Transformation ongoing at former Navy base

Large, white buildings that once housed thousands of U.S. Navy sailors have been vacant for years. Boards cover many of the windows; others have shards of glass missing. Doors are blocked off with two-by-fours and many of the building’s roofs are in major disrepair. The interiors have sat untouched for decades.

Bulldozers are now moving dirt on a large, cleared swath of land at the intersection of Spruill and McMillan avenues — signs of more change for the former Navy base in North Charleston.

When the Navy Base was closed in 1996, thousands of people lost their jobs and Charleston’s economy was sent reeling. By 2001, North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey and developer John Knott had a plan to transform the former Navy base into the “New American City.” As part of the site preparations, the dirt will be moved toPalmetto Railways’ future 100-acre rail yard, which will provide a container transfer facility for cargo headed for theS.C. State Ports Authority’s new cargo terminal, pending regulatory approvals. The port terminal is in the beginning of construction at the south end of the Navy Base.

Through a public-private partnership, they envisioned a residential and commercial hub with the Navy Yard at Noisette as its urban core. Over the years, the now-defunct Noisette Co.’s plans stalled as the housing market collapsed and the recession hit the country. Most of Noisette’s holdings went into foreclosure by 2010.

Read more at Charleston Regional Business Journal…