Summerville Town Council gave final approval Thursday to rezone 62 acres once home to Interfor Corp.’s lumber mill, clearing the way for a mixed-use project that could bring new housing and the town’s first large-scale sports complex — but not the full 830 homes once floated for the site.
The council’s second and final reading rezoned the property at 200 N. Maple Street from Heavy Industrial to Planned Unit Development, according to the Post and Courier. Preliminary development proposal documents from an October agenda packet had allowed for up to 830 residential units on the site, and River Development Equities could technically build that many under the zoning — but town officials say that won’t happen. Summerville Mayor Russ Touchberry confirmed housing will be part of the project, though the exact number of homes remains unknown.
“The development plan does not reflect the density of 830 housing units, and the developer agreement will be based on that plan,” Touchberry said, per the Journal Scene account. Councilman Matt Halter said the council’s approval sets the framework for the eventual development agreement that will spell out the project’s specifics.
What's Actually Planned for the Old Mill Site
Beyond housing, Summerville officials have discussed building a sports complex on the property. Touchberry said plans for the complex include basketball courts, rock climbing walls, an Olympic-size swimming pool and other amenities. The site’s size has been described differently in local coverage — the Post and Courier has reported it as a 60-acre parcel, while ABC News 4 put the property at roughly 62.5 acres across five parcels. A feasibility study examined an indoor recreation facility that could run as large as 185,000 square feet, ABC News 4 reported, though the recreation center itself is not yet finalized or approved.
Earlier Post and Courier reporting on the rezoning’s first reading in October noted that the development narrative submitted with the proposal did not specify the types of housing planned or how much acreage would be set aside for homes versus other uses.
Who Pays for the Sports Facility
Under the arrangement described by officials, Summerville has agreed to lease the sports complex from River Development Equities. The developer will pay property taxes on the site, and the town will reimburse the company for those payments, with the reimbursement money supporting the sports facility and public-use infrastructure such as parking garages.
Councilman David Slatton explained the logic behind that setup, saying it would make no sense to charge the developer property tax on a facility the town itself is leasing and paying for. Slatton said the development agreement and the new PUD zoning together are meant to ensure the mixed-use project supports the sports facility through lease payments.
Timeline Still Taking Shape
No construction start date has been announced for the Interfor site. Summerville officials hope groundbreaking will happen no later than 2028, according to Touchberry, and the eventual development agreement estimates construction could be fully complete within five years assuming no uncontrollable delays. A traffic study tied to the project has been requested and is expected to wrap up in early 2027, the Post and Courier reported in its earlier coverage of the rezoning’s first reading, which passed at the town council’s Oct. 8 meeting.
Public hearings on the project are scheduled for Nov. 23 and Dec. 10, both at 6 p.m. in Summerville.
Part of a Broader Dorchester County Growth Wave
The Interfor project lands amid a broader surge of housing proposals moving through Dorchester County. The county’s Residential Developments Dashboard lists 14,653 planned units that have not yet been built, the Post and Courier has reported, and Dorchester School District Two Superintendent Chad Daugherty has said the county could gain around 17,000 housing units in the coming years. A separate proposal would add 20 to 30 townhomes.
The pattern of industrial land giving way to mixed-use redevelopment isn’t unique to Summerville. In Georgetown, a waterfront redevelopment announcement envisioned what officials there called a vibrant mix of hospitality, residential, industrial and commercial uses, according to the Coastal Observer. For now, the Interfor site’s future remains defined more by what won’t be built — 830 homes — than by a finalized plan for what will replace the old mill.
