Business
Beaufort Chamber Board names Blakely Williams new president
Beaufort Chamber Board names Blakely Williams new president
Blakely Williams, a four-year veteran of the Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce and its interim president since April, became the full-time president and CEO of the local business organization today, June 23, following approval by the Board of Directors. [ read article ... ]
Other voices: Frank Weil promotes the new paradigm, Collaborative Governance
Other voices: Frank Weil promotes the new paradigm, Collaborative Governance
Last week The Beaufort Tribune published for the edification of our readers a link to a thoughtful Wall Street Journal article by Nick Gillespie and Matt Welch that says government as we know it is on the way out. We titled our posting “Other voices: Traditional government monopolies and duopolies going the way of the Dodo bird”.
Now comes Frank Weil, a former head of the International Trade Administration of the United States Department of Commerce and a friend of the editor/publisher of The Beaufort Tribune, who has taken thoughts in the Gillespie/Welch article to a higher level. Weil argues for a new paradigm to fix what is broken in our current method of governance. He calls the new paradigm Collaborative Governance and points to charter schools as an example. [ read article ... ]
Beaufort Tribune selected for listing in Mondo Times
Beaufort Tribune selected for listing in Mondo Times
The Beaufort Tribune has been selected for listing in Mondo Times, the worldwide news media guide covering 30,185 media outlets in 212 countries. The Beaufort Tribune joins The Beaufort Gazette, WJWJ-TV and Bluffton Today as the only media outlets listed by Mondo Times for Beaufort. [ read article ... ]
Some area community banks experience stress on capital
The Coastal Bank and Lowcountry National Bank
Some area community banks experience stress on capital
Some small community banks in the Beaufort and Savannah areas are experiencing stress on their capital structures due to non-performing real estate loans, the consequence of lax lending practices during the real estate boom that came to a screeching halt in the nationwide financial collapse of 2008 and its aftermath. The latest victim is The Coastal Bank, located in Savannah, that has been forced to enter into a consent order with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), according to an announcement by the bank’s president, Tom Wiley, on Wednesday, June 15. [ read article ... ]
Other voices: Investor Jim Rogers says U.S. headed for major financial crisis
Other voices
Investor Jim Rogers says U.S. headed for major financial crisis
Local high-tech firm XRDI in partnership for unmanned military air vehicles
Local high-tech firm
XRDI in partnership for unmanned military air vehicles
Local high-tech firm XRDI is in a partnership to design and build heavy-fuel engines for unmanned military air vehicles (UAVs). The new two-stroke engine will be branded Wolverine. [ read article ... ]
John Paton: Journal Register Company
Digital must be first
Columbia School of Journalism: The story so far
Future of Media
The Batavian
Drudge Report
How Drudge stays on top
The Blood Alliance at Beaufort relocates to Boundary Street
The Blood Alliance at Beaufort relocates to Boundary Street
Year-round Tri-Giving Tri-Centennial kick-off campaign begins
Next week, the Blood Alliance at Beaufort will be moving from its current address on Ribaut Road to a new location on Boundary Street and marking the change with a year-long “Tri-Giving” campaign to celebrate Beaufort’s Tri-Centennial. The new location on Boundary Street will open for donations on April 5. A grand re-opening is planned for April 7, from 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. and the public is welcome to attend the Open House festivities! [ read article ... ]
Banner battle brewing again in Beaufort
Banner battle brewing in Beaufort once again
Non-profit organizations say banners and similar materials are the most charming and high-profile method of promoting city events to the general public. (City of Beaufort website)
A tug-of-war, figuratively speaking, is brewing once again in the city of Beaufort in regards to the use of festive banners that periodically hang across the intersection of Bay Street and Ribaut Road, according to various sources. [ read article ... ]
Beaufort Twilight Run, Oyster Roast on tap for next weekend
Participants and spectators of last year's Beaufort Twlight Run and Oyster Roast enjoy the festive environment. (BTR website)
Beaufort Twilight Run on tap for weekend
Riverview Charter School in Beaufort will host the school’s biggest fundraiser and now a Lowcountry favorite – the Annual Beaufort Twilight Run and Oyster Roast – on Saturday, March 19. [ read article ... ]
Traffic circle on Bluffton Road to be closed for reconstruction
Bluffton traffic circle closed this weekend
Officials are encouraging the general public to avoid the area around the Bluffton traffic circle and use alternate routes as suggested above when trying to reach Historic Downtown Bluffton this weekend.
The traffic circle at Bluffton Road (SC 46) and Bluffton Parkway will be closed to traffic on March 12 and 13 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. for reconstruction, according to a statement released by Capt. Bryan Norberg of the Bluffton Police Department. [ read article ... ]
S.C. Senate passes illegal immigration bill in late night session
S.C. Senate passes illegal-immigration bill
The S.C. Senate passed an illegal- immigration bill (S. 20) shortly after midnight on Thursday, March 10. Sponsored by Sen. Larry Grooms and endorsed by a number of his colleagues, the first part of the bill states that if a law enforcement officer has a reasonable suspicion that a person stopped, detained or in custody is an illegal immigrant, that officer or his agency must verify the person’s residency status. The second part makes it illegal to ask for work or attempt to ask for work. [ read article ... ]
Beaufort High School wins state honors for science
Beaufort High wins state science honors
Beaufort High School students have captured second place in the state competition for Principles of Engineering – defeating some of the Palmetto State’s best and brightest high school engineering programs, according to Dr. Jesse Washington III, director of School and Community Services for the Beaufort County School District. [ read article ... ]
Rain delays BJWSA railroad removal project
Rain delays BJWSA rail removal
Grainger.com image
Beaufort-Jasper Water and Sewer Authority (BJWSA) has delayed the rail removal and repaving project at the Highway 170 crossing in Beaufort due to the March 9 forecast calling for rain. [ read article ... ]
Kinghorn selected to offer The Hartford’s AARP insurance program
Kinghorn offers AARP insurance
After meeting several social responsibility and business requirements, Kinghorn Insurance Agency of Beaufort, LLC was authorized to now offer the popular insurance program in Beaufort.
The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., (NYSE: HIG) announced today, March 9, that it is making its award-winning AARP®-branded auto insurance program available through Kinghorn Insurance Agency of Beaufort, LLC in Beaufort. [ read article ... ]
BJWSA to remove rails at Highway 170 crossing
Highway 170 train tracks to be removed by BJWSA
Grainger.com image
A stretch of obsolete train tracks crossing Highway 170 in Beaufort will soon be removed and the road repaved, according to a statement released Tuesday by the Beaufort Jasper Water and Sewer Authority. [ read article ... ]
Kinghorn Insurance of Beaufort welcomes new partner
Kinghorn Insurance of Beaufort welcomes new partner
Kinghorn Insurance Agency of Beaufort LLC has announced the association of a new partner, Garrett Wreden. Wreden was graduated from Beaufort Academy and is a 2005 graduate of The University of Georgia Terry College of Business with a degree in Risk Management & Insurance. [ read article ... ]
Factory scanners, laptops set O’Brien’s apart from the rest
The professional auto mechanic’s professional
O’Brien’s Professional Auto Service
The Autologic scanner attached to this BMW in O’Brien’s shop allows the mechanic to also run diagnostics on other select manufacturers (options seen on this screen) such as Mercedes, BMW, Mini Cooper, Jaguar, Land Rover, Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche, and Volvo.
To the average citizen, acronyms such as CMAT, SAE and ASE might not mean much. But in the world of professional auto mechanics, having those letters out by your name is more or less the equivalent of a master’s degree – perhaps even a doctorate. [ read article ... ]
Two charged with assaulting Bluffton bar patron
Authorities searching for third suspect
Two men charged with assaulting bar patron
Kyle Frederick Mays
Rodger Winston Ward
The Bluffton Police Department has arrested two men and is searching for a third suspect accused of assaulting a patron at a sports bar early Thursday morning, March 3. [ read article ... ]
Campbell introduces bill to repeal point-of-sale tax
Campbell introduces bill to repeal point-of-sale tax
A bill sponsored by Sen. Paul Campbell (R-Berkeley) to repeal the point-of-sale tax has been introduced in the South Carolina Senate, with Senate Majority Leader Harvey Peeler joining the effort. Meanwhile Rep. Jim Merrill has submitted a companion bill in the House (H. 3713). [ read article ... ]
S.C. bill would require recycling plans
For restaurants and bars to renew alcohol permit
Proposed bill would require recycling plans
bing.com image
New BRC chairman shares mission, goals and strategy
Letter to the Editor
New BRC chairman shares goals, strategy
Dear Editor,
As the newly-named chairman of the Beaufort Redevelopment Commission, I’d like to provide some clarity about who we are, what our mission is and how we are going to get there. [ read article ... ]
Merchants should be alert for bogus bills
Merchants alerted for bogus bills
Special marking pens can be purchased that differentiate between genuine and bogus bills. (Google image)
Merchants in Savannah are being “plagued” with bogus $5, $10 and $20 bills, according to authorities in that region, and it stands to reason the counterfeit bills could eventually make their way across the state line into Beaufort and Jasper counties now that the culprits know they are being scrutinized. [ read article ... ]
Bluffton sewer project reaches milestone
Bluffton sewer project reaches milestone
The Buck Island–Simmonsville Sewer Project reached a major milestone when Phase 1 received its “Permit to Operate” from the South Carolina Department of Health & Environmental Control (DHEC). This permit allows the operation of the newly constructed sewer and water lines, and households can be connected to the system now. [ read article ... ]
Bluffton police arrest car-breaking suspect
Still searching for fourth suspect
Bluffton police arrest car break-in suspect
Kodi Michael Smith, age18
The Bluffton Police Department has made a third arrest in connection with a February 5 car-breaking/theft incident at The Farm at Buckwalter. Meanwhle, authorities continue to search for a fourth suspect, according to a statement released Monday, February 28, by Captain Bryan Norberg. [ read article ... ]
Burning ban lifted for Bluffton
Burning ban lifted for Town of Bluffton
The Bluffton Township Fire District’s fire marshall has lifted the burning ban for the incorporated areas of Bluffton, according to a statement released Saturday by Capt. Randy Hunter, public information director for the BTFD. [ read article ... ]
Port Royal might further restrict alcohol sales
Port Royal “last call” could have ripple affect
Town might further restrict alcohol sales
Google image
The town of Port Royal is contemplating further restricting its “last call” ordinance for serving alcohol at area clubs and restaurants, but the decision could actually make roads less safe in surrounding communities if those municipalities continue to adhere to a less confining state law. [ read article ... ]
Paratrooper association to descend on Beaufort County
82nd Airborne Ben Vandervoort Chapter
Paratroopers to attend Beaufort County event
82nd Airborne Division drop in the Netherlands during WW II in 1944 (National Archives photo used by Wikipedia)
82nd Airborne Division drop in the Netherlands during WW II in 1944 (National Archives photo used by Wikipedia)
Members of the largest paratrooper association in the world will descend upon Beaufort County over the weekend. The Ben Vandervoort Chapter of the 82nd Airborne Division Association will be headquartered for three days at the Marriott Hilton Head Resort and Spa, but participants will also tour Beaufort National Cemetery, the Marine Corps Recruit Depot on Parris Island, and possibly Savannah. [ read article ... ]
Hardeeville interim city manager: David Tedder
Hardeeville’s new interim city manager: David Tedder
Hardeeville has a new interim city manager, lawyer David Tedder of Beaufort, following the sudden resignation of his predecessor late last week. [ read article ... ]
Town of Bluffton seeking public review, stakeholder input
Eight joint town council workshops planned
Bluffton seeks public input on UDO
Beginning Tuesday, February 22, led by the Department of Growth Management, the Town of Bluffton is embarking on a 7-month long public review and stakeholder input period in anticipation of adopting a new and improved Unified Development Ordinance (UDO). They will hold a series of eight joint Town Council/Planning Commission Workshops and will host several stakeholder UDO review and input meetings. [ read article ... ]
Local firefighters assisting 10-year-old girl
Firefighters assisting 10-year-old girl’s family
Lowcountry firefighters are teaming up to help a local family in need. According to Randy Hunter, captain of the Bluffton Township Fire District, a charity golf tournament is being organized for Sunday, February 27, at Rose Hill Golf Club & Caddy’s Restaurant, with all proceeds benefiting a 10-year old girl named Nina Sauls. [ read article ... ]
Burning ban issued for Bluffton
Burning ban issued for Town of Bluffton
Fire Marshall Bill Martin (BTFD website)
After a spate of wild fires in Beaufort County and an ongoing spell of strong winds and low humidity that make it favorable for quickly getting out of control, Fire Marshall Bill Martin of the Bluffton Township Fire District has issued a burning ban for the Bluffton area “until further notice.” [ read article ... ]
Free clinic seeking volunteers, donations
Free clinic seeking volunteers, donations
Organizers of a free clinic that plans to serve Beaufort and Jasper counties are asking for help as well. [ read article ... ]
Bluffton fire spares homes, businesses
Bluffton fire spares homes, businesses
Beaufort County fire and rescue personnel continue to wage war with dry, windy conditions that can easily convert a spark into a roaring blaze. The Bluffton Township Fire District had to act quickly on Monday (February 21) when a brush fire was reported around 4 p.m. near some homes and businesses on Persimmons Street. [ read article ... ]
Hardeeville interim city manager resigns
Hardeeville interim city manager resigns
Various sources are reporting that Hardeeville interim city manager Dennis Averkin has resigned from a post he has held for less than a month. [ read article ... ]
Hardeeville chemical spill closes Hwy. 278
Hardeeville chemical spill closes Hwy. 278
The eastbound lane of Highway 278 near Hardeeville has reopened following a chemical spill around 7:30 a.m. Monday morning (February 21). [ read article ... ]
Beaufort TEA Party seeks input from local businesses
Local TEA Party seeks input from businesses
In the most recent meeting of the Beaufort TEA Party, the consensus of those attending was that government should apply the principles of liberty and independence to improve the climate for local business. [ read article ... ]
Jasper Ocean Terminal dead in the water
Jasper Ocean Terminal dead in the water
S.C. Ports Authority website
Bill Stern, the South Carolina State Ports Authority chairman, has, in effect, killed any hopes for the development of a Jasper Ocean Terminal, according to an article published Saturday, February 19, by a Charleston area newspaper. [ read article ... ]
Wilson praises $100 billion cut in government spending
Wilson praises $100 billion cut in spending
U.S. Congressman Joe Wilson
U.S. Congressman Joe Wilson (R- SC District 2) expressed thanks today (February 19) to both the U.S. House Republican leadership and the “conservative freshman class” for following through on its Pledge to America by opposing President Barak Obama’s budget request for 2011, and instead cutting government spending by $100 billion. [ read article ... ]
Featured advertiser: Kinghorn Insurance of Beaufort
Pat Branning releases new coffee table book
The Beaufort Tribune’s food editor
Pat Branning releases new coffee table book
Pat Branning's latest book features a heavy dose of Southern life.
Pat Anderson Branning, Beaufort Tribune food editor and longtime former WSB Radio women’s director in Atlanta, has announced the release her new book – Shrimp, Collards & Grits: Recipes, Stories and Art from the Creeks and Gardens of the Lowcountry. [ read article ... ]
Store camera exposes credit card thief
Girlfriend arrested for providing false information
Store camera exposes credit card thief
A surveillance camera that captured footage of a man using a stolen credit card at a Bluffton retail store not only led to the downfall of the alleged thief, but caused his girlfriend to get caught up in a web of deceit. [ read article ... ]
Edwards elected to Hilton Head Island Town Council
Easy win surprises pollsters
Edwards wins Hilton Head council seat
Election returns are in for the highly sought-after seat on Hilton Head Island’s town council. Lee Edwards was unofficially declared the winner Tuesday night (February 15) following initial ballot counting. His easy win surprised a lot of prognosticators observing the five-candidate Ward 3 race that many anticipated would require a run-off. [ read article ... ]
City Council mulling revised rates for Waterfront Park
Council reviewing rates for Waterfront Park
Waterfront Park in downtown Beaufort
A Beaufort City Council work-session Tuesday afternoon (February 15) examined a revised rate structure being proposed for the private use of Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park.
The proposal recommends switching from a daily rental rate to hourly fees and dividing the park into separate units. Under such an arrangement, the city could rent the entire park for a full day or only portions of it at a time. [ read article ... ]
BJWSA cautions customers about possible imposter
BJWSA cautions about possible imposter
BJWSA website image
The Beaufort-Jasper Water & Sewer Authority is warning customers about a company in the area that is asking to enter private homes to obtain water samples and possibly passing itself off as a partner of BJSWA. [ read article ... ]
Council delays Beaufort Commerce Park decision
Brakes applied to final reading
County Council delays BCP decision
Gateway to Beaufort Commerce Park (LEN website image)
Gateway to Beaufort Commerce Park (LEN website image)
Beaufort County Council’s decision on whether to invest $2.5 million into the 165-acre Beaufort Commerce Park has been put on hold at least until April 15. The council had previously approved two readings on the proposal and appeared determined to take the final vote Monday. However, recent community uproar has at least temporarily put the brakes on moving forward. [ read article ... ]
Six stores off-limits for local military
Six stores off-limits for local military
Six Beaufort county businesses have been declared off-limits to local military personnel because they sell a product similar to synthetic marijuana, according to a statement released jointly today by area Marine Corps and Navy commanders. [ read article ... ]
Does new U.S. 17 intersection actually reduce death trap?
Editorial Perspective:
Does new intersection reduce death trap?
After the widening of U.S. 17 at Gardens Corner as part of a $100-million improvement project, this store and patrons getting into and out of their vehicles are up against southbound traffic. A side road past the store accesses U.S. 17 just before the new U.S. 17/U.S. 21 round-about connector, prompting concern that drivers have to enter the highway from a nearly blind standstill and encounter traffic possibly traveling as fast as 55-60 mph in spite of a new speed limit of 35 mph in that vicinity.
Even before the ribbon had been snipped at Thursday’s (Feb. 10) ribbon-cutting ceremony marking the completion of the long-anticipated U.S. 17/ACE Basin Parkway, there were those who say it only worsens an already existing death trap. [ read article ... ]
Former Lt. Gov. Earle Morris dead at 82
Former Lt. Gov. Earle Morris dead at age 82
Multiple news sources across South Carolina are reporting the death of former S.C. Lt. Gov. Earle Morris, 82, as a result of prostate cancer. The prominent and long-serving politician spent the latter part of his life immersed in a major securities fraud scandal that eventually sent him to prison. [ read article ... ]
U.S. 17 project in Gardens Corner completed
Ribbon cutting ceremony both solemn and celebratory
U.S. 17 improvement project completed
Taking part in the ribbon-cutting ceremony were local and state officials.
About 50-60 people gathered Thursday afternoon (February 10) in Gardens Corner to celebrate the completion of a six-year, $100-million-plus highway construction project. Even so, those shivering in the cold, breezy overcast weather were about as solemn as they were enthusiastic. [ read article ... ]
An open letter to the Beaufort County Council
Local citizen speaks out
Open letter to Beaufort County Council
When attention is directed to Valentine’s Day, Beaufort County Council will propose final reading to purchase the Beaufort Commerce Park (BCP) for $2.5 million from the Lowcountry Economic Network (LEN), a public-private partnership. I have problems with this plan. [ read article ... ]
Proposed $78 million hospital pitched to Bluffton council
$78 million hospital pitched to Bluffton
A former president of Hilton Head Regional Health Care and Hilton Head Hospital is seeking financing for a proposed 198-bed, $78 million hospital to be located in Bluffton somewhere near the intersection of Bluffton Parkway and Okatie Highway (SC 170). [ read article ... ]
Drinking water south of Broad to change temporarily
Drinking water south of Broad River to change temporarily
The Beaufort-Jasper Water and Sewer Authority is advising customers south of the Broad River that a temporary change in BJWSA’s method of disinfecting its drinking water could affect the taste or smell of it, but the process is safe and can be consumed like normal. [ read article ... ]
Rhett Gallery: Five generations of masterpieces and counting
Five talented generations and counting
RHETT GALLERY, INC.
Rhett Gallery on Bay Street in Beaufort
For five generations, the Rhett family of Beaufort has produced and compiled some of the finest examples of art – not only in the Lowcountry, but also in the world. Whether or not another generation will follow is up to the youngest member, 26-year-old William III, who has no protégé at the time. [ read article ... ]
Beaufort Memorial says e-coli rumors are unfounded
Beaufort Memorial: E-coli rumors are unfounded
Beaufort Memorial Hospital
Rumors were spreading around town earlier this week that Beaufort Memorial Hospital is battling a “high incident rate of staph infections” and/or an “epidemic breakout of e-coli bacteria.” However, according to hospital officials, the rumors are unfounded and simply not true. [ read article ... ]
Dollar General to open 12,000-sq-ft store on Ribaut Road
12,000-sq-ft Dollar General to open soon on Ribaut Road
A 12,000-sq.ft. building at 1100 Ribaut Road is undergoing renovation in preparation for a new Dollar General planning to open there soon. The store is expected to open its doors in about six weeks. [ read article ... ]
Coin-only parking meters return to Bay Street
Coin-only parking meters return to Bay Street
Twenty-four coin-only parking meters, each serving two spaces, and seven single-space meters will be installed this week on Beaufort’s Bay Street and the electronic pay stations relocated to parking lots downtown. [ read article ... ]
Beaufort County’s Hospitality Tax Special Distribution grants available
Beaufort County’s Hospitality Tax
Special Distribution grants available
For the first time, a portion of Beaufort County Hospitality Tax revenue is being made available to groups that have potential hospitality related projects. [ read article ... ]
New parking rates, time limits start today in Beaufort
New parking rates, time limits start today in Beaufort
Starting Friday, January 14, look for changes in how long you can park on Bay Street and how much it costs to park away from Bay Street. The changes came with approval of a modified parking ordinance Tuesday by Beaufort City Council. [ read article ... ]
Media news conference scheduled for F-35 decision
Media news conference scheduled for F-35 decision
A news conference to share information about Pentagon decision on basing the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter at Marine Corps Air Station-Beaufort has been scheduled. [ read article ... ]
Town of Bluffton awards May River Watershed Action Plan contract
Town of Bluffton
Awards May River Watershed Action Plan contract
The Town of Bluffton has awarded the May River Watershed Action Plan contract to a team led by MacTec Engineering and Consulting, Inc. The team also includes the Center for Watershed Protection, Ward Edwards, and Thomas & Hutton. [ read article ... ]
Operation F-35 makes final push
Operation F-35 makes final push
With public comment closing later this month on the Department of the Navy’s final decision on the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter coming to Marine Corps Air Station-Beaufort, supporters offer an easy way to register comments at two local restaurants on Veteran’s Day. [ read article ... ]
Higher Education Commission buys Beaufort Chamber building for University
Higher Education Commission buys Beaufort Chamber building for USCB
Tim Pearce, Chair of the Beaufort Jasper Higher Education Commission announced today that the Commission has purchased the Beaufort Chamber of Commerce headquarters on Bellamy Curve for the use of the University of South Carolina Beaufort. [ read article ... ]
Online newspapers reach 61% of U.S. adult Internet population
Gannett online revenue jumps, print lags
News is the killer app
Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce VCB awarded SC PRT tourism marketing grant
Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce VCB
Awarded SC PRT tourism marketing grant
The Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce Visitor & Convention Bureau (VCB) was awarded an $110,640 Tourism Partnership Fund (TPF) grant from the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism. [ read article ... ]
F-35B decision pending for Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort
F-35B decision pending for Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort
The F-35B Joint Strike Fighter process is on schedule for the Navy and Marine Corps and a decision about where to base the combat and training squadrons remains on track for December according to a press release. [ read article ... ]
Woodlands Bank of Bluffton goes belly up, depositors safe
Bank failure #91 in USA, #2 in Beaufort County this year
Woodlands Bank of Bluffton goes belly up, depositors safe
Woodlands Bank, Bluffton, South Carolina, with offices in Bluffton and Beaufort, was closed yesterday, Friday, July 16, by the Office of Thrift Supervision, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver, according to a FDIC press release. To protect the depositors, the FDIC entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with Bank of the Ozarks, Little Rock, Arkansas, to assume all of the deposits of Woodlands Bank. [ read article ... ]
Northern New Jersey: Baristanet
Federal funds awarded for public transportation in northern Beaufort County
Federal funds awarded for public transportation in northern Beaufort County
US Senator Lindsey Graham (R), SC, notified Beaufort County leaders this week that the Federal Transit Administration will fund a $3.1 million request for public transportation in the northern part of the County. [ read article ... ]
Editorial comment: Is another Great Depression just around the corner?
Editorial comment
Is another Great Depression just around the corner?
Not too long ago the thought the world might have another Great Depression was almost unthinkable. The only kind of depression anybody under the age of 65 knew anything about was the kind cured by Prozac. [ read article ... ]
Study says military impact on local economy exceeds $1.2 billion
Local military impact exceeds $1.2 billion [ read article ... ]
Cost of living in Beaufort County is highest in state
Cost of living in Beaufort County is highest in state
The cost of living in Beaufort County is higher than anywhere else in South Carolina, according to figures released yesterday, May 10, by the Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce Visitor & Convention Bureau. [ read article ... ]
Print newspaper circulation continues downward spiral
Fort Greene-Clinton Hill: The Local
Honolulu Civil Beat
Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce Visitor & Convention Bureau Board of Directors sets objectives for 2010-2011
Visitor & Convention Bureau sets objectives for 2010-2011
The Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce Visitor & Convention Bureau (VCB) conducted its annual board of directors retreat at Fripp Island Golf & Beach Resort on April 13. The purpose of the retreat was to establish leadership direction and objectives for the tourism industry and VCB staff. [ read article ... ]
Hometown Local Media celebrates first anniversary with more than 2.25 million page views
Hometown Local Media celebrates first anniversary with more than 2.25 million page views
Hometown Local Media, Inc., the publisher of The Beaufort Tribune, The Deer Isle Chronicle, South Of The Broad and MugFaces.com is celebrating today, April 13, 2010, its first anniversary. During the past 365 days our pages have been viewed more than 2.25 million times by almost 150,000 individual persons, according to Google Analytics, the independent Internet measuring service. [ read article ... ]
Myrtle Beach bank with Hilton Head branches goes bust, depositors safe
Myrtle Beach bank with Hilton Head branches goes bust, depositors safe
Beach First National Bank, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, was closed Friday, April 9, by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver. The bank has two branch offices on Hilton Head Island in addition to five offices in the Myrtle Beach/Surfside Beach/Pawleys Island area. [ read article ... ]
April 4: Hilton Garden Inn presents grand Easter brunch & Easter egg hunt
April 4: Hilton Garden Inn presents Easter brunch
Hilton Garden Inn, 1500 Queen Street, Beaufort, will present a grand Easter brunch to the public on Easter day, Sunday, April 4, 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m., including an Easter egg hunt for the children. [ read article ... ]
Beaufort Construction Inc. features XRDI, maker of engines for KillerBee, Shadow, Mark 4.7, Golden Eye and Fury unmanned aerial vehicles
Beaufort Construction, Inc.
features
XRDImaker of engines for military
KillerBee unmanned aerial vehicles
Founded in 1996 and owned by Beaufort natives Merritt Patterson and Leith Webb, Beaufort Construction Inc. is northern Beaufort County’s premier commercial construction company. Over the years, the company has built more than 102 commercial structures ranging from the Hilton Head Airplane Hanger complex to the Port Royal Center and the Lady’s Island BB&T bank. [ read article ... ]
The Beaufort Tribune beats Beaufort Gazette online by 50%
The Beaufort Tribune beats Beaufort Gazette online by 50%
The Beaufort Tribune is pleased to announce that as of January 2010 we are now officially ahead of The Beaufort Gazette in online readership by a margin of 50%. [ read article ... ]
News from Mayor Billy: For arts to suvive in our small city, it cannot be business as usual
For arts to survive in our small city, it cannot be business as usual
“The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.” Albert Einstein.
From the lessons of failure often come successes. In his book, Seven Lessons for Leading in Crisis, Bill George recommends a process extracted from the actions of corporate leaders who brought their companies through crisis to recovery. [ read article ... ]
State Ports Authority signs letter of intent to sell Port Royal Terminal Properties
State Ports Authority signs letter of intent to sell Port Royal Terminal Properties
The South Carolina State Ports Authority’s chairman Bill Stern has signed a letter of intent to sell the 51 acres that made up the former Port Royal Terminal Properties to a prospective buyer, according to a Friday announcement by SC State Rep. Shannon Erickson. [ read article ... ]
Beaufort Performing Arts, Inc., is out of business
Beaufort Performing Arts, Inc., is out of business
Beaufort Performing Arts, Inc. (BPA), the local non-profit group that has presented on-stage theatre productions to the public at USCB’s Performing Arts Center on Carteret Street since 2004, is out of business. Its nine-person board of directors closed down the operation at a meeting yesterday, January 25. The three-person staff has been dismissed, and the organization’s box office has closed. [ read article ... ]
SC unemployment reaches historic high of 12.6%
SC unemployment reaches historic high of 12.6%
The citizens of South Carolina experienced the highest unemployment rate in the history of unemployment recordkeeping in December, a record-setting 12.6%, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday. The state’s previous high of 12.3% was set in November, the previous month. [ read article ... ]
Robert Moore: Entering the “Doom Loop”
J.P. Morgan
Entering the “Doom Loop”
In this opinion article, our national columnist, Dr. Robert H. Moore, states that Americans cannot rely on the politicians or the big banks but must take personal responsibility for the safety and value of their investments.
A Historical Note
During several decades in financial services, I worked for five well-compensated chief executive officers. Intelligent and decent people, they considered their position one of trust. They felt accountable to our employees and shareholders. Near the end of my service, I had the disorienting experience of working with a management team who appeared to have little interest in our business, employees or clients. [ read article ... ]
Publisher of Savannah Morning News and Bluffton Today goes bankrupt
Publisher of Savannah Morning News and Bluffton Today goes bankrupt
Morris Publishing Group, publisher of Savannah Morning News, Bluffton Today, Skirt! Magazine, the Times-Union of Jacksonville, Florida, and a number of other newspapers, shoppers and magazines, is expected to file a Chapter 11 “prepackaged” bankruptcy plan in Federal court today, January 19. At the end of this past September, the last quarter for which financial results are available, the company had debts of $482 million against assets of $175 million, putting it $307 million in the hole. [ read article ... ]
The Beaufort Tribune exceeds one million page views in nine months
The Beaufort Tribune exceeds one million page views in nine months
The Beaufort Tribune is pleased to announce that in exactly nine months, from April 13, 2009, until January 13, 2010, our pages were viewed more than one million times, according to Google Analytics, the online standard for measuring web site readership. To be exact, our pages were viewed 1,009,540 times during this initial nine-month period. [ read article ... ]
Rupert Murdoch vs. the Internet
Rhett Gallery celebrates 29th anniversary
Rhett Gallery celebrates 29th anniversary
"Offshore Trawler", watercolor by Nancy Ricker Rhett
Rhett Gallery in downtown Beaufort is celebrating its 29th anniversary. On January 15, 1981, husband and wife artists Nancy and Bill Rhett opened a new gallery on Bay Street to show their work. Now, 29 years later, the Rhetts not only remain with their shop but are proud to be operating nearly the oldest business on Bay Street. [ read article ... ]
Editor & Publisher says goodbye
Editor & Publisher closes
The Beaufort Tribune ends 2009 with 500% growth in readership in three months
Tribune posts 500% growth in three months
The Beaufort Tribune has ended 2009 with an astonishing 500% increase in readership in three months, reaching more than 245,000 page views in December compared to 48,934 page views in September. Here’s the graph that tells it all:
Chamber visitor bureau and staff offices moving to the Arsenal
Randall Burch, chairman of the Visitor and Convention Bureau board of directors, and Carlotta Ungaro, chamber president, show lease to the Arsenal
Chamber visitor bureau moving to the Arsenal
The Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitor Bureau will be moving its visitor center and staff offices to the historic Arsenal building, 713 Craven Street, in the National Register Historic District of downtown Beaufort
In addition to serving as the official visitor center for the chamber and office space for staff, the building will be provide a meeting and event venue and exhibit space. The chamber is tentatively scheduled to move into the Arsenal in the spring of 2010.. [ read article ... ]
SC unemployment reaches historic high of 12.3%
SC unemployment at historic high: 12.3%
The citizens of South Carolina experienced the highest unemployment rate in the state’s history in November, a record-setting 12.3%, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday. The state’s previous high of 12.1% was set in June, just five months ago. [ read article ... ]
Historic Pick Pocket Plantation holds Plantation Day Festival today
Historic Pick Pocket Plantation holds Plantation Day Festival today
Historic Pick Pocket Plantation, the site of the first farm that became the Trask family truck farming empire in the Beaufort area, will host its first Plantation Day Festival on Saturday, December 12, from 10 am to 5 pm in Beaufort. The one-day event will be a celebration suitable for all ages, with food, art, fine crafts, Lowcountry history and more. All festival activities will be free of charge to the public. [ read article ... ]
The Rhett House Inn wins Four Diamonds for 15th year in a row
The Rhett House Inn excels with AAA Four Diamonds award
Out of the 23 years Steve and MaryAnn Harrison have owned The Rhett House Inn, they have received the AAA Four Diamond award 15 years in a row. They went up to Charleston Monday night to receive the award by AAA Carolinas. No other hostelry has won the award more times than The Rhett House Inn. [ read article ... ]
Tribune readership continues to skyrocket, advertising opportunity zooms
Tribune readership skyrockets, advertising opportunity zooms
The Beaufort Tribune is pleased to announce that for the month of November 2009 the number of page views has again skyrocketed upward at an amazing pace. We have grown from 48,000 page views in September to 104,000 page views in October to more than 167,000 page views in November, making the opportunity to advertise in the Tribune at the current fixed rates even more compelling. A page view is what is popularly called a “hit”, that is, when someone looks at one of our pages. [ read article ... ]
The Washington Times executive editor resigns
The executive editor of The Washington Times has resigned.
The Washington Times announces major leadership changes
The Washington Times announced today major changes in its leadership. It has fired the three top people on the business side of its operations: President and Publisher Thomas P. McDevitt, Chief Financial Officer Keith Cooperrider and Chairman Douglas D.M. Joo. [ read article ... ]
The Beaufort Tribune exceeds 100,000 page views per month
The Beaufort Tribune exceeds 100,000 page views per month
The Beaufort Tribune is pleased to announce that for the month of October the Tribune exceeded 100,000 page views, doubling in a single month the average of about 50,000 page views during each of the previous five months. [ read article ... ]
Boeing picks North Charleston as 2d assembly site for 787 Dreamliner
Boeing picks North Charleston to assemble 787 Dreamliner
North Charleston site consists of Boeing Charleston and Global Aeronautica. These facilities perform fabrication, assembly, and integration of 787 fuselage sections.
Boeing announced Thursday that it has chosen its North Charleston facility, located about 70 miles from Beaufort, as the location for a second final assembly site for the 787 Dreamliner program. Boeing evaluated criteria that were designed to find the final assembly location within the company that would best support the 787 business plan as the program increases production rates. In addition to serving as a location for final assembly of 787 Dreamliners, the facility also will have the capability to support the testing and delivery of the airplanes. [ read article ... ]
Upscale City Loft Hotel opens in historic downtown Beaufort
Upscale City Loft Hotel opens in historic downtown Beaufort
Beaufort’s new, upscale City Loft Hotel has opened at 301 Carteret Street. The 23-room facility is more than the equal of hip city loft hotels in the big city of New York, so you’re in for a big treat when you stay here. To celebrate its opening, the hotel is offering special low rates including for this weekend’s Historic Beaufort Foundation Fall Festival of Houses & Gardens, a Halloween Weekend Special next weekend, and special rates in the month of November. [ read article ... ]
Charles Lehmann, chamber’s visitor & convention bureau chief, resigns; Elizabeth O’Brien hired
Charles Lehmann resigns, Elizabeth O’Brien hired by chamber of commerce
Charles Lehmann, executive director of the Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Visitor & Convention Bureau has resigned. His last day of work at the chamber was yesterday. Carlotta Ungaro, the chamber president, announced Lehmann’s resignation today. [ read article ... ]
Profile: Stay in tune with Chuck Raynor
Stay in tune with Chuck Raynor
Almost ten years ago Chuck Raynor of St. Helena Island, who was at that time a fifth-generation funeral director in Long Island NY, had to answer the question “What do you want to be when you grow up?” [ read article ... ]
City council approves sandwich boards, Keyserling votes no
City council approves sandwich boards, Keyserling votes no
Sidewalk sandwich boards were sentenced to a one-year trial at the Beaufort City Council meeting last evening. Council approved the signs for just one year, commencing December 31, to allow the advertising boards on sidewalks outside businesses with Mayor Billy Keyserling as the only negative vote. [ read article ... ]
Beaufort City Council tries to digest sandwich boards
Will Beaufort choke on sandwich boards?
Last night the Beaufort City Council debated on first reading a proposed change in the sign ordinance to allow advertising sandwich boards on the public sidewalks outside of businesses on the main commercial highway arteries into town including Ribaut Road, Highways 170 and 21, and Sea Island Parkway on Lady’s Island. Sign boards are already permitted in the downtown commercial district and on Boundary Street. [ read article ... ]
Jeff Kidd, editor of The Beaufort Gazette, thinks hyperlocals are overhyped
Newspaper advertising down 29% in second quarter
Orange County Register parent, Freedom Communications, to go bankrupt
The Beaufort Tribune viewed quarter million times in first four months
The Beaufort Tribune anticipates 1,000,000 page views in 2010
At exactly 6:05 a.m. today, August 27, 2009, The Beaufort Tribune surpassed a quarter-million pages viewed by our readers since we became a commercial online newspaper four months ago. [ read article ... ]
Five Key Reasons Why Newspapers Are Failing
South Carolina unemployment rate is 12,1%, third highest in nation and highest in state’s history
SC unemployment rate at 12.1% reaches highest in history
The unemployment rate in South Carolina is 12.1%, the third highest in the nation and the highest on record for the state, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The figures cover the month of June 2009, the most recent month for which statistics are available. [ read article ... ]
Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce announces directors
The Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce recently announced its 2009 board of directors. [ read article ... ]
The Inn at Palmetto Bluff wins travel magazine award
The Inn at Palmetto Bluff has been named the top resort in the U.S. and Canada in a readers’ survey in Travel + Leisure Magazine. [ read article ... ]
Chamber of commerce and convention & visitors bureau chiefs make a truce
Uneasy alliance negotiated between rival tourism groups
The Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce, in business for decades, and the Beaufort-Port Royal Convention and Visitors Bureau, formed by Dick Stewart when he failed in his effort to take control of the chamber, yesterday jointly announced combining their tourism marketing efforts. [ read article ... ]
Main Street Beaufort elects new officers
24th annual meeting of Main Street Beaufort, USA
Main Street Beaufort, USA, held its 24th annual meeting on Thursday. [ read article ... ]
On-line newspapers are setting the standard
San Diego tries two different on-line news models
BB&T pays US Treasury more than $3.1 billion to exit TARP
BB&T bank with local offices says it’s making “every good loan we can find”
BB&T Corporation today said it has exited the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) by buying back the preferred stock sold to the U.S. Treasury Department under the capital purchase program last November. The bank has 1,500 offices including in Beaufort, Bluffton Hilton Head and Yemassee. [ read article ... ]
Financial problems plague large companies with local offices
Crescent Resources bankruptcy joins growing list of big companies affecting local residents
The filing on Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection by Crescent Resources is one of a number of large corporate financial crises affecting residents in Beaufort county this year. [ read article ... ]
Crescent Resources files for chapter 11 bankruptcy
Developer of Palmetto Bluff and Oldfield in bankruptcy
Crescent Resources, one of the largest real estate developers in the southeast, and numerous of its affiliated companies filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection today, affecting two of its major upscale residential developments in southern Beaufort county, Palmetto Bluff and Oldfield [ read article ... ]
Largest Yellow Pages publisher goes bankrupt due to shift to internet advertising
Why journalists deserve low pay
Newsosaur
The Beaufort Tribune reaches 95,532 readers in first 30 days
The Beaufort Tribune posts first-30-day results
Beaufort, Wednesday, May 20, 2009. The Beaufort Tribune completed its first 30 days of full commercial news operation today with a resounding total of 95,532 page views, according to its on-line “hit” counter (see image above). [ read article ... ]
Slate says old media jobs are going to disappear
Slate tells why paid on-line news content won’t work
Viewpoints: The decline and fall of Newsweek
In a cleverly worded essay copyrighted by Creators Syndicate, Inc., Brent Bozell analyzes the percentage decline in Newsweek’s circulation vs. what the magazine claims has been a decline in Christianity in America. Bozell runs the largest media watchdog organization in America. He finds Newsweek sorely lacking. [READ ARTICLE].
Morris Publishing Group, publisher of Savannah Morning News and Bluffton Today, may be facing bankruptcy
Beaufort, April 15, 2009. Reports from the financial press state that Morris Publishing Group, publisher of Savannah Morning News, Bluffton Today, and numerous other dailies and weeklies, may be facing bankruptcy. [ read article ... ]
Island Free Press
The former executive editor of the Lousville Courier-Journal finds independence, fulfillment and happiness on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.
The New York Times announces the dawn of the “hyperlocals”
Beaufort, April 13, 2009. The New York Times announced the arrival of on-line “hyperlocal” news in a story on page 1 of its printed newspaper today. Click here for the story.
Forbes magazine describes the new age of local on-line journalism
Beaufort, April 13, 2009, Forbes magazine described the new wave of local on-line journalism in a story on its website. Click here to read it.
The New York Times Company threatens to close Boston Globe
The New York Times Company threatened yesterday to close its Boston Globe newspaper. The 14th largest newspaper in the nation, The Globe has been losing millions of dollars. The threat aims at eliminating company pension contributions and lifetime job guarantees in the highly unionized organization. Click here to read the article in The New York Times.
Independent online newspaper captures major investigative reporting award
USA Today’s president and publisher abruptly quits
Internet encyclopedia Wikipedia spells death knell for Microsoft’s Encarta
Chicago newspaper company files for bankruptcy
The wounded newspaper industry lost $7.5 billion in advertising revenue last year
More cutbacks at Beaufort Gazette and Island Packet
Publisher announces structural changes for Gazette, Island Packet, by Sara Johnson Borton, The Island Packet and The Beaufort Gazette, March 28, 2009
Old media’s continuing decline
Newsweek’s unintentionally revealed central truth, by Glenn Greenwald, Salon.com, March 29, 2009
Publisher announces structural changes for Gazette, Island Packet, by Sara Johnson Borton, The Island Packet and The Beaufort Gazette, March 28, 2009
National companies with local outlets go bankrupt
Charter Communications files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, by David B. Wilkerson, MarketWatch, March 27, 2009, reports that the St. Louis-based cable television company intends to continue operations as usual. [ read article ... ]
Downfall of daily print newspapers continues
March 18, 2009 by The Beaufort Tribune. The Copley News Press, Inc., announced today agreement to sell its flagship newspaper, the San Diego Union-Tribune, to a private equity firm in Beverly Hills for an undisclosed sum. The centerpiece of what was once a thriving media empire owned by the Copley family, the Union-Tribune joins a host of major dailies that have fallen on severe financial hard times as traditional print newspapers face the threat of extinction from free Internet newspapers. [ read article ... ]
Island Packet, Beaufort Gazette to cut staff 11 percent
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