Once a Hilton Head bank, now it’s housing Sea Pines workers. Look inside the apartments

The two-story building at 1036 William Hilton Parkway was formerly a bank.

Then the Greenplate family purchased it, cut it in half, closed in the drive-through and used a demolition robot to get the bank vault out, turning the building into workforce housing at a time when many island businesses are struggling to house workers nearby.

The family owns the property, but the Sea Pines Resort has a two-year lease on the “36 South” apartments to house 48 of its workers.

“What’s the highest and best use for these buildings?” Brandon Greenplate asked about the surrounding office spaces and stores. “Retail banks aren’t it anymore.”

Greenplate, 28, said he hopes that their work is a catalyst for solving Hilton Head’s workforce housing problem and that it was feasible because they’re private investors. Brandon, his brother Evan, 24, and his parents worked to construct the apartments without entering into a workforce housing agreement with the town, which gives developers zoning benefits in exchange for a commitment to provide workforce housing and adhere to certain requirements.

In the over three years since the Town of Hilton Head put its workforce housing incentives in place, no developers have taken advantage of them, according to spokesperson Andrew Davis. The requirements would disallow many employers’, such as the Sea Pines Resorts’, target tenants: seasonal workers and people who aren’t single-family living together.

Even without a formal agreement, “it will forever be housing for employees,” according to Greenplate, who is a real estate broker. “We are big believers it takes private investors to solve the problem.”

They’re one of the first private investors on the island to complete workforce housing to rent to businesses that will then rent to workers. The Richardson Development Group converted a vacant three-unit development in 2019, housing 38 people on Park Lane near the south end.

“These businesses’ efforts are to be applauded for their forward thinking and creative approach to this issue,” Davis said in a statement to The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette. “It is only through the combined efforts and innovative thinking of both the Town and its economic associates that we can find options for people to live where they work.”

These private conversions are different from the town-sponsored North-Point project or the SERG Restaurant Group turning offices into dorm-style housing for its workers.

The family started demolition in August 2023 and some tenants coming from seasonal work in Montana have already started to move in. Almost all of the 48 residents will be situated before the RBC Heritage Golf Tournament this month, barring one unit that still needs to be finished.

There are eight three-bedroom, three-bathroom units, with two beds per room. That means six people per unit. The apartments are complete with full kitchens, living rooms and storage. What’s more is that tenants, many of whom don’t have cars, can walk or bike to grocery stores, the beach and work.

The family invested about $2 million to $3 million into the property, according to Greenplate, plus the $1.85 million they bought it for, according to property records.

Of the renovations and construction, removing the bank vault with a demolition robot wasn’t the most difficult part, according to Trey Graves, who is the superintendent of Graves Construction Company.

“Ain’t nothing easy about it,” he said of the build, explaining that while it was a challenge, there weren’t any major hangups. The project took about 200 days, he said.

Graves’ grandfather constructed the original building, and the company has been designing homes in the Lowcountry since 1959.

Graves lauded his team for being able to move quickly but said that his carpenters, electricians, plumbers and other workers are exactly the type of people who need workforce housing on the island. And they don’t have it.

“Everyone who worked with me said (....) ‘Can I live here? Can I rent this?’” Graves said. “They all commute from Ridgeland and Hardeeville everyday.”

If the Greenplate’s vision continues, they soon might be able to.

“We’re looking for the next one now because there’s such a demand for it,” Greenplate said.