Sept. 1, 2020 • Volume 23, Issue 17 • Complimentary • BlufftonSun.com
WEAR A MASK!
INSIDE • OPED: Broadband essential for every community 8A • Fill out Census form! Funding for projects depends on it 19A • What to do with old bridge? Here’s an idea 22A • Palmetto Electric plans meeting 24A • Solicitor recognized for service to victims of crime 31A
Highway, bridge project will impact more than rush hour By Gwyneth J. Saunders CONTRIBUTOR
An aging bridge, increasing traffic load, and frequent vehicle accidents are the roots of a proposal to replace, repair, widen and perhaps redirect the route of Highway 278 from Moss Creek Drive in Greater Bluffton, just before the Karl Bowers Bridge that crosses Mackay Creek, to the intersection of Wild Horse and Spanish Wells roads, short of the Cross Island Parkway interchange on Hilton Head Island. The financial cost is estimated at $240 million. On Aug. 11, the South Carolina State Transportation Infrastructure Bank approved Beaufort County’s request for a $120 million grant to help pay for the replacement of the bridges. The rest of the funding includes $80 million from the county’s recently approved one-cent sales tax and $40 million from the South Carolina Department of Transportation. There are, however, other costs that will not be reflected in the bottom line on any accounting ledger. For Sarah Holmes, the price to pay
might be borne by fellow residents who live in the Stoney Community of Hilton Head. The historic Gullah community was split in half when U.S. 278 was extended across the bridge and into the island. Her mother, Isabelle Stewart, lives in a house close to the roadway on U.S. 278. “She would be impacted more than anyone else on that land,” Holmes said. “That house has been there 60 years. My mom and dad built that house.” Back then, the island wasn’t nearly as busy as it is now. “Traffic wasn’t bad at all because you only had one lane in each direction,” Holmes said. “Then they added another lane and took more property. It was peaceful and quiet, but as Hilton Head grew and a lot of tourists (and) business came to this area, it changed a whole lot.” Holmes said she and many of the neighborhood’s residents attended the various meetings that led up to the final report delivered by SCDOT in March, and said she didn’t feel as if anyone was understanding their situation.
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LYNNE COPE HUMMELL
The intersection at Moss Creek Drive and Highway 278 in Greater Bluffton is the starting point of a plan to improve the 278 corridor. Proposals include numerous options for repairing, rebuilding and otherwise altering the current route.
“I know that the bridge needs work, but I’m not for taking more property – and the highway is in her front yard. They probably have a plan and whatever plan they have, they’re going to go ahead with it,” she said. “That’s
how I feel and how my family feels. They know the road is necessary and they’re going to do that, but you don’t know from day to day what’s going to
Please see HIGHWAY on page 16A