Hilton Head, The Next Generation

If you have not seen the new website for the Hilton Head Institute well, here it is.  I hope this group is not the typical government committee that goes nowhere with big ideas.  It is touted as being a group with a vision like Charles Fraser.  A term I hear from people all the time, who never really knew my Uncle. I wish these groups that would like to use the Fraser name at least put a Fraser on their boards, otherwise please don't tout that they know what his vision was.  His vision was ever changing as he learned more and more.  He did not get stale in his desire to learn and improve what he had done. It is because this that I get somewhat annoyed when I hear from someone saying that was not the vision Charles Fraser had.

The next generation of Fraser's are well established in their own ways.  In my family there are five children of Joe Fraser and the late Carolyn "Becky” Fraser. Joe Fraser, owner of Fraser Construction, Simon Fraser lawyer, and chairman Heritage Classic Foundation, West Fraser recognized artist throughout the USA, Charlie B Fraser, developer and resort residential real estate professional. Carolyn Fraser, restaurant manager.   The late Charles Fraser and Mary Stone Fraser had two daughters Wyman Fraser Davis, mother and pastor, Laura Lawton Fraser, mother and curator of the Charles E Fraser Library.  Anyone of us would welcome the opportunity be a part of helping create a better Hilton Head Island.

In a related article about my uncle Charles Fraser's Legacy to ULI. The men interviewed in this article all worked at some point in time with my uncle, my father and a few with my grandfather Gen. Joseph B Fraser.  They helped Charles shape his vision and execute his plans for Sea Pines Company. My father, Joe Fraser, was the one in the family who constructed the ideas for Sea Pines. He never interfered with his little brother's plans. He would however change things if the cost did not meet the reward.  All of the top Executives in Sea Pines Co. affectionately refer to their years with Sea Pines as “Sea Pines University" Charles was their professor.  They knew and loved Charles, but ask them if they know his vision I am not sure they can answer that, because his vision was ever changing with technology, social behaviors, family dynamics and so forth. Charles had a voracious appetite for learning, and was constantly researching new and challenging ideas for communities and what made them successful.  He would have changed many things with Sea Pines if he could, but in the end he was very proud of what had been accomplished. To me Peter Rummell captured Charles's vision quite well in the quote below, and in the ULI article.

Peter Rummell noted: "If Charles were here, the first thing he would do is go look at a dozen other places to see how they had aged, what worked, and what didn't  He’d take an idea from each of those, and he’d learn from them."

The Urban land Institute credited Charles with modern day design techniques. 

I for have been noting in my blogs the last few years what I view as “the blunders” that The Town of Hilton Head has been making.  The Town is not keeping Hilton Head ahead of the curve in redevelopment of the many areas outside the "gates".   The land buying program and the LMO have stifled redevelopment and controlled growth.  The Land Buying program has over inflated commercial real estate values, and the LMO makes it hard to make a commercial project viable for a developer to renovate a property or build a new property. TOWN PARKS

I can say that some of the areas that I mentioned above are now being addressed.  So I am cautiously optimistic about the Hilton Head Institute, and other initiatives to promote new businesses and renovation of existing properties.

Related Blogs by Charlie Fraser

Redevelopment of Shelter Cove
Mathews Drive Projects Point to Progress
New Conceptual Plans for Coligny

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copyright @ Charlie B Fraser

All copy and pictures are property of Urban Land Institute

Reinventing Hilton Head for a New Generation

by Trisha Riggs
June 25, 2013

On a sunny February afternoon, a cyclist sped his racing bike down an asphalt trail on South Carolina’s Hilton Head Island, gaining momentum—until he was forced to brake hard to avoid colliding with two elderly women who had stopped their broad-tired beach cruisers for a chat. Clearly annoyed, he darted off the path and cut into a stream of cars on Route 278, the divided four-lane road that spans the 12-mile-long (19.3 km) island on the Atlantic Coast.

 + Related: Charles Fraser's Legacy to ULI
The contrast between the serious biker in tights and toe-clipped cycling shoes and the ladies meandering about in capris and sun visors is symbolic of the 21st-century challenge facing Hilton Head, a resort town steeped in 20th-century tradition: how to reach beyond the affluent retirees drawn to its famed golf resorts to a broader market that includes baby boomers and members of generations X and Y who enjoy its pristine beaches, but who have many other recreational and cultural interests as well.

The legacy of the late land use visionary and ULI leader Charles Fraser, who developed Hilton Head’s first resort community during the 1960s and 1970s, is evident all over the island. Fraser’s 5,000-acre (2,000 ha) Sea Pines Plantation, with nearly 6,000 residential units and amenities that include golf, tennis, boating, horseback riding, dining, and shopping, was awarded a ULI Award for Excellence in 1985 and a ULI Heritage Award in 1994. The environmentally conscious development practices Fraser initiated have influenced the design of both residential and commercial areas throughout Hilton Head. Nearly every side street curves around sprawling live oaks draped in Spanish moss; on the main road, retail signs are painted in muted shades of beige, brown, and green. In every neighborhood, homes and stores blend in with the natural habitat.

Now, a half century after Fraser started selling lots and just over ten years since his death, private and public sector representatives are grappling with how to update Hilton Head’s image—maintaining its reputation as a place to relax and recharge, but also positioning it to keep pace with changing times. It is a task that requires creating an environment to spur economic growth while preserving the characteristics that have distinguished the island as a place of uncommon beauty.
At ULI South Carolina’s recent annual meeting, held for the first time on Hilton Head, the reinvention process was discussed in depth, offering some lessons learned for resort-oriented communities seeking to become more multigenerational in appeal. The two-day district council program featured a marquee panel

of those with long memories of Hilton Head—including ULI Chairman Peter Rummell, former ULI chairmen James Chaffin and J. Ronald Terwilliger, and former ULI trustee James Light, all of whom started their real estate careers working for Fraser in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The agenda also included several ULI members and community leaders involved in setting Hilton Head’s future course. The consensus among the speakers: exclusivity is out and inclusivity is, well, in.

Chaffin was recruited to sell land at Sea Pines by Fraser and Light; he and Light are now chairmen of Chaffin and Light Management, with offices in Okatie, South Carolina, and Basalt, Colorado. He noted that gated communities, a development form that was a strong selling point in the island’s early days and one that remained popular for years, are losing ground to a market segment more interested in openness. "The market today does not care about elitism or gated communities. When you ask people what is important to them, it boils down to the experiences they have, the friends they make, and the way they are treated," he said. "It’s about the institution of community—how you weave together the threads of community. As community developers, we have to get beyond amenities like golf and tennis and focus on what we can do to foster connectedness."

Rummell, principal of the Rummell Company in Jacksonville, Florida, pointed out that demographic shifts are having a lasting impact on resort developments, particularly those seeking to expand their economies beyond the hospitality industry to attract more permanent residents and "knowledge economy" workers. "The impact that younger generations are having on resort development is a huge issue," he said. "Gated communities are yesterday’s solution. They don’t work well environmentally, economically, or in terms of infrastructure. We are living in a more urban world, and people are reacting more favorably to places that offer a more urbanlike setting." Golf—long perceived as a symbol of gentility and affluence—at some point likely will become more of a secondary than primary draw in many resort communities, Rummell predicted.

Fraser would advise those involved in reinventing Hilton Head to let the experiences of other communities be a guide, Rummell noted. "If Charles were here, the first thing he would do is go look at a dozen other places to see how they had aged, what worked, and what didn’t. He’d take an idea from each of those, and he’d learn from them."

Fraser’s ideas, his commitment to excellence in design and amenities, and his insistence on developing in harmony with nature are what brought the tourists who ultimately became residents and business owners in the town of Hilton Head Island, said David Ames, founder of Amesco, an urban planning consulting firm in Hilton Head. The town, incorporated in 1983, now has a permanent population of more than 40,000 and draws about 2.5 million visitors annually. "The people who chose to come to the island because of his [Fraser’s] vision have shaped the island’s character and created its special
ambience. It’s this community spirit, energy, and pride that we are seeking in the island’s reinvention," Ames said.

Following the island’s initial development, Hilton Head entered a phase between 1978 and 2008 that could be characterized, Ames said, as the years of "maintaining the status quo"—a period during which residents supported investments of more than $13 million for parks, $50 million for beach renourishment, $24 million for road improvements, and $162 million for land conservation, as well as creation of 56 miles (90 km) of bike paths.

The movement to change the status quo started during the Great Recession, which left the island—like many other resort areas dependent on the hospitality industry—in an economic slump. In 2009, the town’s comprehensive plan listed 300 planning strategies, most related to managing growth. Few focused specifically on economic expansion. Through the work of a mayoral task force, the plan was subsequently revised to include five strategies to be implemented over 25 years:

• renew an emphasis on environmental and community-planning leadership;
  
• position the island as a "refuge from the common place";
  
• position the government as business friendly;
  
• broaden and deepen the economy; and
  
• revitalize existing buildings and infrastructure.
  

The revised strategy is part of the process of "reinvigorating Fraser’s dream," Ames said. Among the first steps is the establishment of the Hilton Head Island Institute, which is designed to study and create

lectures and other programs on subjects related to livability, such as health, wellness, lifestyles, ecology, community planning, and design.
The institute’s first gathering is planned for this fall, said Ames, who serves on the institute’s board. "Our goal is to attract young, ambitious, adventuresome, entrepreneurial, independent thinkers—the same type of people who created Hilton Head—who will become island leaders and provide new energy and new ideas. We see the institute as capturing the essence of Charles’s vision and what has made the vision endure—cutting-edge ideas, and youthful in orientation and spirit."

The local government is also working to ease the entitlement and development process, including rewriting the town’s 25-year-old land management ordinance, said Jim Gant, a resident and volunteer on the ordinance redrafting committee. The rewrite includes provisions to reduce the number of land use zones, allow more mixed-use development, reduce use restrictions, and relax some design standards to allow more renovations. Though geared toward more flexibility, the overhaul carries on Hilton Head’s commitment to environmental stewardship, he said. "The world is different now, and changes are called for," Gant said.
Abundant signs can be found across the island of efforts to give Hilton Head a facelift, but with respect for the sensibilities that have made it a thriving destination. Golf remains the sport for which Hilton Head is particularly well known: the island has 25 public courses and four private ones. The Heritage Classic Professional Golf Association tournament (now named the RBC Heritage for title sponsor Royal Bank of Canada) has been held annually at Sea Pines’ Harbour Town Golf Links for 45 years. The River stone Group, which now owns Sea Pines Plantation, just completed a new course designed by Pete Dye.
While noting that "golf is still important at Sea Pines," Sea Pines president Steve Birdwell said efforts are underway by the company to make the golfing experience at the community appear less formal. As part of a multiyear, resort wide revitalization that could cost as much as $100 million, Riverstone is building a new golf club that Birdwell said will have a "casual feel" reflecting South Carolina’s Low Country architectural style. The club is envisioned to be a gathering point for the Sea Pines community, he said. "We are repositioning Sea Pines for the future to make it more competitive."

Renovations are underway at several of Hilton Head’s major hotels and in the eclectic Coligny neighborhood shopping district, which is adding a lifelong learning center operated through the University

of South Carolina. At the island’s main shopping mall in the Shelter Cove community, work is underway to better connect the mall with an adjacent park and nearby waterways, said Mark Senn, president of Augusta, Georgia–based Blanchard Calhoun, which is redeveloping the facility. The project will include new apartments. "Since the recession, we’ve found a great demand for rentals," Senn said. "We’re getting calls from people who lost equity in their homes, but they still have income. They’re tired of owning and they want the flexibility [of renting]. This is who we’re catering to."
The area’s repositioning efforts are not limited to the island. In Bluffton, just across the bridge connecting Hilton Head to the mainland, the community of Buckwater Place was one of several to switch course during the recession. Planned in 2002 as a retail destination, the community was targeted in 2007 for a different economic driver by developer JCM Ventures of Savannah, Georgia. "We needed to diversify the economy to attract knowledge workers," said company owner Matthew Green.

CareCore National, a health care firm, moved to Buckwater Place from New York state, becoming the major anchor for the development, with retail and dining as supportive uses. Subsequently, a small-business incubator, the Don Ryan Center for Innovation, moved to the development. Plans call for construction of compact, moderate-cost residential units to provide more workforce housing. "We’re working on how to match the desires of younger workers with those of older baby boomers," Green said.

Gerrit Albert, vice president of Crescent Resources in Bluffton, described the evolution of the nearby Palmetto Bluff community into one that is family oriented, with nodes of activity such as community gardens and an arts park. "It’s all about interaction, about creating an atmosphere of inclusivity," Albert said. "People disdain isolation. . . . Golf [as the main draw] is being replaced by food, wine, and lifelong learning centers."

John Reed, a former Fraser employee, has developed properties on Hilton Head for 40 years, witnessing the expansion of consumer interests beyond golf into a broad range of sports, culture, and arts-oriented pursuits. Now president and chief executive officer at Reed Development in Bluffton, Reed said the company noticed in 2006 a shift among buyers at its Berkeley Hall community. The game changer: buyers from the silent and greatest generations (age 68 and older) were being replaced by baby boomers seeking variety in recreational offerings and prices.

Although sales dropped dramatically during the recession, he said his company was convinced that the trend toward younger buyers would resume when the market turned. As a result, it dropped plans for another golf course even though it had already completed the permitting process. It was a decision Reed believes has helped keep the development viable: "Our buyers don’t want country club living; they want gathering places. They want places with a neighborly feel. Just building [high-end] custom homes on golf courses will not drive the market."

+ Related: Charles Fraser's Legacy to ULI

In the current environment of demographic and economic shifts, Reed said he often recalls an important lesson from Fraser—to "constantly ask yourself what your customers want" in order to avoid getting blindsided while standing on tradition. "There are opportunities in responding to change," he said.

All copy and pictures are property of ULI

What is going on with our local government?

There have been numerous articles recently about the quality of water in the May River and other pristine waterways that are a part of the lowcountry estuary system. (I have posted a few below) They all lead back to one problem. Our county and town governments have dropped the ball on inspecting the way retention ponds are built, where they flow too, and how do they filtrate the pollutants that they hold. Beaufort County has rules and regulations and standards for developers, but they seem to be more interested in natural buffers along the major thoroughfares (I call them trash collectors). A nicely landscaped buffer is much neater, more aesthetic to the eye, and provides better visibility for the commercial operators. It shouldn't be such a big deal, what is a big deal is not taking the time, the money, the knowledgeable inspector to check on the retention ponds, and drainage of a development. Take it one more step and make developments get bi annual water testing of their outflows. Work with marine biologist to plant naturally plants and crustaceans that filter the water, and maintain the appropriate ecosystem in the master drainage system.

We have no one to blame but ourselves for not making sure our elected officials oversee what is taking place with inspections. Write your Town Council, and Beaufort County Council voiceing your anger for their oversight, and get them concentrating on the important things not the cutting down of weeds and dog willows along 278.

Property of Charlie B Fraser 2009

http://www.islandpacket.com

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May Day for the May River: How we can save the county's pristine waters Collins Doughtie
cdad@hiltonheadisland.net
843-757-7534
Published Wednesday, January 28, 2009

I have always found it amusing how Blufftonians have defended our oysters. They aren't the biggest oysters in the country, but they sure are the sweetest, and they contain just the right amount of salt. In fact, they're the subject of many a discussion about whether they're the best in the country, which, believe it or not, has been known to stop just a tad shy of fisticuffs.

A perfect "for instance" happened not too long ago when I attended an oyster roast where I met two guests from Apalachicola, Fla. If you are not an oyster aficionado, Apalachicola is known for shipping oysters all over the country -- including to right here in Bluffton -- during the months when the water has not yet cooled and our oyster season is closed. They are big oysters alright, but to me they taste like a giant wad of cotton soaked in Lord-knows-what. For years I have tried to like them but, folks, it just ain't going to happen.

Thus I forgo eating oysters until that magic day around here when the water temperature drops and it's time to pull my boat over to a shell bank, grab my oyster knife and wallow in ecstasy as I sample the first May River oysters of the year. To make this event even better, I carry along saltine crackers and cocktail sauce, so I can shuck several oysters at a time, pile them high a cracker, drip a tad of cocktail sauce on and add another cracker to make an oyster sandwich. I swear this will make you swallow your tongue.

Since the time of the Indians, May River oysters have been a mainstay. I look at the shell middens -- which if you don't know are where the Indians would sit and shuck oysters and other shellfish. Some of these middens are 30 feet high and hundreds of feet long. Being a dreamer as well as a lover of history, I imagine how many generations of Indians -- and how many hundreds of years -- it took to pile up that many oyster shells. It just blows my mind. Since its beginning, the pristine May River has done its part to feed millions upon millions with all that it has to offer.

Not that long ago, I remember how proud we all were when we found that the May River was among only a select few bodies of water on the entire East Coast that could boast an A+ rating. We fought industry and won. We reveled whenever a story in some national publication used the May River as an example of the right way to develop in harmony with nature.

But this past week, the May River was the subject of a new piece of literature that has me terribly saddened. If I were to have named this report, I would called it "May Day For The May River."

What I have feared most has happened: A study done by the Town of Bluffton and DHEC reports that the May River is in big trouble. To illustrate just how much trouble, discussions are in the works about completely shutting down shell fishing from about one mile upstream from the Oyster Factory all the way to the May River's headwaters. Why? Pollution. To say I was stunned is an understatement. I was absolutely floored and frankly, mad as hell.

Where is this pollution coming from? It is coming from many sources, but primarily the many developments that have sprung up almost overnight in the past several years. And if you ask me, a lack of foresight and understanding of how the water run-off works in these areas is the reason our cherished May River oysters, clams and other filter feeders are threatened.

How come I saw it coming and those in power didn't? I am by no means smarter than these folks, but when building permits were being handed out like candy at a parade, I knew there would be consequences. Those consequences are now a terrible reality. To me, greed overpowered common sense.

So what can you do? Yell, scream and make your voices heard. Attend town meetings and write to those you have entrusted with our future. Unless we address this nightmare right here and now, you might just find yourself eating Apalachicola oysters from now on. How's that for a wake-up call?

Collins Doughtie is the outdoors columnist for The Bluffton Packet.
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County yet to arrange promised Okatie River water quality testing
By MICHAEL WELLES SHAPIROmshapiro@islandpacket.com843-706-8142
Published Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Months after the Beaufort County Council approved in October a 1,252-home development near the Okatie River, the county hasn't moved forward with promised water quality testing.
The river water testing was part of an agreement developers of Okatie Village signed in exchange for the right to build the 284-acre project, which has a mix of commercial and residential developments.
The developers, Hilton Head Island's Jim Robinson and La Casa Real Estate Development of Winston-Salem, N.C., agreed not to do any further harm to the Okatie River, most of which is off-limits for shellfish harvesting because of pollution levels.
But the county, which was responsible for getting the initial tests done, hasn't yet hired a contractor.
County stormwater manager Dan Ahern said Beaufort County, which received money from developers for testing, wants to make sure its testing methods are consistent with those used by the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.
"We've gone over the scope of what needs to be done," said Ahern. But, he added, the question of who will do the work and what it will cost have not yet been determined.
The Okatie River is one of 970 impaired waterways in the state that the U.S. Clean Water Act requires DHEC to improve. Officials have said the agency is developing a program specific to shellfish harvesting waters that will define the maximum amount of a specific pollutant a body of water can take in and still meet state standards.
A study of the river, expected to be completed by year's end, will try to identify the pollution sources, which could be animals, failing septic tanks, stormwater drainage systems or all three. The study is a requirement for grants from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Ahern said county and state testing methods must be the same so officials have a better understanding of the sources of the pollution.
As a result, he said, the county's testing methods must be approved by state regulators.
Tom Jans, a spokesman for the Okatie Village developers, said his clients are surveying the land and performing engineering work before construction starts. The process should take six months.
"But the developers are committed as ever to provide the best protection possible for the Okatie," Jans said.
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Dog wilows and weeds are not a natural buffer, the only small animals that live in them are rats feeding on the trash collected in the weeds. It also is not the character that I have grown up with. As far as neon signs, billboards, high rises, that the most ludicrus thing a reporter could even report. That is one thing Beaufort County got right. We don't have bill boards, neon signs and high rises, and we want. I mentioned how we could work with the runoff at the beginning of this blog, and it still is valid in this disccussion.

Property of Charlie B Fraser 2009
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Developers, environmentalists clash over buffers
By MICHAEL WELLES SHAPIRO and LIZ MITCHELLmshapiro@islandpacket.comlmitchell@islandpacket.com
Published Sunday, January 25, 2009

Imagine the drive down U.S. 278 toward Hilton Head Island if many of the trees were replaced by high-rise buildings and hotels awash with flashy colors, bright neon signs and tall light fixtures.
It's not unusual for business groups to want their projects seen by the traveling public and tourists visiting Beaufort County.
The business groups, however, have long been at odds with environmentalists over the appropriate pace of development and the standards for building projects.
As the recession lingers, some business and government leaders have started to rethink the strict county rules on natural buffers and aesthetics involved in opening and renovating businesses.
The debate has been ongoing, mostly fought in a series of board meetings rarely attended by the public.
In November, however, the issue came to the forefront when county administrator Gary Kubic overrode the Southern Corridor Review Board, enabling a car dealership on U.S. 278 to rehabilitate its building without having to comply with the review board's requirements.
In the coming months, the county plans to revisit its renovation rules, particularly the requirements for planting trees. Though businesses sometimes view those rules as onerous, the officials charged with enforcing them say they are needed to protect the area's character and environment.
REDEVELOPMENT
Kubic has voiced concerns about a jumbled county permitting process, which in lean times can make it difficult for new stores to get off the ground and for aging businesses to renovate.
Kubic said it is challenging to encourage small- and medium-sized businesses to spruce up older properties.
"They'll say, 'Hey, I can't afford it,'" Kubic said. "How do we get the developer to reinvest in himself, when he's saying, 'It's not worth it. I don't want another mortgage.'"
Kubic has suggested using the fines the county collects from builders who violate environmental standards to help small businesses pay for required buffers.
Steve Wilson, chairman of the review board, said the county should think hard before loosening requirements.
The board enforces zoning rules for tree- and shrub-filled buffers and design standards for lighting, muted colors and architecture that are consistent with the Lowcountry look.
Wilson is particularly adamant about buffer requirements, which he said aren't so cost prohibitive as to prevent developers from renovating.
"I'm a big capitalist," said Wilson, a commercial real estate consultant. "I think the market drives things and businesses aren't going to let their properties turn into blight."
ENVIRONMENTAL SIDE
The county's permitting process takes time, and some businesses have said they lose money waiting to set up shop as the wheels of bureaucracy turn.
Bill Miles, president of the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce, said the county must balance "the needs of business to be unencumbered by undue restriction" with the area's distinctive look.
Judy Nash Timmer, the county's development review planner, said much of the board's oversight deals with maintaining that local character.
When developers approach the board with car dealerships, Timmer said they often push for the franchise building to satisfy corporate headquarters.
But those plans often clash with local standards.
"They should look at what's allowed," Timmer said.
While businesses don't always like the process, Wilson said the county's regulations serve a valuable purpose.
"The wants and needs of the developer really are at odds of the wants and needs of people who want to control growth and protect the environment," Wilson said.
To that end, he said costs to the developer must take a back seat to buffers.
Kim Jones, natural resources manager for the town of Bluffton, said buffers serve as visual barriers to screen highways or neighboring properties, provide habitat for wildlife and help protect water quality.
"We are developing more of our land and taking more habitat off the plate for wildlife to utilize," she said.
Jones said encouraging the use of native vegetation and layers of tall trees and small shrubs in buffers will give birds habitat in the upper canopy while small mammals can inhabit the dense underbrush.
As far as water quality, the more plants to soak up nutrients and pollutants that run off roads and parking lots, the healthier local rivers will be, Jones said.
The board tries to balance development and the environment, Wilson said. If the area were any different, developers might not want to locate in Beaufort County.
"Why are people coming here?" he asked. "It's not for Best Buy or for Home Depot, but for the beauty of this place."

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This is one of the articles that is alarming. Pulte did not build the runoff lagoons properly and they are a problem, how many others are their like this one? Not just in Sun City but all along 278, Buckwalter, and the New River. Beaufort and jasper Counties need to take a good hard and long look at this problem, and get with there programs and start fining people.

Property of Charlie B Fraser
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Sun City developer promises to remedy lagoon problems
By MICHAEL WELLES SHAPIROmshapiro@islandpacket.com843-706-8142
Published Friday, January 23, 2009

Sun City Hilton Head developer Pulte Homes on Thursday promised to fix problems with a number of lagoons in the gated community at no cost to residents. That promise was made to about 550 residents at a meeting organized by the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.
The agency alleged in June that Pulte had built a number of lagoons in several of the community's newer neighborhoods that didn't match their original permits, a violation of state pollution laws.
Lagoons are designed to filter rainwater before it flows into nearby rivers, streams and wetlands.
DHEC officials announced Thursday that Pulte has begun the repairs in the Aster Fields, Basket Walk, Murray Hill and Water Lily Cove neighborhoods.
"We stand ready to do this work, we've started to do this work ... and it's not going to cost you a nickel," Pulte spokesman Jon Cherry told the audience. After the meeting, Cherry said he didn't know how much the work would cost.
A "lagoon action plan" submitted to DHEC shows the repairs include dredging seven lagoons and raising the water level in others by changing the height of drains.
Though residents applauded Cherry's promise, many voiced concerns that Pulte's repairs would not be thorough enough and could saddle homeowners with hefty repair costs in the future.
Several pleaded with DHEC officials to make sure the repairs are adequate.
"Require Pulte to correct all the deficiencies and make sure it's done properly" said Rick McCollough, a Sun City resident who pushed DHEC to look into lagoon issues in 2007.
A presentation by Tim Doyle, a Sun City resident and civil engineer, said lagoon depths should be increased beyond what Pulte has proposed to ensure water quality.
During a lengthy public comment period, many residents described living next to murky, sediment-filled lagoons they felt were too shallow.
Stuart Freeman said he'd gone out in the pond behind his home in a canoe to measure its depths. It was 4 feet at its deepest point, he said.
While many residents came to the meeting to hear about the lagoons, a number also were upset that water is inundating several areas of federally protected wetlands in Sun City.
Rita Niemeyer described wetlands in her neighborhood where hardwood trees have collapsed because of excess water.
"In the past 1 1/2 to 2 years it has spread so fast it's frightening," Niemeyer said. She added the view of dead and dying trees behind many residents' homes adversely affects property values.
"How do you replace all these beautiful trees?" she asked. "It breaks my heart."
"We're still looking at the wetlands," said Blair Williams, a DHEC official. But he said the Army Corps of Engineers, which has oversight of wetlands, is leading that ongoing investigation.