Hilton Head mourns loss of top town engineer at 56. He was a ‘wonderful’ public servant
Hilton Head Island’s top engineer, Scott Liggett, suffered a significant medical emergency Monday night and is not expected to recover, according to an announcement made Wednesday by the Town of Hilton Head Island.
The 56-year-old’s family is considering organ donation options as news of his loss shocks the community that had come to depend on his level head, humor and institutional memory.
“He contributed to so many things that make the island a special place. He was a very rare individual: An engineer, he had good writing and communication skills, empathy and a willingness to listen to crazy ideas,” former Town Manager Steve Riley said of Liggett.
Planning Commission chairman Peter Kristian said Wednesday that Liggett was “a wonderful individual and public servant.”
Liggett worked 30 years for the town as an engineer and most recently was the director of public projects and facilities. He was always ready to help explain the town’s massive capital improvement plan and the ins-and-outs of projects on the island.
“During his tenure with the Town, Scott was involved in work that literally shaped the Island’s future as well as preserved its past,” the town wrote in a news release.
He spearheaded the town’s beach renourishment plan, which Riley told The Island Packet was one of the best things the town could do for its future. He led the town through the excruciating process of pumping new sand from the ocean floor onto its beaches.
“He genuinely cared about every speck of sand on the island. He made a difference, and he will be missed,” Former Mayor David Bennett told The Island Packet.
“I had complete confidence in Scott to do the best thing for the environment. He was a mentor and friend ... He was an integral part of beach preservation and will be sorely missed,” island environmental advocate and marine biologist Amber Kuehn told The Island Packet.
Liggett knew about road projects and all the parks on the island, along with their construction timelines and budgets. He was integral to the success of hundreds of major projects, including the Cross Island Parkway, the news release said.
His commitment to the town, the island’s environment and making Hilton Head a better place to live and raise children made him a faithful public servant and valued friend.
“His professionalism, intellect and wit will be missed by all who worked with him and interacted with him,” the release said.
‘He just loved this place’
Liggett, an avid hunter and fisherman, was a resident of Hilton Head Plantation with his wife Lou Ann. His son, Parker, is a recent graduate of Clemson University, and his daughter, Mallory, is a student at the University of Kentucky. Interim Town Manager Josh Gruber shared Wednesday morning that his family was at his side while he was hospitalized.
He will be remembered as a phenomenal Boy Scout leader, who loved sharing his passion for the outdoors with troops on trips to Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge and the Sea Pines Forest Preserve.
“Scott was a wonderful, kind and bright person. He invested in the lives of not only his children, but in countless young men through his service as Scoutmaster for several years in the Boy Scouts. His leadership at outings was natural and all the boys looked up to him,” Bennett told The Island Packet.
He presented the town’s capital improvement project to Town Council members last week at the group’s annual workshop.
There, he shared his excitement for an upcoming resurfacing project at the Sea Pines Circle and plans for beach renourishment in 2025.
In between scheduled activities, Liggett chatted with colleagues and shared jokes with the council.
“Scott Liggett is one of the longest term employees that we have. He was our beaches, he was our development person and I just enjoyed being around him,” Mayor John McCann told The Island Packet.
“He was very much the town,” McCann said. “He just loved this place. The town has always been Scott, and that’s what hurts. That someone close to us is not here anymore.”
This story was originally published February 3, 2021 at 10:00 AM.
