Mayor Stephen Murray
Loving and Leading the City of Beaufort
story by KAREN SNYDER
photos by CHARLOTTE BERKELEY
It’s clear from the start that former Beaufort City Councilman and newly elected Mayor Stephen Murray loves his hometown of Beaufort. A third-generation Beaufortonian, Mayor Murray has his sights set on preserving our unique southern town’s spirit and character while facing the future’s challenges head-on.
With the endorsement of Beaufort’s longtime former mayor, Billy Keyserling, Mayor Murray is proud of the work he and the City Council accomplished during his six-year tenure as Councilman and plans on continuing this momentum.
“Leadership matters now more than it ever has during my lifetime,” says Mayor Murray, reflecting on the current political climate. “The same is true of local leadership. Whether it’s economic development, stormwater management, rising sea levels, homelessness, or increased population growth, City Hall must face these complex and challenging issues, and address each one with thoughtfulness and transparency.”
Owner of two local businesses, Kazoobie Kazoos and New South Shirts, the 39-year-old husband and father of seven-year-old twins admits that he didn’t always recognize what a special place Beaufort is until he traveled extensively in his teen and young adult years. “When you live here, you take it for granted and assume that life is the same everywhere. But once I traveled the world, experienced other places, and briefly moved away from Beaufort, I truly realized the special place it is.”
Calling Beaufort a micro-urban environment, Mayor Murray says he and his wife, Melissa, of 16 years enjoy living downtown. “We like walking to the shops and restaurants and enjoy the laid-back lifestyle of living here,” he says. “Our town is a ‘real place’ — a traditional historic town that exists today because of our forefathers and our foremothers, the slaves who lived here, as well as the northern and military investment and roles they played in Beaufort’s history.”
An avid boater, Mayor Murray says that Beaufort gives a “sense of place” that he wants to preserve. “You can still enjoy a day on the water without seeing a paper mill or other factory along the coast. Our fishing stock is strong, and you can eat the oysters right out of the Beaufort River. That’s due to the critical protections and care for our natural resources that those who’ve come before have put in place.”
Thus, it’s not surprising that Mayor Murray also has made environmental sustainability an essential part of his mayoral priorities. Residential and commercial development, urban sprawl, and prohibiting offshore drilling all pose future challenges for the city and the region.
“We’re facing a crisis of leadership which we need in our region,” asserts Mayor Murray. A 2010 alumnus of Leadership Beaufort, which he credits with sparking his interest in local civic engagement, he says now is the time to demonstrate that we are not just city minded but regionally minded. “Our leadership moves past the 38 square miles and the 13,000 citizens of Beaufort.”
With Beaufort as the county seat, Mayor Murray says that it’s his role to serve a broad coalition of stakeholders throughout the area. Simply put, the job of leading a city is about ensuring that city services are delivered in a high-quality, accessible, and customer-friendly manner, he says. However, he believes that setting the stage to achieve future goals for Beaufort is also about cultivating regional relationships. “By building strong alliances regionally,” he adds, “we can leverage resources and achieve our goals faster and more efficiently.”
According to Mayor Murray, one of Beaufort’s significant strengths is its diversity. “Our town is built upon many people who came here from somewhere else, bringing with them their experiences, backgrounds, and cultures. He mentions: “Just walk into Blackstone’s at any time and you’ll see a mix of young professionals, families with children, retirees, locals of all ages, and tourists.”
The town’s diversity is steadily changing and threatening the very nature and character of Beaufort as an inclusive community, Mayor Murray maintains. According to U.S. Census data, demographics are shifting locally with an increase in those 55 years and older and a significant 25 percent decrease in the 21-44 age group. This can be attributed to a lack of job diversity, economic opportunity, and cost of living, he says.
“The imbalance is notable. It affects our available workforce, the type of retail we attract, entrepreneurship, and our schools,” he explains, saying his goal is to achieve balance and to manage growth to attract both aging and young residents.
Mayor Murray already has accomplished much for tax base sustainability through his work on the City Council as a founding chairman of the Beaufort County Economic Development Corporation, the establishment of the Beaufort Digital Corridor (a basecamp for technical entrepreneurs), and most recently the South Coast Cyber Center, whose mission is to educate skilled workers in the cybersecurity industry.
“We can’t have a defeatist attitude,” cautions Mayor Murray. For example, he says, “By establishing partnerships with the University of South Carolina Beaufort (USCB) and the Technical College of the Lowcountry (TCL) to offer cybersecurity and cyberdefense training programs, we can keep well-paying jobs for graduates right here in Beaufort. With starting salaries of $70,000 or more, young people will want to live and work right here in Beaufort.”
Mayor Murray understands the connection between affordable housing and community diversity is an important one. “Nurses, police officers, firefighters, and other working professionals all need a place to live in Beaufort,” he explains. Thus, another critical mayoral priority is to aggressively pursue options to increase affordable housing within City limits, including taking a closer look at regulations, impact fees, and zoning — all of which affect “livability” for citizens.
As the city’s leader, Mayor Murray assures, “My overall goal is to increase dialogue and interaction with the City and help people connect to not only their local government but also to the many nonprofit boards and organizations that keep our city strong.”
Part of this plan includes the future creation of a “Citizen’s Academy,” which, according to Mayor Murray, will help those interested in becoming more civically engaged learn how government works. “Those who participate in the program will learn how policy is made, understand fiscal responsibility, participate in civil debate, and gain a more thorough understanding of our neighborhoods and their needs,” he explains. “Then, we can connect these individuals with local nonprofit boards where they can put this experience to work.
“It’s about opening our doors and lighting that spark in others, people of all ages, to make an investment of their time and talents in Beaufort.”
Referring to the recent challenges that COVID-19 brought to Beaufort, Mayor Murray asserts, “One silver lining that the pandemic ‘chaos’ brought to Beaufort is that citizens are now awake. The restrictions that COVID-19 brought to our town forced small businesses and everyone to get creative. It required us to ask tough questions of one another, to get involved, and to seek answers. That’s the way it should be!”
Mayor Murray says he’s proud of the town’s efforts to reduce the community spread of Coronavirus and is thankful for everyone doing their part. An advocate for mask-wearing, Mayor Murray says, “We’ll continue to coordinate and comply with CDC and DHEC regulations, and rely on our partnerships and on-going dialogue with Beaufort Memorial Hospital and local medical professionals to ensure they have everything they need from adequate staffing to PPE supplies.”
“I think everyone agrees our mutual goal is to get both our economy and our society back on track as quickly and safely as possible!”
Much like Beaufort’s iconic Woods Memorial Bridge, which he displayed prominently as part of his green and white election campaign logo, Mayor Murray says that ultimately his role as mayor is to “be the bridge between citizens and their government.” He adds, “I want to bring anyone and everyone interested to the table.”
Whether by phone, email, website, or through any of his many social media channels, Mayor Murray says, “Just reach out to me. I’m available!”
