Six years ago, James Dasher began working with property owners in Effingham County to create a master planned development. But a lack of water and sewer and residents selling off their land on the property for the proposed site set the project back.
But now, Dasher may finally have a chance to buildout his dream community. For the last 18 months, he has been crafting a massive community that he says is unlike any other in the county.
Dasher hopes to build the community on a 668 acres on Midland Road and Highway 30 for a large-scale residential and commercial project.
According to information on a Development of Regional Impact (DRI) form, the site is expected to have 1,000 homes.
The estimated value of Salzburg Trails at full buildout is $700 million. However, Dasher said the numbers on the report are not set in stone.
The property has been forestland for many years but since the timber market has not been as strong as it was in years past Dasher said landowners were looking for opportunities to do something else with their land. The property owners contacted him more than a year ago, he said, and from there they began discussing what type of development would best fit the area.
"We have an agreement in our contract that the seller actually has to approve the development before we submit it to the county," said Dasher.
Inside Salzburg Trails
Upon entering the community, residents will be greeted by a lagoon stretching more than a mile alongside Salzburg Trails Parkway, a 2-mile road leading directly to their homes. Entrances to the community are planned for Midland Road and Highway 30.
The community is expected to include a mix of cottage-style and single-family homes. Dasher says he has been in talks with several national grocery store chains, although no commitments have been made thus far. Still, part of the concept plan for the development includes a space for a food mart.
"We lose millions of dollars every year with our sales tax to Chatham County because we have nothing in the south end of the community," said Dasher. "Our goal is to create a 35-acre commercial village. It's a walking district and 6 to 8 miles of trails will go throughout the entire community and connect the residential parks to the amenities, amenities to the commercial village."
He has more elaborate plans for the community. He envisions everything from a dentist office, UPS and insurance agent and more.
"When my daughter goes and picks up my grandkids from school in the afternoon and brings them to Pooler to the dentist or to the doctor, she's part of that commute traffic trying to get back home - we want to eliminate that," said Dasher. "You can hop on your golf cart, drive your kid to school, ride back to the commercial district, have a cup of coffee, grab your milk, and go home. The schoolteachers can live within the community, ride their bike to school. We'll have trails that go all the way to the school."
What is being planned for the community?
According to Dasher, he would like to build an elementary school. Although Creekside Elementary just opened in August, Dasher said the growth in the county is coming to the south end, an area he expects may need another K-5 school in the coming years.
Dasher's vision for the community includes pickleball courts, a spa style and lap pool, farmer's market and storybook garden. "We have wetlands and we really want to do a whole thing around learning and ecology, so environmental awareness," said Lisa Dasher, James Dasher's wife. "We also want a pollinator garden. We went to another subdivision where they had an herb garden for children to go in and pick herbs and learn about nutrition."
What's next for the project?
Dasher plans to bring the project before the planning and zoning board in November and the board of commissioners in December. A community Q&A session has been planned for Oct. 29 by Dasher at Buckingham Party Station from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. to show residents the planned development.
Visit the Salzburg Trails Facebook page for more information about the proposed project.
Latrice Williams is a general assignment reporter covering Bryan and Effingham County. She can be reached at lwilliams6@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Master planned 668-acre development proposed for Effingham | Exclusive
