With its antebellum mansions and spreading oaks that drip with Spanish moss, Beaufort seems an unlikely home for “Fightertown USA.”

But every day twin-engine F/A-18 Hornets roar on and off the runways of the nearby Marine Corps Air Station.

The Marines concede their business makes a lot of noise. But, they say, it is necessary. Signs at the base’s main gate tell visitors, “The ‘noise’ you hear is the sound of freedom.”

As Beaufort, Charleston, Columbia and Sumter have grown, so have problems with encroachment — including intruding noise — around their military bases. What once was farmland, forests and wetlands has become subdivisions, shopping malls and industrial parks, some pressing up against the edges of military bases.

That’s important because how well a military installation and community work together on conflicts as civilian and military life clash could determine whether a base will survive the next round of closings, expected to be announced May 16 by the Pentagon.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld wants to trim the 425 military bases in the United States by 25 percent. Community leaders and politicians say that means almost every base is at risk of being shuttered.

And, when a community places restrictions on a base that affect its operations, it is possible the military might take its business elsewhere. Leaders in South Carolina’s military communities do not want to risk losing an industry that generates an economic impact of $7 billion a year.

Cities and counties have enacted ordinances, adopted land-use plans that regulate growth near bases, and even joined with the military to buy property to serve as buffers.

The Legislature has joined in, too. Last year, it passed a law ensuring military commanders can weigh in on projects near their bases. Fourteen other states have similar laws.

‘A GOOD MESSAGE’

Encroachment issues in South Carolina vary from base to base.

Three bases — Columbia’s Fort Jackson, McEntire Air National Guard Station near Eastover and the Marine Corps Recruit Depot at Parris Island — have little development nearby that affects their property, community leaders said.

Some Richland County residents recently complained about bugle calls from the Columbia fort. And, occasionally, residents complain about the crackling of M-16s that recruits fire on theranges at Parris Island.

The firing “can begin a little early in the morning” for some residents who live across the Broad River from the ranges, said John Payne, chairman of Beaufort’s Military Enhancement Committee.

But the “noise” at the air station, about eight miles from Parris Island, has prompted a federal lawsuit filed by a group of property owners on Vivian’s and Egret islands.

They allege noise from jet fighters flying overhead has hurt their property values. The suit, filed nearly three years ago, is expected to be tried soon.

Local leaders are backing the air station. Beaufort County Council voted 9-0 to support the Marines.

Beaufort also teamed up with the Navy to split the cost of buying development rights to 69 acres adjacent to the air station for $311,000. The property will serve as a buffer and be limited to agricultural use.

“I think that sends a good message to the Department of Defense,” said Payne, a retired Marine colonel.

Beaufort’s relationship with the air station in working on encroachment issues will be used as a model for other installations, the military says.

‘WE DON’T LIVE IN A PERFECT WORLD’

Operations at Charleston’s two major installations — Charleston Air Force Base and the Naval Weapons Station — are unaffected by encroachment, said Tom Mikolajcik, of the local chamber of commerce’s military affairs committee.

But there are concerns about more development near Charleston Air Force Base.

The Weapons Station is unique in that it “can handle, store and ship all forms of ordnance without encroaching on any public or private property or personnel,” Mikolajcik said.

The air base is located along a heavily traveled stretch of I-26 in North Charleston — prime real estate for developers.

That has drawn development into the glide path of huge Air Force C-17 transports landing at the air base. For example, a 300-acre commercial project called Centre Pointe is under construction at I-26 and I-526.

The project, which will include major retail stores, movie theaters and restaurants, is in an area at the end of the air base’s runway, which authorities have labeled “Accident Potential Zone.” Computer models show parts from an airplane could fall and hit something or someone on the ground in such areas.

The Air Force and Federal Aviation Authority prefer “low-density” development in the areas, not heavily used shopping centers.

Still, the project complies with FAA restrictions and has not affected operations at the air base, which shares runways with Charleston International Airport.

The Air Force, though, has moved to protect the glide paths of aircraft from obstructions, by buying “avigation” easements around the base, said Bill Werrell, a base community planner.

The easements give the base the legal right to clear potential natural obstructions, like trees, and limit building heights, Werrell said.

Development around an airport is part of a community’s evolution, Mikolajcik conceded.

“Would the Air Force prefer no encroachment at the Air Force Base? The answer is ‘yes,’” said Mikolajcik, former Charleston commander. “But we don’t live in a perfect world.”

‘WHAT NOISE?’

At Sumter, growth issues are being tackled before they present problems for Shaw Air Force Base, said retired Maj. Gen. Tom Olsen, head of Sumter County’s efforts to keep the F-16 fighter base open.

Sumter was one for the first counties in the United States to adopt a policy asking the base commander to weigh in on any projects planned near the base, Olsen said.

“The city and county have to negotiate with the base to make sure they don’t have any reservations,” said Olsen, a former Shaw commander. The reverse also is true, he said. The Air Force must work with local authorities on development issues.

The county also has moved to address complaints about aircraft noise. For example, it adopted an ordinance regulating where mobile homes can be located near the base, Olsen said.

Housing density near the base as well as Poinsett Range, just south of the air base, also is regulated.

In some sections, only one house per acre is allowed and the local building code requires sound-proofing material to lower the outside noise heard inside the house by 30 decibels, Olsen said.

“You can’t tell people they can’t develop their property, but you can tell them there are rules they have to follow,” Olsen said.

But in military-friendly South Carolina, most of those directly affected by a jet engine’s roar seem to shrug it off.

“What noise?” Sumter merchant Charles Bourgeois dead-panned earlier this month as the sound of a Shaw fighter taking off, less than a half-mile away, rattled the windows of his store.

Reach Crumbo at (803) 771-8503 or ccrumbo@thestate.com.