By Robert Behre
The Post and Courier

The final leg of Interstate 526, better known as the Mark Clark Expressway, has languished on the drawing boards for years, little more than a dotted line on a map connecting the area around Citadel Mall to Maybank Highway on Johns Island and eventually to the James Island Connector.

That changed suddenly Friday, as the State Infrastructure Bank voted unanimously to provide money to start designing and building it.

Charleston County officials trumpeted the news.

"We got it, baby," County Council Chairman Leon Stavrinakis said. "It's free money for Charleston. I'm so excited. This project is so important for West Ashley, for Johns Island, for James Island and for Kiawah and Seabrook islands."

The county sought $420 million for the Mark Clark and $300 million for a new access road linking Interstate 26 with the new container port being developed at the former Charleston Naval Base.

The bank board deferred action on the port access road, saying it wanted the Legislature to come up with that sum without requiring a local match.

The bank also decided to lend the S.C. Department of Transportation $93 million to begin widening a deadly, two-lane stretch of U.S. Highway 17 in Colleton and Beaufort counties. At least 34 people have died in the past decade on the 22-mile stretch of mostly two-lane road from Gardens Corner to Jacksonboro.

Not everyone celebrated the bank's decision to commit money to the Mark Clark.

Environmentalists have argued the project would further congest some existing roads, and they questioned whether the taxpayers would get a good value, given the project's huge price tag.

Johns Island farmer Thomas Legare said he was infuriated by news of the bank's decision.

"It's very much against the wishes of the people of Johns Island," he said. "We've got more important needs in Charleston County than that. The fight hasn't even begun yet. We're going to put a stop to this thing."

Stavrinakis said getting the Mark Clark built has been his top priority as chairman because it will improve traffic flow between West Ashley and James and Johns islands, help with hurricane evacuations and bolster the region's economy.

He acknowledged the project could lead to more congestion in spots. "That happens in every project, but you don't ignore needs because you're looking for a perfect project. They don't exist," he said. "This one will help more people than it will hurt."

County Administrator Roland Windham, who received the news on his last day on the job, said he was pleasantly surprised that the bank committed to the entire sum, including $99 million immediately for engineering and right-of-way acquisition. As that gets done, the bank will come up with the estimated $321 million for the construction, he said.

The bank board also voted Friday to approve $5 million for buying right of way to improve the interchange of U.S. 17 and I-526 in Mount Pleasant.

Working with Mount Pleasant, the county also secured a commitment of $40 million for the intersection of I-526 and U.S. 17-North. The bank awarded $5 million for the preliminary design, environmental impact studies, engineering and right-of-way acquisition. It pledged $40 million more for construction as money becomes available.

"This does what we anticipated doing all along: leveraging the half-cent sales tax money to get other money," Windham said. "This is a huge return on the half-cent sales tax. We're looking at $465 million on a $120 million match."

The next step will be coming up with an environmental impact study for the project, a study that should pinpoint its exact route between West Ashley and Johns and James islands.

The most controversial stretch of the project could be its path across Johns Island, a once rural island that has seen a growing number of subdivisions and commercial development.

Some fear the Mark Clark would wipe away the last of the island's rural character, but both Stavrinakis and Charleston Mayor Joe Riley have vowed not to let the highway proceed until there's a plan in place to limit any ill effects. "I want to emphasize we're going to do everything we can to protect Johns Island," Stavrinakis said.

County Council already has hired a land preservation consultant to review the Mark Clark project's impact on Johns Island, and the county soon hopes to have a sizable sum to act on its recommendations. Voters will decide in November whether to approve bonds, to be paid back with half-cent money, that would provide $95 million for land preservation across the county.

The Infrastructure Bank is a state agency created to pay for large projects, usually those costing more than $100 million. The Mark Clark is its second in Charleston County; the bank also paid for most of the $632 million Cooper River bridge.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Big bank decisions

The State Infrastructure Bank voted Friday to:

--Provide $99 million for the design, engineering and right of way for the Mark Clark Expressway, with a commitment to come up with $321 million later to build it.

--Provide $5 million for the design, engineering and right of way for improving the intersection of Interstate 526 and U.S. Highway 17 in Mount Pleasant, with a commitment to come up with $40 million later to build it.

--Provide $93 million to begin widening U.S. 17 from Gardens Corner to Jacksonboro.

--Defer a request for $300 million to build a port access road in North Charleston, between I-26 and the former Navy base.

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