Daniel Island or Park West? (Charleston, Mount Pleasant: houses, neighborhoods, construction)

[ralocke]

Hi! We currently live in CT and are thinking of moving to the Charleston area next summer. Could anyone that knows the area give me info (pros/cons) of Daniel Island versus a neighborhood like Park West in Mt. Pleasant? I'm anxious for advice and info!

THANKS!

[Charleston native]

I'll try to make this brief. Living on Daniel Island would be, IMO, better than Park West for several reasons:
1) More central location to the urban area (Park West requires a long drive on 2-lane roads deep into forested, isolated area)
2) DI is in the city of Chas, giving you a Charleston address
3) Quicker access to I-526 and other amenities of the Chas area such as downtown, airport, coliseum, and area malls
4) More convenient access to water (DI is surrounded by both the Cooper and Wando rivers while Park West has entrenched, small creeks that are somewhat far away from the Wando River)
5) DI is an upscale, innovative development
6) Possibilities for close proximity to working business offices (Park West is purely residential suburban while DI has several major companies headquartered there with more being planned)

[USCJoe]

In my opinion, for most people, Park West and Mt. Pleasant would be preferrable to Daniel.
1. Mt. Pleasant and Park West is only minutes to shopping, restaurants, schools, and public amenities.Park West certainly does not require a long 2-lane road deep into forested, isolated areas.Park West is adjacent to highway 17 in Mt. Pleasant as well as having it's own schools, public recreation facilities, health club, grocery store and retail establishments. It is adjacent to the new Carolina commercial and residential community under development.
2. Park West is in Charleston County with a Mt. Pleasant address. I don't know the value of having a Charleston city address. In fact, having a Charleston City addresss will mean higher property taxes.
3.Daniel Island would give you a bit quicker access to I-526 as ewll as downtown, airport, coliseum and area malls but is not appreciably closer. Mt. Pleasant and Park West would give you much closer access to shopping and restaurants than Daniel Island.
4. Daniel Island does as Daniel Island Marina but Mt. Pleasant and Park West gives you close access to water from Remley's Point Public Boat ramp, Charleston Harbor Marina, Isle of Palms Marina as well as the many tidal creeks found in Mt. Pleasant.
5. Park West is certainly an upscale development with many homes selling in the upper figures.A home in Park West will also generally be priced/sell for less per square foot than on Daniel Island and probably be on a larger lot with more seperation between your neighbor.
6. Daniel Island is home to Blackbaud, a large software firm and some miscellaneous commercial businesses. However, Mt. Pleasant and Park West is closer to many more commercial businesses than those found on Daniel Island including East Cooper Hospital, a planned Roper Hospital and other non medical related businesses. Park West is also minutes from Carolina Park a commercial and residential development under construction. Park West also have commercial parcels in addition to residential.
Both Daniel Island and Park West are nice communities. You do pay a premium to live on Daniel Island and in my opinion I don't see the additional value on Danial Island for most people.

[Charleston native]

Originally Posted by USCJoe

...2. Park West is in Charleston County with a Mt. Pleasant address. I don't know the value of having a Charleston city address. In fact, having a Charleston City addresss will mean higher property taxes...

Uh, then what is the value of a Mt. Pleasant address, then? Evidently, you don't read your property tax bill in Mt. P, because that is high as well, especially with the increasing growth. This point was moot, IMO.

The closeness of DI to I-526 is appreciably closer...from I-526 is about another 10-15 minutes to get to Park West. The traffic is the biggest thing going against Park West in Mt. P.

As far as marinas, you're also forgetting the Clement's Ferry Road marina which is just down from the central DI area. Tidal creeks are OK, but they're a bit of a hassle to deal with at low tide. DI would give you more direct access to the main rivers, without worrying about the tides.

[USCJoe]

I don't see any monetery value of a Charleston address or a Mt. Pleasant address with regards to adding value to a home. Pertaining to taxes, as a Realtor I am very aware of the difference in taxes between different jurisdictions. If you look at the assessed taxes for a home on Daniel Island assessed at a 4% rate (primary residence) for a home assessed at about $350,000 you will see that the taxes are about $3600. For a home in Park West assessed at the same value, the taxes are about $2100. I think this is a substantial difference in taxes for a home on Daniel Island compared to one in Park West.(Keep in mind that property taxes in SC are expected to decrease by about 1/3 for the 2007 tax year.) It is a fact that you pay higher taxes living on Daniel Island than in Mt. Pleasant and more for a home.
As agreed, there is a better access to I-526 on Daniel Island than from Park West. However, I don't think that I-526 necessarily gives you better access to any better amenities that are available from Park West via Highway 17.
Whether there is better water access from Daniel Island as opposed to Mt. Pleasant is certainly a matter of opinion dependent upon the type of boating and fishing one may engage in.
Both Daniel Island and Mt. Pleasant have many good things to offer.

[ralocke]

Thanks for all the input! I'm not a big fan of long 2 lane roads so I'll look into that w/ Park West. The high school did get better reviews online for Mt. Pleasant (comparing DI).
Houses seem really close together on Daniel Island as well as pricey but location seems like a benefit!
Does anyone know when Carolina development will be open? Will it have same drive to/from Charleston?
Thanks again!

[USCJoe]

The last information I had is that developers of Carolina Park hope to have the first residents move into homes in Spring of 2008. I suspect that the earliest will be in the summer of 2008. Carolina Park is adjacent to the Wando High School and just a few minutes drive from Park West.

[4greatboys]

Just purchased a house in Mt. Pleasant (Rivertowne Country Club) and from a person new to the area you get a lot more bang for your buck in Mt. Pleasant. There is access to Park west on a smaller road but there is a large enterence to the community off of 17. It is a great neighborhood with everything that you need (schools, sport fields, the best public schools in the area, shopping and new business opportunities being built) located inside. Daniel Island has smaller homes on smaller lots costing more. Location is not any more convienient than Park West.

[MayorCheryll]

There are many wonderful parts of the Charleston area to live in and Daniel Island and Mount Pleasant are certainly two of them.

I must preface my remarks by noting that I was Mayor of Mount Pleasant for 8 years and I have lived there all of my life. So, I am naturally a little partial to my Town.

That being said...Daniel Island is a community that many choose because they seek a certain lifestyle. Many of my clients chose Daniel over Mount Pleasant because of the small town feel of the neighborhoods with narrow streets, mini-parks scattered throughout the island, street trees, and access to marsh and river vistas. Daniel Island now has a public school for K-8th graders but does not have a public high school on the island. There is a Catholic High School that is very highly regarded on the island.

Mount Pleasant is larger but also has wonderful access to the water, historic trees and a tough tree protection ordinance to keep them, a recreation department that has been recognized statewide and nationally, and easy access to shopping, golf, and water.

Daniel Island has nice shopping, as well, although prices are higher as a rule because Islanders are somewhat of a captive audience.

Price per square foot is higher on Daniel Island and taxes are higher since Daniel is in the City of Charleston and Berkeley County and Mount Pleasant is in Charleston County. Charleston County's and Mount Pleasant's taxes are lower.

Bottom line, is that someone making the move needs to feel that where they live meets their lifestyle expectations since our homes are more than the four walls that we sleep in. Unless you get some windshield time in potential communities, it is difficult to make a choice.

Good luck on your move! You will love it here!

[naturemom]

Moving to SC, Mt pleasant, Summerville or Daniel Island. Would really like to put our daughter in public schools....any thoughts on Daniel Island Elementary or SUmmerville area schools? I already know that Mt Pleasant has great public schools.