Palmetto Hall trees coming down to help Hilton Head Island Airport

After years of negotiations, a tree removal and trimming project is underway in the Palmetto Hall neighborhood to increase safety at the nearby Hilton Head Island Airport.

“The trees on our property had grown to the point where they were affecting … potentially the safety of the airport,” said Jim Webb, chairman of the Palmetto Hall property owners association’s airport committee. “So, (Federal Aviation Administration officials) said, ‘Hey, we need to do something about this.’ ”

Cutting down roughly 50 trees and trimming another 300 will help prevent planes from scraping the treetops that currently encroach into the FAA-designated flight slopes that planes follow as they fly in and out the airport.

“That’s not only important for the planes and the pilots, but for the neighbors too,” said Beaufort County airports director Jon Rembold.

In addition to improving safety, getting treetops out of the way of planes could allow for the use of more runway space.

Once the trees are cleared, the county plans to petition the FAA to use an additional 300 feet of the existing Runway 21 that the airport is not currently allowed to use because of too-tall trees north of airport property, Rembold said.

The tree project, however, will not address any additional trimming deemed necessary for the airport’s runway extension, which is slated to start next year.

Reaching an agreement

After years of disagreement over cutting the trees, Palmetto Hall residents entered into a $1 million agreement with the Town of Hilton Head Island and Beaufort County late last year.

Under the agreement, county crews can remove and trim trees as long as Beaufort County and the town pay for a neighborhood replanting program. Shorter trees and shrubs will be planted soon, creating a natural barrier to block noise and light from the airport.

The county and town have each contributed $500,000 for the replanting project.

“We didn’t want (portions of the community) to look like an extension of the runway — a flat, clear cut area,” said Bob Gentzler, a Palmetto Hall resident and former chairman of its airport committee. “And through all (of the negotiations), I think we have been able to accomplish that.”

The $1 million pledged to Palmetto Hall is being held in a fund — a savings account of sorts — managed by Hilton Head Island, said town manager Steve Riley.

The town has agreed “to kind of serve as the bank and disperse the money” as needed when the Palmetto Hall POA begins hiring landscape architects and contractors to plant new trees and build the barrier, Riley said.

Rembold called the money an “up-to amount” that was negotiated between the town and county administrations and elected officials and the property owners. Any money left in that $1 million pot would be split equally and returned to town and county coffers.

Once the existing and newly planted trees grow tall enough to be a potential danger for planes — which is expected to take decades — the county will be responsible for future tree trimming and removal, Webb added.

Next up: St. James Baptist Church?

St. James Baptist Church sits less than a half-mile from Palmetto Hall on Beach City Road — a virtual straight-shot from the end of the airport runway.

St. James’ representative Herbert Ford said the ongoing tree removal at Palmetto Hall has already had an impact on the church.

“Since those trees have been cut back, the noise at the church has increased,” he said.

“Sometimes the services come to a stand still when planes go overhead,” Ford said. “You can’t hear anything. There is no singing. The pastor stops preaching.”

Beaufort County administrator Gary Kubic said his staff has had preliminary meetings with St. James leaders in hopes of coming to an agreement on tree trimming at the church. Those conversations have also touched on what can be done to minimize airport noise at the church

Ford said the talks are ongoing and “nothing has been defined or determined yet.”

While the Palmetto Hall agreement could potentially serve as a model for such an agreement, Ford said the church’s location “makes it more directly impacted by the airport.”

“So, we would hope the county would look at us somewhat differently than Palmetto Hall,” he said.

“The county recognizes the church’s place and cultural importance in the community,” Ford said. “They want to do the right thing. I really believe that.”

Doing the right thing, as far as the church is concerned, could mean the county and town agreeing to pony up more than the $1 million set aside for Palmetto Hall tree projects, he said.

This story was originally published May 13, 2016 at 4:00 PM with the headline "Palmetto Hall trees coming down to help Hilton Head Island Airport."