I
t's November 5, 1985, and Marty McFly is meeting Dr. Emmett Brown at the Hill Valley mall. The scene is familiar: a large indoor mall in the background, an empty parking lot in the middle of the night. What does time travel have to do with Summerville and real estate? More than you might think.
Dr. Brown stands on the blacktop parking lot, surrounded by white-striped spaces. He tells Marty, "Things have certainly changed around here. I remember when this was all farmland as far as the eye could see." Chris Rogers notes that Summerville is known as the Flowertown in the Pines, and indeed, things have changed since 1955.
Marty's journey takes him back to November 5, 1955, where he crashes into an old barn. He hides the DeLorean time machine behind a billboard featuring an animated family of four promoting Lyon Estates: "Live in the home of tomorrow... Today!" Behind the billboard are hundreds of acres of undeveloped land.
In Hill Valley's courthouse square, Marty is shocked to find himself in 1955. The town center is bustling with activity, similar to Summerville's downtown today. Buildings feature retail and office activities, and people of all ages enjoy life in the square. There's a diner and theater, just like Summerville's downtown.
Humans love nostalgia, but preservation isn't about protecting what's old or historic; it's about leaving something intact that means something to people today. The Summerville area is a prime example of this transformation, with former timberlands being converted into new planned community sites.
In the movie, Marty's father falls out of an oak tree in a traditional 1950s neighborhood, complete with trees forming a canopy over the road. Today, we see neo-traditional designs in many newly built communities, featuring driveways, detached garages, and front and back porches. These designs encourage community and are reminiscent of the 1950s.
The final scene shows Dr. Brown's DeLorean parked in Marty's driveway, preparing to accelerate into the future. As they take off, Dr. Brown says, "Roads? Where we are going, we don't need roads." Maybe one day, Summerville won't need roads either.
