Combating crime in South Forest Beach tops Hilton Head leaders' to-do list in New Year

Update: This article has been updated to reflect the correct number of "split unit" condos at Xanadu Villas.

Combating crime in South Forest Beach is at the top of Hilton Head Island leaders' to-do list following concerns this fall about split units in Oceanwalk and Xanadu villas.

Mayor David Bennett has ordered the town's Public Safety Committee to review crime data and confer with neighborhood residents on recommendations the town should consider to curtail crime near the island's bustling Coligny tourist district.

The committee met with residents for the first time on the issue Monday morning, but no ready solutions emerged for what has become an increasingly complex crime problem there, town leaders said.

"You've got some problems on South Forest Beach," said Bruce Bartow, an Oceanwalk owner and former condo board president. "Are they insurmountable? No. Can they get worse? Yes, especially if (town officials) sit back and do nothing."

Bennett agrees and has asked the committee to quickly prepare recommendations by next month. But it's clear that more homework needs to be done before the town can act, he said Monday.

"This issue is much more broad than just (split) units at Oceanwalk and Xanadu," Bennett said. "Based on the calls, emails and conversations that South Forest Beach residents are initiating, I think we need to take a look at the underlying issue. (Split units) are a symptom and a contributor (to crime)."

MORE THAN TRIPLE THE NUMBER OF POLICE CALLS AT OCEANWALK

The new push to investigate South Forest Beach crime was born after Bartow and other neighborhood residents repeatedly raised concerns that split units at Oceanwalk Villas could be contributing to crime in the area.

They have asked the town to prohibit splitting three-bedroom condos in Oceanwalk and Xanadu villas into two individual rentals -- in most cases by separating the "mother-in-law suite" bedroom by a door, sometimes with a lock.

Those split units, often referred to as "lockout units," are typically rented by cash and can attract unsavory tenants who wish to remain "off the grid" without passing a background check or giving a legal name for utilities, say Bartow and Forest Beach Owners Association President Jack Daly.

Crime statistics for both Oceanwalk and Xanadu villas appear to underscore that theory, said leaders for both condo associations on Monday.

Beaufort County Sheriff deputies responded to 31 calls for service at Xanadu in 2015, but responded to 98 calls at Oceanwalk, said Capt. Joey Woodward, who leads the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office Southern Enforcement Branch on Hilton Head. Calls to Xanadu included parking violations and disturbances, while calls to Oceanwalk included an armed robbery, two assaults, breaking and entering, narcotics and a half-dozen stolen property incidences.

The presence of split units appear to be the only difference between the two buildings.

Both buildings sit back-to-back near the old Metropolitan Hotel on South Forest Beach Drive. Oceanwalk includes 79 units and Xanadu has 72 units, most with "mother-in-law suite" formats.

But about 40 condos are rented as split units in Oceanwalk and only 3 are currently split in Xanadu, condo leaders said.

Long-time island developer David Ames called the split units "a scourge on this community," condemning their possible connections to crime.

"We are not doing ourselves any favors by allowing them to exist," Ames said. "It's extraordinarily shortsighted, dealing only with money for today, that we are making decisions to perpetuate this.

"We who have given our lives to this community cannot tolerate the smokescreen of legalese when the very fundamental qualities of this community are being sacrificed," he said.

THE FIX

Councilmen Lee Edwards, Marc Grant and Bill Harkins will meet with town staff over the next few weeks to decipher the South Forest Beach crime data and review town rules about split units.

They are also likely to ask the state fire marshal to review the local split units to determine if they violate the National Electric Code, Harkins said. The council might also need to review its development rules for split units, Bennett suggested.

But questions still surround whether it is legal for the town to intervene.

Town building official Bob Klein and the Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeals ruled last fall that the split units in Xanadu don't technically violate electric codes. Nor do the split units violate the town's density and zoning rules for the buildings under the land management ordinance, town community development director Charles Cousins said.

But frustrated council members and mayor say "common sense" should prevail -- the split units appear to be violating the spirit of the law, if not the letter, they say.

"In my opinion, we should create a plan of action that deals with issues similar to this for the future, not just for one instance," Grant said. "If we have a major issue that comes up in the future, how would we be able to handle that, too?"

Grant, who leads the Public Safety Committee, will schedule another public forum later this month to revisit the council's discussion with staff about the issues and review residents' concerns, he said. That meeting has not yet been scheduled.

"We clearly have a problem," said Councilman Bill Harkins, a member of the committee. "I don't think there's one person in this room that would like to see a perpetuation of what's taking place at Oceanwalk ... But I don't have the solution right now."

Follow reporter Zach Murdock at twitter.com/IPBG_Zach and at facebook.com/IPBGZach.

Related content:

• New Best Western signals new life for old South Forest Beach area, Dec. 17, 2015
• Hilton Head Mayor Bennett: Fix dangerous subdivided condos, Aug. 26, 2015
• Insurer might drop Hilton Head condos for electrical-panel problems, May 1, 2015
• Xanadu, Oceanwalk condo owners told to fix electrical-panel problem, July 9, 2014

This story was originally published January 4, 2016 at 5:37 PM with the headline "Combating crime in South Forest Beach tops Hilton Head leaders' to-do list in New Year."