Bensch, Caporale forum pits northern, southern Beaufort County

While Beaufort County Council members Cynthia Bensch and Rick Caporale jumped quickly from topic to to topic during a community forum Thursday evening in Bluffton, a theme emerged that centered around the Broad River.

Not the river itself, but what the river represents — a divider between the northern and southern parts of the county.

Bensch, who is up for re-election this year, represents District 7, which encompasses portions of Bluffton. Caporale represents District 8, which includes parts of Hilton Head Island and greater Bluffton.

Both districts are south of the Broad River.

From issues ranging from economic development to environmental preservation, the message was clear: County Council members from opposing sides of the river have different priorities.

Both Bensch and Caporale have expressed support for the county joining a regional economic alliance, an idea opposed by other council members.

During a discussion on the issue Thursday, Bensch said the representatives of the northern part of the county look to the south, with its wealthier tax base, and “see southern Beaufort County as its alliance because we have the checkbook.”

Caporale said of southern Beaufort County, “We’re the bank.”

Bensch said, despite the fact that a significantly higher portion of tax revenues are generated in areas like Hilton Head Island, residents south of the broad are underrepresented on the County Council because of the way the county’s population is distributed.

The issue of using about $800,000 in county funds to renovate a building in Crystal Lake Park — north of the Broad River — was another sticking point.

Bensch quibbled with the price of the project, arguing that tax dollars from residents south of the Broad River are being used on projects those residents will never use.

Bensch also took aim at a series of passive parks planned for north of the Broad River on land purchased by the county’s Rural and Critical Lands Preservation Program.

“On this side of the river, it’s all plantations, and the developers pay” to build parks within communities, she said.

While taxpayer money is being used for projects in northern Beaufort County, areas such as Daufuskie Island “are being ignored,” Caporale said.

When conversation shifted to a proposed 1 percent sales tax increase that would be used to fund school construction, Caporale said voters north of the Broad River have historically “voted against every building project” south of the river.

“Will it stay that way? I don’t know,” he said.

While there were no County Council members from districts north of the Broad River at Thursday’s forum, Mike Covert, who is running for Bensch’s District 7 seat, was there.

“I’ve been keeping track of the comments” made by Bensch and Caporale, Covert said, “and so many of them are ‘us against them,’ north of the Broad versus south of the Broad.”

“These two complained about the entire rest of the county,” he said. “These two are the true leaders of the ‘us versus them’ mentality.”

This story was originally published March 24, 2016 at 9:20 PM with the headline "Bensch, Caporale forum pits northern, southern Beaufort County."