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Planning workshop held on Beaufort County School District’s River Ridge Academy annexation and rezoning
Summary
Planning staff hosted a workshop on annexation and concurrent rezoning of two Beaufort County School District parcels into the Town of Bluffton as 'Preserved (PR)' to permit school uses; the item will return for public hearings and council consideration after staff and the applicant refine documents.
Planning staff conducted a workshop on a proposed annexation and rezoning request submitted by the Beaufort County School District for parcels totaling about 24.12 acres adjacent to the River Ridge Academy campus.
Staff explained the parcels are currently in unincorporated Beaufort County and are zoned T2 rural in the county; the concurrent request is to annex the parcels into the Town of Bluffton and rezone them to the town’s Preserved (PR) district to allow school uses. Because schools are not currently a permitted use in PR, staff said the town is preparing a UDO text amendment to add schools as a permitted use concurrent with the rezoning request.
Sarah Robertson, representing the school district, said the proposal responds to Town Council’s priority to avoid adding residential‑density rights to these parcels and that rezoning to PR and adding schools as a permitted use is intended to preserve the parcels for education and ancillary campus functions. Robertson said the district may build an early‑childhood facility or relocate athletic fields and that the annexation process will continue with public hearings and a recommended council schedule that could include readings in May and June.
This item was informational at the planning commission workshop stage and no formal action was taken by the commission; the matter will return for a public hearing and recommendation to Town Council.
