<b>By MINDY LUCAS</b>

The City of Beaufort’s annexation of a Lady's Island property once met with heavy opposition has become a reality.

The annexation request was given final approval at City Council’s most recent meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 11.

The property – a collection of smaller parcels totaling 6.9 acres along William Street and Mayfair Court – was among two such properties that came under fire last summer when area residents turned out by the dozens to protest their annexation.

Residents took particular issue with the annexation of the larger parcel, a 20-acre property along Miller Drive East that includes a five-acre lake, citing concerns over increased development, density and traffic in a largely residential area east of Sam’s Point Road.

Both applications for annexation received preliminary approval at council’s Aug. 27 meeting, and received different zonings from what applicants had originally requested.

However, local builder Merritt Patterson who owns the William Street and Mayfair Court parcels, asked that his annexation request be removed from consideration after that meeting saying he didn’t want to be “thrown into the same emotional environment” as the Miller Drive East application.

At Tuesday night’s meeting, council members Nan Sutton, Mike McFee, Stephen Murray and Beaufort Mayor Billy Keyserling gave final approval to Patterson’s request for annexation. Council member Phil Cromer was absent.

In addition, council members had only given preliminary approval for a T3N zoning, at its Aug. 27 meeting. That zoning or “Neighborhood District” allows for residential housing of various sizes and types.

However, at Tuesday night’s meeting, council members approved Patterson’s request for a T5-UC zoning. That zoning, or “Urban Corridor District,” consists of “higher density, mixed-use buildings that accommodate retail, row homes, offices, and apartments located along primary thoroughfares,” according to the Beaufort Code.