Local alum is turning an old Aiken plantation into affordable housing

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

News 12 This Morning

AIKEN, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) -- A former Midland Valley student is giving back to his hometown by turning an old plantation into affordable housing.

Tracey Turner owns a development company in Washington, D.C. His newest project is right where he grew up, a 174-acre property on Old Aiken Road.

He said he's ad the property on his radar for about five years, and finally bought it last week. Turner started his career as a computer programmer, but changed paths after he started flipping homes in Charlotte.

"The trend just kind of picked up," he said. "I started purchasing houses and doing fix and flips. My work started getting noticed around the city."

Now, he's taking on his biggest project. He plans to turn the old plantation into three subdivisions, two apartment complexes and some commercial space. Not only is this the largest project he's worked on, it also means a little more.

"I have six other government contracts going on, three private contracts," Turner said. "But this is what wakes me up in the morning. I cannot believe this deal is actually done and going through."

It took five years for Turner to lock down the property, but now he's more excited every day for what's to come.

"The Realtor told me this is the perfect ending and I said, 'No, this is not the ending. This is just the beginning of what we're going to do with this property,'" he said.

His plan is to start breaking ground this time next year and finish the first subdivision in 2022. He said the whole project should take about five years.