Richland County updates major road projects, seeks public input on Shop Road extension and greenways

Transportation Program Director Mike Maloney told the Richland County Capital Projects Advisory Committee on the meeting that several major road projects have moved forward and that public outreach is upcoming for others.

Maloney said VISTA 1 and 2 are complete and that the county has "just received an IGA from the city" for VISTA 3 tied to about $4,500,000 remaining in a VISTA fund approved as part of a broader $50,000,000 referendum amount; he said the county will "finalize that IGA with county legal." He also reported that Broad River Road right-of-way acquisitions are about "90 to 95% complete," with only a few remaining parcels to secure.

The presentation outlined near-term public meetings and design milestones: a public meeting on the Shop Road extension phase 2 is scheduled for May 24 at Bluff Road Park, and an update on Broad River Road will be presented to the Irmo Town Council on May 6. Maloney said Kelly Mill Road preliminary right-of-way drawings have been submitted to the South Carolina Department of Transportation and that a public information meeting with the county council member is being scheduled.

Maloney described construction impacts tied to a private "scout plant" project that will require additional trucking and temporary routing through a county roundabout while adjacent work proceeds. He said the Blaifwood widening project is scheduled for completion this September and described traffic staging for that work.

On greenways, Maloney noted preliminary plans for the Columbia Mall/ Jackson Creek Greenway and said the Smith Rocky Branch Greenway plan required redesign because CSX denied a waiver of a restrictive covenant on the Vulcan property; Norfolk Southern had approved the plans. He said the county will move the design off the Vulcan property.

Maloney also reviewed a substantial dirt-road paving slate the county is preparing to balance paving across districts. He listed many roads under consideration (for example, Robert McKenzie, Dry Branch Road, Smith Myers Road, Wayne McCaw Road and Fleming Creek Road) and said the county is allocating funds to prorate work across districts to address local needs.

The county is seeking consultants to prepare a 2024 needs-assessment package for road and intersection improvements, including photos, maps, project descriptions and warrant analyses for intersections; Maloney said about $1,500,000 of earlier study funds remain for this type of work and that staff plans to use those funds for consulting support.

Maloney said the Metropolitan Planning Organization will help identify outside funding opportunities and that county departments will coordinate on economic development and blight-elimination scoring for projects.

Committee members asked clarification questions about design and right-of-way steps for dirt roads; Maloney said preliminary engineering is performed to determine the right-of-way needed and that, if a road is infeasible, the county would bring the recommendation back to the committee for formal action.

Ending: Maloney closed by offering to answer questions and noting that several projects remain in right-of-way or procurement stages; he invited the committee to the scheduled public meetings to provide feedback.