St. Helena residents excited about new community center; One of two coming to Beaufort Co.

ST. HELENA ISLAND, S.C. (WTOC) - There’s a sense of excitement in the air for residents in two rural Beaufort County communities.

“I’m happy about it,” St. Helena resident Luke Inabinett said.

Soon, St. Helena Island and Sheldon will each have a new community center to enjoy.

“It’s good for people to have a place go, you know,” Inabinett said. “I’m 91 years old, so I might need to come out here myself and sit around.”

Beaufort County broke ground on the center on St. Helena on Wednesday.,

On Thursday, construction crews were already hard at work at the future home of the Wesley E. Felix Community Center on St. Helena Island.

They were marking the property and making sure they had the right materials in place to start construction.

“We hope to have constructed here in the next year and be open to all of you,” Interim Director of Capital Projects for Beaufort County, Robert Gecy, said.

They’re paying for it with $3 million in federal funding.

The other half of the project that was approved by the county in 2024 will be a similar community center that will be built in Sheldon.

The groundbreaking ceremony for that center in Sheldon, which will be called the Agnes A. Major Community Center, will take place on Friday at 10 a.m.

Each space will offer flexible spaces for groups in the county to use for community events, classes, seminars, kids’ programs, or just a safe place to hang out.

County officials tell us that for years, there has been a senior group that has met on the island, but they had to bus to Burton because they didn’t have a big enough place to meet. Now they will.

“This is a fantastic building that is going to offer many programs for our seniors and our youth,” Gecy said.

Groups will also be able to reserve the space; they will just need to put in a request with the Beaufort County Parks and Recreation Department.