Houston-based company among first to build on Daniel Island

BY JIM PARKER
Of The Post and Courier Staff

Fair enough. David Weekley Homes' trailblazing record from the early days of Daniel Island isn't quite up there with exploration hallmarks such as Lewis and Clark's combing the wilds of the west or Stanley's finding Livingstone in the jungle.

But don't shortchange the Houston-based builder's groundbreaking efforts. In 1997, it was among the first contractors to raise homes on the landlocked island between the Cooper and Wando rivers, when just a few dozen homes and a handful of businesses were there.

"This was our first community when we moved to town," said Ben Harrison, Charleston division president.

It's still a prime locale. Rather than constructing some homes and moving on, the company continued with the planned development, framing up more than 200 houses from the $220,000 to $990,000 price range in the past seven years.

"We like it out here," Harrison said. "We are like a pioneer."

The most recent David Weekley Homes endeavor is a new phase in the less-traveled Barfield Park sector off Daniel Island Drive, where it has a model home in its Syracuse floor plan. The company plans to begin work on six new homes there in the next month and an undetermined number at the end of the summer. The 1,900-square-foot to 2,600-square-foot houses cost from $280,000 to $450,000.

The open-layout Syracuse model, among the most popular, is one of 18 floor plans offered. Each plan, in turn, has three or more elevations for the front appearance, such as adding a porch or revising a roofline.

"We have to have the flexibility of varying plans," he said. The builder is focusing on customizing the homes so buyers have lots of choices.

Many models come with "flex space." The Syracuse design, for instance, has a front parlor that can be used as a study or closed off as an office or bedroom. A second floor loft also can be closed in as a bedroom. It also comes with a detached garage that can include a finished efficiency apartment above it, what the company calls a "granny flat."

Still, all the homes have common elements. They fit five of what the company calls "life design" criteria -- sight lines so people can see a lot from anywhere inside, room placement that offers togetherness and privacy, traffic flow so people aren't bumping into each other, windows and light for brightness and energy efficiency, and massing and proportion to design ceiling heights and arches to proper aesthetic size.

To make it more convenient for homebuyers, David Weekley Homes is setting up a design center at its local headquarters on Wando Park Boulevard in Mount Pleasant. The center, where shoppers can view and select options on-site, should open in six months, he said.

Among the more popular upgrades are maple cabinets, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances and hardwood floors throughout the homes.

Another consumer tool that the builder uses is a "homeowner portfolio." With this program, the company supplies buyers with packets of information as well as access to the mydwhome.com Web site, which lines them up with a sales consultant.

While Barfield Park is the latest new home expansion, the builder has erected dwellings in most of the Daniel Island neighborhoods, including Etiwan, Cochran and Center parks.

"We are spread out all over the island," Harrison said.

There are two alternatives to reach Barfield Park from downtown Charleston. Take Interstate 26 to I-526, and turn off on Exit 24. Take Seven Farms Drive, then make a left onto Daniel Island Drive. The model home is across from a park. Another route is to cross the Cooper River Bridges into Mount Pleasant, then take I-526 to Exit 24.