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Bluffton officials press county committee to prioritize 278/170 roundabout, Bluffton Parkway in proposed transportation penny
Summary
Town council heard a detailed briefing from the Beaufort County Transportation Penny Tax Advisory Committee chair and urged the county to prioritize a roundabout at US 278/US 170 to the Jasper County line and Bluffton Parkway improvements if the proposed 1% transportation sales tax goes to voters in 2026.
Lisa, chair of the Beaufort County Transportation Penny Tax Advisory Committee, told Bluffton Town Council the advisory group is preparing a proposed 2026 one-percent transportation sales tax referendum and has collected municipal input and more than 50 candidate projects for ranking (Speaker 5). The county website (beaufortcountypenny.com) hosts an interactive map and project details that towns can use to submit priorities.
"If you think through the process...easement acquisition, design, permitting, not just through the state but also through federal agencies," Lisa said, explaining why large projects take many years to complete and why the committee expects to limit the list to a small subset of projects for the referendum. She noted past county pennies (1998, 2006, 2018) funded about $300 million in infrastructure and stressed the committee's goal is to avoid carryover from earlier lists.
Councilmembers and the committee discussed which projects would give Bluffton residents the most immediate benefit. Several elected officials and staff repeatedly identified the 278/170 corridor — a proposed roundabout from the 46/278 circle to the Jasper County line — and Bluffton Parkway improvements as top two priorities for town voters and users (multiple speakers). Councilmember Steven and Mayor Pro Tem Emily both said they favored the roundabout and Bluffton Parkway as primary priorities; other council members suggested also including smaller intersection fixes such as Simmonsville and Buck Island, and intersections on Stardust, Gibbet and Old Palmetto Bluff.
Council members pressed the committee to provide clearer ranking criteria and a sortable spreadsheet of project attributes (cost, jurisdictional impact, estimated start date) to help the town prioritize. Lisa said the committee is preparing that spreadsheet and will upload project data to the public portal; the committee also plans public presentations at Hilton Head and Beaufort in the coming weeks to clarify how county projects, MPO/LAATS-funded projects and municipal needs intersect.
Speakers emphasized the need for interjurisdictional coordination: several council members noted parts of US 170 and other corridors cross into Jasper County and will require joint planning. Lisa said the LAATS/MPO presentation at the next municipal briefing will describe how Jasper’s projects and county-funded projects can complement Bluffton’s priorities.
No formal council action was taken on the penny during the meeting. The committee is continuing its municipal briefings and will accept town input on top priorities before the county finalizes the proposed referendum list.
