The filing period for the Town of Hilton Head Island’s general election runs from 8 a.m. Aug. 1 through 12 p.m. Aug. 15. The Nov. 8 election is to elect Town Council members for Wards 2, 4 and 5 and mayor. Filing for candidacy is at Town Hall, One Town Center Court. The Statement of Candidacy, which is required of any citizen interested in seeking an office, can be found at hiltonheadislandsc.gov/election/ and at Town Hall.

John Carlson has been named chief judge for the for the 2022 Hilton Island Concours d’Elegance. He is a University of British Columbia graduate who has spent 30 years in secondary education specializing in fine art and antique automobile restoration. He is serving his 21st year as President and CEO of the National Association of Automobile Clubs of Canada Corporation.

The South Carolina Department of Revenue announced the sixth increase to the state motor fuel user fee. The increase, set to begin July 1, will increase prices $0.02 per gallon from $0.26 to $0.28 per gallon.

BY STEPHENIE PRICE

As the nation continues to reel from the Uvalde, Texas mass shooting which took 21 lives, communities are asking how to prevent these tragic and traumatic incidents. These incidents are leaving families, communities and our nation fractured.

As debates continue about solutions, what we know for sure is if our community’s children feel protected and advocated for, fewer young people will feel isolated which may reduce harmful actions. The Bluffton Police Department prioritizes reaching out to children and the community through these programs.

FOUR EARN JOE DISTELHEIM AWARD 

Kathia Salinas, Maria Medina, Gerardo Rivera and Zohra Tebbakh were recognized with the Joe Distelheim Award for Literacy, an annual award for deserving literacy students of Bluffton Self Help, which has merged with The Literacy Center. The students were presented with a $500 check and plaque.  More than 100 former colleagues and friends of Distelheim contributed to the award’s endowment fund, raising more than $40,000 ­— enough to fund awards in the future.

HILTON HEAD SHORT-TERM RENTALS ORDINANCE AIMS TO SATISFY ISLAND RESIDENTS AND RENTAL OWNERS

By Mark E. Lett

Call it “The Great Balancing Act of 2023.”

The town of Hilton Head is moving ahead with a sweeping plan — enforceable Jan. 1, 2023 — to guide the fast-expanding operations of short-term rentals.

Harbour Town Lighthouse at The Sea Pines Resort on Hilton Head Island has installed a Fresnel lens to further the power of the light from the top. The new lens is a replica of the original Fourth Order Fresnel lens as created and designed by Dan Spinella, a Florida-based artist and engineer who began his research and restoration work on the lenses 30 years ago.

Billy Keyserling, former City of Beaufort mayor, was hospitalized after a boating accident, according to media reports. Keyserling and his brother Paul were sailing when their boat capsized near the Beaufort Sandbar, the Island News said. Billy Keyserling was pulled from the water and required resuscitation before being taken to a hospital. Paul Keyserling was conscious and alert, according to the newspaper. Billy Keyserling was later reported to be breathing on his own. An update on his condition was not immediately available at press time. S.C. Department of Natural Resources responded to the boating accident around 1:30 p.m. May 21. Keyserling served three terms as mayor.

Hilton Head Island was a national showcase last month as NBC’s “Today” was broadcast in front of a live audience May 20 from a house on the beach. The show’s “3rd Hour” featured Al Roker, Craig Melvin, Sheinelle Jones and Dylan Dreyer. It was sponsored by Vrbo.