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FEBRUARY 11–17, 2021
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COVERING BEAUFORT COUNTY
Task force looking to enhance Southside Park’s natural attributes By Mindy Lucas When Brantley Wilson was a child growing up in Mossy Oaks, Southside Park was not a place to visit. In fact the area, then the site of a wastewater treatment plant, was something to be avoided. “To be honest, you made sure your windows weren’t down when you drove by,” Wilson said recently, remembering what the site was once like.
A longtime Mossy Oaks resident and school administrator, Wilson now chairs the newly formed Southside Park Task Force. The 10-member, Beaufort City Council-appointed group is charged with advising the council on how to improve the city-owned park in the heart of the neighborhood. While the treatment facility has long since closed and its equipment removed, the 32-acre site has sat
largely undeveloped over the years, save for a dog park, some walking trails, a pair of restrooms and a lot of green space. But the fact that there isn’t much in Southside Park – or something for neighborhood kids to do once they’re there, as one task force member put it – hasn’t been for lack of imagination. In fact, it’s been mostly by design. When the park reverted back to city ownership after Beaufort Jasper
Water and Sewer Authority vacated the property, city leaders planned for a passive park. In fact, one of the best things about the park, many have noted, is what’s not there. The wide-open, unadulterated green spaces that comprise a large part of the overall acreage, have been a draw for those who love the grassy fields – from Frisbee golfers to picnickers, to those who just enjoy bat-
ting a few balls around or practicing their golf swing. Meanwhile, walkers, joggers and nature lovers can be seen using the park’s trails, which wind through stands of mature live oaks and magnolias. Still, older planning documents and master plans generated by a previous planning group’s efforts show a vision for the park that includes
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Against all odds The 15th Annual Beaufort International Film Festival Goes Live By Mark Shaffer For Lowcountry Weekly
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round this time last year as the Beaufort International Film Festival was coming to the end of another record-breaking run, the term “COVID 19” was rapidly becoming part of the worldwide public lexicon. Ron and Rebecca Tucker – like most people – thought that whatever this thing was, it would certainly run its course by summer’s end. And then like the hackneyed plot of a Sci-Fi “B” movie, the world went into lockdown. The virus spread, and ... well, we all know the rest. The Tuckers, who run the festival via the Beaufort Film Society, have parlayed BIFF into a destination event during a traditionally slow time for business in Beaufort. If at all possible, the Tuckers felt the show must go on. “As much as we love the films and filmmakers, the whole reason we have the festival is to bring people here to see Beaufort,” Ron Tucker said. “If there was a chance we could do it in person, we wanted to hold on to that option.” That meant pushing the deadline for entries to the absolute last second as filmmakers struggled to complete films in the new shared landscape of isolation and virtual reality. Meanwhile as the Tuckers considered their options, 2020 rolled on from bad to worse and 2019’s landmark accomplishment seemed further and further away. That fall the indie romantic comedy, “Stars Fell On Alabama” filmed in Beaufort with the Tuckers co-producing through the BFS. The film, co-produced and directed respectively by BIFF alumni Uyen Le and VW Scheich fulfilled the BFS mission to bring features back to the Lowcountry. But that was in “the way back” before facemasks became the century’s hottest fashion accessory and toilet paper was scarce as an actual fact. Even so, the finished film screened a year later for socially distanced cast & crew at Tabby Place. By that point, the festival’s long time home at the USCB Center for the Arts had
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Wildlife returns at Port Royal’s Cypress Wetlands.
Beaufort Academy gives archery its best shot in virtual tournament.
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WANT TO GO? What: The 15th Annual Beaufort International Film Festival When: Monday through Friday, Feb. 15-19. Where: Tabby Place, Port Republic Street. For more information: The purchase of advance tickets is highly recommended since seating is limited. View the complete Film Guide, check out COVID protocols and buy tickets online at www. BeaufortFilmFestival.com.
been ruled out due to university restrictions, and the decision was made to move the fest to the venue on Port Republic Street. “From that screening we knew we had some issues to address,” Rebecca Tucker said. “The next time you see [the room] it’s going to look and sound like a real theater,” Ron Tucker said. “You won’t MORE COVERAGE recognize it.” • Timing is The veneverything for “Stars Fell ue is already on Alabama,” equipped with a romantic comedy state-of-the-art filmed in Beaufort. airflow system. • Writer/director The “To Do” will be on hand list includes for screening of longtime taming the character actor room’s infamous Danny Aiello’s acoustic bounce, final work. upgrading the Page A5 sound system, installing theater grade front projection & screen, and creating a safe and viable virus protocol – which includes sanitizing at intervals between screenings and doing the entire venue at the end of each day. The plan requires attendees to wear face coverings and have their temperature taken digitally prior to entry. No exceptions. In order to make this all manageable, seating comes at a premium. “Our attendance last year averaged 412 per screening,” says Rebecca. “This year we’re limited to 175 maximum.” The stringent COVID protocols exceed
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