Richland County wants to spend penny tax money on a new greenway. Here’s where
Residents northeast of Columbia may soon be able to take the scenic route between neighborhoods.
The Jackson Creek Greenway, set to be paid for by Richland County’s Transportation Penny tax, proposes a 1.3-mile paved path to connect neighborhoods and schools in the Dentsville area near Sesquicentennial State Park.
Design features of the proposed greenway include a paved multi-use path, elevated boardwalks to protect wetlands and flood-prone areas, marked crosswalks at key intersections, pedestrian bridges for creek crossings and park benches.
The total cost of the project remains up in the air, with the county still considering public input, Transportation Penny Director Mike Maloney said, noting that “there are alternatives within the chosen route that will vary in the final budget.” An estimate of nearly $5 million is as accurate as possible at this stage of planning, he said.
Maloney explained that the idea of the greenway and other projects were incorporated into the penny’s plans after the Richland County Planning and Development Department created a neighborhood improvement plan over 10 years ago, with the intent of connecting people in ways alternative to roadways.
Pedestrian safety projects have been ongoing in the Columbia area after the metro region was named the 12th most dangerous in the nation as of 2022. A renovation to South Main Street was recently finished that added bike lanes, and the Five Points area has been revamping crosswalks for the past year.
Where will the greenway go?
There are two potential routes for the new greenway trail.
The Red Route proposes a more direct path through the area, following the northwest Jackson Creek pathway. It then follows Trenholm Road in front of Jackson Creek Elementary School.
The Green Route is more separated from traffic and travels east through more wooded areas, following the Jackson Creek path. It would connect the Trenholm Road Extension to the northern part of Oneil Court and provide a crossing of Decker Boulevard leading to Dent Middle School.
The penny held a public input session on July 24 that had a strong turnout, Maloney said. The majority of attendees said they would prefer the Green Route because of the greater connection to nature and northern neighborhoods, he said.
Boost to cycling
Strong involvement in public input is “really critical” because it encourages more of these projects to be considered and potentially completed in the long term, said Regan Freeman, director of development for the Cola Town Bike Collective, a nonprofit Columbia bike shop that strives to increase interest in and access to cycling as a means of transportation and recreation. He attended the input session and said he’s an advocate for any local projects that improve pedestrian safety.
“It seems like [the penny is] really being open and understanding that these kind of projects are very different than a traditional [widening of an] intersection,” Freeman said. “It involves public input. … People love this. They keep going to bat for it.”
Other benefits of the Green Route, Maloney said, include its proximity to the Gills Creek Watershed and its connectivity between the sides of Decker Boulevard. Finding a way to provide better travel between communities on each side of Decker has been a main goal for many residents who provided input, he said.
“We’re very interested in connectivity and how we can get from point A to point B safely,” Freeman said. “And for all road users. People should definitely be able to drive there, but if you want to be able to walk and bike, you should have that choice to do so.”
The penny is looking into whether it would be feasible to put a pedestrian bridge along Decker, and if it proves undoable, he said the penny would improve the Decker-Oneil Court intersection for better pedestrian mobility.
Preserving wetlands
The Green Route runs through two wetland areas, which will require additional consideration and planning to adhere to environmental regulations, Maloney said.
The transportation penny has said that “avoidance and minimization of wetland impacts remain a priority” in the route selection process. As the project advances, further environmental assessments will be done to identify opportunities for preservation or enhancement of the wetlands, they posted online.
The penny will make impact mitigation efforts that won’t change the proposed route, Maloney said, including elevating the path into a boardwalk over those areas.
What’s next?
Following the preliminary design period, Maloney said, the penny will then look into the feasibility of aspects of the project including the boardwalks over wetlands and the pedestrian bridge across Decker, he said.
Just before final design, the penny will seek permits for those aspects, and third party agencies like the DES will provide feedback on the project.
The design process should be completed in spring of next year around March, Maloney estimated, and ground should be broken on the project around this time next year, if not earlier, depending on when permits are approved.
Last year, Richland County residents voted to extend the penny, first passed in 2012, for another 25 years, or until it collects $4.5 billion.
Freeman said he’s hopeful for more projects like this in the future as the new transportation penny will have a larger budget for pedestrian bike projects when the current penny expires around December 2026.
“It is a tremendous thing, and it pays dividends for a lot of reasons,” Freeman said of the funding. “So it’s great to hear that I think we finally will have a local funding source.”
