COLUMBIA, S.C. – KION North America, a member of the KION Group, today announced plans to expand operations in Dorchester County. The company’s estimated $40 million investment will create approximately 450 new jobs.

KION North America is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of industrial trucks. The company’s brands, Linde Material Handling and Baoli, serve the specific requirements of the North American market with a comprehensive and complementary product portfolio known for innovative technologies, low energy consumption and low operating costs.

Headquartered at 2450 W. 5th Street in Summerville, KION North America is reshoring the manufacturing of core components including forklift masts. The company is also adding assembly lines that will involve the installation of crane systems, automated weld systems, new paint facilities and more.

The expansion is expected to be complete in 2024. Individuals interested in joining the KION North America team should visit the company’s careers page.

The Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved job development credits related to this project. The council also approved a $500,000 Set-Aside grant to assist with the costs of site preparation and building construction.

QUOTES

“We are proud to be investing in South Carolina, particularly in Dorchester County. Both the state and county have been excellent partners in this process. The KION Group is highly committed to expanding in the U.S., Canada and Mexico and believes customers deserve products customized for these markets. We look forward to reaching more customers with our full-scale traditional lift truck portfolio and custom solutions such as automation, telematics and fleet management.” -KION North America President and Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Dawley

“Thanks to our state’s exceptional workforce and business-friendly environment, global leaders like KION Group are finding success here and driving our economy forward. Congratulations to KION North America on this latest expansion.” -Gov. Henry McMaster

“We applaud KION North America’s ongoing growth in Dorchester County and the new opportunities they are creating for South Carolinians with this expansion. When a company decides to grow its footprint in South Carolina, it reiterates our state’s support for existing industries.” -Secretary of Commerce Harry M. Lightsey III

“KION North America has been a valued part of Dorchester County, and we are thankful for their continued presence and new investment in our comunity. Congratulations KION North America on your new expansion, and we wish you continued success.” -Dorchester County Council Chairman Bill Hearn

FIVE FAST FACTS

On August 16, well-known local businessman, Richard Miler, stepped out in front of the process to announce his candidacy for Mayor of the Town of Summerville. Elections for that office will take place in November of 2023. Voters elect a mayor on a non-partisan ticket.

“I made the announcement this far in advance because the last time I ran, I did not announce my candidacy until late and I was behind the game at the get-go,” said Miler. “Lots of people, including my wife, said if you’re going to do this, be proactive. It’s always wise to seek prudent counsel from others.”

Miler lost his first bid for mayor twelve years ago to former Mayor Bill Collins.

Miler is owner and president of Miler Properties, which also operates under the name Miler Property Management. The real estate sector business has been in operation for close to 40 years and generates an estimated $3.6 million in annual revenue. The company, located on Old Trolley Road, typically employs 12 people.

A Summerville native son, Miler graduated from Summerville High School before completing studies at The Citadel in 1978. His background includes mortgage banking, teaching and coaching, and retail management. Miler has served as a board member on numerous organizations. He and his family are actively involved in the community.

“My family has been in this town for a long time,” said Miler. “My great grandfather, Dan Miler, was the first mayor of Summerville. My great, great grandfather, Edward Hutchinson, was the first attendant (the title in use before the term mayor was established). Hutchinson Square was named after him.”

Miler referred to the desire to be involved in public service as the footprint of his family. “It’s a passion that lives in your blood. The mayor is not a retirement job. You have to do it from the heart.”

Miler sees his role as a cheerleader to bring a positive vibe to the Town, working with a dynamic staff and town merchants, whom he calls the ‘heart of our town.’ “Everybody wants to make Summerville work; not just Downtown and Hutchinson Square. It’s growing like a weed,” he said, citing Nexton and Summers Corner.

There are a number of goals and issues that are top-of-mind for Miler:

• Prudent annexation to grow tax revenue without burdening the taxpayer and property owners - “We all pay property taxes regardless of our home, but that money is not nearly enough to fund the town coffers to pay for safety and other necessities or increase opportunities like parks and bicycle paths – that base comes from the commercial side. People think if they are annexed, their taxes are going up but that’s not always the case. There are so many doughnut holes in our current annexation. The Town can’t annex any whole entity; it’s one property at a time and they skip over each other like a jigsaw puzzle. There’s never been a game plan, a vision. As an example, there are seven subdivisions on Trolley Road — some are in the Town of Summerville; some are not.”

• “I am a strong, 100% supporter of the one-cent tax.” The 1% Transportation Sales and Use Sales Tax has been in effect for the past fifteen years and is scheduled to expire this year. This November, voters have a chance to renew it for up to fifteen years and generate up to $735 million to further investments in roads, streets, bridges and other transportation-related facilities as well as drainage facilities and mass transit systems. “That’s a lot of money to help with lots of projects.”

• “I’d like to see Summerville increase the downtown shopping district. It’s pretty and quaint, but it can grow — with shops, restaurants, a winery — there are so many people coming in to that district. It has to be safe, always, for little kids, carriages and strollers and bicycles. Lighting is important, and beautification.” Miler hopes to partner with the Flowertown Garden Club for beautification. “I have a real passion for that cause.” “What we don’t need is another real estate or lawyer’s office that shuts up at 5 p.m. and everybody goes home.”

• Parking in the Town’s parking deck should remain free, according to Miler. “It was built on the promise of free parking. I am interested in opportunities for parking relief. New businesses and restaurants are coming in and there are complaints that there’s no parking. People don’t want to go to an area and be bussed into town; they want to park.”

• “Traffic issues never really go away in a small town,” said Miler, with respect to ongoing issues. It’s an ongoing challenge but I’m thinking about what we can do now to improve quality of life.” “Plus, I would rather have those problems than live in an area that has no traffic problems, but where nothing is going on. When you have traffic problems, you have a good problem. People want to live there, work there.” Still, Miler says that as a mayor of a small town, he would vote to raise the gas tax to improve the roads and support user taxes such as toll roads coming in from other states.

• Affordable housing also has Miler’s attention. “My prayer is that there is a role for a mayor. There is a housing crisis and rents are incredibly high; the resale market has gone up. There is no such thing as affordable housing right now.” The problem will only be solved with a lot of people coming to the table to create solutions, getting developers on board, according to Miler. “It’s got to be without creating a stigma like affordable housing is a bad word. It’s not a bad word.”

Successful business is about establishing a staff that you work well with, selling or developing a product to sell to repeat clients and then doing what everybody has to do — embodying a trust that everyone can appreciate, according to Miler. “We’ve done that for 36 years. I see my business as a housing ministry. People buy or sell for different reasons: downsizing, growing, splintered by hardship — I’ve seen it all and it increases empathy.”

“Our business is people serving other people. I would take that approach whatever business I was in — taking care of people and being consistent. I think this perfectly prepares me to be mayor — to serve people from all walks of life, sexes, races, creeds, religions and ages.”

“My mission is to find out what can we do to help each other grow and support each other. If I am mayor, my policy is open door,” said Miler. “I believe in total transparency. You can call me anytime. It doesn’t fatigue me, it energizes me.”

No other individual has announced candidacy for Town of Summerville mayor thus far. Formal filing does not occur until spring.

Like so many who came to Summerville, Saul Alexander sought refuge.

A Jewish immigrant, Alexander fled his home country of Ukraine and came to the United States to escape anti-Semitic persecution. Local historian Ed West said he arrived in New York on Ellis Island shortly after 1900.

According to the Jewish Historical Society of South Carolina’s (JHSSC) website, he remained in New York for roughly four years before coming to Summerville.

“I’m not sure how he got word of Summerville being a place on the map, but for whatever reason, he bought a ticket to Summerville and came down here,” West explained.

That decision would significantly impact Alexander’s life and the Summerville community for years to come.

A Quiet Life

West said Saul Alexander got his start in Summerville as an apprentice tailor. Eventually, he saved enough money to open a store along Hutchinson Square. Saul Alexander Dry Goods was located at 102 South Main Street, where the building still stands today.

West said Alexander also worked in real estate, providing loans to homebuyers.

“He helped people gain loans for real estate during the Depression,” West said. “And he would help fund loans and things like that.”

Alexander owned a home on Central Avenue in Summerville. It featured a garden house that he used as an escape from summer’s heat and a place to entertain friends.

The Summerville Dorchester Museum has restored the gazebo-like structure. It now stands as a memorial for Saul Alexander and others like him who, throughout history, have found sanctuary in Summerville.

An Unexpected Gift

Saul Alexander lived a quiet life in Summerville. So, it was a surprise to many that after he passed in 1952, a foundation was created to benefit the community.

Alexander left his home to a long-time employee, Sarah Chinners, and a foundation was established according to instructions in his will. The JHSSC notes on its website that Alexander’s estate was in excess of $750,000 and more than $500,000 was designated for the foundation.

“What was also in his will was the establishment of a foundation which became known as the Saul Alexander Foundation,” West explained. “In Summerville, he funded playgrounds and various church projects and his money helps with the museum [Summerville-Dorchester Museum] here,” West said.

Today, according to Edie Blakeslee, Vice President of Grantmaking and Community Leadership at the Coastal Community Foundation, the funds continue to support Summerville and the Lowcountry.

Since the 1980s, the Coastal Community Foundation has managed the Saul Alexander Foundation.

“The Saul Alexander Foundation was originally a private foundation,” Blakeslee said. “Mr. Alexander’s closest friends and advisors were the trustees.”

She noted that Alexander’s will provides specific directions for all philanthropic activity. For example, he required the trustees to be a mix of Jews and Gentiles. And precise percentages are allotted for projects in Summerville, the Jewish community, and other institutions.

More than 40 organizations benefit from the Saul Alexander Foundation, which has grown to a current value of $2.8 million, Blakeslee said.

The Saul Alexander Foundation trustees continue to meet annually.

“What the trustees have always been really good about is honoring Mr. Alexander’s intent,” Blakeslee said.

The Saul Alexander Foundation is designed to benefit the community in perpetuity. Saul Alexander’s legacy continues to impact others more than a century after he arrived in Summerville.

Monica Shows has participated in many performances at The James F. Dean Community Theatre.

And she’s seen it change over the years. But one story stands out to Shows.

Before the theater became home to live performances, her husband recalls going to what was known as the Summerville Theatre to see a movie. As a kid, he remembered it was eerie to be surrounded by the taxidermied animals lining the walls, especially if a scary movie was showing.

The preserved wildlife was courtesy of Gertrude Legendre, wife of Sidney Legendre, who opened the Summerville Theatre in 1935, according to scpictureproject.org. Gertrude had taken an interest in hunting and the trophies were from her expeditions.

Located at 133 S. Main Street, the theater spent its first few decades as a cinema, beginning with silent films and then progressing to show modern movies, according to Shows, who serves as President of the Flowertown Players Board of Directors.

The Flowertown Players Step In

After years of entertaining Summervillians with movies, Summerville Theatre was empty by the late 1970s. It was in disrepair, no longer serving the community.

But one group saw its potential.

The Flowertown Players, incorporated in 1976, worked closely with the town of Summerville to acquire the theater, so they could renovate it and begin hosting productions.

According to Ed Barnes, Flowertown Players board member and longtime volunteer, the town purchased the building from Dr. Guy Taylor. But it took a little convincing from the Flowertown Players.

Michaele Rogers, daughter of James and Doris Dean, remembers going with her mother to speak to Taylor about selling the theater to the town.

“The only reason I think he agreed to it is Dr. Taylor had taken care of my husband’s family over the years,” Rogers said, laughing.

After the town acquired the theater, the Flowertown Players began fundraising to cover renovation costs.

“It really was a collective of people who created the organization and pushing hard to get the building renovated,” Shows said.

Two community members stood out in raising the money needed for the project.

“Doris [Dean] and Jim [James Dean] were big fundraisers when they were looking for funding for the building,” Shows explained.

The theater’s future namesake was involved from the beginning.

“My father oversaw the renovation of the theater,” Rogers said.

Construction took several years, according to Barnes. The theater was temporarily closed in 1983 due to a gas leak and reopened in 1988.

James Dean’s construction skills paved the way for the theater’s reopening as a place for Summerville to gather, perform, and participate in the arts.

“Jim Dean was basically the backbone of the whole place,” Barnes said.

Shows said the mission of the Flowertown Players and the theater has always been to provide educational opportunities and a place for people to practice their craft.

“I would like to believe we’re all caretakers of the vision they had,” Shows said.

Rogers has seen this vision lived out in her own life.

While working as a real estate agent, she received a call from someone wanting to sell a home in Summerville. During the conversation, she heard a story about her father.

The seller was from Summerville and had volunteered at the theater. James Dean encouraged him to pursue a career in performing arts. He told Rogers that he followed her father’s advice.

After James Dean’s passing, the theater was renamed in 1990 in his honor.

The James F. Dean Community Theatre is heading into its 46th season. It’s weathered hurricanes, flooding, a pandemic, and many changes.

Yet, more than 80 years after it opened, the theater continues to be where Summerville can take in a show and enjoy arts produced by its community.

Following a Live 5 News Investigation of a Lowcountry pool company, new legal and financial developments have come to light.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - Following a Live 5 News Investigation of a Lowcountry pool company, new legal and financial developments have come to light.

Indigo Pools, founded by Josh and Ashley Ingram in 2020, served hundreds of customers by building what should have been their dream pools. A Dec. 5 story by Live 5 News revealed customers who had experienced large delays in installations, bad communication from the owners, dangerous hazards within installed equipment and large amounts of money still unpaid.

A class-action lawsuit against Indigo Pools was filed by Anastopoulo Law Firm including one customer originally, which has now grown to 74 customers seeking legal action against the company. As of Tuesday, Judge Maite Murphy of Dorchester County approved the continuation of a temporary restraining order against Josh and Ashley Ingram.

Lawyer Roy T. Willey with the Anastopoulo Law Firm, explains the order prevents them from moving, selling, destroying, damaging or otherwise concealing Defendants’ assets and the Plaintiff’s funds.

“They are not able to liquidate cash reserves, bank accounts, operating accounts, sell any equipment, move any equipment, or anything of that nature,” Willey said.

The initial temporary restraining order was granted on Dec. 30, but hours later, Dan Anessi, one former customer in the class-action lawsuit, drove past Indigo Pools shop, where he witnessed Josh Ingram moving assets out of the shop and loading them into the trailer, according to an Affidavit.

“I work right around the corner and was going for lunch when I drove past the shop and saw Josh’s truck and trailer backed up to the shop reloading stuff,” Anessi said. “I turned around and went back for a picture because we have a real fear they’re going to leave and run. "

Amidst taking on more pool installations and proceeding to not complete other projects customers claim, Josh and Ashley Ingram purchased and moved into a $900,000 home in Summerville in the summer of 2022.

Since the original story, additional customers have filed separate lawsuits throughout Dorchester and Charleston counties against Indigo Pools, including a concrete company that says they were never paid back for their work.

Brandy Sutherland, who was the original customer on the class-action, claims Indigo Pools installed a faulty pool heater, which another company inspected and claimed as a combustion hazard. She hopes the customers will receive a judgement against Josh and Ashley at some point.

“I really want Josh and Ashley to be held accountable. I want them to have to answer the things that they did. I want them to suffer in a way, like we’ve suffered; we’re all suffering financially and emotionally,” Sutherland said. “I want them to go through a little bit of that too, if they haven’t already, because we didn’t deserve this, we held up our end of the bargain.”

Josh and Ashley Ingram did not respond to request for an updated comment, but said the following on Dec. 5:

As of today, we have not been served with a class action lawsuit. We were made aware just a few hours ago that this lawsuit has been announced. Leading up to this point, we had agreed to work with every single customer to address their concerns, and we are saddened to hear that customers feel they need to pursue litigation. We had a written plan in place which was communicated to every customer who had concerns with their project and were diligently working to address those concerns. The allegations that have been filed in the Complaint are not true and we are working to continue fulfilling all contracts. Customer satisfaction has been, and remains, of paramount importance to us.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – ENGESER USA Corp., a world leading cable specialist, today announced plans to establish operations in Dorchester County. The company’s $1.5 million investment will create 26 new jobs.

Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Schramberg, Germany, ENGESER USA Corp. designs and manufactures high-quality products for cable and connection technology ranging from classic cable assembly to comprehensive system solutions. A family-owned company, ENGESER USA Corp. serves automotive applications, consumer and capital goods, solar engineering, rail technology and more.

Located at 115 Fabricators Street in Summerville, ENGESER USA Corp.’s Dorchester County facility is the company’s first North American manufacturing operation and will allow the company to offer direct delivery domestically and to European customers. The new facility will utilize modern technologies to produce cost-optimized, high-quality cable harnesses, one of ENGESER USA Corp.’s core areas of expertise.

Operations are expected to be online by September 2022. Individuals interested in joining the ENGESER USA Corp. team should visit the company’s careers page.

The Coordinating Council for Economic Development has awarded a $75,000 Set-Aside grant to Dorchester County to assist with costs related to this project.

QUOTES

“From the search for a location to the founding of the company, we were professionally accompanied by Dorchester County and the South Carolina Department of Commerce. As an experienced cable assembly products supplier, we are confident that we can add value to our customers in the United States. We intend to continue growing in Summerville and want to become an attractive employer.” -ENGESER USA Corp. Managing Director Dirk Kinzel

"South Carolina has earned a global reputation as an ideal location for companies to do business, and we are happy to welcome ENGESER USA Corp. to our roster of international firms operating in our state. We look forward to the impact they will make in the Dorchester County community and across all of South Carolina.” -Gov. Henry McMaster

“We congratulate ENGESER USA Corp. on their first North American operation right here in South Carolina. By locating in Dorchester County, ENGESER USA Corp. is telling the world that our state has the workforce and business-friendly environment in place to attract companies of all types. We look forward to a strong partnership for many years to come.” -Secretary of Commerce Harry M. Lightsey III

“We welcome ENGESER USA Corp. to Dorchester County and thank them for selecting us as their first location within the U.S. On behalf of the county, congratulations, and best wishes for future success.” -Dorchester County Council Chairman Bill Hearn

“We are pleased ENGESER USA Corp. selected the Charleston region for its first U.S. operation. They join an established group of German companies who are thriving here, and we look forward to ENGESER’s continued growth and expansion. The company will be a tremendous asset to our growing automotive cluster.” -Charleston Regional Development Alliance Board Chairman Mike Fuller