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JAMES ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) — Roper St. Francis Healthcare applied for a variance request to remove two grand oak trees to make space for an 11,000 square foot James Island emergency department, but some residents are pushing against the variance request ahead of the Board of Zoning Appeals hearing.

Located at 832 Folly Road, the applicant says a free-standing emergency department with both a patient entrance and a separate ambulance entrance isn’t feasible without removing the trees. The new facility would provide emergency and imaging services to the barrier island. The residents, however, still believe the trees should be protected, and the location isn’t ideal.

Pamela Dennis Paxton has lived on James Island for 40 years and says while she welcomes a new healthcare facility, she wishes the trees could stay.

“I realize that development is a good thing and progress is a good thing, but I also feel like we have a unique place where we live,” Paxton says. “And the trees and the water and the marsh are all part of that ambiance. And without them, we wouldn’t be Charleston. I really feel like that all of the environment should be taken into account when any developer is considering developing something.”

In the letter of intent, Roper St. Francis Healthcare says that while they do preserve as many grand trees as possible and remove only those that make the project feasible, the variance approval is essential to ensure they can continue providing care.

Charles Fletcher is the vice president of real estate, construction and support services with Roper St. Francis Healthcare and says they looked at various locations, but the 832 Folly Road site is the best for their future plans of expanding further throughout the Lowcountry and eventually moving Roper Hospital in 2029.

“We think this is a good spot as we look at our long-term strategic plan of optimizing our footprint,” Fletcher says. “We know we get a lot of residents from James Island who get a lot of their emergency services and imaging services and things like that at Downtown Roper and we really want to make sure that we provide a more convenient access point for them.”

The tree care organization Natural Directions assessed the trees and rated them both a ‘B,’ meaning they only have minor defects and may be a species that is somewhat prone to health or structural problems.

The entire site is the former location of Wild Blue Ropes Adventure Park and is 1.84 acres in size and contains 21 grand trees in total. Roper St. Francis Healthcare says 17 existing grand trees would remain on-site to still match the existing character of James Island.

“We’ve gone through a lot of different iterations of the campus of the property to make sure that we preserve as many trees as we can,” Fletcher says. “We did put the building slightly in so we could reserve some of the larger trees.”

Roper St. Francis Healthcare also says they met with local property owners and received several letters of support ahead of the hearing.

The Board of Zoning Appeals must approve the variance request for the trees to be removed and also have the option to give specific conditions.

“On James Island, we are a wonderful group of people who are very serious about our trees,” Paxton says. “If they keep on doing this without our permission and we don’t like it, we won’t forget it.”

The Town of James Island Board of Zoning Appeals hearing is on Dec. 16 at 5 p.m.

JAMES ISLAND — Coffee, biscuits and bulgogi cheesesteak.

That’s the spread at Trading Post, the new James Island café from the team behind Folly Beach’s popular Jack of Cups Saloon.

They’re bringing their signature globally inspired menu to a café format and introducing something new for the team: breakfast all day.

The menu includes buttermilk biscuits with butter and jam, classic egg-and-cheese biscuits and a larger “All Day Breakfast Situation” menu item featuring two eggs, cheese, tomato, whipped potatoes and maple mayo all on a jumbo biscuit.

Fans of Jack of Cups Saloon’s rotating lunch and dinner menu will spot familiar soups, sandwiches and stews, such as the Thai ginger peanut soup, potato popcorn soup and the tamari-ginger cucumber salad.

First announced in 2023, Trading Post officially opened its doors at 8 a.m. on Dec. 5 in the Walgreens-anchored Shoppes of Folly shopping center, located on James Island at 915 Folly Rd.

Like the unique menu at its Folly Beach flagship, the James Island outpost will routinely roll out rotating “fun, unique bites” in a counter-service format, co-owner Lesley Carroll said.

Current lunch options include the vegetarian-friendly harissa garbanzo burger and heartier bulgogi cheesesteak made with sirloin and topped with spicy Korean BBQ sauce and queso blanco.

During the soft-opening phase, Trading Post will operate from 8 a.m.– 3 p.m. with a smaller menu while the owners await a beer and wine permit. Once approved, hours will extend to 8 p.m.

The current beverage menu includes coffee with house-made syrups, seltzers and lemonades.

Trading Post took over the former Odyssey Greek Restaurant, where it sat vacant for a decade and needed a full renovation, Carroll said.

Customers are now greeted by a blue-tiled pastry case and counter in front of deep blue walls with plenty of plants along the counter and shelves. There is bar seating with leather stools, tall community tables and high booths inside the eclectic, cozy interior.

“The name Trading Post came from thinking about places where people meet and gather — inspired by travel,” Carroll said. “Jack of Cups has been a destination at the beach and now we get to be part of the neighborhood here on James Island, where we live.”

The eatery isn’t the team’s first foray into quick-service breakfast on James Island. Carroll said Jack of Cups BeBop, a location inside a permanent food truck at The Pour House Charleston, has been serving breakfast on the weekends.

Jack of Cups Saloon also hosts occasional brunch events throughout the year.

Trading Post now gives the team a dedicated space for everyday morning fare.

The Shoppes of Folly shopping center has long been a food destination on James Island with global cuisine, despite being located behind a Sonic fast-food restaurant. Thai Elephants restaurant has operated in the center for 10 years.

In October, 27-year-old Italian restaurant Mondo’s opened an expanded dining room and announced it was adding pizza to the menu for the first time.

With a playoff win on the line, James Island rose to the challenge on Friday. They came out on top against the Sumter Gamecocks by a score of 42-35. The victory almost wasn't to be: the Trojans were down 28-14 in the second quarter.

Connor Dantzler had another great game (as he tends to do), throwing for 265 yards and four touchdowns, while also rushing for 60 yards and a pair of TDs. He has been hot, having posted three or more passing touchdowns the last five times he's played. Raphael Puiu did his part for the team as well, scoring a TD off of 121 receiving yards.

When it comes to explaining why Sumter lost, don't look at Franklin Richardson. Despite the final result, he rushed for 236 yards and a pair of scores while picking up 12.4 yards per carry.

The win (which was James Island's fifth in a row) raised their record to 11-1. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 44.2 points over those games. As for Sumter, the defeat snapped their winning streak at eight games and leaves them with a 9-2 record.

Looking ahead, James Island will head out on the road to square off against Stratford at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The Trojans will need to watch out since the Knights have now posted at least 31 points in their last four matchups. Sumter does not have any more games scheduled as of now.

CHARLESTON — Bargain hunters on James Island will soon have a new spot to score deals as Dollar Tree adds a second location this week.

The store will open its doors on Dec. 4 at 856 Folly Road, according to manager Jim Ruquet.

It’s the latest tenant to join the shopping center near Camp and Folly roads, anchored by an Aldi grocery store that opened last October, and Planet Fitness which opened in 2022 in the space previously occupied by a Bi-Lo supermarket.

Already, aisles are stocked with home goods, kitchen essentials, party supplies, and a cooler along the back wall for refrigerated items. “Now Hiring” signs with QR codes for applicants are posted on the doors.

The Dollar Tree joins the company’s other location at 1291 Folly Road, in the Food Lion-anchored Island Plaza. It location will remain open, according to store manager Rich Granville.

The Chesapeake, Vi.-based retailer, which operates about 9,000 stores throughout the U.S. and Canada, including 195 in South Carolina, has been opening more stores in the Lowcountry.

In October, Dollar Tree opened its second West Ashley location in October, nine months after it opened on Orleans Road, across from Citadel Mall.

In March, the chain announced it was divesting its Family Dollar business, selling it to Brigade Capital Management and Macellum Capital Management for $1 billion.

The sale was finalized in July, with net proceeds from the sale estimated to total approximately $800 million, according to the the company.

Mike Creedon, Dollar Tree’s chief executive officer, told investors Oct. 15 that more than 1,100 new stores had opened nationwide since 2023, capturing a budget-conscious market as customers are “looking to recover from highest inflation in decades.”

According to the company, 85 percent of products at Dollar Tree cost $2 or less.

JAMES ISLAND, S.C. (WCIV) — One of Charleston County Parks' most anticipated events of the year is back for the holiday season.

The 36th annual Holiday Festival of Lights opened at James Island County Park on Friday, Nov. 14.

"It's one of the most popular holiday attractions here in the Lowcountry," said Sarah Reynolds, the public information coordinator for Charleston County Parks. "The Holiday Festival of Lights is a three-mile drive through over 750 light displays and an estimated 2 million lights."

Visitors can expect to see their favorite light displays, and new additions.

"We always have a little something new in the lights every year, so you'll have to come out and see what's new," said Reynolds.

New for this year? A New Year's Eve fireworks display on Dec. 31 at 8 p.m.

In addition to the drive of fantastical lights, visitors are also encouraged to park the car and head over to Santa's Village.

"We have gift shops. There's a sweet shop. Santa is here every night through December 23rd. We have special entertainment and live music on other nights. And so there's really so much more to do and see. There's a carousel, a festival train," said Reynolds. The village also features food vendors, s'mores, and a rock-climbing wall.

In addition to Santa Claus, the Grinch also stopped by for opening night to promote 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas the Musical' at the North Charleston Performing Arts Center.

Charleston County Parks encourages visitors to the Holiday Festival of Lights to buy tickets in advance, and to take advantage of discount-pricing days.

"We have over 200,000 people typically each year that come to the Holiday Festival of Lights. So that's a lot. And I think it's around 60,000 cars," said Reynolds.

The Holiday Festival of Lights is open every night at 871 Riverland Drive, from 5:30pm to 10pm through Dec. 31, 2025.