SULLIVAN'S ISLAND — A $30-million-plus private social hub being proposed for South Carolina's wealthiest ZIP code is probably not going to advance very quickly.

Sullivan's Island's Town Council didn't give the Ocean Club on Atlantic Avenue a warm reception during its meeting Aug. 15. Elected officials indicated they wanted to wait to consider the big-ticket redevelopment project at what was known for decades as the Sand Dunes Club.

They said they hope to gather more information on the developer's background, study traffic impacts and learn more about the financial and other implications to neighboring homes and the town.

They also noted the club doesn't have to be private, and alternate proposals should be considered that all residents could benefit from — not just those who can afford the estimated $60,000 membership fee and $6,000 in annual dues under the current plan.

"I don't think we have enough information to make an intelligent decision," said Councilwoman Jody Latham. "We don't want to make the wrong decision either way."

Mayor Patrick O'Neil called it "a giant decision" that will affect residents and Sullivan's for generations to come.

Their comments came after more than two dozen residents spoke for and against the club concept.

The majority were in favor of the idea as a community gathering place while property owners who were against the plan said they viewed it as a commercial operation in a residential district. The opposition also questioned if officials would set a precedent by approving a conditional use for the property.

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The town also received about five dozen letters related to the proposed Ocean Club, with 32 in support and 27 opposed.

Shep Davis, managing partner of the Sullivan's Island Bathing Co., is leading the effort to create the club. He asked Town Council to advance the proposal to a public hearing before the Planning Commission in September.

Brian Hellman, an attorney representing the developer, said that's not going to happen since council members indicated they wanted more information.

The property first served as club for military personnel stationed at nearby Fort Moultrie starting in the 1930s. It later became a private beachside retreat for employees of the former South Carolina Electric & Gas Co.

Dominion Energy, which bought SCE&G in 2019, closed the Sand Dunes Club at the onset of the pandemic in early 2020. It was never reopened.

The 3.5-acre site is now owned by a company affiliated with Charleston real estate investor John Derbyshire, the former owner of the Money Man Pawn shop chain. His firm paid Dominion Energy $16.2 million for the property last year.