Commercial real estate brokers in St. Stephen, SC

After moving to St. Stephen in 2021, Dan Kredensor was looking for a coffee shop and ice cream shop and found there to be neither for over 18 miles.

In January of 2022 he took matters into his own hands and began creating a business plan to share his love of coffee, ice cream and entrepreneurship with the people of St. Stephen. On June 23, Kredensor saw his plan come to fruition with the ribbon cutting ceremony of his new coffee and ice cream shop, Lowcountry Coffee Co.

Known as “Uncle Johnny’s Store,” Kredensor’s Lowcountry Coffee Co. resides in the oldest surviving commercial building on Main St. in St. Stephen.

“Uncle Johnny’s store was quite active until his death in 1931,” said Kredensor. “His death along with the Depression started a chain of events where ownership changed hands many times. In my lifetime I recall it being a general store, a dress shop, a bank and an insurance company.”

Lowcountry Coffee Co. is just one of many businesses recently making a name for itself in St. Stephen. The town has seen the opening of many new businesses including a sandwich and burger joint called Freda’s, a local gun store called Lowcountry Munition, Old Town Feed and Supply and The Capital Grille and Seafood. St. Stephen will also soon see the opening of a traditional Trinidadian restaurant called Ma Gloria’s.

Along with the town’s new booming businesses, St. Stephen also holds the Catfish Festival in the Spring, the Community Festival in October and the Berkeley Showoffs Car Show in November. Additionally, the town holds a farmer’s market every Wednesday from 3-7 p.m. at Alice Park.

“St. Stephen is beginning to have a major turn around,” said Kredensor. “For me it all started in November of last year as I was able to meet with the town and propose a lease for the coffee shop and ice cream parlor. The goal after speaking with the mayor and some town council members was to create a space that could be the spark to begin to reinvigorate the St. Stephen Main Street Business District. We have also been working with Berkeley County Economic Development Office, the Berkeley County Supervisor’s Office, Santee-Cooper Economic Development Office, and the Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments (BCDCOG) Economic Development Office on ways that we can continue to attract and keep small businesses in St. Stephen.”

He said the goal for Lowcountry Coffee is to inspire more small businesses in a town that is ready for them.

“We know that growth is going to come slowly to St. Stephen,” he said. “We want to be a spot where you can come and bring the family, meet a business partner and get a great cup of coffee or a delicious scoop of ice cream.”

“[The most rewarding part of running LowCountry Coffee Co] is seeing people smiling after they have the first sip of coffee or the first taste of ice cream because coffee and ice cream do have an uncanny ability to put smiles on just about everyone,” Kredensor added. “Listening to the stories and history of all our amazing customers is a blessing. Also giving people a safe space to meet for coffee or ice cream, whether it be a date, a celebration or a business meeting is wonderful to see every hour.”

The interim order was subsequently challenged in the Supreme Court by DU and the UGC in two separate orders

The Supreme Court on Monday refused to interfere with a Delhi high court interim order, allowing St Stephen’s College to conduct interviews of Christian candidates seeking admission under the minority quota, and said that any order passed at this stage will be “too late” and will result in “uncertainty” among students.

The high court, in its July 21 order, permitted St Stephen’s College to admit Christian minority students on the basis of 85% weightage for their Common University Entrance Test (CUET) scores and 15% weightage for interviews. The court, however, clarified that for non-minority students, the varsity will adopt the marks secured in CUET alone as the sole eligibility criteria.

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The interim order came on a petition by the college, asking for a stay on a December 8, 2022 decision by the Delhi University executive council, insisting that all colleges consider only CUET scores while granting admission to minority candidates.

The interim order was subsequently challenged in the Supreme Court by DU and the University Grants Commission (UGC) in two separate orders.

Dismissing the two petitions, a Supreme Court bench of justices AS Bopanna and PS Narasimha on Monday said, “Taking note that the order passed is an interim order and the high court has made admission subject to the final outcome of the writ petition, we see no reason to interfere at this stage.”

DU, represented by solicitor general Tushar Mehta, told the court that the last date for the close of admissions is August 31, and St Stephen’s should not be permitted to proceed with interviews of minority candidates. Defending the December 30, 2022 notification, Mehta said, “Last year, the college was allowed to give 15% weightage to interview. This year, we insisted they can select only meritorious students based on CUET scores against the minority seats. Due to the HC order, meritorious candidates are being left out.”

St Stephen’s, represented by senior advocate A Mariarputham and advocate Romy Chacko, said that the admission process for this academic year is over. The senior counsel stated that the admission was not “unilateral” as DU was supplied with the final list of students admitted under the Christian quota. The list was approved and DU sent email to students for paying fees, they said.

The bench told Mehta, “It will be unfair to students to interfere at this stage. There will be uncertainty among student community.” Pointing out that DU has endorsed the admissions, the bench said, “You have written to the students to pay fees and the letter does not say the admission will be subject to the order (of high court). You are a little late to approach us.”

Mehta told the court that DU was bound to process the admissions, else there would be contempt of the HC order. The court said, “The high court order is of July 21 and one month has passed. You should have approached us before. The 15% weightage is an issue you will have to argue before the high court.”

The bench wished to know during the hearing if any meritorious students had approached the court, complaining against the interview process. Senior advocate Arun Bhardwaj, appearing for a Christian candidate, said that a petition is in the process of being filed as the petitioner attended the interview but did not get admission. The solicitor general told the court that it is only a matter of opening a small window for such candidates.

“St Stephen’s is a prime college where admission cut-offs end at 98-99 %. If a window is provided, the admission process can be over within a day,” Mehta said.

The bench maintained its stand and said, “At this stage there will be more confusion if we interfere as some students would have already been interviewed. It could happen next year. As per the interim order, let admissions go on.

St Stephen’s had earlier argued that over the years, it admitted candidates to undergraduate courses by earmarking 15% of the score for a personal interaction or interview. Last year, with the introduction of CUET, the college had to admit students to its general category seats solely on CUET scores. However, a controversy over CUET being applicable to minority quota seats had arisen, following which the high court permitted St Stephen’s to conduct interviews for its Christian minority candidates. Relying on this order, the high court extended the benefit to the college for this year too.

The court was hearing DU’s appeal against a high court order that permitted St Stephen’s College to give 15% weightage for filling seats under Christian quota

The Delhi University (DU) on Friday told the Supreme Court that the seats for which the St Stephen’s College holds interviews are “virtually becoming payment seats”, attracting sharp rebuttal from the prestigious minority institution that said the contention was wrong and the university should not make such statements.

The court was hearing DU’s appeal against an order passed by the Delhi high court on July 21, permitting the college to give 15% weightage for filling seats under the Christian students quota for the academic year 2023-24. The court directed the college to consider the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) scores only while admitting students on the unreserved seats.

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Solicitor general Tushar Mehta appeared for the university and said, “I hope the college is not holding any interview. This 15% for interview is virtually becoming payment seats. This court knows about this practice.”

Mehta said that while there is no objection to the college reserving 50% seats for minorities, the seats should be filled up entirely on basis of merit decided by CUET scores. “Interview brings subjectivity. Even if I have more than 90% marks, someone with less marks gets admission,” he added.

Senior advocate A Mariarputham, appearing for the college, along with advocate Romy Chacko, objected to Mehta’s statement. “This is false. Such wrong statements need not be made. He is an officer of the court. He may argue on merits but not make such statements,” he said.

The solicitor general countered: “This is not a statement but my argument on merits.”

The college argued that in any case admissions for this year have ended on August 16, and interviews were conducted.

“This petition is infructuous as admissions closed on August 16, and classes for the new academic session have begun,” the senior counsel said.

The UGC, too, filed an appeal against the high court order and requested the court to take up both the appeals on Monday.

The bench of justices AS Bopanna and PS Narasimha agreed to the request and asked the two sides not to get “worked up” and reserve arguments for Monday.

The college approached the Delhi high court, challenging a December 8 order passed by the DU executive council that even for 50% minority quota seats, admissions should solely be done on the basis of CUET scores. The council said and no interview will be permitted. Following the council’s order, DU issued a notification on December 30. The college challenged both the order and the notification, saying they were unconstitutional.

In its interim order on July 21, the high court allowed the college to have 15% marks reserved for interview for minority candidates while general candidates had to be admitted on the basis of CUET scores.

The college claimed that over the years, it has been making admissions to undergraduate courses by earmarking 15% weightage for personal interaction or interview. Last year, with the introduction of CUET, the college had to admit students to its general category seats solely on CUET scores as the top court had in October 2022 refused to stay the HC order.

The college’s appeal which is still pending on this issue in the top court relied on the rights of minorities available under the Constitution to run and administer institutions.

Last year, too, when the controversy over CUET being applicable to minority quota seats arose, the high court on September 9, 2022 permitted St Stephen’s to proceed with its interview for Christian candidates.

The Supreme Court on Monday refused to interfere with a Delhi high court’s interim order permitting the St Stephen’s college to conduct interview for the 50% minority quota seats and said that any order passed at this stage will be “too late” and result in “uncertainty” among students.

The high court order passed on July 21 was challenged before the top court in two separate petitions filed by the Delhi University and the university grants commission (UGC). Dismissing the two petitions, a bench of justices AS Bopanna and PS Narasimha said, “Taking note that the order passed is an interim order and the high court has made admission subject to the final outcome of the writ petition, we see no reason to interfere at this stage.”

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This is the second year that the high court permitted the college to fill up the 50% Christian quota seats by giving 15% weightage to interviews. The college had approached the high court challenging a December 30 notification issued by the DU directing all admissions under the minority quota to be filled up solely on the basis of the common university entrance test (CUET) scores. The top court order told the high court, “Considering there should be certainty in the matter, we request the high court to decide (the petition) as expeditiously as possible.”

The Delhi University represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Court that the last date for close of admissions is August 31 and the college should not be permitted to proceed forward with the interviews. Defending the December 30 notification, Mehta said, “Last year, the college was allowed to give 15% weightage to interview. This year, we insisted they can select only meritorious students based on CUET scores against the minority seats. Due to the HC order, meritorious candidates are being left out.”

The college represented by senior advocate A Mariarputham and advocate Romy Chacko said that the admission process for this academic year is over. The senior counsel stated that the admission was not “unilateral” as the University was supplied the final list of students admitted under Christian quota. The list was approved and the University sent email to students for paying fees.

The bench told Mehta, “It will be unfair to students to interfere at this stage. There will be uncertainty among student community.” Pointing out the fact that the University has endorsed the admissions, the bench said, “You have written to the students to pay fees and the letter does not say the admission will be subject to the order (of high court). You are a little late to approach us.”

Mehta told the Court that the University was bound to process the admissions or else there will be contempt of the HC order. The Court said, “The HC order is of July 21 and one month has passed. You should have approached us before. The 15% weightage is an issue you will have to argue before the high court.”

The bench wished to know during the hearing if any meritorious students had approached the Court complaining against the interview process. Senior advocate Arun Bhardwaj appearing for a Christian candidate said that a petition is in the process of being filed as the petitioner atttended the interview but did not get admission. The solicitor general told the Court that it is only a matter of opening a small window for such candidates.

“Stephens is a prime college where admission cut offs end at 98-99 %. If a window is provided, the admission process can be over within a day,” Mehta said.

The bench maintained its stand and said, “At this stage there will be more confusion if we interfere as some students would have already been interviewed. It could happen next year. As per the interim order, let admissions go on.

On Friday, when the matter came up for hearing in the top court, Mehta claimed that the seats filled up through interview have virtually become “payment seats” to which the college had objected.

The college had approached the HC challenging a December 8 order passed by the DU executive council to the effect that even in respect of 50% minority quota seats, admission should solely be on the basis of CUET scores and no interview or addition of 15% marks for interview will be permitted. This led to the December 30 notification.

The HC in its July 21 order said, “A prima facie case has been made out that the petitioner will suffer an irreparable loss if interim relief is not granted at this juncture. The balance of convenience also lies in favour of the petitioner.”

The college claimed that over the years, it has been making admissions to undergraduate courses by earmarking 15% weightage for personal interaction or interview. Last year, with the introduction of CUET, the college had to admit students to its general category seats solely on CUET scores as the top court had in October 2022 refused to stay the HC order.

Last year too, when the controversy over CUET being applicable to minority quota seats arose, the HC had on September 9, 2022 permitted St Stephen’s to conduct interview for Christian students. Relying on this order, the HC extended the benefit to the college for this year too.

It is thought by today’s locals that W. P. Russell was the patriarch of Russellville, and instrumental in beginning the community of Russellville, South Carolina.

This is contradicted by one family member, who says it was Theodore Russell, a cousin of W. P. Russell, who was the founder. Regardless, we’re telling the story of John M. Camp, Jr., who came to the area in 1922, where he found W.P. Russell operating a ground mill beside his cotton gin five miles west of St. Stephen. Camp bought part of Russell’s farm and built his mill a half mile to the north of Russell’s store, which had served as a post office since 1916.

For newcomers to Berkeley County, Russellville is located on what used to be the old Murray’s Ferry Road (modern day S.C. Highway 35) going north, approximately five miles from Bonneau, toward Santee River.

In his autobiography, John (Jack) Madison Camp, Jr. tells us about his family and their lumber mill village history located in Russellville. “We moved to Franklin, Virginia in 1921, but we soon moved again. We went to the St. Stephen area of South Carolina, where Daddy had been assigned the task of building a new mill and mill village. These itinerant sawmill communities had a motto, “Cut Out and Get Out.” There was no reforesting program and no cry for it at that time.”

When the Camp’s moved into a new location that had a good stand of timber, they would keep cutting for some time, as was the case in the Santee area of South Carolina. The mill made a huge difference in the area, for sure, providing employment and a great economical boost. The plan was to work there for maybe fifteen to twenty-five years. The company laid down a center street, then set up a water tower that could be used for potable water uses and to supply the village that was soon to be built.

“They left room on the center street for the schoolhouse that my father built for the employee’s children. The Russellville community didn’t have a school in that area of Berkeley County at that time. Teachers were imported, much to the glee of all the single men in that area.”

Camp says it seemed to him that St. Stephen’s main reason for being was that the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad came through there. And that was of course true, but not the main reason. Church and religion were of utmost importance in early colonial time, so the “old brick church” was actually the primary reason for St. Stephen’s existence, and how the town got its name.

Just north, maybe a mile, of the little village of Russellville, made up entirely of Camp’s employees, was found a community club, a Parent-Teacher association, a home demonstration club, a two-story school building (see photo) in which two teachers (one of which was my Grandmother) taught and trained the young folks, and where on Sundays the auditorium served as a church and Sunday-School room, a two story hotel that would have been a credit to a much larger town, and twenty-two cottages, actually, they were homes for the employees, painted (!), and each with front and back yards that had been beautified.

Each year a civic contest was sponsored by Camp Manufacturing among its homemakers. A first prize of five dollars and a second of two-fifty were offered “to the one making the most improvements in the home grounds or to the one keeping the grounds most satisfactory.” Consequently, each yard turned out to be a bit of a garden, where kids romped and played, while their mothers sat on their screened porches (usually shelling peas and beans during summer months), passing away each day, pleasantly visiting one with the other of their neighbors.

Each home was screened and equipped with modern conveniences of lights and water, and practically each boasted a radio, and many with automobiles. The mill village of Camp had an electric system that drew its power from the company generator. Odd to us today, was the fact that at 9 o’clock P.M. the lights would blink once. At 9:05 they would blink twice, and at 9:15, all the current would go off until the next morning about daylight. Reason being, simply, the generators had to be shut down to maintain them.

The Camp family had lived in Virginia since before the American Revolution. The lumber business was started by P.D. Camp in Franklin in 1870. He later took into the firm his brother, R.J. Camp and J.L. Camp, and organized the Camp Manufacturing Company. All of the original members of the firm have passed on, and company tasks left to their sons.

Most likely, an important explanation of Camp’s success in business was its tenet that it is just as important to develop men as it is to manufacture lumber products. The heads of this firm always maintained that character building is superior to anything else.

Respect for the Sabbath was one of their policies that “must be held inviolate.” The story is told that when the Camps began their endeavor in the lumber business, the company had rented a tug to pull the logs up the river (this was in Virginia). The owners of the tug explained that they operated on a seven-day a week basis, and that is what they charged for. Camp replied that he understood this, and he expected to pay for seven days’ usage . . . but, he also intended to tie up the tug at 12 o’clock Saturday nights, where it would remain until 12 o’clock Sunday nights. Thus, after six-days a week, his plants, over those many years became silent on Sunday. (The only exception to this rule was boiler maintenance.)

Camp Jr. said at times his father would allow one of his hometown friends to come and visit him, and this was always a great and exciting occasion for both. They would stay in the men’s dormitory on the upper floor of the company store building (see photo). This was a big wooden building (I don’t remember if it was painted), covered in tongue and grooved siding (we call it “bead-board” now) that was made in the mill. The men’s dormitory consisted of several rooms and a big common shower and bathroom for the visiting men. The more permanent employees took up residence there in very modest rooms. Less permanent residents stayed over at Mrs. Nixon’s Boarding House that was only a few hundred yards away. There was some heat from individual wood fed heaters in the company storerooms, but there was certainly no air-conditioning.

The Company Store was a big two-story building, with three chimneys. Any of life’s supplies you needed were available. A major part of the first floor was a large porch out front. It was covered, not screened, and there were benches around the porch for people to sit while waiting to go into the store, or just to enjoy some community life.

Camp’s company store had a problem (as all general stores did), rats. Rice, flour, cornmeal, seed, etc., were being stored for use and sale. Cats were used from time to time, but probably were intimidated by the size of some of the rats. So, the company decided to use ferrets to keep the rats under control. They were slender, quick, and very aggressive. The ferrets had beautiful fur but were not very friendly. They would bite a person as quickly as they’d bite a rat. Nevertheless, they were necessary, and they seemed to keep the rats under control.

Camp’s homes (“quarters” to the locals) were close to the company store and arranged so that the houses faced each other across the main street. There was a rumor going around Russellville that all the children born on one side of that street were boys and all those born on the other side were girls. If a couple wanted to change the sex of the next child, they would just move over to the other side of the street. Oddly enough, that seemed to work for a long period of time.

The schoolhouse (see photo) and the boarding house were located at opposite ends of the street. Mrs. Nixon, the lady who ran the boarding house in St. Stephen, was a good manager. She furnished lots of good, very plain food to many hungry millworkers. Mill workers with no family could dine at the boarding house and be adequately nourished. Jack Camp, Jr. says “Mrs. Nixon also had an attractive daughter whose name was Elsie, who became fast friends with my older sister Virginia.” Teachers were allowed to have meals at the boarding house, offering variety, and a change of conversation for the men there.

Camp’s boarding house cook was Joe Poseskie, and Jack remembers Joe cooking frog legs. A lot of people ate frog legs, but they were sort of dangerous to cook, because reflex action left in the dead limbs caused the legs to kick the grease out. That often burned the cook, and needless to say, Joe didn’t like that.

The health of the Camp village was insured by company physician, Dr. Carroll, also the community doctor when I was young. Located between the white mill workers’ quarters and the black’s quarters that were located farther down the same street, the doctor’s office was approximately 200 feet from the company store. Many of the medical problems originated from emergencies at the mill, so he would go right into the place where there had been an accident and treat the patient there. Then he would take them to Moncks Corner to Berkeley County Hospital, or Charleston, depending on the care required for them. It wasn’t until the mid-fifties that Dr. Sam O. Schumann came to Camp village to practice medicine.

Camp Manufacturing Company in Russellville became Russellville Lumber Company, owned by Williams Furniture Company, then Southern Coatings and Chemicals in Sumter, S.C. In the middle 1960’s, Georgia-Pacific Corporation bought the Russellville Lumber Company property and began establishing the complex consisting of a plywood plant, chip-n-saw plant, particleboard plant, chemical plant, and forestry division . . . all at Russellville, South Carolina, employing 500+ people.

Resources: From his book While You’re Up, A Memoir, by John M. Camp, Jr., Charleston News and Courier, and personal remembrances. — Keith Gourdin