Personal Injury Attorney in Johns Island, SC

Trident Medical Center has submitted a Certificate of Need to the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control to build a $277 million hospital on Johns Island. The application is for a 50-bed acute care hospital between Maybank Highway and Cane Slash Road, across from the Live Oak Square development.

Projections for Johns Island Hospital show that within the first three years it will create nearly 300 jobs, contribute $10 million in non-income taxes to support the community and pay $70 million in salaries, wages and benefits, the organization said in a release.

“We are excited to continue making medical care more accessible to residents in our historically underserved communities,” Trident Health President and CEO Christina Oh said in the news release. “Currently on Johns Island and neighboring communities, it can take residents 30 to 45 minutes to drive to their nearest hospital, and often longer in heavy traffic and inclement weather. Our goal is to increase access to timely, high quality and affordable health care services.”

Trident Medical Center’s chief of the medical staff and medical director of emergency services, Dr. Scott Hayes, said he sees firsthand the results of delayed care.

“For residents who live far from emergency medical care and who may be experiencing a medical emergency like a heart attack or a stroke, minutes can mean the difference between life and death,” he said in the news release. “Access to care close to home is critical, especially in areas like Johns Island and the surrounding communities, that have frequent traffic delays.”

Trident Health surgeon Dr. Thomas Litton, who lived on Johns Island for 20 years and recently moved from there largely due to increasing traffic congestion and limited access routes off the island, said, “The rapid population growth and development of Johns Island, as well as its role as the sole gateway to Kiawah, Seabrook and Wadmalaw Islands, has created a strong need for a full-service hospital in the area. Residents on those islands have never had a full-service hospital. Trident’s hospital on Johns Island and their freestanding ER on James Island will greatly improve residents’ access to much-needed medical care.”

Johns Island Hospital will be located seven miles from James Island Emergency, Trident’s new freestanding ER at 945 Folly Road, Charleston, that will open in the next few weeks.

Plans call for Johns Island Hospital to have 50 beds with space to expand to 150 beds, 40 medical/surgical/stepdown beds, 10 ICU beds, 20 ER rooms, four operating rooms, two endoscopy suites and a cardiac catheterization lab. The hospital also would have two CT scanners, an MRI, two diagnostic radiology suites and a fluoroscopy room.

In addition to the hospital, services would include medical offices for primary care and specialists as well as outpatient imaging and support such as breast imaging, rehabilitation and other outpatient therapy services.

“From our first discussions about building a hospital on Johns Island, we have been committed to creating a thoughtful plan that preserves the natural beauty of Johns Island,” Oh said in the release. “We will honor the strong Gullah Geechee cultures of the community; we will partner with the areas’ community and businesses; and will promote the important and unique contributions of Johns Island’s agricultural community.”

The proposed Johns Island Hospital is in addition to nearly $140M in capital investments currently underway at Trident Health’s hospitals, Trident Medical Center and Summerville

JOHNS ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - Charleston County held a public hearing Tuesday night to discuss and hear from anyone interested in the development of a large medical village on Johns Island.

The planned development, located between 4357 and 4365 Betsy Kerrison Parkway, called the Island Park Medical Village would take up more than 17 acres.

The medical village has been a topic among residents of the islands for months now with polarizing opinions supporting and against the development.

More than 30 people spoke during public comment and hundreds of letters were sent to the council in opposition.

RELATED: Neighbor worried about proposed development on Johns Island

Developers are requesting to rezone the land from low-density residential to large-scale medical office park with almost 160,000 maximum square feet of business space.

The medical village was proposed to Charleston County Planning Commission Members back on November 13 with all 7 members denying the zoning request.

Tuesday night, the questions raised included what types of medical options and concerns about traffic.

“We do agree that we need medical facilities, that we do need access,” Long-time Johns Island Resident, Tamara Butler, says. “My question is just what kinds of medical facilities are going to be there and what services are going to be provided.”

Almost 900 property owners on Kiawah Island were surveyed with 80% saying they are against the medical village and think the size of the project is too large.

“In this particular instance, the site of it, the location, the scope and the scale, feels out of character with the area of the island,” Lowcountry Land Trust President Ashley Demosthenes says.

However some community members want the development, sharing why the area needs accessible medical facilities closer to their homes.

“We lack health care. So, this project, the wellness village, actually helps alleviate a lot of that for us because now we’re going to go in a different direction,” Long-time Johns Island Resident, Jim Hart, says.

Developers say they have held meetings to hear from the community about what they want out of the project, and have reduced the project’s size by 25%.

“We care about the community. All we want to do is to provide a development that meets the needs of the people, to curtail the traffic and to allow people to have a choice,” project developer Jill Skerchek says.

With no action being taken, the developers will present the plan again in two weeks to the county council with any possible changes they make in the meantime.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

California-based Auberge Resorts Collection plans to debut its first planned luxury hotel in South Carolina come 2024 in the form of The Dunlin, located within the Kiawah River master-planned community on Johns Island.

In partnership with real estate developer The Beach Co. and private investment and management company McNair Interests, the project is set to have a January groundbreaking.

“The Dunlin will offer an unforgettable escape where guests can immerse themselves in the pristine natural setting of Johns Island and the culturally rich attractions of Charleston,” Auberge Chairman Dan Friedkin said in a statement.

The Dunlin property will include 72 cottage-style guest rooms and suites and 19 villas, as well as a main lodge and porch, great rooms and a library lounge. Amenities encompass a pool with cabanas, full-service spa, community farmstead, and access to the community’s Spring House riverfront swim and fitness facilities.

A riverfront restaurant with outdoor deck will also be available, as will two event spaces, including a 10,000-square-foot indoor-outdoor event hall.

“We are pleased to partner with Auberge Resorts Collection to create The Dunlin, which will be one of the most remarkable new resorts in the country,” Beach Co. CEO John Darby said. “Auberge has a terrific track record of creating the most unique hospitality experiences in the world, and this endeavor’s intimate setting will bring highly personalized service with a coastal experience inspired by the local environment.”

Built into the Kiawah River community, which puts emphasis in natural surrounding elements, The Dunlin will consist of 2,000 acres of land with 20 miles of riverfront nature trails and marshlands. Guests will be able to participate in nature excursions on the property, including fly fishing, crabbing and boating, as well as paddle boarding, hiking and biking.

Architect Robert Glazier was chosen to design the resort, and Amanda Lindroth of Lindroth Design will lead the interior design of the property.

Construction financing was provided by United Bank’s Charleston offices.

Auberge Resorts Collection has 22 other hotels and resorts across the globe, recently winning accolades from Travel & Leisure’s 2021 World’s Best and Conde Nast’s 2021 Readers’ Choice awards.

“Indoor“Indoor or outdoor dining?” isn’t a question at Johns Island restaurant Lost Isle (3338 Maybank Highway), because all the tables are al fresco. The small white building next to the Tattooed Moose on Maybank Highway looks like it could be a family home, but behind the humble structure are sparkling chandeliers hanging from the live oaks and an expansive outdoor dining area sitting next to a wood-fired kitchen.

Restaurateur T.J. Lynch from Folly Beach bar Lowlife (106 E. Hudson Avenue) teamed up with entrepreneur Thomas Wilson and chef Josh Taylor (formerly of Root Note Food) to bring a new dining experience to Johns Island. Lynch says, “Imagine if you had roommates and one was a chef and was a bartender, and you threw a dinner party in your backyard — it’s like that.”

The focus of the menu is live fire. Taylor says he drew inspiration from cultures that use open-flame cooking like Argentina and Southeast Asia. On the menu, diners will find grilled shrimp with harissa cauliflower puree and crispy chorizo, charcoal chicken with a tamarind chili glaze and lemongrass salsa verde, and roasted carrots in a brown butter hazelnut sauce. One of the early standouts from the menu is the curry braised collards. Taylor says he was inspired by a trip to Thailand when thinking about the greens, so he created a khao soi broth to simmer the collards and added bread crumbs for texture.

“The menu goes from smaller to mid-size to larger plates to shareable plates,” says Wilson, “It is really flexible, and I suggest that tables order plates to share. Everyone will have something to choose from.”

As far as the beverages, the group says they wanted the selections to be interesting and enjoyable. “We tend to try not to take ourselves too seriously,” says Lynch, “We wanted the drinks to be tasty, fun, and accessible — not too pretentious or complex. We hope you’ll have a good time and not have to worry so much about what’s in the glass.” Lost Isle has several beers, cocktails, and wines all on tap, from the outdoor bar.

Lost Isle officially opens this evening and is open daily, from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. Take a look at a sample menu here.

The vast majority of Johns Island is rural. Expanses of farms, equestrian trails, hunting, wildlife and tree canopies draw visitors worldwide. This makes Johns Island one of a kind.

It is the reason I moved back here after 30 years of visiting yearly to restore my soul.

The urban growth on Maybank has drawn wonderful businesses and world-class restaurants, making Johns Island a destination.

Johns Islanders have worked to maintain this balance by coming together to collaborate with local government and other partners to create and implement tools, including the urban growth boundary and rural zoning districts.

These actions have helped Johns Island avoid the fate of becoming a cookie cutter community and keep its special natural rural beauty, culture and ecosystem intact.

This comes with a constant awareness of new developments and a vigilant effort to maintain and preserve the balance of this way of life for future generations.

If we are not intentional in future development, our beloved islands will soon be destroyed.

Some believe extending Interstate 526 will solve this. But I believe it will only bring more traffic that could destroy the wildlife, ecosystem and uniqueness of Johns Island.

Island residents still have the opportunity to maintain a balance of rural and urban areas. Extending I-526 would irreparably tip the scales.

ROBIN DYESS

Johns Island

The Dec. 16 commentary by Sara Hazzard, president and CEO of the South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance, is about union Grinches.

But it might be titled, “There is no joy in Mudville — mighty Casey has struck out,” from the poem, “Casey at the Bat,” by Ernest Lawrence Thayer. The poem is about Casey’s overconfidence when he strikes out. He let two pitches fly by as strikes before missing the next pitch.

Right-to-work states are swinging and missing the ball. Labor unions were created in order to help workers with work-related difficulties such as low pay, unsafe or unsanitary working conditions, long hours and other situations.

Unions bring higher wages for the lowest-paid workers.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ annual report on union membership published last January, “Workers who are members of labor unions in the U.S. make 18% more than their nonunion counterparts.”

Which group would you want to be part of?

NANCY ZETTLER

Mount Pleasant

Thank you for Mark Powell’s delightful New Year’s commentary, “Firsts on the First: A quiz for New Year's Day.”

This reminded me of the power of mind over matter, especially the comments on cigarette commercials being banned when President Richard Nixon signed legislation.

It’s been 54 years, and I can still hear the jingle, “Winston tastes good like a cigarette should.”

How pitiful for the child who heard that, believed it and stayed hooked on nicotine for 30 years.

I haven’t smoked in more than 30 years.

Now if we could just get legislation to ban beer commercials, we would have a less drugged America. No one wants to believe alcoholics start with a first taste of beer. I, for one, know better.

“This Bud’s for you.”

To a happy, healthier new year.

SUE GEORGE

Summerville

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