Produce stand must leave Hilton Head bridge area. Why Beaufort Co. is evicting a landmark
You might not know the name Wesley Campbell, but if you’ve driven onto Hilton Head Island in the last decade, you’ve most likely seen his business.
Campbell is the owner of Carolina Seafood and Produce, located under the Bluffton Parkway Flyover no more than 10 feet from the bustling U.S. 278.
Now, as Beaufort County, which owns the land where the business sits, plans to evict Campbell’s landmark fruit stand from its location, many locals are mourning the loss of a “Lowcountry staple.”
News of the planned eviction spread across social media Monday, after Josh Parlagreco, a business partner of Campbell’s, announced the news in a local Facebook group. Parlagreco’s post amassed nearly 500 likes and 200 comments as of Tuesday morning, as locals and tourists alike supported the business and condemned the county’s decision.
“This is so upsetting,” one commenter posted. “[Beaufort County government] is pushing all small businesses and healthy food supply off the grid!”
But the Facebook commenters are missing a key component of the story, according to Chris Ophardt, a spokesperson for Beaufort County government. Campbell’s lease expired more than two years ago, and the business is being evicted due to breach of contract.
According to documents from the County Council obtained by The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette, Campbell entered a two-year lease agreement in March 2018 and was informed the agreement would end in January 2020.
“Please be advised Beaufort County does not intend to extend the lease, renew the lease or to enter into a new lease. Please surrender the property back to the County ... on or before January 31, 2020,” County Attorney Thomas Keaveny wrote to Campbell in November 2019.
The county was prepared to evict Carolina Seafood and Produce from the property after the lease’s expiration in January 2020, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Campbell was allowed to stay two additional years.
“We think we’ve been fair,” Ophardt said.
Now the county is taking action. Carolina Seafood and Produce’s eviction notice was served July 11, and Campbell said he received the notice July 27.
“Beaufort County is aware of the complaints made on social media by the previous tenant of the property,” Ophardt wrote in an emailed statement. “We will allow this matter to play out in court.”
Beaufort County has no development plans for the land currently occupied by Campbell, Ophardt said. Because the property is located under the Bluffton Parkway Flyover, the county is required by law to clear it as a safety precaution. The land is not zoned for commercial use, Ophardt said.
Campbell confirmed Tuesday that he signed the two-year lease in 2018 and said he understands the county’s right to the land. But even as the pandemic fades, Campbell said, the “timing is bad” for the county’s eviction notice.
“Everybody’s just bottoming out right now,” Campbell said. “Life is just hard right now. For them to want to put [Parlagreco and me] out of business ... I don’t see no reason for it.”
Decades of history
Campbell was born and raised on Hilton Head, and his family’s roots on the island stretch back more than 250 years.
His produce and seafood stand started in early 1980 with business partner McKinley Williams. An article published in The Island Packet on Oct. 30 of that year said it had been in business eight months.
“We thought we would just do it temporarily,” Campbell said at the time, “but we liked it and decided to stay with it.”
Over the decades, the Carolina Seafood and Produce stand became a traditional stop for tourists looking to stock their Hilton Head vacation rentals with peaches, watermelons, tomatoes and jumbo Lowcountry shrimp.
At one time, Campbell owned a dozen produce stands, even in Harbour Town.
During the lengthy Bluffton Parkway flyover construction project, which started in 2015, Campbell was forced to move his primary business completely onto the island, to land he leased in the Spanish Wells Road area.
But in August 2020, that property was sold to the Town of Hilton Head, which was looking ahead to its U.S. 278 corridor widening project, and Campbell was evicted from that location. He then moved his stand to the parking lot of a family business on Adrianna Lane for a time. His sister now operates that part of the business while Campbell focuses on the business near the bridge.
What’s next?
Campbell is expected to appear in Beaufort County Magistrate Court on Aug. 15 to begin proceedings. He said he plans to fight to keep his stand open.
“We never had to fight like this before,” Campbell said. “The county would’ve welcomed me on the side of that road 30 years ago with open arms, and now they want to kick me out.”
In the event Campbell is forced to vacate the property, he said he has “no plans” for opening a new stand.
“Honestly, I’m so burnt out, I don’t know if I have the energy to fight any longer,” he said. “A lot of the local people like me, I think that’s what’s happened to them — they’ve lost energy.”
This story was originally published August 2, 2022 at 12:50 PM.
