Wappoo Road and Savannah Highway intersection improvements break ground
by Jenny Peterson | News Editor
A post by City of Charleston councilmember Ross Appel, who represents West Ashley, announced an exciting update to West Ashley’s curb appeal—the demolition of a title loan shop in an outdated strip mall at a prime corner of Wappoo Road and Savannah Highway. It has nearly 1,000 Facebook likes and counting.
“Bye-bye ugly title loan shop. Better things coming to this important intersection in West Ashley,” Appel posted. “Bikeway/Greenway connection with safety enhancements, pocket park, and new mixed-use development!”
Appel added what the development will not have—no apartments, car washes, or amusement parks—indicating that the retail and commercial uses to come would be a step up from the types of businesses typically seen on Savannah Highway.
“It’s hard to see this as anything other than a massive improvement!” Appel posted.
West Ashley’s major corridors have been the topic of improvements on both the city and county fronts for years, both in traffic patterns and quality of businesses.
The DuPont | Wappoo Community Plan, which encompasses the Wappoo Road/Savannah Highway corner, has been a years-long (and possibly even decades-long) collaboration and planning process between the county and city with input from hundreds of residents, business owners, stakeholders and representatives from non-profit organizations and governmental agencies.
The overall Dupont/Wappoo community plan is to beautify intersections, connect the West Ashley Greenway and Bikeway, ensure the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists and give the area a unique and memorable character. Renderings show Savannah Highway lined with Palmetto trees.
Charleston County selected the Wappoo/Savannah Highway intersection to be improved and funded by the 2016 Half-Cent Sales Tax. According to the county’s website www.savannahhighway.com, construction is set to take place in 2025.
Proposed improvements outlined for the site include removing a concrete island along Wappoo Road to provide a dedicated right-turn lane onto Savannah Highway; adding an 8-foot sidewalk along the eastern end of Wappoo Road to provide a connection between the West Ashley Greenway and the West Ashley Bikeway and add decorative, stamped crosswalks and “mast arm traffic signals” to increase pedestrian visibility and enhance aesthetics.
According to the county, at its most recent community meeting and request for feedback, there were 76 comments regarding the Wappoo/Savannah Highway plan that were addressed when coming up with the plan that include:
Access to the West Ashley Bikeway
The plan for the Wappoo Road/Savannah Highway intersection includes connection of the West Ashley Bikeway to the West Ashley Greenway. The West Ashley Greenway is part of the City’s Park system where the city has leased an eight mile linear park on a long-term basis to provide recreational and transportation trail opportunities for the public.
A dedicated left-turn signal at the Wappoo Road and Savannah Highway Intersection. (SCDOT is not in support)
Appel announced that SCDOT was not in support of adding additional turn lanes coming out of Wappoo Drive onto 17 and the county’s update on the project noted that results of an analysis revealed “only one of SCDOT’s four criteria were met,” which was that “more than two vehicles were consistently observed having to wait for the next green signal to complete the left turn during peak hours.” However, the project design team further evaluated the intersection and determined that the left turn delays can be reduced by adjusting the signal timings at this intersection. These signal timing adjustments will be refined, coordinated with SCDOT and the City of Charleston, and proposed to be implemented as part of the project.
Flooding concerns at the intersection of Savannah Highway & Wappoo Road
According to the county, large-scale drainage improvements are outside the Savannah Highway/Wappoo Road scope. The improvements are funded by the Charleston County Transportation Sales Tax (TST) Program and the South Carolina Department of Revenue (SCDOR), which limits spending to transportation-related infrastructure improvements. However, “as part of the design process, the project team will complete the City of Charleston stormwater permitting process to ensure there are no negative impacts to the project area,” the county states.
The idea is that the city and county will continue to improve West Ashley’s aesthetics, marching up Savannah Highway. With the Dupont/Wappoo community plan and exhaustive feedback on what’s to be done with the vacant Sumar Street site that once housed a Piggly Wiggly, it’s clear the city and county are on a mission to change the “face of West Ashley.”
This demolition is the beginning of that plan coming to fruition. Stay tuned.
