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Council defers vote on Justice Square property sale; directs staff to negotiate amendments
Summary
Council postponed action on a proposed amendment to a purchase-and-sale agreement for county-owned King Street and Wilmington Street parcels and directed staff to negotiate with the developer after an executive-session discussion. The amendment would recognize a reduced maximum of workforce units from 39 to 33 due to state requirements.
Beaufort County Council on Nov. 10 deferred final action on an amendment to a purchase-and-sale agreement (PSA) for county-owned properties at 1407 King Street and 600 Wilmington Street, and directed county staff to meet with the buyer and counsel to negotiate terms before the Dec. 8 meeting.
Deputy county attorney Dylan Kidd and the developer’s counsel walked council through a multi-year negotiation that included historic-review approvals and environmental remediation. Counsel said the South Carolina Housing Authority’s changed spacing/earthquake standards reduced the maximum workforce housing units the grant program would support on the Wilmington Street block from 39 to 33. The developer’s team said that change—and associated timing for state funding—had materially affected the project’s financing and requested options such as reallocating the sales-price allocation and decoupling the two closings the PSA originally tied together.
During regular session the council voted to add an executive session to receive legal advice about the Justice Square PSA amendment. After the executive-session review, Councilman Cunningham moved to defer Ordinance 2025/50 (the PSA amendment authorizing the sale of the two county properties) to the Dec. 8 meeting and to direct staff to negotiate with the developer and his attorneys in advance. The motion passed unanimously.
What’s next: staff will hold negotiations with the purchaser’s counsel and return recommended amendments to the council at the Dec. 8 meeting.
