North Charleston, a Cool place to be
Men's Journal lists Park Circle among notable neighborhoods
When North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey got the word that his city had made another list, it gave him reason to smile.
On Monday, the editorial staff at Men's Journal magazine announced they'd picked Park Circle as one of the nation's "Coolest Neighborhoods," grouping it with up-and-coming parts of Charlottesville, Va., and Nashville, Tenn.
For Summey, it was a funky vindication to years spent trying to revitalize the area.
The Post and Courier
"I wouldn't live anywhere else," said Dena Wolforth, who was mowing her front yard on Monday afternoon in the Park Circle area, which Men's Journal magazine has listed as one of the coolest neighborhoods around.
"It's a cool neighborhood to live in," he said. "You can't buy that kind of advertising."
For the June edition, the magazine wrote that "Left- leaning Park Circle, in the north, has long flown under the radar in the state, and while development tends to change a place, its recent housing boom has left its liberalism intact.
"Sure, there are lots of new residents," the blurb said, "but they seem to have the same unique, character-driven, fun-loving attitudes as the pioneers."
The selection was largely based on the influx of artists and entrepreneurs and what also was described as the Noisette community's approach to sustainable urban renewal in neighborhoods around the area.
Will Cockrell, who put the package together for Men's Journal, said the choice was based on evaluations made by various Men's Journal sources and contributors (he listed an area bike shop owner as one participant) who are knowledgeable about the Charleston area. Proximity to the great outdoors, arts, good dining and quality of life all went into the evaluation, he said.
"It was not like a call was made to the Chamber of Commerce," Cockrell told The Post and Courier.
Park Circle's popularity has already been long-cemented. A Post and Courier analysis earlier this year indicated the sales region that includes Park Circle was the only home sales region to substantially grow — by roughly 32 percent — in average home price during 2008, hitting more than $156,000.
Men's Journal article
Park Circle was one of eight neighborhoods in the Southeast that made the list.
News of the selection was slow in circulating Monday, but some of the locals said it was an obvious pick. Gayle Frampton of the North East Park Circle Civic Club said the strength of the neighborhood is that most people are accepting of anyone, as long as protecting the community comes first. She described it as a mix of hand-me-down homes, new families that have moved in and some eccentrics.
Marty Dukes, who owns Dukes Garden Center with his wife on East Montague Avenue, said the variety of restaurants, bars and people who frequent the nearby business district all play into Park Circle's favor.
"The city has been working really hard to revitalize this area," he said. "It has become a pocket of little businesses. People come because they are intrigued by the uniqueness of the area."
Previous story
Noisette area wins praise, published 07/02/08
Across the street, Leigh-Ann Goble, 28, and business partner Ross Taylor, 25, were painting their building, getting ready to open a new pizza parlor in the next couple of weeks.
"There has been a lot of work put into making this area nice," Goble said. "Everyone has this sense of community in the South, but it's especially strong here."
Goble said the appeal of Park Circle is growing.
"I don't live here," she said, "but I'd love to."
Reach Schuyler Kropf at 937-5551 or skropf@postandcourier.com.
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Comments
sig (anonymous) says...
Of course the Mayor has spent plenty of North Charleston's money to make it a "Cool Place".
June 2, 2009 at 5:59 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
karmann (anonymous) says...
I like living in the Park Circle area. I have been here since 1988, and my grandmother lived in the area since 1963 until her death in 1983. My problem is with the schools in all of North Charleston and the city's lack of advocating, at least I don't see any evidence of this, in the school improvement push. I have been told there is a liaisan from North Charleston that attends he CCSD meetings, but I don't see any evidence that this has any impact. The Mayor needs to speak out on this on a regular basis.
June 2, 2009 at 6:09 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
mb300sl (anonymous) says...
Park Circle may be "cool" but the resy of Summeyland is full of drugs, robbers, and a lot of illegals...not so "cool"!
June 2, 2009 at 7:57 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
my2centsworth (anonymous) says...
I grew up in North Charleston. My dad worked at Garco. By the way, that was an ASBESTOS mill... I went to school in North Charleston. I lived over in Dewey Hill which is just under the foot area of the Silas Pearman bridge, and which is fenced off with barbed wire fence and a lot of DO NOT DISTURB THE SOIL signs... I spent my childhood shopping at the Piggly Wiggly that was at the corner of the strip shops now lining East Montague. I bought cokes at the corner drug store. I had my shoes repaired at Cochran's. We bought clothes from Ann's Vogue...
We lived our lives in North Charleston, delivering a lunch to my dad through broken windows in the mill...windows that let the asbestos fibers float through and gently waft on breezes throughout the entire little city...
In 1984 my dad died of cancer - mesothelioma - caused by asbestos.
I don't think living in North Charleston would be cool at all... especially if you are living in the old "Big Village" area right around the old mill neighborhood. All that glitters is NOT gold. And asbestos -NEVER- decomposes.
June 2, 2009 at 10:28 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
76Native (anonymous) says...
It's a cool place to have your car broken into in your front yard, destroy your car on the railroad tracks, or pick up some illegals for work. There are a handful of well-kept homes and East Montague isn't bad, but North Charleston hasn't been cool since my grandparent's day.
June 2, 2009 at 10:41 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
gamecockgirl2008 (anonymous) says...
It may be cool until your air conditioner is stolen.
June 2, 2009 at 10:54 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Jim_Isle (anonymous) says...
Regardless of all that, has anyone ever heard of a magazine called the "Men's Journal"?
June 2, 2009 at 10:57 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
phillycoug (anonymous) says...
Clearly from some of the comments, Men's Journal hit the nail on the head with their statement that the Park Circle area "has long flown under the radar in the state." As a resident of Park Circle and a former downtown renter, I can promise you that you are more than welcome to have your low opinions of not only the Park Circle area but also the residents. I have only met friendly people who take pride in their area - and I feel much safer about my car at my home now than I ever did downtown. While the schools in the entire North Charleston area need to be SERIOUSLY revamped so does the entire education system for our fine state.
June 2, 2009 at 11:21 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
guidedbystewart (anonymous) says...
I guess some people prefer characterless slab housing cookie cutter burbs with there Wally Worlds and Mickey Dees, while these areas may be "SAFE", they surely lack in other areas. Well you do have downtown or Mt Plastic; at the most, these areas are unaffordable or at the very least you have less bang for the buck.
While Park Circle is not utopia, PC does have a feeling of a community, the type of place where the neighbors know each other. A place where many of the businesses are locally owned and are not the same corporate generic chain stores that you can find anywhere, and believe it or not, a community that takes prides in there neighborhood. And to me this is really cool
June 2, 2009 at 11:39 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
nopartisan_noproblem (anonymous) says...
I just got drunk as could be there a week ago playing frisbee golf. Not a bad joint. I did get poison ivy getting the disc out of the bushes though. Shame on the landscapers.
June 2, 2009 at 11:51 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
WhyDoIBother (anonymous) says...
SHUT UP YOU PEOPLE!!! My God I have never ever seen such a negative bunch of people. You can get robbed, beaten, stolen from in Downtown Chrleston as well. Aren''t C of C students being terrorized? Oh, wait that is mile from North Charleston. SHUT UP!!!
June 2, 2009 at 1:09 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
wjhamilton3 (anonymous) says...
People want centrally located housing at good prices near work. If everyone really wanted homes that cost 350 thousand dollars, covered with plastic, five miles from the nearest store, bar, restaurant or dry cleaners they could have bought one of the 500 in Mt. Pleasant bleaching in the sun.
The school problem will have to be fixed, but with choice options including transfers, magnet schools and charter schools, there are ways around that problem now. The highest ranking public high school in the State, Academic Magnet is in N. Charleston. So is the Creative Arts High School.
June 2, 2009 at 1:36 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
CWL922 (anonymous) says...
"Coolest Neighborhood"? They must not have surveyed too many neighborhoods. It also says one of the coolest. It doesn't say how far down the list it is ranked. Three hundred ninety four thousand six hundred twenty two out of a possible five hundred thousand. Cool!
June 2, 2009 at 2:34 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
halfsheli (anonymous) says...
I personally do not understand the negative reaction that North Charleston (and Park Circle in particular) gets from so many of the posters here. Most of you probably do not even live in our city, let alone our Park Circle community. That makes you ignorant as to what you write about. Why so down on PC??? I don't get it. So, you don't want to live here. So what. If everyone wanted to live here, most of us who do would want to leave.
I think (and I live in PC, so my opinion counts) that the area is beautiful. The majority of the homes, businesses, and residents are charming and unique. The "village" feel to the area is inviting and creates a sense of community and safety. PC has so many things to offer its residents and visitors: parks, sports facilities, restaurants, bars, galleries, businesses, etc.
Is PC perfect? No, but close to it. We have crime and pollution and poverty just like EVERY other area of Charleston County. But I think that we make the best of what we do have.
June 2, 2009 at 3:03 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
SCHoser (anonymous) says...
Close to perfect?!? lol-what a joke. It is like any other place-has good and bad of everything. Sometimes it's more bad than good and vice versa. Saying it is better than sections of downtown is like saying a broke hand is better than a broke arm-if that's even true. If you like Park Circle, fine and good. I rarely go there anymore and have no desire to. When I was a young man I lived there and knew many people there but I will keep that to myself. Men's Journal??? lol....
June 2, 2009 at 3:34 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
halfsheli (anonymous) says...
SCHoser --
Oh, No. How we will certainly lament the loss of you as one who frequents Park Circle...
But, then again, I guess the character and charm of the area just improved a bit...
June 2, 2009 at 3:45 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
singleroni (anonymous) says...
my2censtsworth- i must know you. my dad was a mule spinner at garco and my whole family worked there. remember the movie theater. and the old mill end with the ball games next to the plant. we from that side were never back then accepted by the park circle crowd. i live in crowfield now. and would never live in summey ville park circle. when i ride around park circle the windows are up and the doors are locked, its real close to spruill avenue and not far from little mexico on remount road.
June 2, 2009 at 3:54 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
yird (anonymous) says...
I had a home half mile south of Park Circle in the mid seventies. One evening, my teenage daughter and her younger brother were walking down S.Rhett heading home after a game at the circle. A man in a car stopped and tried to drag my daughter in the car. She got loose and ran with him chasing her. She ran into the nearest house and the home owners called me. From the description of the vehicle which I had seen before I was able to figure out about where he lived.
If I could have found him that night he would have gone to hell loaded with buckshot and I'd prbably be doing life.
That area has never been "safe". Just because long time residents hold on to their homes for whatever reasons and wish to try to convince "themselves" that it is a safe area does not make it so.
There are some nice older folks still residing in the areas surrounding Park Circle but there are also a lot of lowlifes in the area.
I used to think Mosstree street was as nice a place as anyone could ever want to live. Been there lately?
June 2, 2009 at 3:56 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
SCHoser (anonymous) says...
O wah! If it just improved it has nothing to do with me as I left there years ago. Don't cry just because people don't like PC-after all, that can't be THAT much of a surprise. Like I said, good and bad, good and bad.
June 2, 2009 at 3:58 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
JAS (anonymous) says...
My how it's it's changed since the 70's.
I'm glad people like Yird and SCHoser have moved out. So poeople like Halfsheli and myself can continue to move in and improve the place. Thanks!
June 2, 2009 at 4:28 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
kgcharleston (anonymous) says...
Geeze - if all these Debbie Downers live outside of Park Circle, then it must be a cooler place than wheverer they live. Anyone who has actually been to that area recently knows that it is an up-and-coming area, and one of the few locally where homes are affordable and there is actually a sense of community.
While Spruill still may be a dangerous stretch, once you get past that you're in a nice little neighborhood. At least the area is improving - unlike downtown and West Ashley- which are becoming shadier places to live every day.
Besides, the article picks an area in every decent city in America, and tries to pick real places for real people...where else are you gonna go in the Charleston area that people can actually afford homes and not be surrounded by strip malls and fast food joints?
June 2, 2009 at 5 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
JAS (anonymous) says...
I'm looking forward to my drive home and exiting the interstate right before the traffic starts to back up. I'll be enjoying a Coast IPA on the sidewalk in front of EVO while the naysayers are b!tching in traffic all the way to Summervile.
June 2, 2009 at 5:13 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Squidward (anonymous) says...
halfsheli, the reason we react so negatively is because your city has the worse crime rate per capita in the whole damn nation. I'm glad you are happy there, just be very vigillant.
June 2, 2009 at 5:25 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
burton (anonymous) says...
Hey Mayor, yea you. Don't forget about the rest of your citizens down on the South end of the city!! How about put some of that tremendous energy/effort you have to reviatilize the North end of the city, e.g., Park Circle, down into areas like Chicora, Accabee, and the Height???
June 2, 2009 at 5:32 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
truejournalism (anonymous) says...
NO place in Charleston is totally safe, and while we have had our share of items stolen in our neighborhood in Park Circle, I am not dubbing it as an unsafe place to live. Those who complain the most about the crime and education system should first take a good hard look at themselves to see what they are actually trying to do about it. I'm willing to bet most of them are sitting on the couch watching the news and complaining rather than working proactively in neighborhood associations and law enforcement, or even volunteering at the local schools.
It's not the job of one or two people to make a community and city prosper--doesn't it take a village to raise a child? Then it takes all citizens working together for progress. Seriously, there are some truly bitter people out there ready to bark anytime North Charleston is mentioned in any kind of positive light. Get a life, people!
June 2, 2009 at 5:43 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
nurenberger (anonymous) says...
The South,love it or leave it!Peace Ya'll!
June 2, 2009 at 8:13 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
yird (anonymous) says...
Posted by JAS on June 2, 2009 at 4:28 p.m. (Suggest removal)
My how it's it's changed since the 70's.
I'm glad people like Yird and SCHoser have moved out. So poeople like Halfsheli and myself can continue to move in and improve the place. Thanks!
=============================
Your quite welcome.
You stay in North Charleston and "improve the place". I prefer to live in a place that is not in need of major improvement.
If you really feel a need to improve places why don't you move to Ferndale or Union Heights. I'm sure your civic spirit would be welcomed there.
June 2, 2009 at 9:09 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
AFWally (anonymous) says...
A new movie for your summer viewing pleasure..."Escape from North Charleston" starring Summo.
June 3, 2009 at 10:32 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
roggy (anonymous) says...
this is the first time I have written anything here. I registered for this. I love park circle.
I have a small awesome house in park circle that I am rejuvenating piece by piece. my sister also lives here, just 4 or so blocks away, she too loves park circle. i would not be comfortable with my sister living in a place that worried me... her street is beautiful, filled with beautiful people. I live on what some would think to be a pretty bad street for the area... i am on one of the few that still has a trailer or two. I am also just a block from the new mixson project. i know what is coming to the area and im ready and excited. and in the mean time i have wonderful neighbors who give me fresh veggies, and pull my trash can in for me when i forget. i have lived quite a few places in charleston and have never had neighbors as courteous.
if you judge an area or its residents by what you read in the newspaper or see on tv you probably won't be let down. there is enough crime in the area to support your assumptions. ---or you could listen to good reporting like this... be inspired to investigate park circle for yourself... there is safety and beauty in north charleston.
June 4, 2009 at 3:30 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
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