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Council OKs Riverside Barn disc-golf contract and approves $340,000 Visit Bluffton marketing plan
Summary
Council authorized a $208,531.85 construction contract (plus 10% contingency) for a new Riverside Barn disc-golf course and approved a $340,000 FY2027 marketing plan from the Hilton Head Island Bluffton Chamber/Visit Bluffton that emphasizes PR and geo/AI search optimization for destination content.
Council authorized construction of a new Riverside Barn disc-golf course and approved the town's annual marketing plan with the Hilton Head Island Bluffton Chamber of Commerce during Tuesday's meeting.
Disc golf contract: Public services staff recommended, and council approved, a contract with Nix Construction for base work at the Riverside Barn site ($208,531.85) plus a 10% contingency for a total fiscal impact of $229,385.03. The scope includes site cleanup, grading, 18 concrete tee pads, baskets, signage, fencing adjustments and buffer planting; staff said public-services crews will install some furnishings to reduce cost. Construction is scheduled to begin in mid-July with a 130-day period to completion.
"We could be playing disc golf out there in mid-October," staff said, describing the schedule and the course design that mixes open and wooded holes for a range of players.
Marketing plan: The town approved a $340,000 FY2027 marketing plan presented by the Hilton Head Island Bluffton Chamber (Visit Bluffton). The plan highlighted strong 2025 fulfillment of the 30,000-piece vacation planner, growth in social followers and a new dedicated public-relations line item. A central theme of the presentation was a strategy to optimize town content for evolving "geo" and AI-driven search results (0-click summaries), which requires on-page, technical, and off-page work so generative-search engines cite Visit Bluffton as an authoritative source.
Chamber staff said the marketing plan will emphasize earned media, social content tailored to audience "personas," group-sales leads and a new PR focus to protect and amplify the town's brand as search and discovery change. Council voted to approve the marketing plan as presented.
Councilors discussed sponsorship opportunities for the disc-golf course to offset costs and asked staff to preserve contingency funds until construction is underway.
Speakers quoted from the meeting record: "It's a growing sport... there are even professional disc-golf leagues," one councilor said during discussion of public interest and event potential.
Next steps: Town staff will execute the construction contract, schedule a pre-construction meeting and begin work pending permitting; Visit Bluffton will implement the FY27 plan and report metrics to council as the year progresses.
