Beaufort County committee hears proposal for county to acquire 6-acre parcel next to Lady's Island Middle School

A Beaufort County Board of Education committee on April 11, 2025, heard from a member who attended a Green Space Advisory Committee meeting about a 6‑acre forested parcel on Sea Island Parkway, adjacent to Lady's Island Middle School, that is for sale and under active negotiation.

The committee was told the parcel sits west of Cougar Drive and was listed by a speaker at the advisory committee meeting for $2,200,000. County officials in attendance included Michael O'Shane (Green Space Advisory Committee chair), Councilman Lawrence McClellan, Senator Tom Davis, Deputy County Administrator Laura Robins, Alice Howard (chair of the county council) and county operations staff including Carol Crutchfield. The county’s representative said the Green Space Advisory Committee is prepared to buy the property; the county asked whether the school district would accept a deed if the county acquired the land and used it for public green‑space purposes.

The committee was told the district is not being asked to purchase the property. Instead, the county’s green-space fund would pay for the parcel and the county would take title and responsibility for maintenance and insurance; if outside groups use the site for events the county could require proof of insurance and collect fees, similar to existing arrangements (the meeting referenced prior use agreements such as for Burton Wells athletic fields during construction). Committee members discussed access and traffic: county engineering staff proposed access restrictions near Cougar Drive (right‑turn only configurations and a stop line) but the operations committee expressed reservations about closing or sharply restricting Cougar Drive. Any change to road configuration would require Department of Transportation approval.

Committee members noted the district has no uncommitted capital funds available to buy the parcel: the speaker said a previously approved referendum totaling $444,000,000 is fully committed to other projects. The seller reportedly has declined prior offers that would have placed commercial uses (storage facility or gas station) on the site; committee members said the county wants a decision quickly because an outside developer is pursuing the parcel.

The committee member who reported on the advisory meeting said the matter was added to the district’s upcoming work session agenda under the design and middle‑school development item and that the full school board will likely be asked to consider whether to accept a deed if the county purchases the parcel. No formal vote or transfer was recorded during the April 11 legislative committee meeting; the committee asked staff to add the item to the work-session agenda for the full board’s consideration.

Speakers asked for more detail on liability, maintenance and whether fees for outside users would apply; staff said standard practice is to require outside users to show proof of insurance and to collect a fee when the district or county permits use of a field or site.