Southern Project

PROJECT UPDATE

Public Hearings and Public Meetings

Public Hearings and Public Meetings are a vital part of the Environmental Impact Statement study process. Public hearings/meetings provide the Project Team with the ability to meet directly with the citizens in the Project Study Area and receive their input on the project at various stages of progress. It also allows interested members of the public to speak directly with members of the Project Team and learn more about how the new interstate may impact their properties and/or communities.

The Project Team conducted three Public Hearings, four Public Information Meetings, and two Public Scoping Meetings for the I-73 South project. A brief summary of these hearings/meetings is included in the following sections.

Public Hearings

Three Public Hearings were conducted to present the recommended Preferred Alternative for the Southern Project to interested members of the public. These Public Hearings were held at the following locations:

• Aynor High School on Thursday, June 15, 2006. 440 persons attended this meeting
• Marion County Vocational Education Center in Mullins on Tuesday, June 20, 2006. 636 persons attended this meeting
• Dillon High School on Thursday, June 22, 2006. 367 persons attended this meeting

These Public Hearings allowed interested members of the public to review maps and speak directly with members of the Project Team. Attendees were also encouraged to submit written comments, which will be made a part of the Public Hearing record.

Each Public Hearing ran from 4:00 to 7:00 P.M. The hearings were conducted in an “open house” style, allowing the public to view the project maps and ask questions of members of the Project Team. There was no formal presentation.

It was important for interested members of the public to attend one of these hearings and provide the Project Team with comments. The Project Team will be reading and evaluating every comment form received to determine whether there are any minor revisions that can be made to further minimize impacts to homes, personal property, and communities. These comments could result in additional slight revisions being made to the alignment.

Public Information Meetings

The SCDOT and FHWA conducted four Public Information Meetings for the Southern Project. These meetings were held as follows:

Tuesday, March 8, 2005
Dillon High School
Dillon, South Carolina
(141 persons attended this meeting.)

Thursday, March 10, 2005
Myrtle Beach High School
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
(235 persons attended this meeting.)

Tuesday, March 22, 2005
Aynor High School
Aynor, South Carolina
(620 persons attended this meeting.)

Tuesday, May 3, 2005
Marion County Vocational Education Center
Mullins, South Carolina
(263 persons attended this meeting.)

These Public Information Meetings were conducted for anyone who wished to view maps showing the Potential Alternative Corridors. Interested members of the public were given an opportunity to speak directly with representatives of the Project Team. Comment cards were available at the public information meeting, and attendees were encouraged to provide written comments.

The Public Information Meeting is part of the open process that the SCDOT and FHWA are conducting throughout the Environmental Impact Study for I-73.

The input that the Project Team received following the Public Information Meetings was carefully reviewed. Where possible, the Project Team made adjustments to the Potential Alternative Corridors to reduce impacts these corridors may have on the human and natural environments. These adjustments were reflected in the Reasonable Alternative Corridors.

Public Scooping Meetings

The SCDOT and FHWA conducted two Public Scoping Meetings for the Southern Project. These meetings were held as follows:

Saturday, September 18, 2004
Marion County Vocational Education Center
Mullins, South Carolina
(152 persons attended this meeting.)

Tuesday, September 21, 2004
Conway High School
Conway, South Carolina
(150 persons attended this meeting.)

These meetings provided an opportunity for interested members of the public to voice their opinions and provide the SCDOT and the FHWA with any issues they felt would be important in the development of the I-73 project. The comments the Project Team received during these meetings were used during the development of Potential Alternative Corridors that were developed and presented to the public during the Public Information Meetings.

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