HHI's proposed 2025 budget includes $74 million in capital improvement projects (2024)

HILTON HEAD ISLAND — The upcoming fiscal year will be a time of action for the Town of Hilton Head Island. Roadway improvements, park projects, new pathways and beach renourishment account for an ambitious capital improvement program proposed as part of the town’s 2025 budget.

Capital improvement projects account for $74.3 million, or about 45 percent of the $166.9 million total budget, which is scheduled to be adopted July 1. That’s a $19 million increase over the prior year’s capital improvement program.

While a large chunk of that funding will be dedicated to the town’s beach renourishment program, town staff outlined a diverse range of projects, including park renovations, pickleball court construction, updated pathways and facilities for beach-accessible wheelchairs.

“In fiscal year ‘25 I am ready to see shovels in the ground,” Mayor Alan Perry said during a budget workshop May 16. “We’ve all been waiting for that, and I think once that starts, the community will feel that things are being done in the right way and in the progression of the amenities that we have.”

Beach program

The 2025 beach program covers maintenance and general improvements to seven Hilton Head beach parks, endangered species monitoring, a beach renourishment project and permanent wheelchair storage structures.

Beach renourishment will be the costliest of the planned projects at $16.5 million. The preservation method excavates and transports sand from offshore sites to replace sand lost to natural erosion. The town engages in the process every eight to 10 years.

The town expects needed permits to be issued before the end of 2024, giving the green light to disperse an anticipated two million cubic yards of sand from up to four offshore borrow areas, said Marc Orlando, town manager.

“If we look back, this is the first time in a really long time that we’ve renourished our beach,” Orlando said.

Islanders Beach Park improvements is the second costliest line item within the beach program. The 15-acre park at 94 Folly Field Road will get improved crosswalks, additional pathways, a new playground and additional parking.

Beach wheelchair storage is also planned to be installed at five locations: Coligny Beach Park, Driessen Beach Park, Islanders Beach Park, Folly Field Beach Park and Fish Haul Beach Park.

Park program

The construction and renovation of several parks across the island are included in the $19.8 million 2025 park program.

Construction is expected to begin on Patterson Family Park and the Taylor Family Park.

Patterson Family Park will occupy a 3.65-acre parcel in the Historic Marshland Community. Once complete, it will be the first public park on the Marshland Road side of Broad Creek.

Plans for a community park at 23 Marshland Road have been a long time coming.

The Patterson family sold the town the land in 2001 for the development of a neighborhood park.

The tract for the Taylor Family Park was donated to the town by the Taylor family in 1991 for use as a neighborhood park. The 4.9-acre parcel sits between Gumtree and Wild Horse roads within the historic Squire Pope community.

The budget also allocates funding toward:

• 18 new pickleball courts along Marshland Road
• Chaplin Community Park renovation
• Crossings Park renovations, which includes the Bristol Sports Arena
• Shelter Cove Community Park expansion
• Chaplin Linear Park with treehouse
• Barker Field extension
• Ford Shell Ring construction

Pathways and roads

Improvements and additions to the town’s more than 65 miles of public pathways are in store through a proposed $5.5 million allocation. New pathways are planned along eastbound William Hilton Parkway, along Jonesville Road, from Wexford to Arrow Road and at Pope Avenue.

A Dirt Road Paving Program is in the works to accept dedications of private, unpaved roads to become public right-of-ways, which would allow for pavement, storm drainage and maintenance.

Island-wide intersection improvements are also in the works. Those include striping, wayfinding, safety signage and pedestrian enhancements.

The overall 2025 budget is higher than the previous year, but comes without an increase in property tax rates. Instead, the town’s millage will remain the same, thanks in part to rising revenue from hospitality tax, beach fees and tax-increment financing proceeds.

The town’s 2025 general fund is proposed to be $60.9 million, a 1.8 percent increase from the 2024 budget. The general fund is the pot of money that pays for most city and community services and the employees who deliver them.

A current draft of the proposed budget can be found on the town’s website. Council members are scheduled to vote on the budget following a public hearing June 4 at 3 p.m. in council chambers.

“We’ve gone through a period of really minimal revitalization and this is a pivotal point in where the community is going,” Perry said. “That is a true reinvestment back in the quality of life that we have talked about for a long time.”