Hilton Head’s ‘mini-hotel’ could be first and last of its kind

A Hilton Head ordinance “loophole” that allowed two new identical Heron Street homes to be connected by a common deck — dubbed by critics as a “mini-hotel” — might be eliminated.

At Tuesday’s Town Council meeting, mayor David Bennett, responding to a Forest Beach resident’s concerns, said the council has asked town staff to draft a proposed change to the town’s land management ordinance to prevent future situations similar to the Heron Street development, located just a few streets from Coligny Plaza.

That development — two 3,100-square-foot homes connected by a large, wooden deck — has spurred outcries from area residents contending it will turn their quiet neighborhood into a resort.

Charles Cousins, town director of community development, said Wednesday the ordinance revision has not yet been drafted, and that the proposal would require two readings by the Town Council before going into effect.

Teri Lewis, the town’s LMO official, said any proposed changes would first go to the town Planning Commission for a public hearing and then to the Public Planning Committee.

Town staff previously said the Heron Street development was the first time the LMO waiver, which has been used in commercial developments to allow two buildings to function as a single unit, has been applied in a single-family residential area.

Renea Hushour, the Forest Beach resident who spoke at Tuesday’s meeting, said she didn’t want the issue to “fall off the map,” and asked that the LMO be re-examined to ensure there are no other “loopholes.”

“Destroying the buffers between these two houses should never have been allowed had the LMO change been worded to apply to commercial only,” Hushour said. “It needs to be done as soon as possible.”

Bennett said Town Council members talked about the issue in a closed session a few weeks ago.

“Council felt the way the LMO was used in a residential setting achieved something that doesn’t really fit in with the character of the neighborhood around it,” he said, recalling that in previous discussions about proposed LMO revisions, the waiver was mentioned as something used only for commercial developments.

Contacted Wednesday, Jack Daly, president of the Forest Beach Owners Association, said he supported Bennett’s comments.

“That is excellent,” he said. “That upholds and secures the spirit of the LMO.”

Forest Beach residents wearing anti-“Heron Hotel” stickers protested the development at the last regular Town Council meeting. One resident told council members that she thought the issue required an investigation.

The Forest Beach Owners Association has filed an appeal to the town’s Zoning Board of Appeals regarding the decision to waive the setback and buffer requirements for the Heron Street properties. Hushour said at Tuesday’s meeting that other residents have also filed appeals to the board.

This story was originally published June 21, 2017 at 6:52 PM with the headline "Hilton Head’s ‘mini-hotel’ could be first and last of its kind."