Homes for Sale in Summers Corner neighborhood in Summerville, SC

Summers Corner offers beautiful layout options like this Fanning model.

Future proposed Club at Summers Corner

Summers Corner offers a peaceful and walkable streetscape for residents to enjoy.

Whitfield

Haskell

Matt Whitfield grew up in the Ashborough East neighborhood on the southwestern edge of Summerville, which back then felt a long way from the bulk of the town’s growth toward Interstate 26. Driving down Bacons Bridge Road and turning west on S.C. Highway 61 would have pointed him toward—Jellico’s Tackle Box? Givhans Ferry? Cottageville? Safe to say, there wasn’t much in what were mainly vast swaths of the East Edisto timber tract managed by paper producer MeadWestvaco.

That changed somewhat in the early 1990s when the Legends Oak golf course community opened near the intersection of S.C. Highways 61 and 165. But it’s really changing now, thanks to the continued development of a Summers Corner neighborhood that could one day boast as many as 7,000 homes and is transforming this once-quiet corner of Dorchester County in the process.

“That area is really expanding,” said Whitfield, now an agent in the Summerville Main Street office of Carolina One Real Estate. “And what’s really great about that area is that Summers Corner may be zoned for a lot of houses, but since they’re part of the East Edisto Conservancy, they’re very specific on requirements for green spaces and not having houses elbow-to-elbow. They do a great job of keeping that spacing and keeping that natural feeling and not just having that urban sprawl you see.”

Summers Corner is set off from U.S. Highway 17-A by Buffalo Lake, and protected wetlands border each of the development’s communities—the Village, Sweetgrass, Azalea Ridge and Horizons, the latter being an age-restricted community for those 55 and older. Lakes, ponds, parks, walking trails and gathering areas are found throughout the development, all of it combining to give Summers Corner a different feel from the other master-planned communities on the I-26 side of Summerville.

“Buyers are wanting that Lowcountry feel,” said Roni Haskell, an agent in the Summerville East 2nd North Street office of Keller Williams Key. “They want sidewalk-lined streets; they want a place where they can meet their neighbors. They have crafted their own community in that in that area, and it’s just on the outskirts of Summerville, and so there’s not that hustle-and-bustle feel. It’s a more relaxed atmosphere in Summers Corner, and that’s attractive to a lot of people who are migrating here. Maybe they’re used to hustle-and-bustle, and they just want simplicity. And Summers Corner is that.”

Schools, parks and pools

“Summers Corner is a newer built community, and with that comes ease of maintenance. And the amenities that have been built are very family-focused,” she added. “The schools alone are a strong pull for many families that want that ease of commute. And now that it has a 55-plus community integrated into it as well, it creates a nice crossover for families who want their parents nearby. So you have families that are living in Summers Corner that now have their parents living adjacent to them in the same community.”

The Village, the section of Summers Corner just off S.C. Highway 61, is comprised primarily of traditional Charleston-style homes with double-side porches. In the Sweetgrass and Azalea Ridge sections, Lennar is building the Carolina series, which is aimed mainly at first-time buyers; the Arbor series, intended for move-ups and occasional first-time buyers; and the Coastal series, larger homes for move-up buyers such as those with growing families.

“They have such a wide range of options,” Whitfield said. “I think they have maybe about 30 different floor plans available, with houses that start at around 1,400 square feet and go up to 3,500 square feet. And they have very competitive pricing—I think they now start around $350,000 and go up to about $500,000. I have some clients that I put into Summers Corner just a couple of years ago, but as lives change and needs change, they’re thinking about purchasing a different house in Summers Corner. They like the community so much, and it offers so many options that they can shift into something else.”

Added Haskell: “Lennar builds a good product, they build it at a very competitive purchase price, and they give strong incentives,” she said. “So, when you couple a nice community with good, quality builds, good price points and strong incentives, it’s a win for a lot of people. And that’s what’s driving the continued success of that neighborhood.”

Summers Corner was recently honored as Masterplanned Community of the Year by the Charleston Home Builders Association at the organization’s 2023 Prism Awards. And add to that the presence of Horizons. This gated 55-plus community currently features home plans that range from $332,000 to $397,00, with future releases going up to $449,000. Lennar began selling homes in Horizons in 2023 and had seen 215 closings in the development by early December.

“We have a lot of a lot of seniors who are relocating to the area, and they want to be near their family and grandkids,” Whitfield said. “And honestly, the pricing that they have in Horizons at Summers Corner, nobody right now can even come close to that for that type of community.”

Record-breaking year in sales

While the Summerville area has become the Lowcountry’s hub of master-planned communities, not all of those developments are alike in the minds of potential buyers. “When people start looking, it’s not just that they want to live in a master-planned community,” Haskell said. “People start by focusing on the location, what is surrounding it, and how it makes them feel.”

This means buyers who may consider the Berkeley County master-planned communities just over I-26 are not necessarily the same ones who will consider Summers Corner, tucked into the quieter Dorchester County side of town. Indeed, area natives can easily recall a time then a drive down S.C. Highway 61 past the plantations meant only trees on either side of the road. But now, Summers Corner’s location has become a strength.

“Even though Summers Corner is a big community, it’s much more serene and quiet,” Whitfield said. “It’s like being in a small town. It really has that feel. And yet, it’s right on Highway 61, so you can still get downtown easily. It’s typically people who are looking for something that’s just a little bit quieter, but still someplace where you can get out and meet a lot of people and enjoy yourself within your community, and not worry about all the traffic on the other side of town.”

Haskell agreed. “There’s not really a crossover,” she said. “Very quickly, it becomes the buyer either wants the Berkeley County side or the Dorchester County side, and a lot of that has to do somewhat with proximity to work. And I would say that families buying into Summers Corner are coming there for the Dorchester District 2 school system.”

There is a commercial area planned for Summers Corner, which, according to the community map, will be located across S.C. Highway 61 from the residential developments. The commercial area will be anchored by a Publix grocery store, which, according to Post and Courier reports, paid $3.05 million for a 10-acre parcel in 2017 and could begin construction on the 51,000-square-foot supermarket in March of 2025. Other retailers will fill in around the Publix.

“The commercial is always a piece, too,” Haskell said. “It’s a big piece to the lifestyle and convenience aspect for a community. You have to have enough residents to support it. They’re at that brink of really needing it.”

Summers Corner is planning a future extension to S.C. Highway 165, giving the development a secondary entrance and exit point. And “once the Berlin Myers Parkway extension is complete, it’s going to make it a lot easier to get over to that area. It won’t be just two-lane roads to get there,” Whitfield said. “And I think that will bring a lot more people and definitely have a positive impact.”

It can be hard to believe that just a few years ago, this burgeoning community, which now features parks, schools, amenities, and thousands of residents, was a dense forest managed by a packaging company. Summers Corner, though, has clearly discovered a winning formula and has a decade of development still in front of it. And as for this once-sleepy corner of Dorchester County? From a residential development standpoint, it turned out to be a sleeping giant.

SUMMERS CORNER, SC (WCIV) — Imagine a real Hallmark Movie.

That's what a Summers Corner home looks like this holiday season. It's the type of decked-out holiday display to immediately catch the eyes of everyone driving by. It's hard to look left or right without seeing lights or decorations.

The most unique part is that each item has a story. Some of them traveled by car for nearly 17 hours in order to make it to the Lowcountry, and others would only fit in a rental car. Even the Grinch himself, can't steal this Christmas spirit.

"I think it’s wonderful what they are doing and if this was a decoration competition. I would say they win," neighbor Stella Taber said.

Reindeers, snowmen, and even Santa Claus are seasonal neighbors.

"Santa actually writes back to the kids, and the hot cocoa, and all of the treats they are so lovely to put together for everyone in the neighborhood," Neighbor Karina Aymerich said.

It's a holiday tradition for the O'Hea family. Brandy O'Hea said, "It started with one decoration and led to another."

Though, O'Hea said a new HOA wants to tone down the merry and bright.

"We got a letter that was dated 16th of November stating it was our second letter, we were in violation because we had decorations on the adjoining property. At that time of the letter, there was nothing out there," she said.

The letter asked the O'Hea family to have a "reasonable number of holiday and religious lights." It also said a fine of $25 dollars has been applied to their account. A third violation is 50 dollars.

"I don’t know what the definition of reasonable is," O'Hea said.

Some neighbors said it's a display of holiday magic.

"My son here Zachary has autism. He doesn't like gifts. A couple of years ago we were walking, and we walked past every single day by that pig that didn’t say Zach’s pig. We came back up a week later and it said Zach’s pig on it. I don’t like to admit this but I started tearing up because it hit me in my heart that these wonderful people are doing it not just for them, they are doing it for other people," neighbor Dino Pustalka said.

It's a gift that keeps on giving.

"This is the last thing that happens this year that we have hope. That we can feel a little bit or normality. We have had a horrible year. This is bringing everything that was normal back," Aymerich added.

Homeowners said they don't plan to take it down.

"I want the HOA to come here and see the joy that these kids have...running through taking pictures. Hugging the unicorns. And then see what it's like if you take it away from them," O'Hea said.

Kids in Summers Corner shared their personal display favorites with hopes of keeping joy alive this holiday season.

"I like the mermaids, and the angel. I think the mermaid is guidance and the angel is hope," Taber said.

There is a petition online that asks the HOA to change its mind about the Summers Corner holiday display.

ABC News 4 called the homeowners association and left a voicemail. An email was also sent to the office for a response to the neighborhood complaints. As of Wednesday evening, there has been no response. The story will be updated as soon as there is.

SUMMERVILLE, S.C. (WCIV) — A Summerville family says their $535,000 dream house has turned into a nightmare.

“This is what we wanted. We fell in love with the outside, the exterior, everything,” said Michael O’Hea, who moved into the house in the Summers Corner neighborhood in June of 2017. He says immediately after moving in, he and his wife noticed defects cropping up throughout the house.

“You see the cracks in the wall you see the cabinets coming off the wall,” Brandy O’Hea told ABC News 4.

Floors are also uneven in several parts of the home, and two cracks have formed on the both sides of the home’s exterior.

The O’Heas also described mold issues with the home and drainage problems that required the installation of a French drain.

Dan Ryan Builders constructed the home, which the O’Hea’s say is a "Keenleand II" plan.

ABC News 4 called and emailed Dan Ryan builders requesting an interview and asking if the home was being examined for structural issues. Dan Ryan’s regional president emailed the following:

“We are aware of the O’Hea’s concerns with respect to their house. We are in the process of scheduling an engineer to inspect the house and will take appropriate action thereafter.”

The O’Hea’s say Dan Ryan Building sent two structural engineers in the spring who performed a visual inspection of the home, but those engineers were no-shows at the next scheduled appointment.

“We’ve had no shows. Contractors showing up with no materials, no paint,” Michael O’Hea said. “We had seven different personnel but it’s past that now.”

The O’Heas said several of their neighbors are experiencing similar issues with the Keeneland II model. Representatives from Dan Ryan have not yet commented on that.

As it stands, the O’Heas simply want their little slice of suburbia back in one piece.

“I want my home,” Brandy O’Hea said. “I want the home we paid for. We put everything in this home.”

The Better Business Bureau’s website shows 57 complaints filed against Dan Ryan Builders in the last three years, but it also rates the company an A+.

The BBB’s website lists some of the criteria for that score as pertaining to how quickly and appropriately the company has handled complaints.

Dan Ryan told us the building company scheduled its structural engineer to inspect their home less than two days after we contacted them for this story, but that engineer is scheduled for October.

The O’Heas say they’re considering a class action lawsuit.

The restaurant and retail business continues to evolve across the Charleston region with one venue closing, four others in the works and another relocating.

South of Summerville, the only restaurant in the developing Summers Corner community will soon turn out the lights.

Real Estate

Corner House Café at 1609 Beech Hill Road is slated to close April 3, according to a shop owner Jacki Mariest.

Mariest said she was notified by a lawyer with homebuilder Lennar, which owns and is developing Summers Corner, in early March that the company would not be renewing her lease when it expires in June. Rather than wait until then, and to give her 10 employees an earlier chance to land a new job, Mariest said she decided to go ahead and close.

Mariest said Lennar did not offer a reason for not renewing the lease after the restaurant’s nearly four years at the location.

“A lot of homeowners are real upset because this was one of their amenities,” Mariest said.

A Lennar representative did not offer a reason for not renewing the lease but said a new occupant could be announced soon.

“We have a number of prospective new tenants we believe will be embraced and enjoyed by the community,” said Jason Byham, Charleston division president. “We have no intention of leaving it vacant.”

In a Facebook post, Mariest thanked her customers for their support over the past four years.

“You have always stood by our side, especially during COVID,” she said. “We are not closing due to COVID or a lack of community support.”

An online petition to try to change the landlord’s mind had garnered roughly 2,000 signatures by March 30.

Lennar has about 500 houses in Summers Corner with another 100 under construction and hundreds more planned, Byham said.

What’s cooking?

A Mount Pleasant restaurant and bar that’s been closed since last summer plans to welcome customers once again.

A new eclectic retail enterprise is moving into the large Lowcountry building once occupied by a home decor store and farm-to-table food emporium.

Modern Manor, a cooperative of 35 merchants selling apparel, home decor items, antiques, plants, jewelry and other products in leased booths, opens Feb. 9 at 2521 U.S. Highway 17 in Mount Pleasant.

The 10,000-square-foot building is the former site of the short-lived Heavens Marketplace, which closed in December after expanding down the coast from Myrtle Beach 16 months earlier. The building also previously served as the retail operation for nearby Boone Hall Farms for 14 years before closing in early 2020.

The new retail venture is owned by East Cooper residents Karen Massarotti and Jessica Wiley, who are among the nearly three dozen boutique owners with booths in the 65 spaces created in the former open-space structure.

The business partners latched onto the site shortly after the home decor business closed before the end of last year.

“There wasn’t much for a business like ours in the northern part of Mount Pleasant,” Massarotti said. “We wanted to do something different.”

The duo said they didn’t have to reach out to others to rent spaces in the building.

“It was mostly just word of mouth,” Massarotti said. “They called us.”

Wiley, too, believes the shop will fill a missing niche in the state’s fourth-largest municipality that nearly 100,000 people call home.

SUMMERVILLE, SC (WCBD) – Dorchester District Two received the green light to move in the new Rollings Middle School of the Arts building in Summerville.

Students and staff will begin the 2018-2019 school year on Monday, August 20th.

The new school is located in Summers Corner on S.C. 61. According to the Rollings Middle School of the Arts Facebook page, state inspectors approved the building nearly two weeks out from the first day of school.

News 2’s Laura Smith had the chance to sit down with Principal Patrick Pye before the move happened at the historic building downtown Summerville.

The 1924 building has served kids for nearly 100 years. It will be turned into office space for Dorchester District Two.

Pye says it needs a lot of work and will look completely different when renovations wrap up.

“It’s kind of like grandmas house. You walk down the halls and you see they’re quite narrow, there’s no lockers, there’s no running water in science labs. It’s not built for the 21st century learner,” said Rollings Middle School of the Arts principal, Patrick Pye.

The new Rollings will come with wider hallways, lockers, larger classrooms, and a major auditorium upgrade for performances.

Pye says it will be the largest in Dorchester County and is capable of seating 1,100 people.

“Not only will we be able to do all of our performances and events, the district can use that facility as well as the community,” said Pye.

Students must audition for an art to attend Rollings. The district will add 60 students each year until enrollment reaches 850.

What students and parents should know:

1) New Bus Routes

2) New Bell Schedule

3) New Building Tour – Sunday, August 19th.

Rollings Middle School of the Arts will be on the high school bell schedule. School will start at 8:55 a.m. and dismiss at 3:55 p.m.

Sixth grade meet the teacher is now scheduled to happen on Wednesday, September 5th.

Seventh and eighth grades meet the teacher is Tuesday, September 11th.