Historic Preservation Commission approves three 10 Mile district projects amid neighborhood protests and calls for an area-character appraisal

Charleston County’s Historic Preservation Commission on Sept. 17 approved three separate certificate of historic appropriateness requests for properties inside the 10 Mile Community Historic District — a 1,200‑square‑foot elevated two‑story home with drive‑under garage at 3801 Tim Askew Lane; a 2,800‑square‑foot, two‑and‑a‑half‑story single‑family home at 3858 Abe White Road; and façade and foundation revisions to a previously approved 2,823‑square‑foot home at 3910 Nelson View Drive — while hearing repeated appeals from neighborhood residents for clearer area standards.

Staff presenters described the 10 Mile district as recently designated and noted that the county’s designation did not define an architectural character but did identify cultural and historic settlement patterns. For the Tim Askew Lane application, staff said the proposed modest 1,200‑square‑foot design fits within existing lot sizes along the lane and recommended approval subject to provisions that major changes return to the commission. The commission approved that application, with one commissioner abstaining.

The Abe White Road application — a larger home on a lot that had been cleared prior to current ownership — was approved with a staff condition requiring two street trees to be planted between the home and the road to mitigate visual impacts; the vote was split (4 ayes, 1 nay, 2 abstentions). Staff noted the higher profile of the proposed Abe White house compared with adjacent bungalows and manufactured homes but concluded that tree plantings could mitigate streetscape impacts.

For the Nelson View Drive item, the owner sought to modify a previously approved plan by increasing foundation height from a 6‑inch slab to a 24‑inch raised foundation, changing roof materials to shingles, switching front siding to board‑and‑batten and adding a rear porch fireplace. Staff found the changes compatible with surrounding new development and recommended approval; the commission approved that modification with a close vote (4 ayes, 2 nays, 1 abstention).

Throughout these items, community members urged the county to accelerate work on an area character appraisal (ACA) and a possible overlay zoning standard to codify what residents say is the desired look and scale for new construction in the 10 Mile neighborhood. Fran White of the 10 Mile Neighborhood Association told commissioners the parcel subject to the Tim Askew request was previously designated HOA open green space and noted persistent flooding concerns and a desire to protect tree cover. Commissioner Michael German and others said they supported community efforts to finalize an ACA and overlay but urged the neighborhood and staff to complete the work to provide clearer standards for future applications.

All three approvals included the standard staff condition that major changes return to the commission under Section 21‑5 of the Historic Preservation Ordinance; several votes included abstentions or nays, reflecting commissioners’ differing views on how to weigh current ordinance criteria against neighborhood calls for new overlay protections.