Civic masterplan sector1-preface

CITY OF BEAUFORT

C I V I C M A ST E R P L A N

Volume ISector 1: Downtown

September 2011

Civic Master Plan | Sector 1

© 2011 by the City of Beaufort, South Carolina. All Photos, Images, and Text by the City of Beaufort Office of Civic Investment unless otherwise noted. Reproduction Permitted with Credit in Print.

This Civic Master Plan was prepared for:

The City of Beaufort, South Carolina

City Officials:Billy Keyserling, Mayor

Donnie Beer, City CouncilMike Sutton, City CouncilMike McFee, City Council

George O’Kelley Jr., City CouncilJonathan Verity, Redevelopment Commission

Michael McNally, Redevelopment CommissionEd Barnhart, Redevelopment Commission

Martin Goodman, Redevelopment CommissionHenrietta Goode, Redevelopment Commission

Pat Kase, Redevelopment CommissionKeith Waldrop, Redevelopment Commission

Wendy Zara, Redevelopment Commission

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Sector 1 Civic Master PlanCity of Beaufort, SC | www.beaufortcivicinvestment.org

C O N T E N T S

PREFACE 1 Acknowledgements 3 Introduction 4 The Planning Process 12 Existing Conditions (City & Region) 16

SECTOR 1 21 Executive Summary 23 Sector Conditions 29 Sector 1 Master Plan 35 Sector 1 Vision & Overview 36 Transportation 46 Natural Infrastructure & Parks 58 Bay Street & the Waterfront 66 Corridor Plans 76 Neighborhoods 94 Specific Interventions 104 Implementation Elements 112 Form-Based Code Calibration 114

APPENDICES Appendix A: Sector 1 Maps Appendix B: Retail Report Appendix C: Redevelopment Commission Project Book (Sector 1) Appendix D: Sector 1 Charrette Closing Presentation Transcript

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P R E F A C E

Acknowledgements

Introduction

The Planning Process

Existing Conditions

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2Civic Master Plan | Preface


Civic Master PlanCity of Beaufort, SC | www.beaufortcivicinvestment.org

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A C K N O W L E D G E M E N T SPreface | Section 1

The Beaufort Civic Master Plan-Sector 1 team represents the joint efforts of the Beaufort Redevelopment Commission and the Office of Civic Investment. The Plan’s background reports and technical information pertaining to site context, constraints and analysis were gathered over a three month process of public and private workshops as well as from previous studies and existing data provided by the City of Beaufort, Beaufort County, The Beaufort County Open Land Trust, Beaufort Main Street, The Historic Beaufort Foundation, USCB, The Beaufort Chamber of Commerce and The Low Country Economic Development Network. The information forms the foundation for the planning and design efforts presented herein. The Civic Master Plan was prepared in draft form during an eight-day charrette held in downtown Beaufort and refined and vetted over a three-month process.

Under the primary direction of the Redevelopment Commission, the Office of Civic Investment is a unique public/private consortium led by The Lawrence Group and Metrocology in partnership with city staff and other affiliated companies. Their primary focus is to manage a transparent and aggressive work program that coordinates the activities of other staff members, boards, and related partner organizations in achieving the goals of the Comprehensive Plan, this Civic Master Plan, and other key priorities of the Redevelopment Commission.

The many participants on the Beaufort Civic Master Plan for Sector 1 represent a team of progressive thinkers and practitioners in the design of human settlements and natural conservation. Working in collaboration with local government representatives and civic organizations, stakeholders, technical specialists, and citizens, the Sector 1 opportunities and constraints were assessed and creative approaches tested for development.



I N T R O D U C T I O NPreface | Section 2

THE HUMAN HABITAT

Human communities share similarities with natural habitats. Both require diverse and complex environments to sustain their inhabitants. When properly provided, these environments form the ecotones of the natural habitat and the various community settlement patterns of the human habitat. When either habitat is denied inherent complexities, or addressed in isolation of the other, its environment suffers and becomes non-sustaining.

Having been subjected to modelling and specialist professions over the previous half-century, the human environment has been severely eroded. Whereas in the past a natural area was lost, in its place a hamlet, village, town, or city was gained which was as equally complex and diverse as the nature it replaced. The process represented a “fair trade” between the natural and human environments because it can be argued that culture, economy, and the growth of society are as critical to humans as biodiversity and vibrant, sucessional ecosystems are to nature. But today when a piece of nature is lost, a housing estate, shopping center, or business park replaces it. These “products” represent a net loss to each system. The natural habitat destroyed is replaced by a substandard human habitat. Heavily reliant on modelling and simple statistics to facilitate its delivery, such development ignores the underlying complexity of people’s actions and needs.

This master plan provides a significant opportunity to correctly reconcile these needs, and show how they can coexist. With a favorable climate, a sizable historic core, and breathtaking natural scenery, growth must be encouraged in already developed areas and properly provided for in undeveloped areas so as to avoid undue expansion into our precious natural areas. A full range of human habitats must be part of the regional solution and these habitats must engage the natural environment in order to preserve it. Downtown Beaufort has been heavily modified by human occupation since it was first settled. It is logical and fair to impose upon the land the needs of a proper human habitat.

Planned according to the principles and techniques of transect-based design, the Beaufort Civic Master Plan

establishes a community with the power to affect a civic- minded resolution of the issues. This plan encourages complex relationships that leverage cultural, economic, and social forces to provide a resilient alternative to the conventional suburban model of planning and design. Laying the foundations for and creating community is one of the most important of human endeavors. Because it is apparent that the existing model of development has not resulted in a better community, the Beaufort Civic Master Plan becomes the tool for creating a community that properly balances the natural and human habitats.

THE REALITY

If nothing were done to describe a vision for the City of Beaufort, existing property rights and ad hoc development and land use regulations would dictate a very different outcome than that proposed by this Civic Master Plan. The regulatory environment for the City is based on the application of conventional planning and zoning with an overlay of historic preservation guidelines that have been inconsistent in their enforcement. The results to date have been a homogenization of what little new development has occurred both in terms of site layouts and building design with an overall character that does not reflect the immediate history of the City. The inconsistent vision has also lead to a “freeze” in the redevelopment of significant portions of the building stock which over the years has nurtured a condition of “demolition by neglect.”

THE VISION

The Beaufort Civic Master Plan proposes a fully developed vision of a sustainable future for downtown Beaufort. Taking into account the environment, land ownership, existing zoning and use rights, the Plan incorporates design elements with technical documentation to facilitate regulatory implementation. The addition of the technical documentation and support material is an important distinction between Beaufort’s Civic Master Plan and conventional strategic plans and zoning initiatives.


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B E A U F O R T S E C T O R M A P0’ 400’

Scale 1”=800’

800’ 1,600’

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Sector MapJanuary 2011

Key

Sector 1Sector 2Sector 3Sector 4Sector 5

0’ 400’

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800’ 1,600’

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Sector MapJanuary 2011

Key

Sector 1Sector 2Sector 3Sector 4Sector 5

BEAUFORT CIVIC MASTER PLAN – SECTOR 1

On March 28, 2011, the Beaufort Civic Master Plan for Sector 1 was presented to a gathering of citizens and stakeholders. The presentation represented the culmination of an eight-day Charrette held by the Office of Civic Investment for the City of Beaufort. The charrette design team was selected specifically for

its expertise in planning, marketing and re-developing compact, walkable, mixed-use communities, using locally relevant architecture as a guide for future buildings within landscapes of high amenity. The Civic Master Plan illustrates ideal build-out scenarios for areas identified during the charrette and in the previous three months of workshops and technical meetings. The scenarios incorporate a comprehensive


Preface | Section 2 | Introduction

F I N A L P R E S E N TAT I O N

evaluation of environmental issues, existing regional growth trends, local concerns and balances their impact on the delivery of “community based” design. The Civic Master Plan is a vision document prepared as a technical manual through the incorporation of diagrams, sections, site-specific plans, a regulating plan and renderings.

What makes the Beaufort Civic Master Plan different from other planning documents and processes is its adherence to a specific set of principles and techniques called transect-based planning, and a thorough integration of the transect into the City’s administrative structure. Transect principles center on providing community design that is pedestrian-based. This simple statement requires an entirely different approach to the planning and building of the places in which we live and a much different method of introducing it to those who participate in building these places. The reason for this is that a majority of development today is based on the principles and techniques of “Conventional Suburban Development”, or CSD. In essence, the differences between CSD and transect-based planning relate to how each accommodates the car, for it is the car that determines most of the physical attributes of community design.

LEARNING FROM THE PAST AND INCORPORATING THE PRESENT TO PLAN A BETTER FUTURE

Downtown Beaufort is a community that recently celebrated it’s 300 year anniversary. It and thousands of other similar communities around the world were developed using transect based design techniques. Narrow streets are laid out in an interconnected pattern. Blocks are typically short. Parks are interspersed and accessible, and civic sites with important community buildings are placed in prominent locations. Uses are mixed and the housing stock varies from detached single family homes, to attached houses, and apartments.

The methods used to develop these communities have been absent in the planning and development industry and in the curriculum of planning and design schools since the late 1950’s. Since World War II

designing towns has been replaced with the practice of developing single use “pods.” Pods are building clusters compromised solely of residences, or offices, or shopping. These are further segregated by “product type.” For example, residential uses are separated into single family detached, townhomes, and apartments. The mixing of uses and of sub categories of the same use was not only discouraged, it was made illegal once municipalities adopted segregated zoning ordinances. The possibility of assembling the various components into a coherent urbanism is no longer possible.


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S E C T O R 1 M A S T E R P L A N

Because “precedent” no longer matters, the resulting “Conventional Suburban Development” (CSD) is often described as formless, or sprawl.

Today, as planners, architects and developers seek to combat the negative impacts of CSD, good precedent from the past has once again begun to inform contemporary urban development practice. Among these has been the reintroduction of building typology and coding to shape the civic realm. In the past great urban design occurred through the actions of many working within a knowledge base which respected precedent. With minimal guidance, many of the greatest examples of urbanism were constructed by individuals working across disciplines and time. Over generations,

refinements and adaptations within the knowledge base shaped the different regional vernaculars which exist today.

The shift from place-based designs to placelessness was encouraged by, and helped usher in with, wide spread reliance on the car. Car ownership is now the rule not the exception and the problem of getting motorists to and from their daily needs dispersed among the different “pods” that make up their suburban settings, has become the biggest challenge to continued growth and prosperity for communities around the world. The answer, until very recently, was to build more roads.


Preface | Section 2 | Introduction

In countries where CSD became the predominant model for new development, a wave of road building ensued which often changes the character of communities completely. Road widening and new bypasses built to help alleviate traffic have actually increased traffic, because they mandate car use. Under this system traffic is funnelled from a large system of low capacity roads into a small system of high capacity roads. As a result, even nominal growth ends up generating a disproportionately high level of traffic congestion.

Today, municipalities and government agencies around the world employ the techniques and principles of transect design in their planning and zoning ordinances. The codes control the visual outcomes and shape the experiences for residents and visitors. They introduce a design discipline that enables compatibility at all scales, from different types of uses within a development to various types of developments within a region. They are the learning mechanism by which community building can once again rest on a knowledge base that adheres to precedent.

ESSENTIAL PRINCIPLES & GOALS

As stated in the 2009 Comprehensive Plan, the City of Beaufort and its citizens envision a City with: • Beautiful, stable neighborhoods • A common community vision • A sustainable economic base • Transportation options and convenient access to services & destinations • Attractive and vital community gateways and corridors • Natural resources that balance protection with public access and enjoyment • A balance between preservation and sensitive infill and redevelopment of our historic core • A predictable development process for citizens and developers alike • A welcoming atmosphere to all people.

To help achieve this vision, we will build upon and protect our assets and strengths: • Natural beauty and open spaces

• Unique community design and historic atmosphere • Access to local goods, services, and cultural amenities • The military presence, hospital, and higher education institutions • Community interaction and small community feel To achieve this vision, the following directives have been established to guide the decision making process both for this plan and future implementing elements.

order to ensure the long term success and viability of the City of Beaufort. We must support the continuation and expansion of our primary economic engines - tourism, the military, healthcare, and education - while also seeking to expand opportunities for the arts and the

1 SustainabilityThe activities of the City of Beaufort will consider the balance of social, environmental, and economic sustainability principles for both the community and the private property owner with all of our decisions.

2 RegionalismWe are committed to the implementation of the Northern Beaufort County Regional Plan as a guideline for our regional decisions and future urban form and we will continue to engage and coordinate in regional planning activities. Our planning will extend to the established urban growth boundary and will tie together all areas of the community in a cohesive manner.

3 Natural InfrastructureWe must protect our environmental resources as fundamental to the natural ecosystem and our quality of life. We will utilize innovative and context-sensitive solutions to conserve and protect our natural resources including our salt marshes, marsh islands, coastal waters, and marine resources; trees, forests, and wildlife habitats; beaches and dunes; and open space preservation.


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4 Growth We must encourage growth within our urban service area by primarily focusing on the regeneration of our current assets through infill and redevelopment. Development in our urban growth boundary shall be sensitively focused on a conservation ethic with a compact and efficient built form that could be serviced with municipal services in the future.

5 Economic Development A strong, vibrant, and healthy economy will be achieved through a successful economic development program in order to ensure the long term success and viability of the City of Beaufort. We must support the continuation and expansion of our primary economic engines - tourism, the military, healthcare, and education - while also seeking to expand opportunities for the arts and the recruitment of creative/knowledge-based industries.

6 Access and Mobility Our citizens and visitors need a transportation system that integrates regional solutions with a fine- grained local network of choices that accommodate the automobile, pedestrians, bicyclists, and water- based travel.

7 Urban Form The City will maintain its distinct urban form by encouraging growth and development using the model of walkable, urban, mixed-use neighborhoods established by the historic core of the City.

8 NeighborhoodsWe believe that all our neighborhoods, including

the downtown, must be vibrant and diverse and thus require consistent and continual public and private attention, maintenance and re-investment. Our neighborhoods should be reinforced in all planning and infrastructure projects.

9 Parks & Public Open Spaces The City will permanently preserve and expand a community-wide parks, recreation and open space network that serves the entire city from the neighborhood playground to the regional reserve.

10 Historic and Cultural ResourcesBeaufort is a living, dynamic community and must

balance the protection of its abundant natural, cultural, institutional and historic resources with managed growth that adds to the community’s character for future generations without degrading those resources which we value.

11 Social DiversityWe will maintain and celebrate the integrated ethnic

and socioeconomic diversity of the community. To this end, we are committed to the provision of affordable and workforce housing throughout the city.

12 Hazard MitigationAs a coastal community, we will feel the direct

impacts of tropical storm activity and flooding. We must be prudent in our preparation for these expected hazards and mitigate against the loss of property to the greatest extent practical.

13 Climate ChangeWe must participate in solutions that reduce or avoid

potential impacts to our regional and global climate and in turn we must adapt to those conditions which are likely to be inevitable, most specifically sea level rise.

14 Resource EfficiencyWe will manage our consumption of renewable and

non-renewable resources including energy and water and will continue to reduce our total waste stream. In addition we will be supportive of community activities that promote resource efficiency and the production of alternative energy and innovative water use and protection practices.

15 Fiscal SustainabilityThe city, as a provider of urban services, must focus

on long-term solvency with each incremental decision. Capital investments should leverage future benefits and must consider the


impact on long term operational costs prior to their implementation. Perhaps most importantly, we will constantly seek efficient and innovative ways in which to deliver services and maintain our assets.

16 Adequacy of Infrastructure and Facilities

The contiguous extension of our corporate boundaries will be considered to the extent that the provision of city services can be economically and efficiently provided and will be subject to the adequate availability and timely construction of community infrastructure and public facilities.

17 Planning & ImplementationWe will continue our history of thoughtful, detailed

planning and will include practical implementing elements to leverage our ideas with actions. Success is bred not from what we say but what we accomplish.


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Preface | Section 3

T H E P L A N N I N G P R O C E S S

2 0 0 9 C O M P R E H E N S I V E P L A N

The Civic Master Plan for Beaufort is being developed by the City’s Office of Civic Investment through a carefully designed, transparent planning process that is intended to be inclusive of input from a wide variety of community stakeholders, elected officials, the development community, and the general public. The plans and recommendations presented in this booklet represent the culmination of that process through a weeklong design charrette, held from March 22nd through March 28th, 2011. The detailed plans completed at that charrette were preceded by two other recent planning efforts in Beaufort, the 2009 Comprehensive Plan and the Sector 1 Synoptic Survey. These significant efforts have informed and enabled the parcel-level detail considered in the Sector 1 Charrette planning and design recommendations.

VISION BEAUFORT: 2009 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN

In 2009, the City of Beaufort adopted “Vision Beaufort,” a comprehensive plan that articulates a vision for the growth and development of the City and establishes a guide for the implementation of that vision. In completing the plan, a broadly inclusive public participation process was used to ensure that the vision established in the plan is shared by a wide variety of Beaufort citizens and is truly reflective of the aspirations of the general public, elected officials, city staff, the development community, business owners, property owners, and visitors alike. The plan was completed by the Carolinas Office of The Lawrence Group, a town planning and architecture firm that is also leading the

VISIONBEAUFORT2009 Comprehensive Plan

Ad o p t e d b y C i t y C o u n c i l 1 2 . 0 8 . 2 0 0 9

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five: a framework for growth

v i s i o n B e a u f o r t | 2 0 2 0 C o m p r e h e n s i v e p l a n

ComPlete framework iNCorPoratiNg tHe eNtire urBaN growtH BouNdary


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current Civic Master Planning process through the Office of Civic Investment.

The Comprehensive Plan includes a wealth of information about targeting public investment, establishing community design objectives, pursuing potential catalyst projects, and most, importantly, implementing the vision that will guide Beaufort into its next decade of growth and development. The task of the Office of Civic Investment is to translate this shared vision into specific parcel-level plans and recommendations for the entire city and manage the day-to-day tasks involved in their implementation.

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two: the path forward

V i s i o n B e a u f o r t | 2 0 2 0 C o m p r e h e n s i v e p l a n

5 Economic DevelopmentA strong, vibrant, and healthy economy will be achieved through a successful economic development program in order to ensure the long term success and viability of the City of Beaufort. We must support the continuation and expansion of our primary economic engines - tourism, the military, healthcare, and education - while also seeking to expand opportunities for the arts and the recruitment of creative/knowledge-based industries.

6 Access and MobilityOur citizens and visitors need a transportation system that integrates regional solutions with a fine-grained local network of choices that accommodate the automobile, pedestrians, bicyclists, and water-based travel.

7 Urban FormThe City will maintain its distinct urban form by encouraging growth and development using the model of walkable, urban, mixed-use neighborhoods established by the historic core of the City.

8 NeighborhoodsWe believe that all our neighborhoods, including the downtown, must be vibrant and diverse and thus require consistent and continual public and private attention, maintenance and re-investment. Our neighborhoods should be reinforced in all planning and infrastructure projects.

9 Parks & Public Open SpacesThe City will permanently preserve and expand a community-wide parks, recreation and open space network that serves the entire city from the neighborhood playground to the regional reserve.

10 Historic and Cultural ResourcesBeaufort is a living, dynamic community and must balance the protection of its abundant natural, cultural, institutional and historic resources with managed growth that adds to the community’s character for future generations without degrading those resources which we value.

11 Social DiversityWe will maintain and celebrate the integrated ethnic and socioeconomic diversity of the community. To this end, we are committed to the provision of affordable and workforce housing throughout the city.

12 Hazard MitigationAs a coastal community, we will feel the direct impacts of tropical storm activity and flooding. We must be prudent in our preparation for these expected hazards and mitigate against the loss of property to the greatest extent practical.

13 Climate ChangeWe must participate in solutions that reduce or avoid potential impacts to our regional and global climate and in turn we must adapt to those conditions which are likely to be inevitable, most specifically sea level rise.

14 Resource EfficiencyWe will manage our consumption of renewable and non-renewable resources including energy and water and will continue to reduce our total waste stream. In addition we will be supportive of community activities that promote resource efficiency and the production of alternative energy and innovative water use and protection practices.

15 Fiscal SustainabilityThe city, as a provider of urban services, must focus on long-term solvency with each incremental decision. Capital investments should leverage future benefits and must consider the impact on long term operational costs prior to their implementation. Perhaps most importantly, we will constantly seek efficient and innovative ways in which to deliver services and maintain our assets.

16 Adequacy of Infrastructure and FacilitiesThe contiguous extension of our corporate boundaries will be considered to the extent that the provision of city services can be economically and efficiently provided and will be subject to the adequate availability and timely construction of community infrastructure and public facilities.

17 Planning & ImplementationWe will continue our history of thoughtful, detailed planning and will include practical implementing elements to leverage our ideas with actions. Success is bred not from what we say but what we accomplish.

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two: the path forward

C i t y o f B e a u f o r t , S C

Success is bred not from what we say but in what we accomplish.

2.1 Our VisiOn, EssEntial PrinCiPlEs and gOals

The City of Beaufort and its citizens envision a City with:Beautiful, stable neighborhoods •A common community vision•A sustainable economic base•Transportation options and convenient access to services & destinations•Attractive and vital community gateways and corridors•Natural resources that balance protection with public access and enjoyment •A balance between preservation and sensitive infill and redevelopment of our •historic coreA predictable development process for citizens and developers alike•A welcoming atmosphere to all people•

To help achieve this vision, we will build upon and protect our assets and strengths: Natural beauty and open spaces•Unique community design and historic atmosphere•Access to local goods, services, and cultural amenities•The military presence, hospital, and higher education institutions•Community interaction and small community feel•

To achieve this vision, the following directives have been established to guide the decision making process both for this plan and future implementing elements.

1 SustainabilityThe activities of the City of Beaufort will consider the balance of social, environmental, and economic sustainability principles for both the community and the private property owner with all of our decisions.

2 RegionalismWe are committed to the implementation of the Northern Beaufort County Regional Plan as a guideline for our regional decisions and future urban form and we will continue to engage and coordinate in regional planning activities. Our planning will extend to the established urban growth boundary and will tie together all areas of the community in a cohesive manner.

3 Natural InfrastructureWe must protect our environmental resources as fundamental to the natural ecosystem and our quality of life. We will utilize innovative and context-sensitive solutions to conserve and protect our natural resources including our salt marshes, marsh islands, coastal waters, and marine resources; trees, forests, and wildlife habitats; beaches and dunes; and open space preservation.

4 Growth We must encourage growth within our urban service area by primarily focusing on the regeneration of our current assets through infill and redevelopment. Development in our urban growth boundary shall be sensitively focused on a conservation ethic with a compact and efficient built form that could be serviced with municipal services in the future.

SYNOPTIC SURVEY

One important way that the Office of Civic Investment has sought to translate the community-wide vision into detailed plans and recommendations is through the Synoptic Survey process. The Synoptic Survey process involved collecting data for every parcel of land in the Sector 1 planning area, in order to help calibrate the community-wide vision established in the Comprehensive Plan to the specific conditions of each parcel of land.


Preface | Section 3 | The Planning Process

S Y N O P T I C S U R V E Y E X A M P L E

feedback on the many topics to be addressed in each planning sector. The public workshops each focus on a unique discussion topic and provide invaluable comments and feedback.

These workshops, combined with the vision for the community described in the Comprehensive Plan and the data collected through the Sector 1 Synoptic Survey, gave the charrette design team an incredible wealth of information to help guide their efforts during the weeklong charrette process for each sector.

The Synoptic Survey process was developed as a means to identify the unique attributes of specific places and calibrate development regulations accordingly. The Synoptic Survey in Beaufort captured information such as building material and use, lot condition, street frontage, and neighborhood condition, among many others. In total, 51 unique data attributes were collected and assembled from January 24 to February 4, 2011 for every property in the Sector 1 planning area. (See Synoptic Survey Example.)

Collecting this data has done three essential things for the Civic Master Planning process.

• First, it has allowed the Office of Civic Investment team to build a geographic information system (GIS) database that accurately describes

the conditions of every lot in the Sector 1 planning area. This data was then used to more broadly analyze the existing conditions in Sector 1 and inform the detailed plans and recommendations developed during the Sector 1 Planning and Design Charrette. • Second, the Synoptic Survey data allows the Office of Civic Investment, in partnership with the Beaufort Redevelopment Commission and other organizations, to identify specific sites as candidates for pilot projects and redevelopment efforts. • Third, it establishes a set of benchmark design elements for every neighborhood in Beaufort that will be used to calibrate development regulations for the City, specifically the Form-Based Code that is being developed in cooperation with Beaufort County.

SLOW CHARRETTE PROCESS

In order to maximize the design efforts during the charrette week for each Sector, the Office of Civic Investment is taking the “slow charrette” approach. Rather than trying to squeeze all the public workshops into one week, they are spread out over a month-and-a-half prior to the charrette in order to maximize participation. The OCI team has hosted a series of public workshops to engage the community and solicit


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Preface | Section 4

E X I S T I N G C O N D I T I O N SBeaufort is a city in, and the county seat of, Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1711, it is the second-oldest city in South Carolina, behind Charleston. In 2010, the city’s population was estimated to be approximately 12,361. It is located in the Hilton Head Island-Beaufort Micropolitan Area.

Beaufort (pronounced /ˈbjuːfərt/ BEW-fərt, unlike its counterpart in North Carolina) is located on Port Royal Island, in the heart of the Sea Islands and Lowcoun-try. The city is renowned for its scenic location on the Beaufort River and for maintaining a historic character through its impressive antebellum architecture. The city is also known for its proximity to major military estab-lishments. Beaufort is home to the Marine Corps Air Sta-tion Beaufort and Naval Hospital Beaufort. The Marine Corps Recruiting Depot Parris Island is also a major military installation located about 11 miles to the south.

HISTORY

The Lowcountry region had been a subject of numer-ous European explorations and several aborted attempts

D O W N T O W N B E A U F O R T ( 2 0 1 0 )

at colonization before the British successfully founded the city in 1711. The city initially grew slowly, subject to numerous attacks from Native American tribes and threats of Spanish invasion before flourishing as a center for shipbuilding. In the antebellum period before the Civil War, the city thrived as the aristocratic center for the Lowcountry plantation economy.

Several months after hostilities began between the states, Beaufort was occupied by Union forces following the Battle of Port Royal. Due in part to its early occupa-tion, the city became a center of emancipation efforts for newly freed slaves during the war and into Reconstruc-tion. After the war, the city relied on phosphate mining before a devastating hurricane in 1893 and a fire in 1907 brought economic turmoil and stagnant growth to the city for nearly half a century. The community rebounded in the later half of the 20th century due to the growth of the military presence and the development of tourism. In spite of new development, Beaufort has retained much of its historic character through its renowned architecture and historic preservation efforts.

Source: Vision Beaufort: 2009 Comprehensive Plan. City of Beaufort, SC


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Preface | Section 4 | Existing Conditions

THE REGION

The City of Beaufort, and more specifically, the Sector 1 planning area, occupies a unique position within the Lowcountry region of South Carolina. The rich estuarial ecology and centuries old history of this area contribute to a special sense of place in the Lowcountry that is unique within the South and the United States. Characterized by diverse trading ports, antebellum architecture, and traditions that borrow from a wide variety of European, Caribbean, and African roots, the Lowcountry is a distinct cultural and geographic region.

In many respects, Beaufort is a secondary urban center in the Lowcountry region. Its institutions, businesses and industries are well-established, but exist in the shadow of the larger Charleston, SC and Savannah, GA markets. Nearby, Hilton Head Island is also a significant source of economic activity as one of the largest vacation and resort centers in the country.

Although it is not as prominent as some its neighbors, Beaufort plays a distinct and significant role in the economy and identity of the Lowcountry. The large military presence is a tremendous economic engine for the region.

Given its proximity to Hilton Head Island, Charleston and Savannah, Beaufort is certainly not the only economic engine of the region. However, distinct from its neighbors, Beaufort County’s large military presence plays a significant role in the area’s economy. Also, the combination of Bay Street and Waterfront Park in downtown Beaufort continues to be a regional draw for tourists. Beaufort is more than a stop on the road between Charleston and Savannah; it is a vibrant community with great amenities to offer. In short, Beaufort has a history, cultural identity, and economic vitality all to its own.

The success of the Sector 1 planning area, and the City of Beaufort in general, is dependent upon how the city positions itself in relationship to the Town of Port Royal, Beaufort County, and the Lowcountry region beyond. Beaufort’s challenge will be to establish itself in the region as more than just a stopover on the journey from

Charleston to Savannah or Hilton Head. Given that the Sector 1 planning area in Beaufort offers the most in terms of local economic and cultural momentum and the most opportunity for regional interconnectivity, it is an ideal place to begin planning for Beaufort to assume a more prominent role within the Lowcountry region. Improved regional transportation connections, from regional greenways and transit routes to expanded ferry/water-taxi opportunities, will be essential to assuming and maintaining a more prominent role in the region. In order to support this goal, a specific strategy for regional connectivity across a variety of transportation modes was developed in this initial charrette of the Civic Master Planning process and is illustrated in the diagram at right.

In particular, a strategy for the creation of a regional parks system centered on the Beaufort River will allow Beaufort to offer something to residents and visitors alike that is entirely unique to the region. The “Beaufort River Regional Greenway and Parks System” is a parks and greenways network that offers over 10 miles of riverfront parks and trails, as well as regional connections to a Rail-Trail system that extends pedestrian and bike paths north into Beaufort County.

The parks system will begin by extending Beaufort’s existing Waterfront Park through a boardwalk along the Bluff to the west. (see page 56) It will continue along the Beaufort River, through a series of publicly accessible boardwalks and parks, to the Port Royal riverfront at Battery Creek and also across the Beaufort River to the Whitehall Plantation property. Along the way, piers extending through the salt marshes along the river will provide spots for picnicking, fishing, canoeing/kayaking, sailing, and docking other small boats. Key destinations on the greenway system include Beaufort Memorial Hospital, the Technical College of the Lowcountry, the Beaufort Yacht and Sailing Club, the Naval Hospital Beaufort, and a connection to the proposed Rail-Trail that terminates in Port Royal.

Other significant regional transportation investments will include a regional bus system that connects Beaufort, to Port Royal, Parris Island, Laurel Bay, Habersham and other significant destinations in the county. A water taxi


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system will also offer tourists and business travelers easy travel to destinations as far as Hilton Head Island, Charleston, and Savannah through the Beaufort River.

In the short term, the transportation strategy described above will broaden the opportunities for regional access and help to position Beaufort as a primary economic and cultural urban center in the Lowcountry region. In the long-term, the “Beaufort River Regional Greenway and Parks System” will become an incredibly valuable public asset shared between The City of Beaufort, the Town of Port Royal and Beaufort County. It will be a national draw for new residents and tourists, helping to attract and retain educated and talent people. The variety

of mode options provided in the regional transportation scheme, in addition to personal automobile travel, will position Beaufort for success in the coming global era beyond cheap gas and universal automobile dependence. This combination of systems will allow Beaufort residences to live locally without sacrificing regional mobility and create a sustainable platform for regional development.

Technology

Civic masterplan sector1-preface