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Developers are building condos off S.C. 170 in Bluffton, but people won’t live there. Their cars will.

CarVillage USA, an “automotive enthusiasts’ club,” will have 31 car condos on a five-acre site between the Village at Verdier and S.C. 170 near Seagrass Station.

Despite the use of the term condo, these aren’t going to be residences. A car condo is essentially a climate-controlled, indoor garage for multiple cars. Owners will be able to customize their condos as they see fit or, if they need more space, buy multiple condos and have them combined into one.

“Guys like to have their own space,” said Gary Brown, one of the people behind the unique development. “They have their fancy cars. They’re working on them. They have a new home, but it’s got a two-car garage. That’s not going to work.”

Each condo will start at 1,680 square feet, which is expected to be enough for six-cars.

The starting cost for a condo is $550,000. Brown said anyone who signs up before Monday at noon will get a $10,000 discount; community leaders will be at Hilton Head Island’s Concours d’Elegance and Motoring Festival over the weekend .

In terms of customization, the only limit will be the owner’s imagination.

“These units have mezzanines, and the mezzanines are designed in a way that you can do whatever you want to do,” Brown said. “Whatever makes you happy.”

That could mean office space or furniture.

There are a few places like this across the United States, Brown said. However, the social aspect of the Bluffton location makes it stand out.

CarVillage is being designed to be more than just a place to keep cars. Instead, it is meant to be a place for car collectors to gather and hang out.

A 20,000-square-foot clubhouse will include an F-1 racer simulator, a full bar, a pool hall, private offices, a cigar lounge, detailing services, a kitchen for catering, private wine bottle storage, and a lift for servicing and washing vehicles.

There are also plans for events like car shows that would be open to the public and “coffee and cars” meetups for car enthusiasts on the weekends.

“With all of these units and all of these owners, it’s natural for us to be sort of a clearinghouse for the members,” Brown said.

According to the CarVillage website, five condos already have been sold and six have been reserved.

Club membership at CarVillage will be limited to 250 members. Members will not have to be condo owners. The upper level of one of the buildings will include general storage members can rent to store their vehicles.

Brown’s team is expecting to break ground on the project in February and expects construction to take about a year.

BLUFFTON, S.C. —

A Bluffton chef is being recognized in a big way.

In this week's Lowcountry Living, we're sharing how she hopes to use her new title to bring positive change to the entire state of South Carolina.

Leslie Rohland is head chef and owner of The Cottage, The Juice Hive, May River Coffee Roasters, and the Bluffton Pasta Shoppe.

And she says her successful restaurant endeavors are thanks, in part, to her childhood.

“Really do the stuff that I remember as a child loving to see. My grandmothers, my grandfathers, my mother and my father do because everyone seemed to be a great cook back then. And just really taking the stuff I love to cook and then being able to serve it and put it on the table," said Rohland.

Rohland’s passion for cooking was just recognized by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster as she was named just one of three 2024 South Carolina Chef Ambassadors.

She’ll serve in this role for a year, and during that time, one of her main goals is to support local farmers.

“It’s really nice to know where our food is coming from. It’s nice to be able to see the footprint of where the lettuce is from or the shrimp," Rohland said.

And she hopes her impact will last well beyond her time serving as Chef Ambassador.

“This is some information that really needs to be passed onto our kids. Kind of like the old days, you know, when you were creating recipes basically with what was in your backyard, said Rohland.

Roland says supporting local does more than just stimulate the economy; it also has health benefits for patrons.

“There’s nothing better, I think, than knowing what you’re eating, and knowing where it comes from. You know, we’ve all seen the labels on certain foods that are like, I can’t even pronounce that item. And this is just kind of like, ok, this came from up the road, and it’s strictly just eggplant," Roland said.

Rohland adds it was extra special to be selected as a South Carolina Chef Ambassador now as the program is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.

A colder than usual winter has delayed the expected opening of the U Pick Daffodil farm, but the Bluffton-area attraction’s owners say they are now ready to welcome visitors.

A trip to the farm has become a spring rite for families, flower-lovers and photographers, and co-owners Chuck and Diane Merrick expect to be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 24. The farm may close early if the Merricks begin to run out of blooms.

“Cold weather doesn’t hurt the flowers; it just slows them down,” said Chuck Merrick, who estimated the blooming fields are about two weeks behind where they would be in a typical year.

The weather forecast for Saturday in Bluffton is sunny and windy with a high of 67, according to the National Weather Service in Charleston. Sunday will be sunny with a high near 60.

The fields are located at 48 Calhoun Plantation Road, just off Pinckney Colony Road.

Each stem picked is 50 cents. Cash and card payments will be accepted.

This year, the Merricks likely will open the fields only on weekends because that’s when their family is available to help them. Weather and the lack or abundance of blooms will affect what days the farm is open.

For information about days the farm will be open, watch its Facebook page or go to its website at upickdaffodils.com. Those who’d like to check on the status of the flowers before making a longer commute can also text Chuck Merrick at 843-368-1998.

The U Pick Daffodil tradition started more than 50 years ago, and each year the farm has expanded to meet a growing demand.

Chuck Merrick uses a planting machine purchased from Holland — it is pulled behind a tractor — to plant tens of thousands of daffodil bulbs with varying blooming times so the farm has a longer picking season.

Daffodils don’t grow easily in the Lowcountry climate, he previously told The Island Packet, and every year the farm loses about half of the ones they had planted in earlier years.

Al’s Aloha Kitchen is coming to Bluffton.

The restaurant, which marked its fifth anniversary of serving up poke bowls and smoothies on Hilton Head’s south end last summer, will be opening a second location along Buckwalter Parkway in the Washington Square development.

“We’re excited to be in a place that’s brand new,” said Alex Vitto, the restaurant’s owner.

The Bluffton restaurant will be larger than the Hilton Head location, but much of the extra space will be in the kitchen gearing it up for heavier year-round business instead of one with seasonal ebbs and flows on the island.

“We plan to be the fastest restaurant in Bluffton,” Vitto said.

He said he doesn’t plan to change the menu that customers regularly drive across the bridge for. It now features an assortment of poke bowls, superfruit bowls, coffee and smoothies.

“We’ve done so well with Aloha, I’m really not trying to mess with it too much,” he said. “Hopefully there will be more locations down the road.”

Vitto grew up on Hilton Head and has worked more than two decades in restaurants. Living and working with his wife Tori’s family at Sunset Suratt Surf Academy in Hawaii gave the couple inspiration first for Al’s Aloha Kitchen and then for a ramen restaurant called Nood, which they opened in Coligny Plaza in 2021.

Last year, they rebranded Nood from a walk-in restaurant into a hibachi catering business. They sold the physical location, which is now home to Bad Biscuit.

Alex Vitto wasn’t ready to commit to a specific opening date for the new Al’s Aloha Kitchen in Bluffton because the property is still being developed.

“Coming very soon,” he said.

Signs at the Washington Square location say Palmetto Running Company and Birdie James clothing and accessories store are also coming soon.

In the meantime, you can find Al’s Aloha Kitchen at 70 Pope Ave. on Hilton Head. The restaurant is open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9 a.m to 3 p.m. on Sunday. Check out the menu or order online at alsalohakitchen.com.

Bluffton’s worst kept secret is now officially…official.

We get so caught up in talking about how much the face of Savannah is changing around here that we sometimes don’t stop to acknowledge that change and growth are pretty much happening everywhere. The latest example, in our area at any rate, is in Bluffton’s Old Town neighborhood, where a locals spot is about to close, replaced by another Bluffton restaurant looking for a bigger footprint.

Old Town Dispensary, a laid back watering hole in the heart of Old Town’s Calhoun Street will be closing at the end of January. Employees were notified a few weeks ago that OTD would be no more. Another Old Town establishment, Agave, will to be taking over the space at 15 Captains Cove in Bluffton.

Matt Jording, who owns the building and land where OTD sits, confirmed the story to us by phone. He, however, wanted to make sure we confirmed the fact that the building was not sold. Agave, yes the same Agave that currently is in the Bluffton Promenade, is going to lease the space from the Jordings.

“I am the landlord” he said. “But that’s it.”

“We were presented with what we thought was a unique opportunity.” Jording said “Agave was looking to expand their space and their menu a little bit, so we had a good fit.”

Old Town Dispensary has been on Calhoun Street for 13 years. Jording says the opportunity to streamline a little bit (they also own Hilton Head Island’s very popular Sage Room) was too good to pass up.

“Please let everyone know this does not affect The Sage Room” he said. “We don’t want those rumors getting out there.”

For its part, Agave has developed a following in the Bluffton Promenade. It is popular, but on the small side with most of its seating being outdoors. It’s a beachfront shack kind of vibe at Agave, but moving into the Old Town Dispensary space will give them the opportunity to much more volume with plenty of seating indoors and outdoors.

The changeover is expected to begin the last week of January.

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