Complete Streets Workshop: Recap

Almost two weeks ago we held the Complete Streets Workshop at the South Carolina Farmer’s Market in West Columbia. The event was a great success with nearly 50 people in attendance from various regions of the state. The day began with a introduction from Elise Partin, Mayor of Cayce, Columbia. Mayor Partin spoke about the importance of advocating for change within your community and getting involved in local issues especially those relating to planning and transportation. Next, Roger Henderson, the day’s facilitator, gave an introduction and overview of Complete Streets and highlighted some elements of a policy. Roger is an instructor for the National Complete Streets as well as an engineer in North Carolina. Roger also touched on some commons concerns associated with Complete Streets.

Following this, each region broke off into groups and discussed three questions relating to recognizing challenges and identifying solutions. After this, I presented in the importance of adopting a policy and also highlighted some local policies throughout South Carolina. Next, Tom Dodds, the Pedestrian and Bicycle Coordinator from SCDOT, spoke about policy at the state level. Our group panelists then presented on their personal experiences adopting and implementing Complete Streets policies in their communities. We were fortunate to be joined by Jean Crowther from Alta Planning & Design in Greenville, Philip Overcash, Planner for the City of Charleston, and Shawn Putnam, Planner for the City of Camden.

After lunch, Roger spoke about the six steps to implementation. This was followed by two break-out sessions: Advocacy led by Rachael and Amy Splittgerber of Eat Smart Move More SC and Implementation led by Roger. A brief wrap-up brought the workshop to a close. Thank you to AARP and ESMMSC for their collaborating with PCC and making this workshop possible!