NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. (WJBF) – Exciting developments in North Augusta: a big announcement about the future of the old carpet shop and skating rink.

“I’m excited as I lived here for 30 years and, you know, this is home,” said Leslie Duncanson.

Beacon Bluff aims to be a mixed-use development. The first floor will have a restaurant and retail space. Apartments will be on the second floor. “There are really three things that we hear from the community right now: we want more retail and more restaurants in North Augusta. We wanna see the riverfront continue to develop,” President of Palmetto Peach Development Brett Brannon said.

It consists of revitalizing the former North Augusta skating rink, purchased by North Augusta Forward in 2018. Construction started last year. Brannon shared that the building was in poor shape from a structural standpoint; it wasn’t watertight, and the floor and the roof had to be replaced. “And anytime you do a renovation of an old building, you’re just gonna run into things that take time,” he added.

It will have a distinctive tower, or “beacon,” and a spacious courtyard that connects to the Greeneway. “We’re going to use the tower, not for a bell tower, but for light instead of sound. So we will flood the tower with light and eliminate it from the inside. So, hopefully, it creates a landmark.

Palmetto Peach Development has already started renovating the building and leased 80% of the first floor to new businesses like Fleet Feet and Melty.

“We’re so excited. So we are a running specialty store, so this location is gonna be right along the greenway,” said co-owner of Fleet Feet Jennifer McCauley. “For us, it’s just the perfect spot for all of our clientele and our experience and events that we do. So we’re really excited about this location.”

“I’m originally from this area, so I grew up here a long time and just wanna see North Augusta expand and South Carolina in general just bring in some outside business, outside concepts for the new family around,” COO, Melty said Josh Keaton.

The project costs around $18 million, with no public funding involved. It is privately financed by Palmetto Peach Development, with no city, county, or state contributions. It will be completed in three phases. Additional buildings are planned. Construction is expected to be completed by January 2025. T