MARK CLARK ALTERNATIVES REDEFINED, EVALUATED, ELIMINATED

SCDOT pushing for speedy results for Environmental Impact Study

By Warren Cobb
Community Editor

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Just because the Mark Clark expressway completion has been out of the spotlight lately doesn't mean work has stopped on the project. S.C. Department of Transportation officials have been busy vetting public comments, and have condensed the project into seven possible routes, two of which bring the concept of a slowed down parkway to the table.

The last series of public meetings for the proposed Mark Clark Expressway project was held in April and May of 2009. SCDOT had initially planned to announce the Recommended Preferred Alternative by the end of 2009. Through the development of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), alternatives originally presented to the public have been refined, evaluated, and eliminated based on how well they addressed the need and purpose of the project and the potential impact they would have on the social, economic, and, natural environment. The study team has also refined each of the reasonable alternatives in response to public comments and in order to minimize potential impacts, where possible. In addition, the study team has continued evaluation of the Mass Transit and Transportation Systems Management alternatives as introduced to the public at the meetings held in 2009.

Of keen interest to residents of West Ashley is the shifting of the local connection to a little further east to avoid impacting the community dock that serves the Battery Haig subdivision off of South Shore Drive.

The rest of the changes center on the route through Johns and James islands. These proposed routes place the exit ramps north or south of Maybank Highway along River Road. Two of these contain spurs that shoot off the Mark Clark to various points along River Road. In addition, some maps show the route passing to the north of James Island County Park, some to the south, and some through the north edge of the park.

Perhaps the most interesting new alternatives are listed as Alternatives F and G. These are the "parkway-style" connections. The parkway design includes a four-lane road with bicycle and pedestrian facilities, and a speed limit set between 35 and 45 mph. These would feed into two points along River Road on Johns Island.

The difference between Alt. F and G is that Alt. F calls for the widening of Central Park Road to four lanes. Alternative G would pass south of Central Park Road, with tie-ins at Riley Road and Up on the Hill Road. All of the alternatives are described and mapped at www.scdot.org/I526, under "Project Updates."

SCDOT engineer David Kinard is the lead agent on the Mark Clark extension project. He says there are no set rules for determining an expressway route, and the department is continually re-examining them based on public comments, and on-the-ground fieldwork. "It's not a quote-unquote formula," he says. "We look to balance those alternatives as best we can. We look to minimize impacts on both the human and natural environment."

Kinard says the Environmental Impact Statement is moving through with all due diligence. "We're pushing as quick as we can," he says. "But we want the parties involved to be comfortable with it before they sign off." Those parties include SCDOT, Charleston County, and the Federal Highway Administration.

Kinard says he hopes to have the EIS complete within 30 to 45 days, but it could take longer. Once that is completed, he plans to schedule another public forum within two weeks of its release.

"The process is lengthy, but the project is going very well," Kinard says. "We have gotten a lot of feedback from the public. We understand the public is waiting, but we want to make sure we evaluate all of the potential impacts and all off the concerns and address those to the best of our ability."