Following a Thursday press conference to protest Beaufort's proposed annexation of more than 5,000 acres in Grays Hill and Seabrook, organizer Milbrey Gnann marched over to Mayor Bill Rauch and handed him a sheaf of petitions containing more than 1,000 signatures.

Gnann hoped the message was clear -- people don't want Clarendon and McLeod farms in the city and they want growth to be meticulously planned.

More than 100 people gathered in front of City Hall to protest the proposed annexation and development that could increase Beaufort's size by about 33 percent and allow construction of more than 16,000 homes.

The City Council initially approved the proposals in January and is awaiting amended proposals from landowners in the coming weeks -- proposals that could include a reduction of more than 4,200 homes, said City Manager Scott Dadson.

Some residents don't care what amendments are made; they want land near the Whale Branch River to stay as is.

"I am adamantly opposed to annexing acreage that far out (of the city limits)," said Seabrook resident Pat Smith, who attended the protest. "Right now it's a quiet, peaceful country and rural area."

Former County Councilwoman Beth Grace was one of three people who spoke against the annexation proposals, along with Gnann and DeWitt Helm.

Grace said she made mistakes regarding the development of Bluffton and Hilton Head Island when she served on the County Council, but the City Council should not make the same ones and ignore county planning.

"We can no longer have any circumventing of each others' laws or rules," Grace said. "We didn't elect the (City Council) to represent developers and their high-priced attorneys."

At the end of the press conference, the mayor took the microphone and told the crowd that when landowners' representatives return to the city with amended proposals, they will be asking to permit fewer homes and will seek to preserve 1,400 acres near flight paths for jets at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort. He credited these changes to the concern expressed by residents.

Rauch also told the crowd that it was likely unaccustomed to dealing with such an open government, and he received boos and jeers, with someone yelling "smoke and mirrors" and another asking the mayor if he had snake oil for sale.

As the crowd dispersed, Rauch met with small groups of residents and debated the merits of annexing the tracts.

"I don't think it's prudent to say no when you don't know what you're saying no to," said Rauch, explaining that the landowners were consulting with the school district and air station to appease concerns.

Rauch argued that the city is better suited to handle new residents and pointed to sprawl on Sams Point Road on Lady's Island as an example of the county's management of growth.

His arguments didn't persuade Beaufort resident Randy Elliott, who rhetorically asked Rauch who would pay for improvements in government services for all the new residents.

"We are going to pay for it," Elliott said.