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Council approves zoning changes to allow workforce housing in medical district near hospital
Summary
The Hilton Head Island Town Council voted 7-0 to amend sections of Title 16 to permit residential workforce housing in the Medical Zoning District and approved a zoning-map amendment tied to the Palmetto Headlands/Hilton Head Hospital master plan. Planning staff said development-plan review and demolition permits will follow.
The Hilton Head Island Town Council on Feb. 10 approved amendments to the town’s land-management code to allow residential workforce housing within the Medical Zoning District and separately amended the official zoning map to permit commercial and residential uses within the Palmetto Headlands/Hilton Head Hospital master plan. Both actions passed unanimously, 7-0.
Council moved the ordinance on second reading after a brief discussion about public opportunity to comment and next steps. Councilmember Bryson, who had removed the item from the consent agenda to allow questions, said she supported the change but wanted the public to understand the follow-on review and permitting steps.
“Where does the process go after the adoption of the zoning?” Bryson asked. Planning staff Zach Gordon replied that the next step is development-plan review: “We did have a meeting last week with representatives of the hospital, and … as they get through the process and get their approvals, demolition will be coordinated with the approvals and … all the environmental protection measures required,” Gordon said. He said staff hopes to wrap plan approval and permitting by June and then proceed toward demolition and construction.
The ordinance cited amendments to multiple sections of Title 16 (sections cited on the record) to allow workforce housing within the Medical Zoning District; the council also approved an order amending the official zoning map for specific parcel IDs in the Palmetto Headlands overlay to allow commercial and residential uses.
No members of the public signed up to speak on the map amendment at the meeting. Council said the development-plan review will include public hearings before the planning commission and further public notice when site plans are filed. The council vote on both items was recorded as 7-0 in favor.
What happens next: planning staff will process development-plan review, then coordinate any demolition and building permits; council members said the planning commission review and permitting process will provide additional public-facing opportunities for comment.
