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Located among the marshes, oaks, and palmettos of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, I'On, a pedestrian-oriented community, is a study in Lowcountry history. Relics found on the site date back to Prehistoric times, before the European owner of the track, David Maybank II came to Carolina in the 1670s. A portion of Hobcaw Plantation, the I'On Tract was Maybank's residence. Upon his death the land was left first to his wife and later to his daughter, Susannah who was married to Jacob Bond.
Although the land changed hands many times after Maybank's death, the deed reserved the quarter-acre family cemetery located on the tract for future generations of the Maybank family.
In 1854 Jacob Bond I'On, a South Carolina statesman and great-great grandson of David Maybank II, erected a monument at the family cemetery, located one-half mile from the present I'On Company offices.
In 1995 Vincent and Thomas Graham visited the property and decided it was an ideal location for a traditional neighborhood. I'On was named in memory of Jacod Bond I'On. The I'On monument was restored by the I'On Company and Historic Resource Management, Inc. in October of 1996, and the cemetery was formally rededicated in December 1996.
I'On is a planned neighborhood reminiscent of early coastal towns. Filled with tree-lined streets and shady lanes, the design of this walking neighborhood encourages interaction with neighbors and the environment. Carefully balanced public and private space dot the 243 acres where 762 homesites are divided into six small "boroughs". The neighborhood is built as an interconnected network of streets and blocks, which include a commercial center, a variety housing types, as well as waterfront and public walkways where residents can meet and visit.
The objectives of the I'On design philosophy include: planning a community which promotes a feeling of place for residents, enjoying the community's natural resources and beauty of the public space in harmony with the private space, encouraging creativity and enthusiasm for cultural and social offerings within the community, and supplying a model for planning and architectural design for generations to follow.
Designed in the classic Lowcountry vernacular architectural style of Charleston, Savannah, the Old Village of Mt. Pleasant and Beaufort, homes in I'On feature deep porches or "outside rooms" facing the street to encourage neighborliness, high ceilings to allow for cross ventilation, tall windows to capture the breeze, traditional window, shutter, and door design, and fences, walls and gates to separate the private realm from the public, helping to complete the streetscape.
Native tree and vegetation provide buffers along the street and within the community. Public green space include the Rookery, a home to migratory birds and wildlike, the Eastlake Boathouse and Park located on 12-acre Eastlake, and the Marshwalk, a two-mile path along Shellmore creek as well as playgrounds, a soccer field, marshes, trails, and smaller lakes.
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