Residents Voice Strong Support for Affordable Housing, As Long As It’s Built 40 Miles Away in Ridgeland
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SC — A proposal to build 80 units of affordable housing on the north end of the island drew overwhelming support from island residents Monday night — provided the project is instead built “somewhere out in Ridgeland or maybe Hardeeville.”
“We have to do something about this crisis,” said lifelong Democrat Susan Whitaker, nodding earnestly. “Affordable housing is a moral imperative. Just… not at the gateway to Hilton Head. That’s a little too close. But otherwise, absolutely yes.”
Other residents offered alternatives, suggesting “a nice patch of woods behind a gas station in Ridgeland” or “somewhere off I-95 where it won’t upset property values.”
Local restaurant manager Ron Carter admitted the plan might create challenges. “My employees already drive an hour to get here,” Carter said. “If housing goes further out, some won’t bother. But apparently that’s still preferable to anyone seeing apartments from their golf cart.”
At press time, town officials confirmed they will commission a $1.2 million study to explore “creative solutions that keep affordable housing far from Hilton Head.”
