Charleston Real Estate Market

April is here, so get ready for a big time. The first weekend is chock full of events, no foolin’. Make careful note, though, these events will cause some traffic disruptions, re-routing and business closings.

Starting on the 1st-3rd is the Flowertown Festival, a free family affair in Summerville. Over 200 vendors, a tennis classic, children’s carnival, historic home and garden tour and plenty of azaleas make it special.

On the 2nd and running til the 10th is the Family Circle Cup. It’s the 39th consecutive year for the tournament and the eleventh in the Daniel Island facility. Some of the biggest names in women’s tennis will compete.

The Cooper River Bridge 10K Run and Walk will be on Saturday the 2nd. This is a major event that will close the bridge and many roads in Mt Pleasant and Downtown. The run is SOLD OUT, amazing; we’re talking over 38,000 participants! The Kid’s Run will be held at Hampton Park on Friday at 5pm, its festival 2-6pm. The Competitive Wheelchair 10K Event starts at 7:30 Saturday morning on the bridge and the Run at 8am. The After Event at Marion Square is huge and there’s even a wedding in the mix.

The 20th Annual Cajun Festival kicks off at the James Island County Park on the 3rd. Non-stop live Zydeco music, cajun and creole food will mark the day from 12-6 pm.

The International Festival of Choirs will have performances throughout the city the 8th-10th.

On the 9th, The Thunderbirds take to the air in close formation. See the show at the Air Base, it’s free and so is the parking. If you’d like to spend some quality time with your pet, take your best friend to the Palmetto Island County Park Pet Fest on the 9th and 10th.

The 14th-17th will be Charleston Wedding Week’s celebration of bridal style. The four day event will showcase all components of the South’s upper-tier wedding industry.

Charleston Race Week kicks off on the 14th with its inshore and offshore regattas.

There’s more water fun on tap. The 21st East Coast Canoe and Kayak Festival cranks up the 15th-17th at James Island County Park. This is one of the premier paddle sport events on the East Coast.

Folly Beach will celebrate the Sea and Sand Festival with a block party. Center Street will become an avenue of good food, art work and dance bands on the 16th and 17th.

Mt Pleasant’s Waterfront Park will be the site of the Blessing of the Fleet this year, celebrating from 11-6 on the 17th.

The 24th is Easter Sunday and that means the 10th Annual Hat Ladies Easter Promenade. Honoring the tradition when ladies would stroll down Main St. showing off their hats or Easter bonnets, the Hat Ladies begin at Broad and Meeting Street at 11am on the 23rd. The parade ends at White Point Gardens.

Our French Huguenot Church, the only remaining independent one in America, will open to the public beginning on the 14th. It is located across from the Dock Street Theatre.

How about houses and gardens open this spring? Kiawah has a House and Art Tour scheduled for the 8th.

The 64th Annual Spring Festival of Houses and Gardens runs til the 16th. This is the major fundraiser for Historic Charleston.

The 2011 Designer Showhouse will be open til the 17th. The circa 1815 home is located at 89 Beaufain St.

The Red Cross House, Garden and Art Tour through the Old Village is on the 17th, a great chance to see homes that don’t tour often.

Plantasia, the 10th Annual Green Market for Plant Lovers, has a new home this year. Wragg Square at 342 Meeting will host the 2 day affair on the 29th and 30th. Unique, cutting edge plantings, a Members Favorites section and a true yard sale highlight the free event. A guided walking tour of private gardens is available at a charge. The Heyward Washington House will offer garden tours each Thursday in April.

The North Charleston Arts Festival draws thousands of visitors during its nine day run from the 29th– May 7th.

If dancing is your art there are two events this month. On the 21st is the Water Ball and the 29th is the Oxygen Ball.

The North Charleston Arts Festival draws thousands of visitors during its nine day run from the 29th– May 7th.

If dancing is your art there are two events this month. On the 21st is the Water Ball and the 29th is the Oxygen Ball.

Date to Remember: The 27th is Administrative Assistant Day. If you have one, be sure to do something nice for them.

Around the State in April

Carolina Cup Steeplechase, the 2nd in Camden; 8th-10th World Grits Festival in St George; 10th The Big Nosh Jewish Cultural Festival in Columbia; 11th Monday after the Masters celebrity pro-am in North Myrtle Beach hosted by Hootie and the Blowfish;13th Indie Grits Film Festival in Columbia; The Heritage Golf Championship in HHI begins on the 18th; The Soft Shell Crab Festival in Port Royal on the 23rd; the SPINX Charity Golf Event in Greenville on the 25th and the Manning Striped Bass Festival starts on the 28th.

Gotta Run!

Of course the Bridge Run is on April 2nd. Then the After the Bridge Ride on the 3rd leaves the Battery Stadium on DI at 8am for the 100 and 73 mile rides and 8:30 for the 50 and 30 mile rides.

April 9th, here at Station 16 on Sullivan’s Island is the Run for Adela. The SPEED Ride to Benefit Special Ed at Wando High will take place at the Awendaw Green (Sewee Outpost). Three distance challenges 10/25/62.5 (metric century) on the Francis Marion National Forest’s well-paved roads.

Also on the 9th at 8am will be the sanctioned Eagle Endurance Almost 9 Miler Trail Run at Buck Hall National Recreation Area in Awendaw. Start and finish is at the Awendaw Passage section of the Palmetto Trail. Running with the Alligators sounds a little different, also on the 9th at Old Santee Canal Park in Moncks Corner.

The 10th brings two refreshingly different events. Benefitting the Wounded Warrior Project, it’s the Patriot Challenge Kayak Race and Charity Paddle at Brittlebank Park. Kayak, canoes and stand up paddleboards hit the water at 1 pm. 

If this just flat wears you out, there’s the 2nd Annual Bed Race at Hampton Park, helping Camp Happy Days, starting at 3pm on the 10th.

It’s a pretty daunting to swim past freighters and aircraft carriers in an open harbor. Anyone wishing to tune up for the 10th Annual Lowcountry Splash Bridge Swim can attend camp at the Martin Luther Pool at 155 Jackson St, evenings from 4/7-5/26.

Pivotal Low Country Race Weekend combines the I’On Smackdown at 8am on the 16th and the SC Criterium Championships at Hampton Park on the 17th.

The Capers Island ECO Run and Walk will literally take you away. A ferry will depart IOP Marina at 1 pm for a Capers Island 5K/10K Run/Walk through the incredible scenery of a barrier island including Bone Yard beach and tidal pool areas on the 16th

The Krispy Kreme Donut Run will have the runners take the Greenway to the Savannah Hwy store, pause to eat a dozen donuts and return to the St Andrews School for Math and Science. Drive carefully in that area on the 16th at 9am. Scary pictures in my head!

It is 5 kilometers through 300 years of history: The Charleston Digital Corridors 5th Annual Innovator’s 5K. The iFive:K will be on the 21st at 6:30pm starting at the Maritime Center.

The 23rd is the date for the Bohickett Marina 5K and 10K at Seabrook Island. Also that day is the Santee Endurance Adventure Race covering around 40 miles of challenging landscapes stating at 7:30am.

The 30th wraps up with the WHES Hawk Trot at Windsor Hill Elementary at 8 am and the 2011 Rice Run starting at the same time at the Old Post Office in Walterboro. The TRYCharleston swim, bike and run your way through the Low Country event is at the KOA Campground in Mt P. The Half is a 1.2 mi swim, 56 mi bike and 13.1 mi run. The Sprint is a 500m swim, 20K Bike and a 5K run.

Whew!

Filed under: Around Town on March 28th, 2011 | No Comments »