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Slave descendants take a fight to protect their Georgia island homes to voters

On Tuesday, McIntosh County voters will decide whether large homes should be allowed on Sapelo Island in a referendum seeking to override commissioners' zoning change that doubled allowed home size from 1,400 to 3,000 square feet.
After nearly 20 recent sales, residents fear outsider sales and vacation homes will raise property values and trigger unaffordable taxes, while Blair McLinn warned half-acre lot values could rise from $27,500 to $145,000 amid a settlement that froze assessments through last year.
Petitioners gathered more than 2,300 signatures and challenged McIntosh County commissioners in court to force the special election, while county officials discussed a zoning moratorium or a new Hogg Hummock law.
County assessors are weighing a proposal to recalculate taxable values for Hogg Hummock properties, and McIntosh County commissioners warned repeal could leave Hogg Hummock without development limits, risking another court fight.
Recognized on the National Register, Hogg Hummock is a Gullah-Geechee community of about 30 to 50 Black residents on Sapelo Island, with most land owned by the state of Georgia and no roads to the mainland.

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Slave descendants take a fight to protect their Georgia island homes to voters

Black landowners from a Georgia island community founded by freed slaves are fighting their latest property dispute with local officials at the ballot box.

12 hours ago·United States

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