, Square Onion deli, O’Brion’s Pub, Grace Salon and Sweet Olive gift shop.

I’On real estate is in high demand due to the walking and jogging paths, the Amphitheater, I’On Square, the Creek Club and other opportunities for active people who love the outdoors. The I’On Club features plenty of room for different families to meet each other and play games, be healthy and have fun together. Additionally, the Club delivers free Wi-Fi and locker rooms with showers, ensuring members with busy lifestyles will find refuge at the Club at any time of day.

Speaking of taking refuge, the Rookery, which is one of the natural features at I’On, is a wildlife refuge that consists of 6 miles of walking trails, 2.5 miles of marsh front paths, a deep water access boat ramp, 3 crab docks, a boathouse, two lakes and 12 pocket parks. It’s the perfect spot for residents and guests to take a break from the bustle of life.

One of Mount Pleasant’s oldest and loveliest neighborhoods, the Old Village, is still a prime place for purchasing a home. This quaint community, tucked off of Coleman Boulevard in the area known as “Old Mount Pleasant,” draws families looking for a quaint and picturesque way of life.

The heart of Old Village is Pitt Street, which hosts a group of independent businesses, including Out of Hand, a gift emporium and florist; Old Village Post House, a fine dining restaurant with a bed-and-breakfast above it; Pitt Street Pharmacy, an old-fashioned drugstore with a classic soda fountain; and others. Most days, you can ride a bicycle or travel on foot around the Old Village and see young children licking ice cream cones and daydreaming, neighbors visiting and birds chirping; it’s no wonder that home buyers choose this idyllic area in which to live.

Although a visitor to Mount Pleasant’s Old Village might wonder if the homes in the community lack modern touches, the answer to this question is a resounding “no.” In fact, the residents of the area are passionate about updating the homes with chic touches and décor that is both Southern and up-to-date.

History hangs over the lowcountry like spanish moss on heavy oak limbs, so perhaps it is not surprising to learn that Brickyard Plantation in Mount Pleasant has an interesting past. Built on the site of a working brick plantation, it has evolved into a stunning community of neighborhoods.

By the time construction began, only a few ruins remained of the old plantation, but, if you look carefully, you can still see traces of the past. An eight-acre lake marks the area where the material for bricks was dug out.

The old kitchen and another building and kiln are gone but there is still one kiln left. When you walk along the creek, you can still see where the brick was loaded for shipping.

The entrance to Mount Pleasant’s Brickyard Plantation is impressive and an indication that this is a well-designed, well laid-out development. Extensive landscaping only adds to the appeal.

Although there are approximately 850 homes on the property, the neighborhood design belies that density. Home prices range primarily from the mid-$300s to more than $2 million.

Brickyard has something for everyone. Many families are on their second or third home in Brickyard, because they like the area so much. Some move up to larger homes while others choose downsizing.

Residents enjoy amenities such as the elegant clubhouse, tennis courts and pool but best of all is the boat launch and floating dock on Horlbeck Creek. And that little bit of history that lingers along the creek bank.

These days, the term “Hybrid” is most closely associated with automobiles powered by both a gasoline engine and an electric motor. To golfers in the Lowcountry, the term can easily be applied to Charleston National, a challenging 18-hole layout by renowned golf course architect Rees Jones.

Charleston National combines the quality and amenities of a private club with the accessibility and reasonable greens fees of a public course.

It didn’t start out that way. Charleston National was conceived as an exclusive private club along the same lines as Augusta National, home of the Masters Tournament. Jones was brought in to create the finest course on the Southeast coast, one that would take advantage of its proximity to the Intracoastal Waterway and an array of lagoons, marshes and pine and oak forests.

But nature, in the form of Hurricane Hugo, intervened just after the grand opening in 1989. Thousands of old trees were lost and the course closed for more than a year for redesign and renovation.

Fortunately for local and visiting golfers, this superb course reopened as a semiprivate club, providing the public with the opportunity to play what its original architect called “one of the elite venues in golf” at a moderate price.

Charleston National is consistently ranked by major golf publications as the number one non-resort course in the Charleston area. It offers players the visual pleasures of its marshes and lagoons and the challenges of ever-shifting winds. Those cool ocean breezes can create vastly different playing conditions between morning and afternoon rounds.

The club itself offers all the services of a private facility, from clubhouse to pro shop, restaurant and bar.

What do golfers say about Charleston National? A visit to some of the most popular golf Web sites uncovers comments such as: “Beautiful course … has much character and is a steal.” “Interesting layout.” “This course is unbelievable. Phenomenal greens, excellent customer service and experienced professional staff.”

And finally: “The restaurant was fast at the turn and delicious at the end of the round. And the Bloody Marys were awesome.”

Marais at Seaside Farms is located in beautiful Mt. Pleasant, S.C., just minutes from Isle of Palms. The convenient proximity of this intriguing marsh community offers residents an “atypical architectural design,” said Gene Styles, a resident of Marais at Seaside Farms. Constructed by Gulf Stream Construction Company, a subsidiary of the developer, THE BEACH COMPANY, Marais at Seaside Farms offers a relaxing lifestyle that is unique to residents and the community of Mt. Pleasant.

“Marais is a place where we have the best of both worlds,” said Styles.

“Our lifestyle is typical of retirement living. We want standard amenities, plus closeness to the beach, golf, shopping and other forms of recreation,” said Styles. “The convenience and availability of these factors, combined with an affordable price, were primary considerations.”

The Styles family chose a three-bedroom, three-bath design on two levels.

“One bedroom and bath are located on the main floor with the kitchen, dining room and family room. When guests visit, it is important for them to feel comfortable and to have a suite all to themselves. We chose to purchase a town home because we did not want the responsibility of exterior upkeep and maintenance.”

Another resident of Marais enjoys the “close proximity to the beach and the easy access to Highway 17.”

“Marais is a very quiet community with a style of its own,” she said. This Marais resident has enjoyed living there for more than a year. The unusual style of Marais’ town homes, with the feel of being more like a home than a condo, is what attracted her. She chose the Drayton, a single level floor plan, complete with three bedrooms and two-and-a-half baths. The 17-foot ceilings in the great room and full-length and transom windows make it feel spacious.

“The interior has pine floors, with the exception of the bedrooms. The ceilings are high and the walls are soundproof. I have never heard my neighbors. THE BEACH COMPANY and Gulf Stream did an excellent job developing and constructing Marais. I am proud of my town home and I love being a part of such a safe and lovely community,” said the Marais owner.

Available upgrades include decks, screened porches, fireplaces, built-in cabinets, granite counter tops, and sunrooms. A grand pool and bathhouse are available for exclusive use of Marais’ owners. One of the many intriguing features of the Marais at Seaside Farms development is that each unit has its own personality and charm.

The area is tastefully landscaped and residents are not responsible for ground maintenance. For many residents, this is a critical factor since taking care of a lawn and gardening can be tedious tasks. Marais residents are most pleased with their life style in Marais at Seaside Farms.

“We have the best of both worlds with our town house at Marais, which is our primary residence,” Sayles said. “We enjoy the mix of residents – professionals, young families and retired. Marais at Seaside Farms is a wonderful place to live and enjoy a relaxing lifestyle.”

A gated community within an exclusive gated community, Ocean Point is within easy driving distance of booming Mount Pleasant and historic Charleston. Its residents and visitors enjoy two world-class golf courses, a top-rated tennis facility, customized fitness programs, hiking, biking and swimming and proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, which laps gently against a broad and inviting beach.

Taken separately, each of these factors would be reason enough for a closer look at purchasing a permanent home, a vacation home or an investment property in Ocean Point. Considered as a whole, they represent the ultimate in coastal Carolina living.

“You have all the amenities, beautiful views, privacy and a beautiful beach,” says Realtor Marge Sexton, who has been with Wild Dunes Real Estate for 32 years.

“It’s just a wonderful way of living. A house is just a house, but the lifestyle is what makes it so wonderful.”

The best reason to live in Ocean Point just might be what residents see when they gaze through their windows or relax on their airy porches. The neighborhood is tucked away at the northeast tip of the Isle of Palms in the Wild Dunes community, offering stunning views of the ocean, nearby Dewees Island, Dewees Inlet, the Intracoastal Waterway, fertile marshland and the Links Course. The two finishing holes of the par 70, 6,396-yard layout hug the coastline between Ocean Point and the Atlantic.

Wild Dunes also is home to the Harbor Course, a par 70, 6,446-yard layout that winds around salt marches and the Intracoastal. Both courses were designed by the legendary Tom Fazio.

Wild Dunes first gained fame as a tennis resort, when the Sea Pines Company established the 1,600-acre Isle of Palms Beach and Racquet Club in the 1970s. For nearly three decades, Wild Dunes has maintained the standards that earned honors as one of Tennis magazine’s top 50 tennis resorts in the United States.

Most of the 70 homes in Ocean Point – the 71st is currently under construction on the neighborhood’s last available lot – have been built since Hurricane Hugo swept through the Lowcountry in 1989. They range from 1,800 square feet to more than 6,000 square feet, and among them are a group of 2,500-square-foot and larger Charleston singles. The two- and three-story homes with garages beneath are situated on Ocean Point’s narrower lots.

Homes in Ocean Point sell for around $1 million to approximately $3 million. The purchase price includes magnificent views and the opportunity to enjoy the best the Carolina coast has to offer.