Bluffton plans to restore one of Old Town’s historic buildings. Here’s what’s coming
One of Bluffton’s oldest buildings will be undergoing much-needed repairs and restoration, Bluffton officials said last week, but it is unclear when the estimated $1 million work will begin.
Last week, Bluffton Town Council unanimously approved the Squire Pope Carriage House Preservation Plan, which outlines rehabilitation plans for a building vital to the town’s history.
The Squire Pope Carriage House, built in 1850, is one of 10 antebellum buildings in Old Town Bluffton that survived the 1863 “burning of Bluffton” by Union troops during the Civil War. Located on Calhoun Street across from the landmark Church of the Cross, the two-story building served as a separate outbuilding for the much larger main Squire Pope House, which burned during the war.
In 1996, the building was identified as a contributing structure to the Bluffton Historic District. The town of Bluffton and the Beaufort County Rural and Critical Lands Program purchased the property in 2017 for $1.5 million.
The town developed the plan to preserve the building in April and hired MEADORS Inc., a Charleston-based contracting company, to assess the property and conduct a survey for its potential use. The survey showed residents overwhelmingly supported the renovation of the building. Most said it should be made into a museum or visitor’s center.
MEADORS Inc. anticipates the work will cost $989,661 to repair the entire building. Construction on the property will be done in phases based on the priority of the repair work: immediate, short term and long term. The immediate work is expected to take seven to eight months; the short- and long-term work could take two to four months each.
The carriage house is on the site of the planned Wright Family Park, which is under construction. The park, which provides additional access to the May River, will have 28 parking spaces, improved drainage, new sidewalks, landscaping and lighting.
On Aug. 8, the town met with stakeholders to gauge community interest in the project. The group consisted of town council members, town staff, the chairs of the Planning and Historic Preservation Commissions, members of the Wright family and other citizens.
The results from the stakeholder meeting and citizen survey showed most residents supported turning the building into a museum or visitors center. The second-most popular option was making the property a rental space for small functions. The final use of the carriage house will not be determined until the interior of the building is renovated.
With council’s approval last week, the plan goes back to MEADORS Inc., who will create construction drawings, pricing estimates and funding strategies for the proposed renovations.
