Capital Projects Update

Art,

Where is Three Bridges Road and Mt. Airy Church Road?

Why just widening Whitehall Extension, what about fixing that horrible curve/intersection just before the Centerville Elem. School?

Where is Ida Tucker Road?

What improvements on South Main Street?

Why is Broadway Water District at the end of the list?

Art,

Where is Three Bridges Road and Mt. Airy Church Road?

Why just widening Whitehall Extension, what about fixing that horrible curve/intersection just before the Centerville Elem. School?

Where is Ida Tucker Road?

What improvements on South Main Street?

Why is Broadway Water District at the end of the list?

- Shih

Shih,

Three Bridges Road is on S-4-74 in District 6. And Mt. Airy Church Road is on S-4-4876 also in District 6.

The proposed plans for Whitehall Road include the following: Reconstruct to five lanes in some areas, and three lanes in others, improve intersections, and install sidewalk as warranted. However, with matching State funds, they may be able to widen the entire road to five lanes.

Ida Tucker Road Extension is on S-4-577 in Williamston.

South Main Street (Anderson) improvements include the following: three lanes, parking spaces, upgrading sidewalks, and lighting.

Broadway Water District is in number 10 on the list, which includes 114 projects.

Art,

Where is Three Bridges Road and Mt. Airy Church Road?

Why just widening Whitehall Extension, what about fixing that horrible curve/intersection just before the Centerville Elem. School?

Where is Ida Tucker Road?

What improvements on South Main Street?

Why is Broadway Water District at the end of the list?

- Shih

Shih,

Three Bridges Road is on S-4-74 in District 6. And Mt. Airy Church Road is on S-4-4876 also in District 6.

The proposed plans for Whitehall Road include the following: Reconstruct to five lanes in some areas, and three lanes in others, improve intersections, and install sidewalk as warranted. However, with matching State funds, they may be able to widen the entire road to five lanes.

Ida Tucker Road Extension is on S-4-577 in Williamston.

South Main Street (Anderson) improvements include the following: three lanes, parking spaces, upgrading sidewalks, and lighting.

Broadway Water District is in number 10 on the list, which includes 114 projects.

- Art Kaldas

Widening the entire length of Whitehall Extension would include the curve, does that mean that curve at Dixon Road would be corrected?

Widening the entire length of Whitehall Extension would include the curve, does that mean that curve at Dixon Road would be corrected?

- Shih

Shih,

Yes. The curve on Whitehall intersection at Dixon/Sullivan/Whitehall will be corrected at a cost of $1,500,000, which is included in the total amount for the project.

I heard Stan Welch was getting his driveway paved.That figures. Crooked bastard.

My "boggle" with this expenditure list is:
1) What makes the Cross town connector the most important thing on the list? Who's palms were greased to make this the #1 deal? Whom exactly does this benefit anyways, the ANMED crowd? Gives them a fast-track to the Clemson Blvd. restaurants and feeding holes but doesn't bring additional "income" to anyone. My feeling is this new highway will only deteriorate home values ( who the heck wants a 4-lane of speeding cars & trucks in the once peaceful neighborhoods you live in?) and create more congestion on Clemson Blvd where traffic is already nightmarish.
2) Whitehall Rd: While that road is indeed treacherous, what will $15M do to change that? Why not allocate better future planning for future growth instead of tossing asphalt down to do pothole repairs?
3) Has anyone seen the "plans" for South Main Street repairs ( or any of the plans mentioned?) What are the repairs and where are they being done? I would expect the repairs being done will be in the affluent side of Main st., and not over in "da Hood " where we are.

I have not seen a site or proposal map of the improvements, only the named projects. If someone can clarify to lil old me what specifics are planned, maybe I would be more on board with them.

I heard Stan Welch was getting his driveway paved.That figures. Crooked bastard.

- dunebuggy

My guess is that if what you are saying is true, he is paying for it himself. Anderson County employees are honest and reliable, I am sure he is paying for it himself as they would not participate in something like that.

My "boggle" with this expenditure list is:
1) What makes the Cross town connector the most important thing on the list? Who's palms were greased to make this the #1 deal? Whom exactly does this benefit anyways, the ANMED crowd? Gives them a fast-track to the Clemson Blvd. restaurants and feeding holes but doesn't bring additional "income" to anyone. My feeling is this new highway will only deteriorate home values ( who the heck wants a 4-lane of speeding cars & trucks in the once peaceful neighborhoods you live in?) and create more congestion on Clemson Blvd where traffic is already nightmarish.
2) Whitehall Rd: While that road is indeed treacherous, what will $15M do to change that? Why not allocate better future planning for future growth instead of tossing asphalt down to do pothole repairs?
3) Has anyone seen the "plans" for South Main Street repairs ( or any of the plans mentioned?) What are the repairs and where are they being done? I would expect the repairs being done will be in the affluent side of Main st., and not over in "da Hood " where we are.

I have not seen a site or proposal map of the improvements, only the named projects. If someone can clarify to lil old me what specifics are planned, maybe I would be more on board with them.

- wyatt1sc

It is my understanding that maps will be displayed at council. I don't know this for sure though, just heard through a very long grapevine.

My "boggle" with this expenditure list is:
1) What makes the Cross town connector the most important thing on the list? Who's palms were greased to make this the #1 deal? Whom exactly does this benefit anyways, the ANMED crowd? Gives them a fast-track to the Clemson Blvd. restaurants and feeding holes but doesn't bring additional "income" to anyone. My feeling is this new highway will only deteriorate home values ( who the heck wants a 4-lane of speeding cars & trucks in the once peaceful neighborhoods you live in?) and create more congestion on Clemson Blvd where traffic is already nightmarish.
2) Whitehall Rd: While that road is indeed treacherous, what will $15M do to change that? Why not allocate better future planning for future growth instead of tossing asphalt down to do pothole repairs?
3) Has anyone seen the "plans" for South Main Street repairs ( or any of the plans mentioned?) What are the repairs and where are they being done? I would expect the repairs being done will be in the affluent side of Main st., and not over in "da Hood " where we are.

I have not seen a site or proposal map of the improvements, only the named projects. If someone can clarify to lil old me what specifics are planned, maybe I would be more on board with them.

- wyatt1sc

Wyatt 1 SC,

Your questions are legitimate. So, let me attempt to response to the best of my ability.

1. The East-West Connector is on top of the list for good reasons. Presently, around one million residents, from 14 surrounding counties, travel to An/Med through Clemson Boulevard, Concord Road, and Reed Road. Consequently, these roads are on their way to complete failure, and widening them is simply cost prohibitive. So, building the East-West Connector is not only a good idea, it is a necessary one.
2. The traffic on Whitehall Road is already treacherous, and it is expected to get much worse, as more developments on Highway 24 start to attract more traffic. Widening Whitehall Road to 5 lanes is the best solution to the current and future situation.
3. The plans for South Main have not been completely finalized but they are expected to include the following: Streetscape designs, parking spaces, upgrades to sidewalks, and lighting. The purpose of the plan is to attract more businesses to locate in the southern section of town.

The County does have maps and lists for the requested projects.

Art,

I still think we are making a grand mistake if passenger rail is not incorporated into this plan. It is the transportation of the future if gas prices continue to rise and an alternative is not found to corn for ethanol.

Well of course, Constituent. And as far as the East-West Connector portion of this plan is concerned, one could easily argue that one good railroading deserves another.

(I'm half joking, Constituent. Could you at least just half scream?)

I think I'll just laugh because I know you know I'm right.

Art,

I still think we are making a grand mistake if passenger rail is not incorporated into this plan. It is the transportation of the future if gas prices continue to rise and an alternative is not found to corn for ethanol.

- Constituent

Constituent,

I do support the move toward public transportation, including railing. However, our plans in Anderson County need to go through an evolution, not a revolution. Success is a must, in order to keep the momentum going. And the East-West Connector, which may open the line for mass-transit buses, is a great step toward our goals.

I think I'll just laugh because I know you know I'm right.

- Constituent

Maybe, Constituent. We'll see.

By the way, your comment about finding an alternative to corn for ethanol got me thinking here, and I think I've gone one step further on your behalf. I've thought this thing through, and I think I've even discovered an ALTERNATIVE TO ETHANOL.

See, I collect a lot of useless facts during the course of any given day, and sometimes one or two of those useless facts will come in handy, just right out of the blue. It's like in "Trivial Pursuit" when somebody once asked what is the world's most expensive spice. And ol' JD, who still has trouble figuring out the difference between butter and margarine, immediately answered, "SAFFRON!" (I don't even know what saffron is, other than a useless fact that I found a use for.)

Anyway, I digress. Among the useless and semi-useless facts I have stored in my overtaxed memory banks are the following:

1. There are 56 pounds of corn in a bushel.

2. It takes 26.1 pounds of corn to make one gallon of ethanol.

3. It takes 7 pounds of corn to produce one pound of steak/hamburger (interesting fact, but essentially useless here - I just threw it in because I can.)

Now, Constituent, let's take those three basically USELESS facts (at least useless by themselves) and combine them with a couple of USEFUL facts I've absorbed recently in my short-term memory banks, which I use to store stuff that changes frequently:

1. The cost of a gallon of gasoline at my local Jordan's HotSpot is now right at $3.

2. The cost of a bushel of corn hit $6 this week.

3. A pound of hamburger is now $3.99 thanks, in part, to that $6-a-bushel corn.

That gallon of gasoline for $3 is a component of that $100-a-barrel crude oil we hear about. For my $3, I'm getting a finished product from something that has been discovered, recovered, transported, refined, and transported again to my local station. All I have to do it pump and pay (or, if it's after dark and I'm wearing my Clemson cap, pay and pump.)

But that gallon of ethanol, on the other hand - well, there's a different story. If it takes 26.1 pounds of corn to make a gallon of ethanol, that means you can get roughly two gallons of ethanol from that $6 bushel of corn (I'm rounding here, 'cuz I'm an English major.) So, $3 for a gallon of gasoline, $3 for enough corn to make a gallon of ethanol.

BUT, with that corn, you still have to go through the process of converting it to ethanol (the last number I saw for that was about $1.40 per gallon.) Therefore, AT THIS MOMENT IN HISTORY based in a synaptic fusion of JD's short- and long-term memory, gasoline is $3 a gallon, while ethanol is $3 PLUS $1.40 = $4.40 a gallon.

Which leads me to the following conclusion, Constituent:

THE BEST ALTERNATIVE TO USING CORN TO MAKE ETHANOL IS TO USE CORN TO PRODUCE BEEF AND USE GASOLINE FOR FUEL. AND IF YOU DO USE CORN TO MAKE ETHANOL, BOTTLE IT, CALL IT WHITE LIGHTNING AND SELL IT FOR $20 A GALLON.

The irony of it all is that some of my relatives used to get arrested occasionally for turning corn into ethanol and selling it by the gallon. Now the government is giving people financial incentives to do exactly the same thing. Who knows? Maybe someday they'll give me money to turn Indian hemp into rope.

As Dennis Miller says, "That's just my opinion. I could be wrong."

Okay, JD, You are wrong but in order to prove it I'm going to have to do some research so for now while my answer to your comment is pending I'd like to bring this back to the subject at hand, capital projects.

Rail does not have to be a slow change. It is happening in waves across this country. I think instead of Anderson waiting to get behind the curve let’s move ahead.

Gas is getting more expensive, cars are being price out of affordability, health is more of an issue, the GREEN initiative, etc.

Taking these things into consideration, if we choose to walk to the train depot, ride the high speed rail to our destination, use the side walks to get from the depot to our office/destination then we will be healthier, have stronger community, breath cleaner air, reduce the amount of gas usage, and on and on.

We should be charging the road user more for using the road by tolls and gas taxes. This will create an incentive to use passenger rail and the roads would begin to pay for themselves. And it would by default create cleaner air and less traffic congestion.

Rail is a win win.

I don't know if rail is a win-win or not, Constituent, but the point of my last post is that ethanol is a lose-lose.

I eagerly await the results of your research.

Art,
As usual, you provided me with some backstory for info I was not aware of.
HOWEVER,
I still do not understand the role where this area dictates they are entitled to such expense, while existing areas have fallen into disrepair and neglect and should be renovated to "standards"( the pleasure of sidewalks, pothole repair and adequate ditches/drainage). Then again, I see my roads over here with holes, NO drainage during rains, and the closest thing to a sidewalk is private-property lawns.
Mass transit has the appeal of a root canal performed with a jackhammer, sans the novacaine.
Nobody will forgo their luxury vehicles in lieu of fuel conservation, reduced pollution and less traffic congestion. Current bus lines do not serve nearly a quarter of needed area, and waiting for an hour for a bus, in unmarked stops in open weather, or not having service after 6:00 pm truly is an inconvenience.
Where I lived previously, light rail was embraced and still is. The lines stretch from one end of the county to the extreme other, running in parallel with freeways ( so you could watch and wave to the stand-still traffic while speeding by).
The right of way purchase would cost hundreds of millions ( especially if any land belonged to the Wilson family...tongue-in-cheek ) and purchase/maintenance costs would equal that. A sure money loser for such a small usage factor. Unless the FED chipped in ( and that is slim to nil) I dont ever see rail being used.

Actually, there are huge federal dollars available right now. I hope we don't miss the window of availability.

Art,
As usual, you provided me with some backstory for info I was not aware of.
HOWEVER,
I still do not understand the role where this area dictates they are entitled to such expense, while existing areas have fallen into disrepair and neglect and should be renovated to "standards"( the pleasure of sidewalks, pothole repair and adequate ditches/drainage). Then again, I see my roads over here with holes, NO drainage during rains, and the closest thing to a sidewalk is private-property lawns.
Mass transit has the appeal of a root canal performed with a jackhammer, sans the novacaine.
Nobody will forgo their luxury vehicles in lieu of fuel conservation, reduced pollution and less traffic congestion. Current bus lines do not serve nearly a quarter of needed area, and waiting for an hour for a bus, in unmarked stops in open weather, or not having service after 6:00 pm truly is an inconvenience.
Where I lived previously, light rail was embraced and still is. The lines stretch from one end of the county to the extreme other, running in parallel with freeways ( so you could watch and wave to the stand-still traffic while speeding by).
The right of way purchase would cost hundreds of millions ( especially if any land belonged to the Wilson family...tongue-in-cheek ) and purchase/maintenance costs would equal that. A sure money loser for such a small usage factor. Unless the FED chipped in ( and that is slim to nil) I dont ever see rail being used.

- wyatt1sc

Wyatt 1 SC,

The Capital Project Sales Tax Commission has allocated close to even dollar amount to every County District. So, no area in Anderson County will be more privileged than another. In addition, there is a possibility that the East-West Connector could receive much of its funding from State and Federal matching funds.

Concerning your comments on bus mass-transit system, we are in agreement. I do hope that greater attention will be given to the bus system in Anderson. We need marked bus stops with sufficient weather protection. We also need better schedule, covering longer hours. In addition, we need bus routes extended to more neighborhoods. We mostly need to better communicate and promote our current system, to help it expand its user base.