June 6, 2025

Dear PBNA Members,

We are writing to alert you to a significant and time-sensitive matter affecting our community that has unfolded without notice to Palmetto Bluff residents. Beaufort County Council is scheduled to vote this Monday, June 8, at 6:00 PM on the purchase of approximately 4,950 +/- acres of land adjacent to Palmetto Bluff — the Pioneer (formerly Walcam) property off of Myrtle View Road, designated in our own PUD as the Palmetto Bluff Managed Forest. This property was also listed for sale by Southeastern Fine Properties as the Ricefield Bluff within Palmetto Bluff https://www.southeasternfineproperties.com/properties/ricefield-bluff. ; One vote, and it is a done deal. Your presence at this meeting matters enormously.

Please see attached copy of the agenda item and resolution packet from the Beaufort County Council Agenda and relevant packet items for June 8, 2026. It contains parcel PINs, maps, and some detail on the sale.

What Is Being Decided

Beaufort County is negotiating to purchase the Pioneer (formerly Walcam) property — the 4,950 +/- acre Managed Forest tract along the New River that borders our community — for $42 million (against an asking price of $53.9 million). The deal was assembled by the Open Land Trust, SC Natural Resources, and the Federal Forestry Commission, with approximately $20 million expected to be reimbursed to Beaufort County next year through federal and state funding. Senator Davis, as chair of the Green Space Committee, requested the funding for due diligence on this transaction.

The stated purpose is land conservation in perpetuity, with the property to be managed as a public park — including hiking trails and potentially hunting. This would very likely open Palmetto Bluff to public access from Myrtle View Road.

Why Residents Were Never Notified

This deal came together quickly and, remarkably, no notice was given to Palmetto Bluff residents — despite the fact that this land borders our community directly and is formally designated as the Palmetto Bluff Managed Forest within our own Palmetto Bluff Planned Unit Development (PUD). The PUD, established in 1998, designates this 5,000-acre tract as a minimum undeveloped area that prohibits golf, residential development, and commercial development through 2048. Residents have always understood this land as an integral buffer to our community.

Key Concerns for Our Community

While land conservation is a worthy goal, this specific transaction raises serious questions that have not been answered:

• Public access through our community: Converting this property to a public park with trails and hunting would likely create open public access to and through Palmetto Bluff via Myrtle View Road. Visitors to this park will likely be traveling through our main gate.
• No community input: Although not legally necessary, a transaction of this scale and proximity to our community was assembled entirely without informing adjacent PB residents.
• Justifying the purchase price: The Pioneer (formerly Walcam) parcel has been listed for sale for several years, and the recent deed transfer from Walcam to Pioneer shows a value of $8.715 million. How does Beaufort County justify this purchase price to taxpayers?
• Funding guarantees by the Federal and State Agencies: What guarantees has Beaufort County received that demonstrate that SC Natural Resources and the Federal Forestry Commission will indeed refund approximately $20 million of the $42 million purchase price?
• Hunting adjacent to residences: Public hunting in a park directly bordering a residential community raises significant safety and quality-of-life concerns.
• Management and oversight: What standards will govern how this park is operated, maintained, and patrolled? Who is accountable? Will PB security be required?
• Town of Bluffton Palmetto Bluff PUD implications: The Pioneer (formerly Walcam) property is tied to the Palmetto Bluff PUD with the Town of Bluffton. Any change in ownership and use designation warrants a careful legal review of how it interacts with the PUD and our community's long-term protections.

What You Can Do Right Now

This Monday's vote is our one opportunity to ensure that Palmetto Bluff residents are heard before this decision becomes final. Here is how you can be more informed and make a difference:

ATTEND THE BEAUFORT COUNTY COUNCIL MEETING

Monday, June 8, 2025  |  6:00 PM

Beaufort County Government Center, 100 Ribaut Rd, Beaufort, SC

• Show up in person. Your physical presence sends a powerful message to the Council that this community is engaged and paying attention.
• Sign up to speak during public comment. Every person at the podium gives Council members pause. Tell them who you are, where you live, and what you need answered before any vote. You have three minutes and are required to arrive a little before 6 PM to speak.
• Contact Council members today. Call or email the Beaufort County Council representatives and ask them to delay the vote until proper community notice and input have occurred. Their contacts are available at https://www.beaufortcountysc.gov/council/council-members/.
• Spread the word. Share this letter with every neighbor you know. The more voices present on Monday, the stronger our message.

Our Message to the Council

We are not necessarily opposed to land conservation — preserving the natural character of the Managed Forest is something many of us value. We call on the Beaufort County Council to:

• Delay the vote to allow for a proper public notice period and community input process.
• Consult Beaufort County residents and inform them how their taxpayer money is being used.
  
• Consult Palmetto Bluff residents and the PBPOA before finalizing any agreement that affects access to or around our community.
• Clarify the public access plan — specifically whether any trails or park access would route through or adjacent to Palmetto Bluff.
• Commission an independent legal review of how the transaction interacts with the Palmetto Bluff PUD and Development Agreement.

Your PBNA believes providing information such as this is one of our primary roles.   We are not offering an opinion, simply a resource.  The decisions made this Monday may shape the character and security of our community. Please make your voice heard. We will be there — we hope you will be too.

Respectfully,

Your PBNA Volunteers

_____________________________________________________________________________________________For reference: The Palmetto Bluff PUD (1998) designates the Walcam property as the Palmetto Bluff Managed Forest — a 5,000-acre minimum undeveloped tract along the New River prohibiting golf, residential, and commercial development through 2048. Per the 4th Amendment to the PUD, the Managed Forest does not permit golf, residential, or commercial uses as defined in the Development Agreement.