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My friend Jane McKay is spreading that "intriguing" idea she found at the restaurant during a recent weekend trip with girlfriends Lynn Clanton and Susan Brooks of Hilton Head Island and Randi Harms of Bluffton.
Here's the idea:
When Jane's party got their menus, they also got a flyer telling about the St. Simons Land Trust: "The St. Simons Land Trust is dedicated to preserving St. Simons' natural and scenic character, as well as enhancing the quality of life of the island community for present and future generations."
At the bottom the flyer reads, "St. Simons is a truly beautiful place; would you contribute a dollar to keep it that way?"
Those who wish can check a box and $1 is added to the check. Every penny of it goes to the St. Simons Land Trust, which has preserved about 75 acres since it was founded in 2000.
Jane's question is this: Why can't we do that here?
Jim Barta, a retired Marine fighter pilot who owns five of the restaurants with his wife, Barbara Jean, told me point blank that the last thing anyone would call him is a tree hugger.
"It's about smart land development," he said. "You don't want to kill the very thing that we love about our coast. If we're giving the option in or out on this donation, whose ox is gored? Nobody's."
He likes it because a wise result is achieved "without imposing anything on anybody."
At the Bartas' home restaurant on St. Simons, diners like Jane and her friends have had the $1 option for less than two years.
They've contributed almost 22,000.
Barta said it was a common sight here in Beaufort County that spurred him to action. On visits to the Barbara Jean's restaurant on Lady's Island, he saw signs saying, "View Preserved by Beaufort County Open Land Trust." That visual, he said, brought an intellectual abstract to life, and off he flew.
Dana Pope of the St. Simons Land Trust said the Barbara Jean's plan falls within the trust's Community Partners Program. It began with another voluntary plan started by a local business leader. Bill Jones III, chairman and CEO of the Sea Island Co., started asking guests of its exclusive Cloister and Lodge resorts if they'd like to contribute $2 per room per day to the St. Simons Land Trust. In less than seven years, that has raised more than $600,000, Pope said.
Why can't we do that? Our tourists contribute a lot through several accommodations and hospitality taxes. But this is voluntary.
We have exclusive resorts. We have tourist-oriented restaurants. We have several good local land-acquisition programs. We have businesses and visitors who care.
And we face growth that can kill the very reason we love the coast.
Why not?
