- Just three miles over the Ravenel Bridge
into Mount Pleasant, is one of
Charleston's best neighborhoods, I'On.
It is a new, urbanist, traditional neighborhood development.
What does that mean and what's it like to live here?
Well, that's what we're discussin' today, so let's go.
(upbeat music)
What's up everybody?
It's Bill Olson here with ERA Wilder Realty,
and today we are touring I'On in Mount Pleasant,
which is what I feel is one of
the best neighborhoods in Charleston.
Now, before we get started,
if this is your first time here or you haven't yet,
go ahead down below, click that Subscribe button,
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anytime I put out great content about what it's like
to live, work, and play right here
in the Greater Charleston area.
I just absolutely love making these videos.
It is no secret.
If you know me, I am not shy on camera,
and I wanna just tell you what it's like here
working, living, and playing in my favorite city
in the world that I call home, Charleston.
So, if you have any questions or anything, you know,
I am available day or night.
Call, text, throw out the smoke signals.
I am here for ya, but without further ado,
I'm gonna go grab the bike off the car
and let's go and take a trip around I'On.
(upbeat music)
All right guys, so now that we've got the bike off,
we're gonna go ahead
take a little tour around the neighborhood.
But first, I wanna tell you a little bit about I'On,
and how it was developed, and what makes it
unlike any other neighborhood here in the Charleston area.
I'On was established in 1998
as one of the earliest full-time residential,
new urbanist communities developed in the United States.
I know you're probably thinkin',
"Um, what does that even mean, new urbanist community?"
Well, new urbanism is defined as,
"A planning and development approach based on the principles
"of how cities and towns have been built
"for the last several centuries."
You know, there's walkable blocks and streets,
housing and shopping in close proximity,
and accessible public spaces.
So in other words, new urbanism focuses on
human scaled urban design.
So, that's exactly what you get here.
You know, this design approach makes I'On,
you know, there's parks, lakes, canals, trails, playgrounds.
They're all seamlessly integrated into the neighborhood,
and they're never more than a few minutes walk
from wherever you are.
In total in the neighborhood, there are 12 pocket parks,
two lakes, a boat house, an outdoor amphitheater,
three crab docks, six miles of walking trails,
two and a half miles of marsh front paths,
and a deep water access boat ramp.
And you can't forget about the wildlife refuge
called The Rookery.
So, you know, if you love being outdoors,
I'On is definitely the neighborhood for you.
Here's a small park, another park.
There's the amphitheater.
There's a lake, there's a bigger lake.
Here's The Rookery, some more public space with a fire pit.
Here's a crabbing dock.
Here's a playground, there's a canal.
Here's another big park.
And there's another canal.
When it comes to the homes of I'On,
the first thing people usually notice is their style
with their deep porches,
and also their close proximity to each other.
This was done to mimic the styles
of the homes in downtown historic Charleston,
as well as to help promote a sense of community
and friendliness between you and your neighbors.
There's about just under 800 homes here in the community,
and they range in price from the 700 thousands
all the way up to two plus million.
This home right behind me is currently for sale
to give you kind of a little point of view
on what you're gonna get for your money here.
So, this home is four bedrooms, four and a half bathrooms,
just over 3,000 square feet,
and it's currently listed for $1.1 million.
So, if you wanna browse all the homes
that are currently for sale here in I'On,
I'm gonna toss a link in the description
to the video for ya, so at any time you can come back here
and see what's currently on the market,
and if ya have any questions, just give me a call.
When it comes to shopping and dining,
I'On has definitely got you covered.
Located right here in I'On is I'On Square,
with many great restaurants and little shops.
There's a barber shop, there's O'Brien's Pub.
The Square Onion has some great lunches.
And then right behind me,
my favorite restaurant in the area,
The Shellmore, open for dinner nightly.
If you wanna learn more about them,
I did do an interview with the owner, Eric Milley.
I'll throw a link right up here in this video
so that you can check them out.
And also close by is Shelmore Village,
which has dozens of little eclectic shops,
as well as the close by, Second State Coffee,
Wood & Grain restaurant, and Langdon's restaurant.
There are two clubs here in I'On.
One is the Creek Club, with views of the marsh,
and Hubcaw Creek.
It is an event space with room for up to 300 guests
to utilize the interior, the porch, and the lawn spaces.
And also there's this behind me, which is the I'On Club,
which is the private club here.
They have seven lighted, clay, tennis courts,
swimming pools, a 24-hour fitness center.
There's a little restaurant in there for ya,
and they do have memberships for families,
couples, and singles.
For more information on that,
you can visit their website at theionclub.com.
Also promoting the community aspect is the I'On Trust.
It is a legally separate and nonprofit,
established from the beginning
of the neighborhood's existence,
and there's a volunteer Trust board
that's elected by the neighbors and the members,
and this Trust board organizes community events
throughout the year.
If you want more information on the I'On Trust,
you can visit iontrust.org.
And yep, you guessed it.
I'm gonna toss a link below
in the description in the video
so that you can just click on it right there.
I'On gets its name from Jacob Bond I'On,
was the first mayor of Sullivan's Island.
I'm here in I'On Cemetery, in the northwest corner
of the neighborhood, where there is a monument to I'On
that was erected in the 19th century,
and it stands in their family cemetery,
which is open to visitors.
And it's about a one-acre cemetery
right here in the middle of the neighborhood.
So this brings us to the end of our tour of I'On.
Again, what I consider
one of the best neighborhoods in Charleston.
If you want more information
about what's currently on the market,
again, I've got a link below in this description,
or you can follow the link right here
on the bottom of this video.
It's gonna show you everything
that is actively for sale in this neighborhood.
And if you're considering relocating to the Charleston area,
I've also got a link that's gonna take you
to my free relocation guide
about all the different areas, the schools,
what it's like to live here.
So you can just click on that,
download that, and give me a call if you have any questions.
Again, my name's Bill Olsen, with ERA Wilder Realty.
You know, give me a call, text, email,
shoot up the smoke signals.
I'm here day or night to answer any of your questions
about what it's like to live, work, and play
in the Charleston area.
Now, if you like this video,
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Thanks again for joining me,
and I hope you have a wonderful day.
And we'll see ya next time.
Bye.