NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) – A set of living units in a North Charleston neighborhood is causing concern for surrounding homeowners about property values and zoning violations.
Those four units, located on Wheaton Street, include two two-story and two one-story homes on a subdivided portion of land in the Deer Park neighborhood.
“Two of them are split into two units each, and then two in the back. That tells me this is now an apartment complex,” Ed Drutjons says.
Drutjons has lived across from the lot for 19 years. He says the units started being built at the end of 2023.
“They started clearing the lots. I can’t stop progress, I understand that. I just assumed they were going to build houses. They weren’t building just houses, they were building rental,” Drutjons says.
Original building plans and prints show the lack of a kitchen on the second floor of the two front properties to allow the definition of a single-family home. But design basis descriptions in the same print say the units are defined as “one- and two-family dwellings.”
“Two water heaters, two laundries, two water systems, two electrical systems. They are definitely multi-family houses,” Drutjons says.
“We see cleaning people come in, next day people will move in for a few days, maybe a week, move out,” homeowner Robert LaVecchia says. “We live on this street so it’s hard to not see what’s going on.”
Email records between homeowners and a City of North Charleston zoning inspector show the property builder was sent a code violation letter in March.
Drutjons and LaVecchia claim the two front properties were previously listed on Zillow, a buy-rent-sell real estate platform, as “apartment for rent,” while the two behind were labeled as “single-family homes.”
“We showed them it was listed on Zillow as an apartment, and I think that prompted a zoning violation,” LaVecchia says. “What’s going to be done about it? We can’t just leave it, can’t just give them a fine. Years and years ago, if you did commit a blatant zoning violation, they made them correct it by tearing it down or getting it back to R-1.”
City building officials did not respond to requests for information or comment on the situation. Property builders were also unavailable to provide a statement or additional information.
“You have a street, basically a residential area zoned for single-family homes. Someone throws and apartment complex or duplexes there. It’s not zoned for that. That has an effect on the properties in the neighborhood,” LaVecchia says.
“If I ever sell my house, the people buying my house will look across the street and see an apartment complex. They’ll say, ‘We aren’t giving you that kind of money,’” Drutjons says. “I understand people have to live places. My biggest concern is when I walk out my house, I see a two-story, two-family complex.”
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