News 12 at eleven o'clock -- Tuesday, August 31, 2010

COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ga. --- It's one of the fastest growing counties in the area, now Columbia County planners are looking at ways to better manage that growth.

The Columbia County Growth Management Plan Steering Committee met Tuesday night to revise the growth plan. This is one of several revisions before a final version is released in February of 2011.

Chances are, you've seen the businesses popping up around Columbia County. But with that growth comes traffic. Drivers say no matter the time of day or night, it can be a headache.

"It's just bumper to bumper," says driver Susan Harpole. "You inch forward a little bit or try to change lanes or turn off somewhere else or go behind a store."

Susan drives through the intersection of Washington Road and Bobby Jones Expressway several times a week. It is one of the area's most congested areas. She says she's happy to see her community grow, but hates the inconvenience.

"It can be frustrating," she says. "A lot of times when they build, they don't actually think about the traffic flow."

But Tuesday night, Columbia County planners met to do just that.

"These are problems that come up all the time," says county planner Dave Van De Weghe. "Just to keep the traffic moving, we want to minimize the number of turns people are making. We want to encourage shared driveways."

That means taking a new look at the land between the areas of growth. The plan is designed to keep major developments in contained areas. But planners are now looking at the streets connecting those areas, like Washington and Bel Air roads, and deciding how they should be developed.

Some will remain primarily residential, while others will allow for limited business development.

"This is a brand new concept. We're really expanding the list of uses or possibilities," Van De Weghe says. "But we're also correcting some of the oversights from the previous growth management plan."

For Susan, that's a dream come true.

"Just make it easier," she asks. "The growth is wonderful, but you have to plan for the traffic movement in and out, or people will get frustrated and they won't go to those businesses."

Van De Weghe says a new draft of the plan will be done within the next few weeks and posted on the county website. He invited community members to read the plan and give their feedback.

Members also discussed requirements for potential businesses. One idea was having all stores share one driveway, which would eliminate many small driveways along the main road and improve traffic flow. The committee also stressed the need for both small and large businesses to be able to bid for development.

To visit the Columbia County website, please click the link below.