Beaufort County This Week
Beaufort County Remembers September 11, 2001
From WSAV There are two projects underway in Beaufort County, one on Kings St. and another on Charles and Craven. Each one costs around $10 million and city leaders said the entire project was funded by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). No city funds were used. Officials said this is an important project for the downtown area and will benefit several neighborhoods. The new pipes are so large, a five-foot-tall person could stand inside them. The size is important because, when a heavy rainstorm comes, the water will go into the storm system which will run off into the waterfront. Leaders said this will help immensely, as opposed to the old pipes, some of which were as small as 24 inches and hundreds of years old. This is a state-run project through the South Carolina Office of Resiliency (SCOR) and city leaders said the project is an investment in their communities. Eric Claussen, Assistant Town Manager for the city of Beaufort, told WSAV he acknowledges that projects as large as this one come with a cost to local businesses near the site. “We understand the pain that this created for downtown businesses,” said Claussen. “We just appreciate their patience. And again, just ask them to be patient for just a couple more months and we’re going to be done with this. And again, hopefully moving on to different, bigger projects with our downtown Waterfront Park.” The project began in October of last year and leaders hope to wrap up construction within the coming months. From the Island Packet Friday is the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks that shocked the country in 2001. Remembrance events are being held across Beaufort County to honor those who lost their lives. First responders and military members will also be honored for their service to the community and the country. Here’s when and where 9/11 remembrance events will be held this year. Beaufort’s Patriot Day Beaufort observes Patriot Day annually on Sep. 11 at Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park. The event is jointly organized by the Exchange Club of Beaufort and the city, and lasts from 7:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. The event is open to the community. Patriot Day’s ceremonies will honor the lives lost on Sept. 11 and the service of first responders and military members. The Exchange Club will announce and honor its Firefighter of the Year, Law Enforcement Officer of the Year, and EMS Worker of the Year during the event. The First Responder’s Memorial Procession will also take place as part of Patriot Day. The procession begins at Meridian Road on Lady’s Island and proceeds down Sea Island Parkway across the Woods Memorial Bridge to Waterfront Park on Bay Street. Sea Island Parkway and Woods Memorial Bridge will be temporarily closed for the procession. Hilton Head’s 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony Hilton Head Island Fire Rescue and the town of Hilton Head will hold a remembrance ceremony at 8:30 a.m. Friday. The ceremony will be held at the Fire Rescue Headquarters at 10 Park Lane off of William Hilton Parkway. The ceremony is held annually and Hilton Head Island Fire Rescue invites the community to attend. Attendees will honor the lives lost on Sept. 11 and the first responders who answered the call, according to the ceremony’s event page. Bluffton’s 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony Bluffton will hold its own remembrance ceremony Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at Buckwalter Place Park’s Veterans Memorial at 2 Venture Drive. The event is hosted by the town of Bluffton alongside the Bluffton Police Department. If you’re unable to attend a local ceremony, New York City’s annual Sept. 11 Commemoration Ceremony will be livestreamed by the 9/11 Memorial and Museum here. Family members of the victims will read the 2,977 names of those lost on Sept. 11 at the Memorial Plaza. They will also observe moments of silence for when the World Trade Center towers were struck and fell, the times of the Pentagon attack and crash of Flight 93, and in honor of lives lost as a result of illness or injury sustained during Sept. 11. From The Island Packet A 2,700-acre forested Lowcountry property once sought for development is now protected by a conservation easement and planned to become a state forest. The Chelsea Plantation property sits on the border of Jasper and Beaufort Counties along the south bank of the Broad River, and developers planned to build a residential and commercial development on it in 2022. After community opposition, the Nature Conservancy South Carolina (TNC-SC), a conservation nonprofit, purchased a portion of the property in May 2025 for $32 million. Now, TNC-SC has secured a conservation easement and transferred the property to the South Carolina Forestry Commission (SCFC), according to a news release. Securing the easement TNC-SC worked alongside the Open Land Trust, an organization that protects land across the S.C. Lowcounty, to secure funding for the conservation easement, according to the news release. The Jasper County Greenspace program and Beaufort County Greenspace program provided funding alongside state and federal organizations. The easement is jointly held by the Open Land Trust and the U.S. Navy, and will permanently protect the land, according to the news release. Future state forest The United States Forest Service awarded TNC-SC a Forest Legacy Grant to fund the sale and transfer to SCFC. The property is planned to become a state forest open to the public. “The prospect of adding Chelsea and other properties to our state forest system in the near future not only ensures these forested landscapes’ protection from development, but also their effective management for multiple uses, and hence their sustainability,” State Forester Scott Philips said in the news release.
