Planning commission recommends conditional rezoning of 1.4 acres on St. Helena Island to a rural center district

Beaufort County planning commissioners voted unanimously to recommend that county council approve a conditional rezoning of three parcels totaling about 1.4 acres on St. Helena Island to a T2 Rural Center (T2RC) zoning district, contingent on the applicant amending the application to match the recommended conditions.

Staff explained that the subject parcels sit at a historic commercial node at the intersection of Sea Island Parkway and Coffin Point Road, where an existing nonconforming building has housed commercial uses for decades. Staff recommended against a C4 Community Center Mixed Use designation because that district could allow more intense development inconsistent with the county’s rural future land-use designation; instead staff recommended T2 Rural Center to align zoning with the comprehensive plan.

Applicant representative Kevin Dukes, of the law firm Harvey and Batty, said his client is a longstanding local roofing contractor that seeks a small office and service yard consistent with T2RC standards. Dukes told commissioners the firm has performed work for county government and local schools and argued the site would support local jobs. He provided rough tax-revenue estimates showing an increase in business property tax revenue compared with current values.

Commissioners questioned scale and compatibility and discussed potential impacts on traffic and septic constraints; staff noted that the C4 district could theoretically allow large commercial floorspace (up to 50,000 square feet) that would not be appropriate and that T2 limits are more compatible with the site. Commissioner John moved to recommend approval of the rezoning to T2 Rural Center conditioned on the applicant amending the application; the motion was seconded and carried unanimously. The commission will forward the recommendation to county council for final action.