The following was published as a Commentary in the Post and Courier on Oct. 18, 2025.
Where do I start?
Well, we’ve assembled a world-class team to take on the challenge of turning Union Pier into the next great neighborhood of Charleston. We have had countless meetings with constituents covering nearly every aspect of what’s important to our city: history, commerce, parks, quality of life, resiliency, affordable housing, etc.
What have we learned?
Honestly, first and foremost, we’ve been able to confirm our initial instincts. This endeavor is far too important and far too complicated to be laid out on some architect/planner’s table, where every plot is assigned a cut-and-paste label. That would be arrogant and would cheat us out of what makes Charleston so compelling — many hands building our city over time. We need to use the same concepts that the original creators of all great cities used. As our first steps on this journey:
• Let’s lay out the best places for civic buildings and public parks and a street grid that extends Charleston to and through Union Pier.
• Let’s come up with a plan that not only protects Union Pier from flooding but also helps alleviate the water problems of the surrounding neighborhoods.
• Let’s begin on the edges and work our way in.
In that vein, I am excited to be able to share with you a first step in the process I’ve outlined above. I have had the privilege of teaching a class each fall semester over at the College of Charleston’s business school called “Intentionality” (more on being intentional later). I’ve been completely enamored with the students and their passion to improve themselves. There is no reason that the CofC business school can’t truly be a leading institution.
With this in mind, we have purchased the abandoned Carroll building at Market Street and East Bay — in my view, one of the ugliest buildings in all of downtown at one of the most dangerous intersections. We plan to give this land to the college, and we will work with it to build a world-class business school worthy of its students. It will become a gateway for the college as well as for Union Pier.
Along with the new building, we will work with Mayor William Cogswell to completely reimagine the section of Market Street east of East Bay. I can’t wait for the day that students, residents and tourists are all enjoying this new bustling area of downtown.
I think of this as intentional and incremental development, and this is my vision for all of Union Pier. We don’t do master plans but rather bespoke projects that better our city and move it forward for the benefit of the next generation. This embodies the importance of stewardship and understanding the overall picture of Charleston, as I outlined in my first op-ed on Union Pier.
I look forward to keeping you updated on our progress.