Published: Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2009 / Updated: Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2009 01:16 PM
Vision for Hwy. 521 in Indian Land: The anti-Cherry Road?
INDIAN LAND --
Cherry Road, Independence Boulevard and Tyvola Road are an unholy trinity as far as road planners and drivers are concerned.
Those are just a few of the high traffic, retail-lined blocks that Panhandle residents fear Hwy. 521, the main artery in their community, may someday become.
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Maps and displays from the meeting are available at www.lancastercountysc.net/corridorstudy.
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Maps and displays from the meeting are available at www.lancastercountysc.net/corridorstudy.
Enter the Hwy. 521/Hwy. 9 Corridor Study, led by the Catawba Regional Council of Governments and Charlotte-based consulting firm URG, a division of Kimley-Horn. Together with input from a Project Advisory Council, made up of Indian Land residents and residents of other parts of Lancaster County, the group is developing a land use plan for Hwy. 521 north from the City of Lancaster to the North Carolina state line and Hwy. 9 from the City of Lancaster to the Catawba River.
A public meeting was held Nov. 17 and Indian Land Middle School to give the community a look at the study so far, and to give residents a chance to add their input to the study. Several stations were set up during the meeting, each to educate residents about a different aspect of the study.
At one station, photos hung from the walls showing different types of buildings and an array of signs for retail centers. Orange and green stickers were distributed among the residents, who placed green stickers on the photos that they found most appealing and orange on the photos representing a style they did not like.
URG officials will use that information as they continue working on the Hwy. 521/ Hwy. 9 Corridor Study, said COG Planner Wendy Bell.
“That gives the consultants an idea of what people like and don't like, to see if they are on the right track,” Bell said.
The meeting also presented several focus areas for the study, areas of the Panhandle and Hwy. 9 that the planners and consultants feel are critical to developing a land use plan for the area.
The focus areas included the Hwy. 160/Hwy. 521 intersection. Displays at the meeting showed what the intersection could look like if growth continues in the Panhandle, unplanned, and the alternative – what the intersection would look like if the land use plan is implemented. Other focus areas in Indian Land included a “town center” area, across Hwy. 521 from its intersection with Doby's Bridge Road, and property around Van Wyck.
Nanette Amster, an Indian Land Action Council member, attended the meeting and said she was glad to see Lancaster County making steps toward “responsible” growth.
“I love what their study is offering, a blueprint for long term responsible growth for our community so we don't end up looking like the road to Disney World or [Hwy.] 74,” Amster said. “Lancaster County has a great love for who we are and what we stand for, and we don't want to change this, we want to maintain that through our growth. We want to promote future growth but also respect those who are already invested in the county.”
Growth in the Panhandle skyrocketed around 2000, when residential communities, retail centers and corporations began eyeing the quiet suburb of Charlotte. While Lancaster County has managed the growth by the use of retail and residential zoning, the Hwy. 521/Hwy. 9 Corridor Study will give the county a comprehensive plan that includes land use, transportation and economic development studies.
Funding for the corridor study was provided through the S.C. Department of Commerce with the help of state Senator Mick Mulvaney (R-Indian Land), who requested the money.
The plan is expected to be complete at the end of January or early February, when it will be presented to the Lancaster County Council.
“This plan itself won't have any authority,” Bell explains. “It gives Lancaster County the basis, the skeleton, to change some of their basic codes and ordinances. It will be in their hands at the end of Jan, early Feb and it will be up to them where it goes from there.”
Indian Land's representative on the county council, Larry McCullough, is looking forward to seeing the final plan, he said. Included in the study will be a plan for the council that includes step-by-step recommendations on how to implement the study's findings and recommendations.
“This will be a good first step to help us really develop a master plan,” McCullough said.
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