278 corridor funding deadline extended through March. Will Beaufort County find the cash?
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The State Infrastructure Bank has extended Beaufort County’s deadline by four months — originally set for 15 days — to create a funding plan for the $190 million shortfall in the U.S. 278 Corridor project, according to state Senator Tom Davis. The new deadline now aligns with the March 31, 2025, timeline set by the South Carolina Department of Transportation.
The extension follows a Nov. 12 county board meeting, where council members instructed County Administrator Michael Moore to notify the SIB that the county could not meet its financial obligations for the $488 million project. Originally planned at $292 million, the project’s costs have nearly doubled, leaving the county scrambling for alternative solutions while avoiding raising property taxes.
Davis, who represents Beaufort and Jasper Counties and played a key role in securing initial funding for the project, met with SIB board members and Chairman John White Wednesday. He advocated for aligning the deadline with SCDOT’s timeline.
“I think what they were persuaded by was that the DOT secretary had said, March 31 was the ‘go no go’ date for that in terms of whether the overall project was going to go forward or just replace that first span,” Davis said. “And so I made the argument that it made sense for the SIB to have a deadline in regard to financing concurrent with that.”
The U.S. 278 Corridor project, designed to replace the aging eastbound Mackay Creek Bridge and improve traffic flow between Moss Creek Drive and Spanish Wells Road, has faced delays due to rising costs and a failed sales tax referendum.
The urgency to act stems from the deteriorating condition of the eastbound bridge constructed in 1956, which inspectors have rated as “poor,” scoring four out of 10. A Nov. 18 letter from SCDOT Secretary of Transportation Justin Powell warned that if no progress is made by the March deadline, the department would end its agreements with the county and focus solely on replacing the bridge. The bridge’s condition raises concerns about potential weight restrictions, which could impact emergency vehicles, commercial trucks and school buses, according to the letter.
If the county fails to provide a viable financial plan by March 31, SCDOT has proposed a contingency plan: constructing a new two-lane parallel bridge south of the existing eastbound bridge at an estimated cost of $90 million. This bridge would be designed to expand to three lanes in the future. SCDOT also suggested using the $80 million from the 2018 sales tax referendum to fund a second westbound span connecting Pinckney Island to the mainland.
Davis added that the county previously proposed covering half of the $190 million shortfall and requesting the SIB and SCDOT to cover the remaining $90 million. However, he clarified that this formal request has not yet been presented to the SIB.
“I feel confident in our ability to make a very compelling case to have the state, either the SIB or the DOT, pick up the excess, but I want to be clear that is something that will still need to go before the DOT and the SIB to be approved,” he said.
At the same meeting, the SIB also granted Jasper County’s request for additional funding to address a budget shortfall in the new Exit 3 project. While exact figures were not immediately available, Davis estimated the project was over budget by $75–$80 million. Jasper County requested that the SIB provide additional grant funding for slightly less than half of that amount, and the board approved the request.
“It was a two-for-two day for us,” Davis said.
This story was originally published November 21, 2024 at 1:35 PM.
