Roofer in West Ashley, SC

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A woman charged with breaking into a West Ashley home and burning the owner’s belongings pleaded guilty Wednesday but walked out of the courtroom remaining a free woman.

Charleston Judge Debra McCaslin accepted a negotiated plea deal that gave Evelyn Pollard a five-year sentence, suspended to 27 months of probation. McCaslin stated she could not intervene with the assistant solicitor and public defenders’ decision, as it was part of a negotiated plea deal for probation.

On Jan. 7, 2025, Pollard, along with co-defendants Christopher “Nate” Marcum and Daniel Byrd, was , along with destroying the personal property of the people who lived in the home.

Pollard will spend the first nine months in residential treatment at a facility, was ordered to pay almost $3,500 in restitution and undergo substance abuse counseling. The prosecution stated it had lost contact with one of the victims with the charge involving that individual to be dismissed.

Judge McCaslin told Pollard repeatedly that she was first hesitant to even consider the negotiated plea agreement.

“I’m telling you that I usually don’t do this. There will be no tolerance for any violations, period,” McCaslin said. “You go into somebody’s house, squat, tear up their stuff and steal all their belongings; you wouldn’t like it if somebody did it to you.” Pollard replied, “Yes, ma’am.”

Back in June, a judge and forced her to remain in jail despite a high-risk pregnancy. She was later released in July to a treatment facility.

of Pollard and Marcum’s alleged squatting in multiple West Ashley Homes dates back to the beginning of January.

So far, no law has been passed formally criminalizing the act of squatting. Removing a tenant in a private home, even in a case of squatting, still requires months of lengthy eviction court proceedings before an individual can be forcefully removed.

The other two accused squatters, Marcum and Byrd, are both scheduled to enter pleas by the end of the month.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - More than 130 feet below homes and businesses in West Ashley, a team of experienced construction workers are not-so quietly at work tunneling across the region.

Back in June, the r down a massive shaft to start work on the West Ashley Sewer Tunnel Extension project. It’s CWS’s most expensive project ever and promises to fix sewage overflow issues that are common in the area.

Kathleen Wilson is the vice chair of the Charleston Water System Board of Commissioners.

“The total cost is about $135 million, but what it will accomplish is fantastic. It’s going to take all of the problems that we’ve had in West Ashley with sanitary sewer overflows. Those will be eliminated,” Wilson said.

The tunnel itself is 8 feet wide and will be nearly 4 miles long. Water system officials say it should last at least 150 years and keep up with the surging population growth in the area. Inside the tunnel, a 5-foot-wide sewage pipe will be placed. They will then fill the remaining space with grout and refill the shaft.

“It’s built to a large enough diameter and size and scale that we can handle all of West Ashley and even out beyond, getting into Hollywood and Ravenel. So, it’s a fantastic project that’s very much needed,” Wilson said.

The project is made possible by a geologic feature called the Cooper Marl that starts about 70 feet below the ground and protects deep aquifers from pollutants.

Professor Norman Levine is an expert in geology at the College of Charleston. He says the marl is a major geological feature, or unit, unique to coastal plains.

“The Cooper Marl is a dense clay that keeps water from flowing through it,” Levine said. “The Cooper Marl is the perfect place to put the West Ashley pipe since it is a thick unit, and it’s a very tight unit, meaning anything that might leak will not penetrate through the unit.”

SAK Construction crews are currently about half a mile into the project. They’re able to go anywhere from 60 to 100 feet a day. The tunneling is expected to take several more months, and then several more years for the infrastructure to be finalized.

“Most people have no idea what’s going on, and they’re very, very surprised upon learning of it. So, in a sense, no news is good news because we haven’t had complaints about the drilling or noise or any problems related to construction. And it’s going beautifully, and it’s going according to plan,” Wilson said.

The tunnel starts where the West Ashley Greenway begins on Albemarle Road near the Porter-Gaud baseball field. It will follow the Greenway all the way down to the end of Interstate 526.

It’s expected to be completed Jan. 1, 2028.

WEST ASHLEY — Charleston city officials want to renegotiate a financial agreement with the St. Andrews Public Service District they are calling a bad deal for city taxpayers.

The state Legislature established the public service district back in 1949 to provide limited governmental functions, like fire protection and trash collection to West Ashley, which was entirely unincorporated at the time.

Public service districts operate as independent governmental units that exist separately from the county and city, and are primarily funded by property taxes.

Decades later, the city has annexed much of the former suburb, where now more than 40 percent of the city’s population resides.

The agreement states that after a property is annexed, the city must pay the public service district for the next seven years as if the district was still providing the services that the city has assumed. It also means the city is paying the district’s higher tax rate on annexed properties.

City Councilman Keith Waring, who grew up in unincorporated West Ashley, said its time to re-examine the 17-year-old arrangement because the city should no longer subsidize the district that provides duplicative and fewer services.

“Why should the citizens of Charleston pay for that inefficiency?” Waring said.

The deal made more sense in 2008 when it was first entered into, he said. At the time, city residents were paying higher property taxes rates than their neighbors who are serviced by the public service district. So when the city annexed property, it would pay the district the lower rate.

But as Charleston has annexed more and more properties west of the Ashley River, the city’s tax base has grown while the district’s has shrunk.

This has forced the district to increase taxes in order to maintain the same services to fewer properties that are often on the same street as the annexed homes now serviced by city trash trucks. The resulting inversion between the two entities’ tax rates means the city is now footing more the public service district’s operation.

The city’s base tax rate, measured in mills, is 89.8, while the public service district’s is 98.7 mills.

So already, property taxes are lower in the city.

City taxpayers get additional relief from a local option sales tax that is credited directly back to them on their tax bills, bringing the city’s net millage rate down to around 67.4 — nearly 32 percent lower than the St. Andrew’s Public Service District.

Here is how the rates translate into tax dollars: a West Ashley home is valued by county assessors at $400,000. If it’s within the city limits, the homeowner living there would owe the city $1,076.80 in property taxes this year. But the homeowner would owe $1,579.20 if that exact same primary residence was located in the St. Andrew’s PSD.

That’s about $500 in savings annually for the homeowner if the home were annexed into the city.

But it also equates to $500 more that the city owes the district than it is actually collecting in taxes due to the agreement. And that difference — between what the city collects from annexed properties and what it pays to the district— is borne by all city taxpayers, not just those who are annexed.

“That millage rate is frankly a bad deal when we annex people into the city,” said City Councilman Stephen Bowden, who represents parts of outer West Ashley. “We annex people into the city, so we can achieve efficiencies with tax dollars and it’s still worth it even with that awful deal to do that because we’re providing better services at a lower cost to taxpayers.”

“It’s because of these overlapping layers of bureaucracy that are stealing tax payer dollars,” Bowden said during a recent City Council meeting. “We don’t need PSDs anymore — at least in Charleston.”

Long-standing tensions reach breaking point

This long simmering push-and-pull between the city and the PSD came to a head at a City Council meeting earlier this month. The city is in the process of annexing 22 properties from a newly developed neighborhood called the Settlement at Ashley Hall, off Ashley Hall Plantation Road.

Zillow lists home prices in that neighborhood for over $1 million, which means a lot of tax dollars are at stake.

After the city’s annexation coordinator Mollie Conner worked with about half the neighborhood to start the process of annexing into the city (which requires approvals from City Council and the Planning Commission) the service district’s manager Christie Holderness sent letters to those homeowners asking them to reconsider.

One homeowner in the neighborhood said the decision was simple because of the city’s more favorable tax and water rates. Another said they felt like the PSD was “harassing” them to stay.

The information the public service district provided to the homeowners cast the city and Conner “in a disparaging way,” Waring said. “They really give misinformation, and that's the part that's disingenuous.”

Holderness declined to comment for this story.

Around 2018, city officials found that they were paying the district for annexed properties beyond the seven-year term in the agreement. Since then, the city has not paid the district and instead has deducted their payments from the outstanding balance that the district owes.

City officials claim the district owes the city $771,579.83 for over payments under the agreement. But the public service district disputes the number, according to City Attorney Julia Copeland.

Copeland said city leaders met with the St. Andrew’s Commission Chairman John DeStefano, and the two entities agreed to hire an external auditor to examine those prior payments and renegotiate the agreement.

It is unclear how long that reconciliation process will take.

In the meantime, city taxpayers will continue to be on the hook for the annexations.

The recently shuttered O’Charley’s in West Ashley is getting a new look and a new name, yet keeping its signature apostrophe.

The restaurant will soon reopen as Underground Chuck’s, a casual bar-focused concept from the Tennessee-based dining group.

The first Underground Chuck location was opened in a former O’Charley’s in Dayton, Ohio.

The Charleston conversion at 2126 Henry Tecklenburg Drive will be the second for the new brand, said Thomas Mulgrew, a representative from O’Charley’s.

Nashville-based O’Charley’s Restaurant + Bar opened in 1971 and operates 49 restaurants across the Southeast and Midwest. Its only remaining Lowcountry location is in Summerville.

“We are always thinking about how to drive the best long-term value at each of our locations and how they fit into our overall portfolio in the future,” said Lee Rathbun, O’Charley’s president and chief administrative officer. “We are excited to announce that a new chapter for this location is coming soon — a brand new concept with a vibe and menu all of its own. “

The chain has begun hiring for all positions for Underground Chuck’s at the location.

Making a racquet

A racket-sport club with locations in Atlanta and Louisville is bringing its game to Mount Pleasant, announcing plans for "padel" and squash courts that are set to open in early 2026.

The company, called pATL and owned by former college tennis teammates Andrew Herring and Kevin Ye, has not yet disclosed the location.

While padel uses paddles, the game differs from tennis and pickleball in that the court is surrounded by glass walls and a metal cage. The surfaces can be played off in racquetball-style rallies.

According to the social media post, pATL's upcoming Charleston-area location will be the company’s largest, with six indoor padel courts with 30-foot ceilings, an outdoor stadium court, two singles squash courts, two hardball doubles squash courts plus a gym and recovery space.

Taking a walk

A national footwear brand known for its durable work boots has exited the Charleston retail scene.

Red Wing Shoes, founded in 1905, recently closed its Rivers Avenue store in North Charleston. The Minnesota-based retailer opened its first shop in the region around 1984.

Red Wing's nearest South Carolina location is a outlet store in Myrtle Beach. Its products also are carried by other footwear merchants.

Mall waffles

A new vendor is now serving up dishes featuring a longtime breakfast staple in the food court at Citadel Mall.

Waffle Sensations, owned by Kenneth Dozier, began as a food truck and expanded to catering before branching out to its own permanent space.

The West Ashley shopping mall also announced that Next Level Photo Education has opened next to the Planet Fitness gym, offering photography skill classes for all ages.

Neat pour in Nexton

Downtown Nexton is poised to raise a glass.

Neat & Noble Bourbon Bar plans to open a location by early 2026. It’s the newest line of tenants announced for the $300 million downtown retail center.

The upscale cocktail spot will showcase an extensive bourbon selection alongside crafted cocktails, bar snacks and light bites. The bar joins a growing lineup in the mixed-use development.

Nearby, FU-O BBQ, a sushi and Asian restaurant, is set to bring an interactive dining experience with authentic Korean barbecue prepared tableside as well as appetizers and house-made sauces.

Developer Sharbell Nexton LLC also announced that Discount Liquors will open in the retail center.

Outpost shoutout

An Awendaw gas station and convenience store was named among the best across America from a poll by American River Wellness that surveyed thousands of truck drivers.

Sewee Outpost, a family-owned roadside attraction along Highway 17, was recognized for its fuel and Southern fare that includes biscuits, barbecue and frozen foods. It also got a shoutout for its merchandise and local art and for being a community hub with a disc golf course and live music series.

WEST ASHLEY, S.C. (WCSC) - Construction on the 35.5 acres of land for the Ashley Landing redevelopment was set to kick off this summer after a groundbreaking in May, but some community members wonder if the project is still on track.

“I think when the average person in West Ashley drives by here, we see what we always see, which is an empty lot,” community member Erin Foushee says.

Some West Ashley families say they feel long-awaited developments are a common sight to see around the area.

One woman, Elenan Boone, who has worked along Old Towne Road for almost a decade, says it can certainly be an eyesore.

“There’s nothing there. Sometimes homeless people just sleep here and it does not look nice,” Boone says.

Despite these frustrations, both say it comes from a place of eagerness to get West Ashley where they want it to be and wonder what the timeline looks like.

Josh Martin, who is the special advisor to the mayor, says it may take longer since this is the biggest investment in West Ashley since the Citadel Mall.

“It’s kind of a complex site because of the stormwater issues that are there on site. Right now, what you’re seeing is kind of utility work, demolition work. You’re not seeing anything that’s really coming out of the ground yet,” Martin says.

So as they start from the underground up, although you may not see forklifts or building materials, Martin says construction is still happening beyond what the eye can see.

“We live in the Lowcountry. I know we have to think about the stormwater. That’s something I’m not an expert in, but it makes sense to me. They need to build it from the ground up. But yes, sometimes you’d have to convince me that that’s a full construction site, but we’ll be excited when it’s done,” Foushee says.

The developers on this project say the first phase of new retail will open late 2026 and early 2027 and the city says people can start to see vertical construction here in the next few weeks, which are all on track.

City leaders approved a plan for the site in September 2024, after years of discussion, which plans to merge two-and-a-half acres of city property with the 33-acre Ashley Landing Shopping Center.

The plan for the 35.5 acres of land includes a city park, nine acres of stormwater retention, outdoor dining, shopping and affordable housing. Spokesperson Deja Knight McMillan said the plan considers current surrounding residents by prioritizing walkability and bikeable destinations to help ease traffic congestion.

The project plans can be accessed here.