What are the things that make Hilton Head Island unique?
Certainly you’d have to include its natural beauty, the beaches, the national branding, the climate, the spirit of volunteerism and events like the Verizon Heritage.
But what about the island’s weaknesses?
How about aging buildings and infrastructure, the high cost of insurance, the tax on second homes, the limited career opportunities and dependency on tourism?
Those were just some of the issues discussed at the first meeting of the Mayor’s Task Force for the Island’s Future, which was held in January.
Hilton Head Mayor Tom Peeples created the board to “chart the course for island’s next 50 years that will compare favorably to the last 50 years of our history,” he wrote in a letter to the 15 board members asking for their service on the task force.
The chairman of the task force, David Ames, a developer and longtime islander, said the future of the island is a concern of many residents and business people.
“I’m not the only one who’s been talking about these things,” said Ames. “(Fellow task force member) Kumar Viswanathan was one of those talking about the town getting its act together to stimulate redevelopment on the island. He was looking at commercial decay on the island; I was looking at a broader perspective. The question is: Are we really paying attention to where we’ll end up if we maintain the status quo?”
So the task force was born. It includes people with a range interests, including the native island community, residential communities, development, tourism, health care, the arts, education and retirement, among others.
Their charge, as laid out by the mayor, is to:
- Review, refine and recommend a set of core values intended to guide both commerce and government actions for the future of the island.
- Develop a succinct mission statement of who we are as a town and how we should position ourselves in the marketplace.
- Identify no more than five key areas of focus for the town, based on the core values and the mission statement, over the next 25 years.
- Recommend strategies for implementation of these key focus areas.
Ames said the group is using the comprehensive plan that the town Planning Commission spent two years updating and will organize that information into strategies for the town to pursue.
“We’ll distill that information and come up with a vision for the island’s future to inspire residents, guests and business investment, and to not only do that, but come up with specific strategies for the town to implement,” he said.
To that end, the first meeting consisted of a “SWOT” analysis, that is, what are the town’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats? The task force is also looking at “core values,” that is, what makes Hilton Head a distinctive place? What establishes our community personality?
“That broad vision will help us create context/foundation for making decisions,” said Ames. “The fundamental basis of the process is to understand what is going to sustain the economy of Hilton Head Island.”
With that in mind, three subcommittees have been formed: tourism, retirement and business unrelated to tourism or retirement.
“That plugs into our vision and that goes to essential components of economic drivers. Then, that vision and essential components will be brought together in a team charrette,” said Ames. A charrette is a collaborative session in which a group drafts a solution to a problem.
The task force will create priority lists and then specific strategies for the town to address those priorities.
It’s working diligently toward that goal. The mayor has asked the panel to finish its work in six months.
“Charles Fraser created what he created by making a commitment to a high standard of design excellence,” said Ames.
“It’s important to remember those things and the fact that it’s a much different world today. We aren’t just one man owning a company.
“There is so much that makes this island unique,” he said. “… We have an opportunity to write a the second chapter for this island.”
The members of the Mayor’s Task Force for the Island’s Future are: Chairman David Ames, a long-time resident who has served on various government and private boards, most recently served as chairman of the county’s Aviation Advisory Board; native islander developer Tom Barnwell; Willis Shay, a former chairman of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra; J.R. Richardson, owner of Coligny Plaza; Gail Quick, a member of the Land Management Ordinance Committee and a former vice chancellor at the University of South Carolina Beaufort; Joe Harden, founder of Harden Homes; David Tigges, a managing shareholder of the Beaufort County unit of McNair Law Firm; Mark Baker, co-owner of Wood+Partners land-planning and landscape architecture firm; Peter Kristian, general manager of Hilton Head Plantation; Elizabeth Lamkin, former CEO of Hilton Head Hospital; Marc Frey, CEO of Frey Media; Kumar Viswanathan, CEO of Asset Management Associates; and Steve Birdwell, president of Sea Pines Resort. Non-voting members are Drew Laughlin, council liaison; and Steve Riley, town manager.
The task force meets on the second and fourth Monday of every month. Visit www.hiltonheadislandsc.gov/boards for times, places and agendas.
