Bike Route Through SI Neighborhoods Very Much Alive!

While Town Council says it has shelved the idea of building a boardwalk over the marsh from the Ben Sawyer to Patriot Street,  Town Council has not shelved the plan create a bike route through SI neighborhoods. The project is known as B2B. 

As the Planning Commission discussed at its March 13 meeting, the B2B path recommended by the Planning Commission would direct cyclists and pedestrians coming onto SI to take a right on Jasper from Ben Sawyer and head up to Middle Street, crossing at Station 22 to get to Atlantic Avenue, and heading down Atlantic to get Breach Inlet via Marshall and Station 28. The report states that the issue will be on the agenda for theApril 9 Planning Commission meeting.

The Planning Commission's focus during the B2B discussions has been how best to accommodate the needs and interests of the cyclists and pedestrians entering and leaving Sullivan's Island. There was no discussion about how the proposed bike path would impact SI residents and neighborhoods. 

 But do SI residents really want Town Council to create even more traffic through the neighborhoods, and even more activity at Station 22 and Middle Street? Getting off of the island through the commercial district is already a nightmare in the summer! And surrounding neighborhoods already must deal with significantly increased traffic as drivers  try to avoid hour-long traffic tie-ups on Middle Street. 

And getting back to the boardwalk over the marsh...Copied below* is the section from the March 13 Planning Commission report detailing the now-shelved plan for the boardwalk over the marsh to Patriot Street. Very interesting....Lots of time and effort were put into the plan! And note this:  In addition to the B2B bike path crossing Middle Street at Station 22, the Planning Commission also discussed  creating another bike path starting from the termination of the proposed boardwalk on Patriot Street. As detailed in the report, that path would route cyclists and pedestrians through the back of Stith Park and around the Mound. Possible connections would be established with Gull Drive and Central Avenue via Station 20.5. 

The concepts of the bike paths and the boardwalk over the marsh were first introduced at the November meeting of the Planning Commission.  But it is not apparent that any residents in the Patriot Street neighborhood were contacted by Town Council or the Planning Commission about the plans under discussion. 

So what can SI residents do? Contact Town Council members! During the boardwalk discussion, a resident of the Patriot Street neighborhood spoke very forcefully and eloquently on behalf of her neighbors, asking if for once, the commercial district and the tourists could NOT be given priority over residents and neighborhoods. 

Maybe residents should ask the same question about Town Council's plan to route a bike path through fragile neighborhoods and the already-congested commercial district.

*Below is the section from the March 13 Planning Commission report discussing the boardwalk over the marsh and  a bicycle path beginning at Patriot Street.  The B2B bike route is discussed in a separate section of the report.

2)  Bike Path and Marshwalk at Patriot Street: Commission discussion regarding feasibility of constructing a bike path or marshwalk to provide pedestrian access from Ben Sawyer Boulevard to the Patriot Street termination. 

• Initiated at November meeting and continued in December 2013 and January 2014 – path would initiate at entrance to Sullivan’s Island on Ben Sawyer Boulevard, traverse by boardwalk over small marsh area linking to one of two options:  

1. Option 1: Marshwalk would lead to the Patriot Street right-of-way to Myrtle Avenue to Station 22 to Middle Street (travel along road right of ways); 
2.  Option 2: Marshwalk would lead to Station 22 termination and continue to the Town owned parcel TMS# 529-05-00-080. The path would traverse the vacant parcel and route bikes and pedestrians through the park property and around the Mound. Possible connections would be established with Gull Drive and Central Avenue via Station 20.5. 

 Zoning Administrator reviewed current regulations and issues for consideration: 

• All public infrastructure projects require Town Council approval; 
• Public input would be needed from area residents along proposed route; 
• TOSI Comprehensive Plan: Transportation Element encourages pedestrian and bicycle transport along low-speed residential streets and sidewalks (Continuation of East Coast Greenway). 
• Z.O. Section 21-75: Ordinance prohibits construction of any dock across marshland in the RC-2 Zoning District from Station 18 to Station 27 (See enclosed map of prohibited area); 
• Would require approval of encroachment permits from U.S. Corps of Engineers, the Department of Health and Environmental Control/Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (DHEC/OCRM). 
• Commission discussion and public input given on the concept. Commission tasked Staff with additional research for report at April meeting: 
•  Coordinate with SCDHEC/OCRM on design requirements for the boardwalk and what would comply with their regulations for a water-dependent public interest (as implied in Regulation 30-12(F)(2)(f)). 
•  Confer with Town Attorney for legal opinion on whether an amendment to ZO Section 21-7 will be needed. 

ACTION: Further study and discussion; Commission retains on April agenda.

Link to Planning Commission's Report to Council: http://bit.ly/1h3twzJ