Seneca oil company executive Eddie Adams is the new chairman of the S.C. Transportation Commission, replacing Danny Isaac of Myrtle Beach.
The commission voted 6-1 today to put Adams in charge of the Department of Transportation’s seven-member governing board, which sets road priorities.
Adams, president of Lowry Oil Co., said he’s looking forward to the job. The 44-year-old is a board member of the S.C. Petroleum Marketers Association and a 1989 graduate of The Citadel.
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“Our goal is to be seven individuals here who lead a department that is going to best suit the state of South Carolina,’’ said Adams, elected to a one-year term. “I want to see us become a solid voice, a unified voice throughout the state and for this department.’’
Adams is replacing Isaac because the outgoing chairman’s term had expired. The commission picked Craig Forrest of Bluffton as its vice-chairman. The DOT has a budget of about $1 billion and is one of the state’s largest agencies.
Commission member Sarah Nuckles voted against the choices of both the chairman and vice chairman to protest the board’s support for a controversial $344 million bond package. The package was approved at a remote location last year and includes money for Interstate 73, a disputed new freeway to Myrtle Beach.
Isaac, a Grand Strand business executive who has led the charge for I-73, said despite some dissension, the board has agreed overwhelmingly on most issues — and it has overseen important road and bridge improvements.
Federal stimulus money that came in while he was chairman helped advance the state’s resurfacing program, but Isaac said the DOT still needs more money to meet the state’s needs.
Terms on the commission for Isaac and Nuckles expire next month, but each is expected to serve until replacements are chosen this year.
In addition to choosing a new chairman, the DOT board heard briefly from Kiawah Island resident Greg VanDerwerker, who urged the commission to stop the extension of I-526 in Charleston. The board took no action on the road, which has drawn opposition from a variety of interest groups.
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