NORTH CHARLESTON — A long-planned new interchange on Interstate 26 is becoming a reality a decade after its initial design began.

Land clearing recently got underway to connect Weber Boulevard in the Ingleside tract with I-26.

Charleston County, which is overseeing development of the $54.5 million project, expects substantial completion by early 2026, according to spokeswoman Kelsey Barlow.

The new highway connection, called the Palmetto Commerce Interchange, has been in the works since 2013.

The intersection design doesn’t extend Weber Boulevard into North Charleston ‘s residential neighborhoods on the eastern side of I-26. On- and off-ramps from the westbound lane will direct traffic to and from the Ingleside development via Weber Boulevard.

Plans also call for a bike and pedestrian path to be included across I-26 from Ingleside Boulevard to Salamander Drive near Deerhaven Mobile Home Park.

The road work is meant to offer an alternate route for motorists who use U.S. Highway 78 and Ashley Phosphate Road to access the industry-laden Palmetto Commerce Park. The interchange will connect with a network of roads in the sprawling industrial site and the developing mixed-used Ingleside tract near Highway 78 and I-26.

Mayor Keith Summey called the new intersection “a real asset” that’s “going to take a lot of traffic off of Ashley Phosphate Road and Highway 78.”

The longtime mayor is not seeking reelection, and he won’t be in office when the road is completed.

“At least I can leave office knowing it’s being done,” Summey said. “It’s not a dream any more. It’s a reality.”

The project is underway while the landowner and the county haggle over the price of some of the affected real estate.

The county initiated condemnation proceedings in 2021 and they are ongoing, Barlow said.

“Once we have been notified, then they are able to proceed even if there is disagreement over the price,” said Eric Meyer, president of Weber USA Corp., which owns the Ingleside tract. “It will eventually be adjudicated  in the courts.”

The road project also will lead to a large mixed-use commercial venture that is in the preliminary stages of development.

Weber submitted plans to environmental regulators earlier this year, calling for 580,100 square feet of retail and restaurant space, 850 apartment units, 390 hotel rooms and a 45,000-square-foot parking deck on part of a large tract between I-26 and Norfolk Southern Railroad in the Ingleside tract.

The development site encompasses parts of Bluehouse Road and Ingleside and Weber boulevards near the future interchange.

The developer is proposing to build the town center-type enterprise on about 184 acres of the 352-acre tract. Nearly half of the parcel — 168 acres — is made up of wetlands.

When construction begins on the project, Weber USA expects to fill or excavate about 19 acres of wetlands near McChune Branch, which flows toward Goose Creek Reservoir and eventually the Cooper River, and offset the loss by buying credits from a Berkeley County mitigation bank.

Ten years ago, outdoor retailer Bass Pro Shops announced plans to bring a 130,000- to 150,000-square-foot store to Ingleside where the new interchange has long been on the drawing boards, but the big-box merchant is no longer part of the development, Meyer said.

Also coming to the Ingleside tract is a large new apartment project.

Ohio-based Lifestyle Communities is building 454 multifamily units on 27.5 acres off Ingleside Boulevard after paying $10.54 million for the property in August.

The mixed-used development will include an on-site dining venue called The Goat Bar and Restaurant, volleyball and pickleball courts, a pool bar with cabanas, fitness and wellness offerings, and an on-site coffee shop called Morning Ritual. A completion date has not been announced.

Reach Warren L. Wise at wwise@ postandcourier.com. Follow him on Twitter @warrenlancewise.