New neighborhood may be coming to Beaufort County inside this historic plantation
A developer is eyeing one of Beaufort County’s historic plantations for a roughly 20-home neighborhood with top-tier amenities.
The current conservation rules governing the land would allow the development, and the preliminary plans passed the Yemassee Town Council’s initial vote, with some conditions for changes in mid-September.
Bindon Tract, known to locals as Bindon Plantation, is a 1,300-acre section off U.S. 17 along the Pocotaligo River and Stoney Creek. The land, near Sheldon, was annexed into the Town of Yemassee in 2006. The property has remained undeveloped, despite initial efforts for a planned unit development during the housing boom that would have included construction of up to 1,300 homes and 450,000 square feet of commercial space, according to previous reporting.
In 2012, Hollingsworth Funds in Greenville granted the conservation easement over the entire tract of land, which is also the site of a Revolutionary War fort, to the Beaufort County Open Land Trust.
The $2.5 million funding for the easement was approved by Beaufort County Council and financed through the county’s Rural and Critical Lands Preservation Program.
Six years later, the plantation was put up for sale in 2018 for $15 million. Although the land was under a conversation easement with the goal to protect and preserve the natural resources, the guidelines allow for up to 20 homes to be built, and it seems as though the developer is planning to build to maximum capacity.
Chris Ramm with the Taylor Development Group LLC has applied to build a “low-density residential neighborhood with approximately 20 single-family dwellings, a private hunting club amenity, community docks on the Pocotaligo River and Stoney Creek, a common area boat ramp and associated infrastructure.”
The application refers to it as “Stoney Creek at Bindon Development” with a master plan map reading “Stoney Creek Bindon Plantation.” It’s unclear what the development’s final name would be and whether it would include the term “plantation.” In the past few years, some neighborhoods — including gated communities on Hilton Head Island — have removed the word “plantation” from their name or had public discussions about doing so because of the historical context to the word.
The conservation easement says up to 20 lots can be built on the tract, with each lot being at least 2 1/2 acres, according to a staff report. Each lot is limited to a single family dwelling and one additional structure, such as a detached garage or in-law suite.
“This is the first new residential subdivision the town has permitted in more than a decade,” Garnes said. “It’s going to be a very nice private getaway for the people buying it, but it’s also going to boost the tax base of the town and make use of property that’s been kind of laying dormant.”
He said the plans take into account the preservation-minded easement and attempt to build in a way that avoids “substantial disruption in the area.”
The town and developer have been working closely with the Beaufort County Open Land Trust in the beginning stages of the plan, Garnes said. The town council still must pass with it on second reading on Oct. 12, Garnes said.
“We all want the same thing, which is to keep the precious resources out there protected and minimize the damage anything like stormwater runoff,” he said.
“We monitor the easement annually and will continue to monitor the easement annually in perpetuity to ensure the ultimate protection of the natural resources and water quality of the Pocataligo River and the Port Royal Sound,” Open Lands Trust executive director Kristin Williams wrote in a letter ahead of town council’s first vote.
The letter approved of the construction, saying the plan “offers an appropriate development opportunity for its rural setting and conforms with all requirements of the conservation easement,” with a couple of exceptions. The trust, for example, wants to reduce the number of community docks from seven to a maximum of five.
One of the other stipulations from the town requires the developer to find out whether Beaufort Jasper Water Sewer Authority and Lowcountry Regional Water System can provide service. Determining whether service is available — or it isn’t feasible for reasons other than cost — appeared to be a major focus of the town’s report.
The Coastal Conservation League, a regional environmental protection group with an office in Beaufort, submitted a letter ahead of the town council’s first vote, opposing the extension of water or sewer service to the plantation.
The letter, signed by South Coast Office Director Jessie White, said that because the property is under easement “to protect its scenic beauty, open space, and natural, cultural, and historic resources,” only limited residential development is allowed. “Accordingly,” White said, “we do not believe it is necessary or appropriate to extend public water or sewer to service this property.”
The neighborhood will likely use septic tanks but will have to install dry hydrants in case of fire emergencies, Garnes said.
Although this is the first residential development to be approved in one of Yemassee’s historic plantations, a business began operating in another at the beginning of September.
Georgia lawyer L. Lin Wood, well known for representing former President Donald Trump in his efforts to overturn the election, opened a bed and breakfast that doubles as a wedding venue at Cotton Hall Plantation in Yemassee last month. Cotton Hall Plantation is one of three historic properties Wood purchased within a year of each other. Two of the three plantations have been annexed into Yemassee.
“Everyone else has had the growth, and we’ve been on the sideline,” Garnes said. “This (development) is a little nibble, but this nibble will have a huge impact on the town.”
