Bluffton adopts neighborhood plan, attempting to prevent unwanted development (2024)

BLUFFTON— Town Council adopted a neighborhood plan for Buck Island-Simmonsville with conditions intended to protect residents from developments that don't fit the neighborhood's character.

Neighborhood plans are guiding documents that detail projects officials can choose to pursue.

As presented to Town Council, the neighborhood plan took some steps to restrict development that doesn't fit with the Buck Island-Simmonsville neighborhood, like expanding a program to make repairs on homes for income-qualifying families, evaluating changes in the development ordinance and creating groups that allow residents to discuss local issues.

Bluffton adopted the last neighborhood plan for the area in 2009.

Noting the three developments in progress, Councilwoman Emily Burden suggested reevaluating the scale of residential density become a higher priority.

"I just hope that we can relook at this before anything else comes up," Burden said.

Buck Island-Simmonsville spans 1 square mile. The neighborhood is 26 percent Black, according to census data. Bluffton overall is 8.6 percent Black.

Three developments underway in the Buck Island-Simmonsville area will increase the number of households in the neighborhood and its direct vicinity by more than 50 percent. Among the new construction is an 85 single-family home project, with home prices starting around $400,000. Directly across the street from the development are mobile homes.

Buck Island-Simmonsville is one of the few areas in Bluffton to fall outside a Planned Unit Development, which allows developers to deviate from standard zoning requirements. Projects inside PUDs must include 20 percent affordable housing, per the town's development ordinance. Bluffton also has incentives for developments to construct affordable housing, but most builders have not taken advantage of the incentives.

Councilman Fred Hamilton said Bluffton should find a way to make developers adhere to the 20 percent affordability requirement affixed to PUDs.

"It's not that anyone is anti-development in those areas. It's just development that is going to significantly impact the area that changes what that landscape would have been, similar to if those areas were allowed in Old Town or Palmetto Bluff, the type of outrage would be if you change the landscape overnight," said Councilwoman Bridgette Frazier.

Frazier advocated for Blufftonto create a town-supported committee and appoint committee members. She previously likened the organization to the community development corporation created by Hilton Head in 2022 to preserve Gullah Geechee communities.

After deliberations, Bluffton adopted the neighborhood plan, amending the version presented by staff to prioritize evaluating development standards in the neighborhood, create a town-supported committee dedicated to enhancing and preserving the identity of the neighborhood, researching additional affordable housing incentives and including information on an existing drainage plan in the document.