Re-Elect Tom Reitz: Beaufort County Council District 11 Platform A strategic platform for conserving Hilton Head Island’s quality of life through transparent governance, fiscal discipline, environmental stewardship, and managed growth. Submitter’s Note: This StratML Part 1 rendering of Tom Reitz’s re-election platform for Beaufort County Council District 11 was compiled from the source by Claude.ai and edited in the form at https://stratml.us/forms/Claude/Part1.html. Tom Reitz for Beaufort County Council District 11 TRHHI 208cf446-6d84-47b2-ae0b-80335e662314 The re-election campaign of Tom Reitz, incumbent Beaufort County Council member representing District 11, which includes Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Residents of Beaufort County Council District 11 District 11 encompasses Shipyard, Port Royal, Palmetto Dunes, Leamington, Sea Pines, Shelter Cove, Wexford, Long Cove, Yacht Cove, Point Comfort, Bay PInes, portions of Spanish Wells, Folly Field area, Burkes Beach & Singleton Beach areas, N. Forest Beach Rd., S. Forest Beach Rd., River Club, Timbercrest, and more. Hilton Head Island Tom is passionate about protecting the natural beauty, charm and ambience of our island and all of the lowcountry. The natural surroundings and wildlife of our environment are what brought us all here to begin with. Did you know that in the next 10 years they expect the Southern Beaufort County area to double in size? Of course you know that, you already see it happening. There are many things that are going to have to be done and agreed upon to protect our area during this growth. One thing Tom doesn’t support is massive structural growth and a disregard for our beautiful land. He wants to preserve what we have, and protect our open spaces. There have been many changes over the years with a great deal of commercial and residential building, and if things continue as they are, our neighboring community of Bluffton and our island will never be the same. A Hilton Head Island and Beaufort County that preserves its natural beauty, manages growth responsibly, and delivers honest, accountable governance for every resident. 40044a73-38b2-433e-863d-6d88cb698980 To serve District 11 constituents with transparency, fiscal responsibility, environmental stewardship, and collaborative problem-solving across all county priorities. 0378214d-9ae5-4c7a-bda1-a727d76ae109 Relationships People ~ If there is anyone who instantly builds a relationship with someone, it’s Tom. There is not a day that he is not out walking the streets or running around town that he does not stop and talk to a complete stranger and a relationship is instantly built. There is nowhere you can go with him that he doesn’t already know someone in the room. Family Tom loves his family more than anything. He is a great husband and father and has made every aspect of his kids lives his top priority. He has been involved with them in all their extra-curricular activities throughout their school age years and now that they are both grown he supports them in all that they do. Business Tom has been consulting and developing new business in the pharmaceutical, nutritional and cosmetics industry for over 30 years. Traveling to many countries such as India, Italy, England, the Czech Republic and China. He has been successful at bringing clients who were spectrums apart on their thought processes together for great business success. Negotiations Tom’s business success can all be attributed to his negotiation skills. He never gives up on a challenge and never disregards someone’s opinion. He is open to all ideas and strategically figures out how best to cultivate those ideas and bring people together to the satisfaction of everyone. Volunteerism Over the years Tom has volunteered in a variety of areas. He taught Faith Formation at church for 15 years, helped at “A Child’s Place” in Charlotte where they focused on feeding the homeless children, worked with HomeWorx, a national organization that repairs rundown homes in the community, coached baseball and basketball teams, assisted at the food pantry picking up and delivery food, and so much more. Passion One thing Tom will constantly tell you is that he is passionate about what he believes in. This is what will make him a successful District 11 Councilman. He is built on the promise that if you tell him he needs to fix something or you tell him you have a concern about something he will not let it go till it is resolved or you feel comfortable with the outcome. Transparency & Integrity Ensure constituents receive complete transparency, honesty, and integrity from their County Council representative, with all county business conducted openly and every voice heard. 44979dc9-d3de-4089-8061-545847b69e37 1 District 11 Residents Beaufort County Council Constituent Awareness Keep constituents fully informed of all county business and decisions affecting District 11 in a timely and accessible manner. e3a0ea67-9353-4c80-91cb-7e8506d244ca 1.1 Accountability Mechanisms Establish and maintain clear channels for residents to hold their Council representative accountable for actions taken on their behalf. 869123c0-a5e6-46a9-9cac-2b365935ec13 1.2 Fiscal Oversight Exercise careful stewardship of taxpayer dollars by researching decisions thoroughly, asking probing questions, and keeping government spending sensible and justified. 25cc33f6-5957-4bb6-a477-66828c08ea53 2 Beaufort County Taxpayers Spending Scrutiny Research all spending proposals and ask rigorous questions before approving county expenditures to prevent waste of public funds. 8711a01d-c7c5-4608-bc83-176e3c2f575b 2.1 Taxpayer Protection Advocate for tax and budget policies that balance essential government services and infrastructure with the goal of keeping hard-earned money in residents’ pockets. 568cf02a-7e5b-496c-8080-10d7dd44d74f 2.2 Infrastructure & Transportation Resolve Hilton Head Island’s critical US-278 bridge replacement and corridor congestion challenges in a way that addresses root causes and preserves funding for local improvements. 948ea8b7-417f-4ac1-8da1-c3857c6faab4 3 Island Commuters and Visitors South Carolina Department of Transportation Town of Hilton Head Island Bridge Replacement Advocate for a Mackay Creek bridge replacement solution that also preserves dedicated funding for US-278 corridor improvements addressing the primary sources of congestion. a4ed32c7-d252-4216-b74b-9e3f4feadd6f 3.1 Corridor Improvements Work with SCDOT, the Town of Hilton Head Island, and Beaufort County to ensure infrastructure funding is sequenced to benefit island residents and remedy corridor deficiencies before 2030. 284b408d-224f-49cc-9fb8-29d8c6af8ee1 3.2 Coastal Environment Protect Hilton Head Island’s beaches, dunes, marshlands, trees, and wildlife from the irreversible impacts of overdevelopment by opposing upzoning and insisting on responsible land decisions. 0810b73b-de68-49db-b6fb-d2915b31ba4d 4 Island Residents and Future Generations Property Developers Anti-Upzoning Oppose upzoning and new development approvals that pose unacceptable risks to natural ecosystems, marshlands, forests, and wildlife habitats. 8777a065-bb61-4a30-9fec-b7719d1aedd8 4.1 Stakeholder Collaboration Work collaboratively with residents, developers, and local and county governments to rigorously evaluate development impacts before approving any projects. 3c90016d-7a2d-437a-a3ed-fd9e36abe6c9 4.2 Land Use Preserve Hilton Head Island’s distinctive character and ambience by enforcing planning and zoning guidelines that prevent incompatible, character-destroying residential development. fad5ad8d-bd99-4add-918d-db90e301d9ef 5 Island Residents and Property Owners Zoning Enforcement Uphold planning and zoning guidelines that prevent clear-cutting and construction of generic, out-of-character stacked-home communities that diminish the island’s unique identity. fa4fa9fa-caa6-4682-b4a4-0a8462da72c7 5.1 Character Preservation Promote development proposals that reflect the distinctive ambience and architectural character of Hilton Head Island. 7b305ddd-2752-4ef4-8f71-66736e71be1d 5.2 Workforce Housing Develop a well-considered, employee-centered workforce housing strategy that genuinely meets employee needs without exacerbating traffic, environmental, or development pressures. 7b100ec2-4ed7-4860-b733-5fac40c564de 6 Island Workforce Employees Beaufort County Employers Employee Engagement Directly engage island employees to assess actual housing needs, preferences, and constraints before committing to any workforce housing construction plans. 0a0d268f-0f59-485b-91f7-191e4465d54a 6.1 Impact Assessment Evaluate all workforce housing proposals for impacts on roadways, traffic, community integration, and actual utilization rates prior to approval. 092baadc-ba35-47ca-9631-c7f7407282f7 6.2 Growth Management Get ahead of rapid population growth by ensuring local and county governments maintain coordinated strategic plans that protect natural resources, respect property rights, and prevent poor planning decisions. a70143a0-ddde-4d16-ba1c-f931232bba0b 7 Current and Future County Residents Beaufort County Planning Department Coordinated Planning Advocate for joint strategic growth planning between the Town of Hilton Head Island and Beaufort County to manage development impacts on schools, roads, and public safety. 32e60c95-7809-4d5c-9c3a-b9454fb0b414 7.1 Variance Scrutiny Rigorously scrutinize variance requests and development approvals that risk natural resources, infrastructure capacity, or the overall quality of life in the county. 1a663296-01f0-42fd-855c-855008c04ee8 7.2 Public Safety Reduce traffic accidents and address rising crime by partnering closely with the Beaufort County Sheriff’s office and fostering island-wide community vigilance and cooperation. 8f7e97e7-afa7-499d-b72c-ff01aa0e4216 8 Island Residents and Visitors Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office Traffic Enforcement Partner with the Beaufort County Sheriff’s office to increase traffic enforcement on island roadways, reducing accidents, speeding, signal violations, and distracted driving. 55c9f7ec-a74d-4f87-9193-d8e09d2c18e4 8.1 Community Policing Strengthen coordination between the Sheriff’s office and island communities to improve crime awareness, prevention, and response across all neighborhoods. 2410ffec-ce45-4ba9-9d39-f73b8b844cf7 8.2 2026-11-03 2026-05-20 https://tomhhi.com/ Owen Ambur Owen.Ambur@verizon.net