The Town of Bluffton recently celebrated the groundbreaking for the Franklin Health and Wellness Development, the first grant recipient of the Town’s new Economic Development Incentive Program.
Franklin Health and Wellness Development will be a medical facility founded by dentist Jeffrey Solomon located in the New Riverside Village development. Solomon moved to Bluffton with his family from Michigan and realized there was a need for “quality health and wellness” services in the New Riverside area.
After Solomon decided to create a facility, a friend and his banker directed him to the town’s incentive program.
The Town Council approved an Economic Development Incentive Program in September 2023 to encourage more businesses to relocate to Bluffton’s densely populated areas.
“This program is designed to provide more services to Bluffton’s rapidly growing neighborhoods,” said Assistant Town Manager Chris Forster. “More than 50 percent of the town’s residents live west of Buckwalter Parkway, but (the area) only provides about 20 percent of the town’s professional services. This program will help address those numbers. We aim to strike a balance and bring services and convenience to where most residents live.”
Solomon said the grant application process was easier than expected, especially for a new program like this. According to the town, the grant provided to Solomon is “valued at approximately $107,500.”
The grant will help build a 15,000-square-foot facility that will house Solomon’s dental clinic and other health and wellness clinics. Solomon said his practice, Old Moreland Dental LLC, will occupy 5,000 square feet. The remaining space will be rented out to medical institutions and wellness providers.
“The population has grown very rapidly, but the commercial infrastructure has not quite kept up with demand,” Solomon said. ”[The Franklin Health and Wellness Development] It could become, so to speak, one medical destination where patients and customers can come and have all kinds of services completed under the same roof. ”
John O’Toole, executive director of the Beaufort County Economic Development Corporation, said the incentive program not only provides more services to residents, but is also beneficial to them. The quality of life in the city will also improve.
“The town and Beaufort County grant program is the wave that lifts all boats,” O’Toole said. “Residents will receive the services they need, businesses will receive fee and tax breaks, the government will receive long-term property tax increases, and the region has the potential for increased commercial and tourism activity in the future.”
The town is currently finalizing the application process for this system. If you are interested in this program, please contact Forster at cforster@townofbluffton.com or (office): 843-706-4535.
