I wish you a happy Easter weekend.
This was furlough week for the House of Representatives, so no trip to Columbia for me. It was a great opportunity this week to meet and talk with constituents in the district.
A looming issue for the Waccamaw Neck is the Highway 17 corridor and how to improve it to handle increases in traffic. Last Thursday, I participated in an important virtual meeting held by the Grand Strand Area Transportation Study (GSATS) to present the results of a draft corridor study and to take public comments. Click here for news coverage.
This portion of Highway 17 is currently servicing 30,500 to 47,000 vehicles per day and is expected to serve up to nearly 72,000 vehicles per day by 2040.
Some of the recommendations are additional lanes, closing median openings, eliminating left turns -- forcing U turns, new signals, lane restriping, vegetation maintenance, adaptive signal timing, and adding roundabouts at intersections on major feeder roads.
I urge you to click here to review the corridor study information and let GSATS (I’m on the policy committee) know your concerns. Send comments on the Draft Highway 17 Corridor Study to [email protected]. The deadline for comments is this Friday, April 9th.
The Georgetown County Legislative Delegation meeting that was scheduled for last Monday was cancelled and is now scheduled for noon this Monday, April 5th, at the Howard Auditorium located at 1610 Hawkins Street in Georgetown.
The delegation (comprised of Sen. Stephen Goldfinch, Sen. Ronnie Sabb, Rep. Carl Anderson and myself) will meet to discuss appointments to various county boards and commissions, such as the Board of Elections, Transportation Committee, Water and Sewer District Board, and Murrells Inlet-Garden City Fire District Board. The meeting is open to the public.
All South Carolinians age 16 and up are eligible for COVID vaccinations. Click here to find a vaccination provider.
30.5% of South Carolinians have started the vaccination process. 16.5% are fully vaccinated. 1,880,362 vaccines have been given to South Carolina residents to date.
On Tuesday, the House starts the second half of the legislative session. I anticipate a busy week starting with a Ways and Means Committee meeting on Tuesday.
It’s an honor to represent District 108 in the House. Please let me know if I can be of any assistance.
Rep. Lee Hewitt