Bluffton residents push back against three large, mixed-use buildings planned in Old Town
A mound of dirt sits at Calhoun and Bridge streets in the heart of historic Old Town Bluffton.
For the past year or so, neighborhood kids have used the small dirt pile as a bike ramp.
Longtime Bluffton residents remember the vacant lot as the site of an old filling station that was renovated and for 25 years served as the Eggs N’ Tricities store.
Now, a Bluffton-based developer wants to build three large multi-use buildings and a 58-space parking lot on this spot, across from May River Montessori and Moonlit Lullaby.
The developer and owner of the property, Matthew Cunningham, envisions the development enticing area business owners to open restaurants, markets, inns and shops. He hopes the buildings will complement the mix of small retail stores in Old Town.
Marketed as The Bridge at Calhoun, the development shows plans for a restaurant, six retail spaces and 12 residential units, according to its website.
Many Bluffton residents worry about Cunningham’s plans, and some are vehemently opposed. They say the two to 2 1/2-story buildings don’t fit the Old Town Master Plan, which focuses on the area’s rich Civil War-era history. They say, as many residents have said for years, that Bluffton’s development boom has finally reached, and will soon take over, historic Old Town.
The plans illustrate the divide among developers, residents and town officials about Bluffton’s complicated identity and the difficulty in preserving the town’s history while managing the growing pains associated with large developments.
“We all know the development was inevitable, but not like this,” Bluffton resident Charlene Gardner posted on Facebook. “So much opportunity and this is the choice from a city architect! It could have been so Bluffton. Help town council make more ordinances against this type of massacre of our historic district we hold so dear.”
Her post received over 100 reactions, comments and shares from residents with similar opinions.
Cunningham purchased the vacant lot from previous owner RSQ LLC for $1.6 million in July 2019, according to Beaufort County property records. Since then, he’s worked with local architecture firm Court Atkins Group and the town of Bluffton to come up with a development plan that fits the design standards of Old Town Bluffton.
The current plan proposed by Cunningham calls for three 8,000-square-foot, mixed-use buildings and a 58-space parking lot.
Cunningham said he hired “the best team in the area” to make sure the development maintains the look and feel of Old Town Bluffton.
“It’s really well designed and keeping with what the town envisioned for Old Town Bluffton,” he said. “A lot of people don’t like change, but I want people to know that I live in this area. I’ve got a house I’m building a block away. I have a vested interest in making sure this is a nice place to live and work.”
The town’s historic preservations review committee is reviewing the design plans and has requested that Cunningham and Court Atkins make several changes before the plans receive final approval for a certificate of appropriateness.
Once the design is approved, Cunningham must submit development plans to the development review committee and to the Uniformed Development Ordinance administrator for approval.
This story was originally published May 8, 2020 at 4:45 AM.
