Seabrook Island Greenspace Conservancy – where it began by Thad Peterson
Few places in the Southeast have been able to successfully blend the amazing diversity and beauty of the barrier islands with a vibrant and friendly community. The citizens of Seabrook Island, past and present, have made stewardship of their island a priority since the development was taken over by the early homeowners. Even when the island was barely settled, a few residents had the vision to see that once the island was built out, there wouldn’t be a lot of open green space left.
In 1999, Bob Guifredda, Executive Director of Seabrook Island Property Owners Association (SIPOA), Ray Myles, past President of SIPOA, and Sue Holloman, President of SIPOA, met to discuss growing concerns about protecting the island’s environmental character as more homes were being built. Bob suggested that an organization be formed to acquire properties for preservation. They took it to the SIPOA Board, and with their approval, the first official meeting of Seabrook Island Green Space Conservancy was held in October 1999. The first property was donated and preserved in December of that year Property purchases and donations began to come in, but the first strategic goal for the organization was to acquire the three lots just beyond the Lake House that create the live oak canopy we all enjoy as we drive onto the island. The first of three lots that make up the canopy closed in June 2004, but the other two lots were still open for construction. In Spring, of 2005, the owners of the two lots offered them to the Green Space Conservancy before selling them to a buyer who wanted to build on them. But the Conservancy didn’t have the funds to purchase the lots before the deal “window” closed.
According to the Seabrooker “The deadline called for swift action by the Boards of both the POA and the Green Space Conservancy.” The SIPOA Board was very supportive of this effort to preserve the island’s “front door” and agreed to advance the money for one of the properties, and the owners of the other lot agreed to provide a five-year mortgage on their property. The SIPOA Board needed a referendum asking for approval to assume the mortgage.
The referendum was called, and more than 80 percent of property owners who returned their ballots voted a resounding YES to SIPOA assuming financial responsibility for the purchase, and on July 7, 2005, the canopy was preserved in perpetuity.
Seventeen years later, there are more than 40 green space properties on Seabrook, comprising about 30 acres. Because of neighbors who had the vision to see our island as a treasured resource and not just a place to live, we continue to enjoy this very special place on our planet.
