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MOUNT PLEASANT — A year ago, Lucy Beckham quarterback Chalmers Ballard admitted he was a little nervous when the Bengals faced crosstown rivals Wando in front of 10,000 fans.

The junior quarterback had no such jitters this year.

Chalmers threw for 147 yards and two touchdowns and running back Stephen Segars rushed for 112 yards and added two more TDs as Lucy Beckham routed Wando, 43-0, on Aug. 25 before a standing-room-only crowd at District 2 Stadium.

The Bengals, who are playing in just their second varsity season, have beaten Wando both times the schools have faced each other. Lucy Beckham edged the Warriors, 8-6, a season ago in the first varsity matchup between the two schools.

Unlike the game last season, which featured two stingy defenses and little offense, the Class AAAA Bengals moved the ball at will against the AAAAA Warriors, scoring on five straight offensive possession in the first half.

“I didn’t do this all by myself, I had a lot of help from all of my teammates,” said Chalmers, who completed 13 of 19 passes on the night. “They’ve put in so much work in the offseason and we just get on the field and did the things that we’ve been practicing for the past four months.

“I think the final score shows that Beckham is here and we can play. We’ve worked so hard and it’s great to see it pay off with this kind of result.”

As good as the Bengals offense was, the defense was even better. The Bengals, under former The Citadel defensive coordinator Tony Grantham, limited the Warriors to less than 100 yards of total offense and only 26 rushing yards.

“We are a relentless defense,” said Lucy Beckham coach Jamel Smith, who used to be the defensive coordinator Wando. “We always preach finish plays, finish tackles, don’t assume that someone else is going to make that tackle. We swarm to the football and it showed tonight. They kids have bought into what we are doing.”

Keeping with tradition that started last year, the losing principal had to kiss “Billy the Goat” at midfield after the game was over.

Wando principal Chas Coker did the honors Friday night.

“My boss ain’t kissing no goat tonight,” Smith said with a chuckle.

Lucy Beckham grabbed momentum when the Bengals marched 80 yards in 11 plays to take an 8-0 lead late in the first quarter.

Chalmers finished off the drive when he hit tight end Bryce Rothwell in the end zone for a TD with 2:06 to play in the opening quarter.

Lucy Beckham running back Charles Byrd pushed the Bengals’ lead to 15-0 when he capped a 6-play, 65-yard drive with an 11-yard TD run with 10:10 to play before halftime.

Chalmers threw a 27-yard strike to Mason Ombres that took the ball down to the 11-yard line to set up Byrd’s TD run.

After a short punt, it took Lucy Beckham just two plays to go ahead by three touchdowns. Segars gave the Bengals a 22-0 lead with a 1-yard TD run with 7:33 to play before halftime.

Chalmers threw his second TD pass of the first half, connecting on a 7-yard TD to Henry Brosey to give the Bengals a 29-0 lead with 5:38 left before halftime.

Segars scored for the second time on the Bengals first play from scrimmage to start the second half. After a bad snap on a punt, the Bengals recovered the ball at the Wando 3.

Segars went around the right side untouched into the end zone to give Lucy Beckham a 36-0 lead with 10 minutes to play.

Robert Myers’ 23-yard TD run gave the Bengals a 43-0 lead with 3:14 left in the third quarter.

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A fondue restaurant chain plans to expand into the Lowcountry.

Bob Johnston, CEO of The Melting Pot, said the Tampa, Fla.-based company is looking to add two locations in Charleston and Mount Pleasant. He cited the Palmetto State’s strong tourism industry as a key reason for the expansion plan.

The chain already has a presence in Columbia, Greenville and Myrtle Beach. It said it hopes to have 15 locations in South Carolina by 2025.

Liberty Senior Living wants to add more units to its South Bay continuing care facility, but it needs an amendment to a planned development because of Mount Pleasant’s moratorium on new multifamily buildings.

3: Number of new restaurants planning to open in the fall in an expanding Charleston-area shopping center.

65,000: Size of proposed new supermarket in a new retail development beside Freshfields Village between Kiawah and Seabrook islands.

2563: Address on Ashley River Road for a fast-food restaurant that recently turned out the lights.

+ More multifamily: A 110-unit townhome development is in the works for the Point Hope area of Charleston on the Cainhoy peninsula.

+ Doctor’s orders: A medical office building is being proposed in Point Hope.

+ Sliding sales: Charleston-area home sales slipped again in July for the 23rd consecutive month.

A social venue called Ocean Club is being proposed at the site of the former Sand Dunes Club property on Sullivan’s Island.

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One mother is demanding better for her children after what she said were questionable experiences at a Mount Pleasant daycare.

CHARLESTON COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) - One mother is demanding better for her children after what she said were questionable experiences at a Mount Pleasant daycare.

April Gilliard said her children attended Sunshine House for two years before she ultimately pulled them from the center after hearing a toddler was found wandering near Long Point Road.

Witness reports from Sunshine House staff that were received from the Department of Social Services show a toddler escaped out of a gate while on the playground and was found by staff in the arms of a truck driver.

Gilliard said the daycare never addressed what happened to the other parents, she was made aware of the situation through a post on social media.

“I asked about it and was told that wasn’t true,” Gilliard said. “I was told it was the previous director who was trying to sabotage the reputation or the name of the center.”

Gilliard said she had her own questionable experiences at the daycare as well. Some days she had trouble getting in contact with the daycare to check on her kids. On other days, when she received pictures from staff, it looked like too many children were in one classroom.

“When I got to the center I asked, ‘How was your day, what’s going on, did you guys have to combine classrooms,’” Gilliard said. “None of that was really communicated.”

She said the social media post about the escaped toddler was her final straw.

“It makes me question what happened prior to this incident,” Gilliard said.

Documents obtained from the Freedom of Information Act show inadequate supervision at the daycare has been an ongoing problem since 2015.

According to Department of Social Services documents, eight separate visits to the center reported deficiencies in areas like improper child-to-caregiver ratio, unqualified caregivers, inadequate supervision or improper accounting for the presence of children.

Gillard said by sharing her experiences, she is advocating for her own children and other children in the community.

“These are issues that are going on and no one is being held accountable, no one is actually speaking on it, and some parents don’t have social media to find out or learn about these things,” Gilliard said.

Sunshine House provided the following comment:

This past May, at our school in Mount Pleasant on Long Point Road, a child on the playground opened an exterior gate and was able to leave the premises and walk through the parking lot.

The safety and well-being of the children in our care is our highest priority. While the child was, thankfully, returned unharmed to the school two minutes later, we are distraught that this occurred.

Following the incident, we contacted the child’s family and officially notified our state licensor and Child Protective Services, per state licensing regulations and company procedures. The teachers were placed on administrative leave pending the results of both internal and state licensing investigations. The teachers involved are no longer employed with the company.

The playground gate was functioning and closed at the time of the incident. After this incident, we worked with our state licensors to identify a South Carolina state-approved lock, which was subsequently installed.

Two teachers were supervising 12 children on the playground at the time of the incident. The state ratio for this age group is 1 teacher to 6 children or 2 teachers to 12 children.

The safety and well-being of the children in our care is our highest priority, and we cannot stress enough how seriously we take this incident. We have bolstered our operational procedures and retrained teachers and teammates on playground safety checks and other safety protocols.

The Department of Social Services provided the following comment:

The provider in question was terminated from the ABC Quality program in June 2023 due to documented serious safety violations and the provider has not appealed the decision. Providers must be enrolled in the ABC Quality program to accept childcare scholarship funds issued by the Department of Social Services per federal guidelines.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Plans to develop a small boutique hotel on a corner lot in Mount Pleasant’s historic Old Village neighborhood are being revived under a new majority owner.

Jeremy Graves of Village Inn LLC has submitted plans to build the Seabird at Hibben and Whilden streets. The town’s Commercial Site Review Board is scheduled to vote July 26 for final approval of the site, landscape and architecture plans.

Renderings show 23 guest rooms in one building with 1,185 square feet of restaurant space and a lounge.

I’On developer Vince Graham pursued a plan more than a decade ago for what then was called Earls Court Hotel that was to be an offshoot of the nearby Earls Court residential nook his company built.

The inn project faced early pushback from some Old Village residents and was stalled by years of legal squabbles with the town. A settlement was struck in 2019.

Village Inn LLC bought the property in 2021 for $925,000, and Graham remains a minority investor in the hotel project, according to a spokesperson. Graves did not respond to a request for comment.

Back at the BAR

Two notable downtown Charleston hotel projects are coming back before the city’s Board of Architectural Review on July 26.

The developer of South Carolina’s first Four Seasons property at 155 Meeting St. is requesting conceptual approval and the OK to add an eighth floor for a rooftop terrace, conservatory and pool.

Florida-based Strategic Property Partners plans to construct three buildings for the 1.9-acre corner site at Horlbeck Alley that will include a mix of hotel rooms and residential condominiums.

During the last review of the proposal in June, the BAR generally was in favor of what was presented, but members remained split over the request for the extra height.

The panel also is set to take up a boutique 18-room lodging for upper King Street.

Plans show a five-story building with parking, a rooftop area, meeting space and two ground-floor commercial spaces on a vacant lot between Line Street and the overpass where Interstate 26 merges into the Septima P. Clark Expressway.

Greenville-based Atlantic South Development is listed the developer.

Point of view

An upcoming luxury waterfront hotel went before the Board of Architectural Review earlier this month requesting final approval of exterior changes that would improve the view.

The Cooper, which is under construction at 176 Concord St., is expected to open in 2025 with 225 guest rooms on six floors.

It will be part of the locally based Beemok Hospitality Collection, which also is embarking on an overhaul of The Charleston Place across from the City Market.

The developer requested to switch from two-pane to four-pane windows on the top and bottom floors facing Charleston Harbor to improve the waterfront views from the penthouse, restaurant and lobby. Also, it asked for architectural columns on the top floor to be removed from the design plans.

The BAR had mixed feelings about the latter request. The item was deferred.

Remember how excited lots of people were in 2021 and 2022 about I-bonds, the federal savings bonds with interest rates linked to inflation?

Toward the end of 2021 banks were still paying less than 1 percent interest on savings accounts, but I-bonds were paying an annualized 7.12 percent, which increased to 9.62 percent in May 2022.

Much has changed since then.

Today, it’s easy to find a bank certificate of deposit that pays at least 5 percent interest, but the current I-bond rate is 4.3 percent — about the same as my savings account. That’s still not bad, considering I-bond earnings are exempt from state and local taxes, but it’s nothing like the premium I-bonds were offering just a year ago.

Inevitably, people who jumped into I-bonds for the sky-high interest offered between November of 2021 and November of 2022 and going to wonder if it would make sense to cash out and put the money elsewhere.

Here are some things to know:

That last part is important, because those 9.62 percent I-bonds had a fixed rate of zero. That means those bonds aren’t earning 4.3 percent at the current rate, but 3.38 percent. That’s because the latest rate includes a 0.9 percent fixed rate, which only applies to newly bought I-bonds.

Conversely, someone who bought an I-bond back in early 2000 has been earning a fixed rate of 3.6 percent plus the six-month inflation rate. Those lucky savers are currently earning 7.04 percent on the same bonds that pay 4.3 percent to new purchasers.

Okay, I know this is all a bit wonky and complicated, but that’s how it works. The combined interest rate an I-bond pays depends on when it was purchased.

One takeaway is that people who bought I-bonds for the high interest rates offered, but plan to hold them for the long term, could be better off selling them and then buying new ones.

Why? Because current I-bonds have that 0.9 percent fixed rate that’s paid in addition to the inflation rate, while any I-bond sold between Nov. 1, 2019, and May 1, 2022, has a fixed rate of zero.

The current 0.9 percent fixed rate is far from the highest ever offered, but it’s the highest offered since the end of April 2009. Both the fixed rate and the inflation rate will change again on Nov. 1.

For more details, or to buy an I-bond, go to treasurydirect.gov.

There is a $10,000 per-person limit on annual I-bond purchases, and they can only be purchased online, unless a person is buying one using a federal income tax refund.

MOUNT PLEASANT — No new apartment or condominium developments have been allowed since early 2017 in South Carolina’s fourth-largest city, and Town Council members are moving to extend that ban into 2025.

The town’s elected leaders also just slashed the number of homes that would be allowed above businesses, drawing criticism from real estate professionals.

Josh Dix, government affairs director for the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors, said Mount Pleasant has developed a culture “of privilege and exclusion” and is acting more like a homeowner’s association in a gated community than a large town.

Councilman Jake Rambo took offense at Dix’s suggestion that increasing development restrictions have been making housing less affordable.

Mount Pleasant has three or four times the population it had when he was growing up there, Rambo said, but amid all that growth and development the town has become more expensive and less diverse.

The town’s population is more than 91 percent white and the median single-family home price was $750,000 in the least expensive part of the town, according to January figures.

Dix and other real estate professionals acknowledge that newer apartments in Mount Pleasant are far from affordable but say restricting apartment construction can drive up rents in the region.

“When you just stop, there are some unintended consequences,” Rob Woodul, a town resident who is president of South Carolina Realtors this year said prior to the council meeting. “When you choke off supply, it drives up prices.”

But choking off supply is just what Mount Pleasant has done, very deliberately and in response to the wishes of the majority of voters. Controlling residential growth and traffic have been talking points in each recent election.

On Feb. 14 the council made its latest moves, voting unanimously to reduce the number of residences allowed in commercial areas and to give initial approval to a two-year extension of the apartment and condo moratorium.

“We don’t want any more,” Councilwoman Laura Hyatt said after the meeting. “We don’t need any more.”

At the same time, many council members agree that Mount Pleasant needs more housing that people, including town employees, teachers and hospital workers, can afford. The town describes that as “attainable housing” and is relying on the private sector to create it.

Both the moratorium and the reduction in the number of residences allowed in commercial areas carve out exceptions for attainable housing.

“This is a big thing for affordability tonight,” said Mayor Will Haynie.

Real estate professionals have predicted that no such housing will be created under the town’s exceptions because they are too strict and won’t make sense financially.

Specifically, Town Council reduced the number of homes allowed in mixed commercial-residential developments — homes above businesses — from 12 per acre to four, but allowed for four more if they qualify as “attainable” housing for middle-income buyers or renters.

That would prohibit future developments similar to Shelmore Village, a collection of three-story buildings with homes above offices and shops that was built in 2006.

At an earlier meeting about the down-zoning, Daniel Doyle, chief operating officer and director of development for The Beach Co., said expecting developers to make half of the residences in a development “attainable housing” units won’t work financially.

The moratorium on apartments and condos also includes an exemption for attainable housing. That exception has been included in the town’s moratoriums since 2019, and no such multifamily developments have been proposed during that time.

The stated purpose of the moratorium extension is to give the town needed time to complete a rewrite of Mount Pleasant’s zoning code, to match up with its most recent Comprehensive Plan. Earlier versions of the moratorium were said to give the town’s infrastructure time to catch up with development.

The restrictions come at a time when the Charleston area is facing an affordable housing crisis, soaring apartment rents and a shortage of housing for sale.

Mount Pleasant’s neighbors, the cities of Charleston and North Charleston, have seen soaring demand for apartment construction during the time Mount Pleasant has had a moratorium in place. Mount Pleasant and the two neighboring cities are three of South Carolina’s four largest municipalities.

Charleston issued permits for development of 2,213 multifamily units in 2022 and 2021, according to the city, and more than 7,500 since Mount Pleasant’s continuous moratorium started in 2017.

Nearly 48 percent of residences in Charleston are in multifamily developments, according to the city. In Mount Pleasant, multifamily homes accounted for 27 percent of residences as of 2020, and no new ones have been permitted for years.

In North Charleston, 5,631 apartment units were in some stage of the permitting process during the past two years, according to the city. Some of those were under construction and were likely permitted prior to 2021, but had not yet received certificates of occupancy.

“We need all the housing we can get, and at all price points,” said Dix, prior to the Town Council meeting.

“Mount Pleasant is not an HOA,” said Dix, who also chairs Charleston County’s Housing Committee. “If they want to be a gated community, that’s another discussion.”

The town’s prohibition on new apartment developments began in 2016, ended briefly, then came back in 2017 and has remained in place. Apartment buildings developed since that time were either permitted before the moratoriums began, or were allowed due to a legal settlement.

The town also had a permit allocation system from 2001 into 2008, prompted by concerns that home construction was outpacing the town’s ability to keep up with road improvements and public services.

As in 2021, allowing the existing apartment and condo moratorium to expire this year would not have resulted in new apartment buildings because of the existing permit allocation system.

“Even if it does go away, there are no multifamily permits,” said Michele Reed, the town’s Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods director, prior to the council meeting.

The permit allocation system is in place until February 2024, and could be extended, she said.

There have been other South Carolina towns and cities that temporarily halted permitting for apartments, but none have done so for as long as Mount Pleasant.