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Pets to Adopt
PALMETTO BLUFF
PALMETTO BLUFF BOUGHT BY DEVELOPERS
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Henderson Park Capital Partners and South Street Partners formed a joint venture to purchase Palmetto Bluff, a 20,000-acre property in Bluffton. London-based Henderson Park Capital is a private equity real estate company. South Street Partners is a private equity real estate investment firm based in Charlotte and Charleston. The developers plan to construct a second golf club, according to a news release. Other development will focus on the construction of Anson Village, which will open access to a large waterfront space and the southern Intracoastal Waterway. The community includes Forbes’ Five-Star Montage Palmetto Bluff resort.
The Town Council of Hilton Head Island returned to in-person meetings beginning June 15. It was the first time the council hosted meetings in the Benjamin M. Racusin Council Chambers since public access to Town Hall was closed last April.
GOLFER DUSTIN JOHNSON RECEIVES TOP STATE HONOR
Gov. Henry McMaster presented South Carolina native and World No. 1 Dustin Johnson in early June with the Order of the Palmetto, South Carolina’s highest civilian honor. Johnson is a 24-time PGA Tour winner, the defending FedEx Cup champion and the first South Carolinian to win the Masters. He was born in Columbia and attended Coastal Carolina University. “Through the Dustin Johnson Foundation, he’s removing barriers to the game and providing opportunities for young people that they wouldn’t otherwise have,” McMaster said. “We are proud to honor him with the Order of the Palmetto for all that he has accomplished, and all that he will continue to accomplish, in golf and beyond.”
OF THE MONTH
HARLEY
Age: 4 years old Gender: Female Weight: 50-60 pounds Breed: Mixed Large Temperament: Harley is full of energy and enjoys playing with whoever is willing. She would enjoy a home with one person who can give her undivided attention.
JANIE
Age: 5 years old Gender: Female Weight: 8-10 pounds Breed: Domestic short-haired Temperament: : Janie has a sweet soul and enjoys watching her rambunctious roommates. She is often found sunbathing and taking a nice long nap.
Adopt them at: Palmetto Animal League 56 Riverwalk Blvd., Okatie SC 29936 Open: Noon to 6 p.m. Monday–Saturday For more information: 843-645-1725 OR INFO@PALMETTOANIMALLEAGUE.ORG
The South Carolina Department of Transportation is expected to reveal this month its long-awaited preferred option for an estimated $272 million project designed to ease peak-time traffic congestion on the island’s north end.
SCDOT is scheduled to present its preferred option at a July 22 public hearing. The proposal is undergoing an environmental assessment required by the National Environmental Policy Act. SCDOT will incorporate public comments into its preferred option and send it back to the Federal Highway Administration, which oversees NEPA.
Beaufort County Council member Stu Rodman called it a drawn-out process, required by federal law, that started with creating alternatives, gathering community input and using that information to finalize the alternatives.
The project, which will take three to five years to complete, would revamp or replace the bridges connecting Hilton Head to the mainland and expects to improve traffic flow between Moss Creek Drive in Bluffton and Spanish Wells Road on the island. The project, scheduled to start in 2024, is funded by a voter-approved 1-cent tax increase, a state grant, SCDOT and other local sources.
SCDOT unveiled six proposed routes nearly two years ago, later adding three others. Concerns were raised about environmental effects, displacing the historic Stoney neighborhood and increased traffic congestion.
Critics argued for an independent review of the alternatives. The county and town opted to hire HDR Engineering. Craig Winn, SCDOT Program Manager, reviewed the HDR recommendations and how SCDOT responded in a May town council workshop on Zoom.
The HDR recommendations focus on traffic flow. They call for two-phase traffic lights that stay green for 90 percent of the time and limiting conflict points where U.S. 278 intersects with Jenkins, Gateway Drive and Blue Heron Point roads.
The suggestions call for the elimination of left turns at Squire Pope and Spanish Well Roads, a new light at Old Wild Horse Road and a 45-mile speed limit in the area. It also proposes studying future changes to U.S. 278 like adding parallel access roads and evaluating the intersections at Wild Horse and Gumtree Roads.
“All the parties appear to be converging on the need for
parallel access roads,” Rodman said. Local officials were also urged to create an island gateway with enhancements that highlight Stoney’s Gullah history. Other aesthetics included landscaped medians, biking and walking pathways and low-level lighting. The town hired MKSK Inc., a land planning consultant, to recommend to SCDOT designs for the island’s entrance and in Stoney, said Shawn Colin, senior advisor to the town manager. Additional recommendations may be appropriate once SCDOT releases the Environmental Assessment results and details of the preferred route are made public, he said. PREFERRED SCDOT’s plan should cover from the Moss Creek streetlights on the mainland to the Cross Island Parkway and U.S. 278 near Gumtree road, said Steve Baer, BRIDGE OPTION a member of a citizen’s group that says it has more than 5,900 signatures on a petition challenging the project. The group has made its concerns known to NEPA and politicians such as state Sen. Tom Davis. “Some of our group say that SCDOT LONG-AWAITED U.S. 278 started with the answer they wanted and worked backward to try to get it,” he said. “They also feel that the land planner that has been hired, while important, may be being used to sell IMPROVEMENT PROPOSAL lipstick on a pig.” SCDOT’s scope stops at Spanish Wells, and county funding stops at Squire Pope, Baer said. The proposed EXPECTED TO alternatives don’t study or pay for such things as the ramifications of no left BE REVEALED turns at Squire Pope and Spanish Wells Roads, which could add congestion to roads near 278 or require changes at the BY JAMES A. MALLORY Gumtree Road intersection, he said. “Most important, we have not been given end-to-end comparison of the costs, throughout, impacts and issues of the alternatives, or proof that they will solve our problem,” he said. “Despite many meetings and comments over two years, there has been a lack of scientific computation and transparency on this project.” The July 22 public hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Island Recreation Center, 20 Wilborn Road. Those unable to attend can schedule in-person appointments July 1416 and Aug. 18-21 at the recreation center. For more information, visit scdot278corridor.com.
