Self-Storage Development Proposed for Bluffton, SC

Update 9/3/2014 – A new self-storage facility proposed for Bluffton, S.C., has drawn criticism from some local storage operators who say the market is already saturated. The 4-acre project would be constructed on Lot 4 off of Oliver Court in the Bluffton Park commercial subdivision, according to the source.

“It’s definitely going to cut into the piece of the pie,” Terrina Frank of Village Self Storage told the “Savannah Morning News.” “I think it’s going to affect our business.”

Employees at Plantation Storage and Universal Storage Solutions in Bluffton also expressed concerns, the newspaper reported. “I think they’re doing an overkill. I really do,” said Brenda, manager at Universal, who would only provide her first name. “If somebody wanted to do parking that would be different. Nobody has enough space.”

Bob Stewart, manager at Palmetto Self Storage in Bluffton, said growth in the area will likely accommodate another competitor in the market. “The Bluffton area is growing, and I would suggest there’s likely room for a [new] storage facility,” he told the source. “A lot of people come and rent with the intention of moving here, or they’ve moved from up North and have more furniture than they have room in their new house. We’re seeing so much growth.”

8/25/2014 – A development company hopes to build a self-storage facility on a 4-acre commercial plot in Bluffton, S.C. Evans and Bradshaw LP and Jeff Ackerman of Carolina Engineering Consultants Inc. are seeking Coastal Zone Consistency (CZC) certification from Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (OCRM), a division of the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, according to the source. CZC certification is required for any activities that could disturb the land within any of the state’s eight coastal counties.

Construction on the self-storage facility would begin on Nov. 1 and be completed in March 2015, according to state records. The project is 3,700 feet from an unnamed tributary to Sawmill Creek and 10,200 feet from Sawmill Creek itself. Colleton River is 14,500 feet from the development site.

OCRM is South Carolina’s coastal-management agency, responsible for implementation of the state’s Coastal Management Program, which was enacted in 1972.

Based in Beaufort, S.C., Carolina Engineering Consultants specializes in water, wastewater, storm drainage, paving and grading designs for commercial, industrial, residential and municipal projects. Evans and Bradshaw is based in Hilton Head Island, S.C.