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In 2006, the town agreed to pay part of the cost of building a rowing center on town-owned property along Skull Creek, provided $1 million was raised by the private sector.
Island rowers and sailors say a center is needed because rowing and sailing facilities on the island are too small and crowded or not open to the public.
But only $100,000 has been raised and $330,000 worth of equipment -- boats, paddles and safety gear -- has been donated so far. That is a fraction of what is needed to build and run the center, town staff said. Four years ago, private architects who designed the center estimated it would cost $1.5 million for construction and equipment.
Town staff say the price tag has risen to $2.6 million, not including operating costs.
The Public Facilities Committee and town staff said Tuesday they would work to find a way to build a center, even if it has to be scaled back.
"I, for one, am tired of saying 'no' to this project," said committee member John Safay.
The cost estimates have increased partly because the proposed 2.2-acre site off Squire Pope Road, once home to a seafood co-op, needs a major cleanup.A dock there is a heap of rotted wood, and town officials need environmental and safety permits to rehabilitate it, said community development director Charles Cousins.
At least four boats apparently are abandoned on or near the property, and their removal would require licensed workers because of potential dangers and environmental concerns, Cousins said.
In 2006, the town received a $50,000 grant through the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control to remove 11 shrimp boats littering the same site, which it did. However, town staff say that grant no longer is available.
Town staff say they will meet with Carolina Sailing Center and Palmetto Rowing Club representatives during the next several weeks to determine how much it would cost to build a smaller center.
The center's original plans included a sailboat dock with boat storage, community pavilions, a playground and space for historic native-islander uses like fishing and crabbing. Public Safety Committee members, rowers, sailors and members of the Stoney community where the site is located say they would settle for a center that has only a dock and some restrooms.
"If it's just cleaning up the site, we can start there. ... Even that to us will be a promise that something is going to happen," said Louise Cohen, a member of the Squire Pope/Stoney Property Owners Association.
"This is a moment for Hilton Head to reassess something that I think is really important to the vision of the island," said Claire Morda, a member of the Carolina Sailing Center. "If you don't live in a gated community, you're not going to learn to crab or sail. It is so important for our kids to have this."
