Hilton Head council approves first reading of Holiday Homes overlay amendment, applies pending ordinance doctrine
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Summary
The Town Council passed first reading of a text amendment to the Holiday Homes neighborhood overlay in the Land Management Ordinance, changing setbacks, impervious coverage, floor area and maximum height; council also voted to apply the pending ordinance doctrine so the amendment would take effect with the vote. The measures passed 5-1.
The Hilton Head Island Town Council on April 7 approved first reading of a text amendment to the town’s Land Management Ordinance that tightens standards for the Holiday Homes neighborhood, voting 5-1 after adopting the pending ordinance doctrine to make the change effective upon passage.
Interim Planning Director Trey Lowe presented the changes as a package meant to preserve the character of the 57‑lot Holiday Homes subdivision on the northeast corner of William Hilton Parkway and Folly Field Road. Lowe told council that 42 of the 57 lots had indicated support for the proposed text amendments, and that the measures had unanimous support through initiation and the planning commission.
The amendment would: reduce allowable impervious lot coverage from 50% to 45%; reduce the gross floor area threshold used in the district from 4,000 square feet to 3,200 square feet and remove an exclusion for parking and storage below base flood elevation; narrow driveway maximum widths within adjacent street buffers from 24 to 22 feet; limit garages to parking for two cars; and lower the maximum building height from 35 feet to 30 feet and cap buildings at two and a half stories. The staff report also clarifies how height and setback angles are measured in the ordinance.
Residents speaking in favor said the overlay updates align town code with long‑standing covenants and protect neighborhood character. Peter Christian, identifying himself as a resident of Hilton Head Island, said the overlay would give the town enforcement authority that small communities without a POA lack and said 83% of Holiday Homes owners had approved the changes in their outreach. "We're just trying to make both read the same," Christian said.
Longtime resident Rick Lawson said he and other lot owners drafted the original protective overlay after advice from a town representative, and that the revised text would reduce subjectivity in enforcement. Matt Lewis, another Holiday Homes resident, said the revisions are "minor changes" meant to codify homeowners' covenants and noted that governing bodies that reviewed the amendment unanimously recommended it.
Council debate included questions about how height would be measured and whether graphics should accompany the text. One council member voiced concern about setting precedent when a neighborhood is split on protections for communities without POAs, and another emphasized the age of Holiday Homes covenants and the desire to provide clarity for long‑time owners. Council voted 5-1 to approve inserting the pending ordinance doctrine into the amendment (allowing the ordinance to take effect with the vote). The subsequent vote on the ordinance first reading also passed 5-1; one council member was recorded in opposition.
The ordinance passed first reading and will follow the town's remaining ordinance process for final adoption and implementation consistent with municipal procedure. Copies of the staff report and the final text amendment were referenced at the meeting; details not provided in the meeting record (for example, the schedule for a second reading) were not specified at the hearing.
