Hilton Head leaders discuss asking state for ‘stay at home orders’ in emergency meeting
Editor’s Note: This story was last updated prior to the emergency meeting of Hilton Head Town Council. An updated version of this story can be found here.
A highly anticipated meeting of Hilton Head Island leaders promised to answer some of the community’s burning questions about limiting tourists and closing short-term rentals and non-essential businesses to slow the spread of coronavirus.
Instead, the meeting’s purpose appears to be to ask the governor for action. But Hilton Head Island may have a backup plan.
The Hilton Head Island Town Council will hold a virtual emergency meeting at 2 p.m. Thursday. On the agenda:
1. Asking S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster to issue a stay-at-home order: Mayor John McCann said he and other mayors are asking the governor for a 14-day “stay at home” order. He said if the state does not issue one, he and the town will start drafting a town-wide ordinance requiring people to stay at home.
Still, McCann said he prefers the word to come from the governor.
“We thought there would have a lot more force from the governor’s office coming down,” he said. “But council has prepared (a stay at home ordinance) to issue next week.”
McCann said a local stay at home ordinance would look a lot like the one Charleston’s City Council approved Tuesday. That ordinance closed non-essential businesses and enacted a two-week “stay at home” order to its residents outside of grocery, pharmacy and doctor visits.
2. Approving a statement from town council to the community: Council member Tom Lennox said the statement would explain a stay at home order if one were implemented.
“We’ve got to try to define it as best we can if the order comes,” he said. “That statement would be taking a stab at that.”
McCann added that the statement would also reiterate the importance of social distancing and hand washing.
3. Authorizing letters to state and federal officials seeking economic and medical assistance: McCann said the town is asking for both money and supplies from agencies, but he could not give an exact dollar amount he’s seeking.
4. Asking Hilton Head Hospital to share daily information on patients being treated for COVID-19: The council’s request comes as town staff and elected leaders try to confirm or disprove rumors of cases at Hilton Head Hospital. McCann said he has been receiving information from DHEC about cases by zip code, but not the hospital itself.
“We’re not getting that information fast enough,” McCann said, acknowledging he’s heard rumors of cases but been unable to address whether they’re true.
The council plans to discuss asking for a daily report from the hospital, owned by Tenet Healthcare, about any cases that are being addressed there.
5. Discussing future meeting schedule
Originally, the emergency meeting was requested by all council members except McCann.
They wanted a Tuesday meeting to discuss asking McMaster about access to the island (presumably via the bridge), prohibiting short-term rentals, closing non-essential businesses, sheltering in place and establishing a crisis task force.
McCann said the town did not have the platform to have the meeting virtually — a move the council approved at an emergency meeting held in-person on Saturday — and thus could not meet on Tuesday.
In the two days since, the agenda has shrunk.
The updated agenda comes as the mayor and town have faced repeated criticism online, accusing McCann of failing to act.
McCann, who closed the beaches Saturday, had stopped short of discouraging tourists to visit the island, changed his message Wednesday and asked them not to come. If they persisted, he said, he asked that they spend two weeks in self-quarantine.
The mayor’s request comes as officials in larger South Carolina cities such as Charleston, Columbia and Greenville have enacted curfews, restaurant restrictions or mandatory “stay at home” orders to ensure public safety.
Beaufort County ranks fifth, with 22 of the state’s 342 confirmed COVID-19 cases.
Thursday’s meeting will determine whether council members will have the opportunity to discuss more extreme measures, including prohibiting short-term rentals, as they’d planned. The meeting will also be the town’s first public run-through of holding a virtual public meeting in the time of a pandemic.
Council members reported being bombarded with comments from constituents regarding coronavirus earlier this week. Since Thursday’s meeting is virtual, the council will not face those comments directly.
How to “attend” Hilton Head town council meeting
Public comments can be submitted on the Open Town Hall webpage on the town’s website, but must be submitted by noon Thursday, town staff said.
Nearly 100 comments were filed as of 11 a.m. Thursday.
The comments will be summarized and provided to the council during the meeting. The mayor will address each public comment, town staff told The Island Packet.
This story was originally published March 26, 2020 at 10:58 AM.
