Residents, state senator and preservation groups urge Beaufort County not to carve Pine Island out of cultural overlay

Dozens of residents and community leaders urged the Beaufort County Natural Resources Committee on Sept. 2 to reject a proposal that would carve part of Pine Island out of the county's Cultural Protection Overlay (CPO) to allow a private development and golf course. The session included a reading of a letter by a state senator and more than two hours of public comment from island residents, preservation groups and people who said they trace their families' history on Saint Helena.

Queen Quet, chair of the Gullah Geechee Sea Island Coalition, called the island's burial areas and marshlands "sacred," asked the committee to preserve the CPO and urged "no carve outs, and no negotiations on keeping it protected." Jermaine Simmons said the island's way of life and opportunities for youth are being damaged by outside development and pleaded that officials "stay righteous" and protect the community's heritage.

Attorney Andy Gowder, representing Open Land Trust, told the committee the Pine Island development agreement and requested rezoning "fail to meet the statutory requirements for development agreements under South Carolina law" and that the proposed plan includes uses the ordinance explicitly prohibits, such as golf courses on Saint Helena Island. Gowder urged denial of rezoning and the development agreement and asked the county to enforce the CPO as written.

A state senator who was recognized by the chair read a letter urging council not to "retreat from CPO protections" and warned that exceptions would set a precedent that could erode the overlay's protections. "A society is defined not only by what it creates, but also by what it refuses to destroy," the senator said while urging the committee to preserve the island's cultural and natural resources.

Speakers in opposition repeatedly cited concerns that a golf course and gated community would raise taxes, increase traffic, require herbicides and irrigation that could harm marshes and fisheries, and displace long-standing residents. Several speakers asked the county to honor the 1999 CPO, which was enacted after public study and participation and specifically identifies golf courses as incompatible with the ordinance's goals.

A smaller group of speakers argued the developer's revised, down-zoning proposal could provide community benefits, such as infrastructure and workforce investments, and described outreach efforts with residents; they framed negotiated concessions as a potential path to fund heirs-property reforms and job training. Those speakers recommended continuing negotiations but did not point to a final council action taken by the committee.

Planning staff and committee members outlined the procedural history: the planning commission voted 7-1 to deny the zoning amendment on May 5; the applicant requested and received a deferral before a June hearing; subsequent requests for deferral were processed and, by agreement among council leadership and the committee chair, the zoning amendment and development agreement will be first considered at full council on Sept. 22, when the council will hold the first reading and public hearing.

The meeting produced no committee vote on the Pine Island development agreement itself. The public record will move to the full county council for the first reading and public hearing on Sept. 22, according to staff.