Hilton Head Town Council: Spending deal with the county would benefit island | Opinion

Contrary to some of your recent reporting, the Town of Hilton Head Island and the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office enjoy a longstanding professional relationship.

We have relied on the Sheriff’s Office for public safety services since the town’s inception and have been served well over the years. Like other Beaufort County residents, our residents pay property taxes that Beaufort County uses for Sheriff’s Office operations. Also, the town voluntarily contributes additional funds each quarter. In fiscal year 2019, that amounted to more than $3 million.

Although the general perception is that we are receiving “additional” public safety services, the fact is we are not. Our current mayor has had multiple conversations with Sheriff P.J. Tanner, who has repeatedly assured us that the town receives the same level of law enforcement services his department provides to all other communities throughout Beaufort County, none of which pay extra.

Many residents have asked why, then, are we providing additional funding for services that should already be covered through our county property taxes. In your recent editorial, you allege that it is not fair for other municipalities within the county to pay for law enforcement services and expect the town to not pay its fair share. Your argument fails to take into account the fact that the Town of Hilton Head Island already pays for certain public safety services that no other municipality in Beaufort County pays for separately. Specifically the town, not the county, pays for both emergency communications/911 dispatch and Emergency Medical Services. Given the amounts that are spent annually to provide these important services, it is entirely fair for the town to reallocate its law enforcement funding to ensure that the town’s residents are receiving their fair share of county services provided for all other Beaufort County residents.

You stated that the changes proposed “would impact the daily lives and taxes of islanders.” Unless they are receiving an increased level of service from the Sheriff’s Office, which we know is not the case, the impact to their lives is not subject to any change. Their tax dollars could more equitably be put to better use within our community.

Given what we believe is an adequate and professional level of services from the sheriff, the “voluntary contribution” of $3 million can be used productively for other projects related to roadways, parks and recreation in the Town of Hilton Head Island. That is exactly what we have proposed to undertake. Town staff is working on our comprehensive plan update that will set future direction for these resources and assets. As that happens, we are discussing our options with county officials. If it makes economic sense, we’d rather use that $3 million annually to improve the island’s roads and recreation facilities than double up on public safety services we should already be receiving.

The town manages multiple road projects, beach, leisure and recreational parks, and could assume responsibility of island parks currently owned and maintained by the county. We are clearly aware of what these actions entail for both the short and long terms and are unequivocally certain that such actions would be in the best interests of the island.

We are early in our talks with Beaufort County. There is considerable due diligence and review yet to be done. We will provide ample time for public input as these discussions begin to produce actionable results. However, to condemn a process that you clearly know very little about and that would only serve to ensure equality for island residents is disappointing to say the least.

This was signed by Hilton Head Island Mayor John McCann and all six Town Council ward representatives: Marc Grant, Bill Harkins, David Ames, Tammy Becker, Tom Lennox and Glenn Stanford.