Meet the Democrats facing off for this Beaufort Co. council seat
Two Democrats will face off Tuesday, June 9 for the party’s nomination for the District 8 seat on Beaufort County Council.
Bill Beltz and Trey Judy are running in Tuesday’s primary election to be the Democrat that runs this November against the Republican nominee for District 8, which will be either incumbent Paula Brown or challenger Kraig Gordon.
District 8 includes Hilton Head Plantation, Moss Creek and other parts of Bluffton north of Fording Island Road directly west of Hilton Head.
Judy is a retired communications professional focused on finance and accounting who spent most of his career in Washington, DC. He has also served as president of the Bluffton Farmer’s Market. Beltz is a former teacher and general contractor who said he served on the Beaufort County Board of Education in the 1980s.
The Island Packet sent both candidates a series of questions about some of the biggest issues facing the county. Here’s what they had to say about infrastructure, preservation versus development and what they would do as council members.
Growth versus quality of life
Growth in Beaufort County and the surrounding areas is a major issue this election, with many candidates calling for infrastructure to be in place before new development projects are approved.
When asked what he would do about growth, development and infrastructure, Beltz referred the Island Packet to answers he gave to the League of Women Voters.
“Specific limits and guardrails will be proposed from all viable sources to maintain the infrastructure, with adjustments for new growth as needed to continue on any futuristic needs as new growth becomes inevitable and requires positive responses for measured sustainability,” he said.
Judy said balancing the competing demands of population growth and the accompanying infrastructure needs with environmental preservation is the biggest challenge the county is facing.
“We need to focus on sustainable development, including, but not limited to green space considerations. We need to ensure that the burden of infrastructure expansion is borne by the cost causers, starting with the developers,” he said. “We don’t need vague commitments and positive language; we need enforceable commitments.”
Pine Island and the fight for cultural preservation
For years, Beaufort County has gone back and forth with the developer of the proposed Pine Island project on St. Helena Island. The historic Gullah-Geechee land is under a Cultural Protection Overlay; the latest lawsuit from the Pine Island developer asks for an order ending enforcement of the CPO because, they said, it favors one race “at the inherent expense of others.”
In areas where there isn’t a CPO, such as Hilton Head Island for example, some Gullah-Geechee residents have expressed frustration that the land they live on seems to be the first to go when there’s a new proposed development or road extension. A recent example would be the proposed changes to William Hilton Parkway from the end of the U.S. 278 bridge to Spanish Wells Road.
Regarding the Gullah-Geechee community on Hilton Head Island and Bluffton, Beltz said he falls in line with District 3 Council Member York Glover and former Board of Education member Laura Bush “in their ways of safe-guarding our native islanders.”
“York and I are both the same age and come from farming communities, York on St. Helena as a pig farmer and me from Ohio as a goat farmer. I have been president of our farmers market in Bluffton for several years now and enjoy being a part of a farm community again,” he said. Beltz said he is also a fan of a book co-authored by Hilton Head legend Tom Barnwell called “Gullah Days.”
Judy said he is in favor of preserving the character of areas like Pine Island.
“I do not believe that [the developer’s] suit will be successful, but I am concerned about well-funded groups seeking to run over economically challenged communities,” he said. “I would also note that CPOs almost by definition would have a racial component. They may favor or protect a particular race or culture but are not designed to disadvantage another. I do not believe that by protecting any group or culture, we are disadvantaging all others.”
Regarding the U.S. 278 bridge extension issue, Judy said “I understand the frustrations on both sides.”
“Traffic is a problem for everyone; however, we also need to take the impact on these communities into account when making decisions like road expansion or redesign,” he said. “Staffing decision-making positions with people who care and who listen may provide the best protection.”
Why them?
As a former Board of Education member, Beltz said he is interested in making the county’s public schools “first class in all respects.” He said he is looking forward to “working with the Board to find the best ways to move forward and working in any and all ways to make it happen.”
He’s been a Rotarian for 40 years and has promoted the RBC Heritage and charity polo events in Bluffton.
Judy is a native South Carolinian who grew up in the Lowcountry and has lived in Bluffton for nearly 20 years. He says people should vote for him because of his values and his competence. He believes in honesty and integrity, congeniality and collegiality, and accountability, he said.
“I believe in the power of goal setting. The county council will set higher level goals, and those goals will filter down throughout government,” he said. “We will develop a plan to achieve those goals, and all colleagues will have a role in that plan.”