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Residents Urge Caution on Short-Term Rental Rules; Questions Raised About Chamber's Tourism Grant Matching Funds
Summary
Several residents used the Oct. 7 public-comment period to urge council to slow implementation of a proposed short-term rental ordinance until the Land Management Ordinance rewrite is further along, and to ask for greater transparency about tourism-marketing grants and how matching funds are sourced.
Multiple residents addressed the council during the non-agenda public-comment period on Oct. 7, urging caution on a pending short-term rental ordinance and raising concerns about the Hilton Head Chamber's use of matching funds in a state tourism-marketing grant application.
Susan Wheatley, identifying herself as a Hilton Head Island resident, realtor and small-business owner, criticized a proposed amendment to the short-term rental ordinance and asked the council to "take a deep breath and let's do it right," urging that the Land Management Ordinance (LMO) rewrite be coordinated with any short-term rental rules to avoid conflicting regulations.
Richard Bussey of Indigo Run addressed the council about the Chamber of Commerce's application to the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism (SCPRT) for destination-specific marketing grants. Bussey said the grant program requires matching funds at a $2 private-match to $1 state ratio and asserted the Chamber listed approximately $4,450,000 in matching sources for the 2025 application. He told the council that much of the listed match appears to be surcharges collected from hotel guests and channelled through lodging companies to the DMOs, meaning those costs are ultimately borne by consumers rather than private businesses. Bussey said the DMOs agreed to be subject to public-record rules for the grant process while the Chamber has previously claimed it is not subject to FOIA. He recommended the town consider taking the destination-marketing function in-house.
Angie Hutchins urged council members to avoid overcomplication in new ordinances and to prioritize finishing the LMO rewrite, warning that rushed policies can lead to unintended consequences, enforcement burdens and litigation risks.
These comments were part of the public-comment portion of the meeting; council did not take action on the short-term rental ordinance or the Chamber's grant application during the Oct. 7 session. The statements represent commenters' claims and suggestions; the town did not present documentary verification of the grant-match amounts or of the Chamber's FOIA status during the meeting.
