New development aims to reduce traffic by bringing retail closer to growing residential areas

WEST ASHLEY, S.C. (WCSC) — City officials are moving forward with plans to expand commercial development in outer West Ashley, targeting an area between Bees Ferry Road and Glenn McConnell Parkway.

The Charleston City Council approved the first reading of an ordinance Tuesday night for a planned unit development in what developers call “The Wedge” area of outer West Ashley.

“The city has really been trying to focus on bringing more commercial development into that area because with Grand Oaks, Carolina Bay, and the Bees Ferry corridor, we feel like there’s enough heads in beds to finally really have a nice commercial component for outer West Ashley,” Karl Brady, Charleston City Councilmember for District 5, said.

Documents show there are 85,000 residential units within a five-mile radius of West Ashley Circle. The area currently has an established Walmart and other services, but Brady said the development aims to fill the remaining section with additional retail and commercial purposes.

The planned unit development proposes three land use districts: the Outparcel District, the Financial District, and the Commercial District. The plan combines general offices and businesses with walkability to existing locations.

Brady said the development addresses the city’s goal of creating work nodes where people can live, shop and potentially work in the same area.

City officials said traffic complaints are the top concern they receive from residents. The commercial expansion aims to reduce traffic along Sam Rittenberg Boulevard and other main West Ashley arteries by bringing grocery stores and other services closer to residential areas.

“The traffic is just getting worse and worse by the day,” West Ashley resident Carter Souris said.

Some residents said they welcome the convenience of closer commercial options despite concerns about rapid development.

“It’s a lot better because then it’s quicker to drive through down here, even though the distanc,e because of how long you’d have to sit in traffic,” Max Lee, another West Ashley resident, said.

The ordinance must complete the regular approval process before moving forward.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) — A homeless encampment located about a hundred yards off Ashley Hall Road is now being cleared, as outreach workers say it’s part of a growing homelessness trend across the Lowcountry.

Personal belongings remain scattered throughout the area, including clothing, shoes, and bedding. Crews with the HOPE Resource Center say the site is currently in the process of being addressed through outreach efforts.

The encampment is one of six her organization has worked to address so far this year, reflecting what she describes as a broader rise in homelessness across the region, according to Executive Director LaTosha Jenkins-Fludd.

The encampment is located off North Woodmere Drive. Jenkins-Fludd says sites like this often form so people can remain together, particularly families or couples who want to avoid being separated.

A recent state report shows more than 450 people are experiencing homelessness across the Lowcountry, representing an estimated 14 percent increase from last year.

Jenkins-Fludd says those numbers align with what the HOPE Resource Center is seeing firsthand, including noticeable increases in unhoused seniors, women, and children. She says many people living in encampments are dealing with a range of challenges, including eviction, mental health struggles, terminal illness, or transitioning out of foster care.

“Usually when we’re made aware of an encampment, we engage with it using our own outreach specialists here in the City of Charleston,” Jenkins-Fludd said. “We go out and ask people how we can help — whether that’s access to showers, a hot meal, laundry services or case management for housing.”

She added that not everyone is immediately receptive to help, and that the organization works closely with mental health partners to address deeper needs.

The HOPE Resource Center is open four days a week and offers hot showers, a hot breakfast, and case management services. Those in need of assistance are encouraged to reach out for help.

WEST ASHLEY — Two years after an Indian restaurant that was a favorite of locals shut down for a complete remodel and rebuild, it’s finally eyeing a reopening date.

The only hold up? The building still needs interior walls and equipment.

Balvinder Banga originally expected the overhaul of Nirlep at 908 Savannah Highway to take about seven months. Instead, the project is nearing the two-year mark.

She’s now hopeful the fully rebuilt space will be ready by early 2026, ideally in January.

As part of the refresh, Banga unveiled a new logo on the outside of the Charleston building featuring an Indian man wearing sunglasses — a visual cue, the owner said, to clearly signal that Nirlep serves Indian cuisine.

The logo and the refreshed interior will be the most notable changes to the dining experience.

“It will be the same menu, same everything,” Banga said. That includes Nirlep’s popular lunch buffet.

Nirlep closed at the end of 2023 after persistent issues with the aging structure, particularly its plumbing, Banga said.

What followed was a full demolition down to the slab. The new building will feature a larger kitchen, two clay ovens — one for the restaurant’s variety of tandoori-roti breads and another for chicken — as well as a bar with seating and a semi-private dining room that can hold about 20 guests.

Banga is also considering adding outdoor seating behind the building.

Many longtime staff members plan to return, and Banga will remain in the kitchen cooking her secret-sauce chicken tandoori, spicy Krahi chicken and chicken tikki masala.

She and her husband, Dilawar Banga, first opened Nirlep in 2002, naming it after their son. They purchased the building in 2008 for $485,000, according to county records.

Despite construction delays, customer demand hasn’t waned. Banga said diners as far as Summerville continue to ask when Nirlep will reopen. All of the restaurant’s new furniture is sitting in a warehouse, ready to be moved in once the renovations are complete.

Nirlep’s return comes as Charleston’s Indian dining scene continues to grow.

In recent years the Lowcountry area has welcomed Spice Palette in Mount Pleasant, Ma’am Saab, the Pakistani restaurant and cocktail bar from the owners of the more casual Malika Canteen in Mount Pleasant, and most recently, Riviat, a higher-end Indian restaurant which opened in the Cannonborough/Elliotborough neighborhood in September.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) — Roper St. Francis and the Medical University of South Carolina Children’s Health have teamed up to open a pediatric center in West Ashley that officials say addresses a needed gap in local care.

“This is really the first step in this collaboration,” Dr. John Pastore, Roper St. Francis Pediatric Medical Director, said.

Medical officials said the new facility addresses a gap in pediatric care as the Charleston area continues to grow.

“Charleston metropolitan area continues to grow, so do the family sizes, of course, and Shawn Jenkins has grown with it, but the pace of our population growth has outpaced even what Shawn Jenkins can serve,” Dr. Megan Baker, Chief Clinical Officer at Roper St. Francis Healthcare, said.

Some residents said traveling downtown for pediatric care presented challenges, including parking difficulties, flooding, traffic and childcare issues.

The new center will treat low-acuity pediatric conditions for patients requiring shorter hospital stays.

“I want to focus on the type of care where patients will be in the hospital for a shorter amount of time and have a lower severity of illness, so things that are easy to manage, such as pediatric mild asthma exacerbations, community-acquired infections and community-acquired pneumonia,” Pastore said.

One of the center’s main goals is maintaining family unity during treatment.

“Closer to home for many of our patients and keeping families together,” Baker said.

The children’s ward starts with eight rooms and will expand to 16, including a lab and other inpatient services. The facility includes a playroom that doctors said children need for recovery.

“This is being hospitalized is such a stressful time for children. Trying to preserve some semblance of normalcy is so important. Thus, we have pet therapists. We’re going to have child life specialists and even just a little playtime. One of the reasons I went into pediatrics is because children do not become their disease. Children want to be children, and this is how we promote that, and that’s part of their well-being,” Pastore said.

Officials said this represents the beginning of expanded services they plan to provide. Staff hope for the center to open in early December.