After several years of weighing the benefit of an island traffic study, Isle of Palms City Council members agreed at their July 22 meeting to move forward with plans over the next year, by first sending the proposal back to its Public Safety Committee for more discussion.
Though no vote was taken to approve or reject the study, all members favored granting more time toward developing a better proposal, and several favored both public input and partnering with surrounding communities as vital parts of any future action.
The original intention was to consider employing Stantec Consulting Services Inc. to conduct an evaluation of vehicular traffic conditions and recommend potential improvements related to peak beach traffic, which usually occurs on Memorial Day weekend and the week of July Fourth.
But Councilwoman Jan Anderson, who has long supported an island-wide traffic study, pointed out that because these times have passed, “that window of opportunity is gone for this year.”
“So I’m proposing that we send out a request for a proposal to a number of engineering firms and get more than one set of ideas of how we can improve traffic on the island,” Anderson said. “There’s also been an expressed interest from one of the council people over in Mount Pleasant to possibly do a joint study with them.”Mayor Phil-lip Pounds added his approval, saying, “I think Mount Pleas-ant, Sullivan’s (Island) and the county would all be good partners to have at the table.”
IOP tourism, while always healthy in summer, has become popular year-round, with upward of 60,000 visitors per day in peak season, spread across 4.44 square miles of land.
“The amount of regional growth we’ve experienced in the past five to 10 years has had a significant impact on the number of day visitors to the island,” said Kathryn Basha, planning director with Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments in 2023. “And this is an issue that city leaders are al-ready grappling with in terms of parking and traffic.”
Along with new parking arrange-ments and Palm Boulevard improve-ments, the traffic study would be the next initiative to help manage IOP’s anticipated growth in visitors.
Councilman Jimmy Ward favored city leaders hosting one or two work-shops this fall at the recreation center to “open up the idea for discussion among the residents.
”Councilmembers Katie Miars and Rusty Streetman said more time and discussion is the best possible next step toward a workable plan.
“I have been pushing for a traffic study for three-and-a-half years now,” Anderson said. “And it’s finally on the agenda.”
By By L. C. Leach III
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