For 60-some years, this place was about pine
trees, a farm from which International Paper had
been harvesting timber. In the 1970s, developers
had started buying pieces here and there, and in
the early 1990s, IP decided to grow a
self-contained community from scratch.
For people moving to live and work here,
Carolina Forest is a lesson in building
something from nothing. Unlike towns that spring
up by a railroad or a river and grow
willy-nilly, Carolina Forest was mapped out from
the start. Site planners picked spots for
subdivisions, a fire station, schools, a post
office, commercial development and churches,
said Allen Moore, regional manager of
International Paper Realty.
Even the name came from several focus groups at
IP in 1993, said Moore, who picked Carolina
Forest from the original list of 30 choices.
Once the Buist Tract had its suburban name, the
realty company put together a team of surveyors,
engineers and other urban planners for the
project, which already was attracting interest
from developers.
While there is room for another 45,000 or so
residents, the community is well formed.
