LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Of the five candidates for election to three seats on the Lexington Town Council, three are incumbents, two of whom are Todd Carnes, on Council for 11 years and Mayor Pro Tem Ron Williams for 11. In 2021, Mr. Williams was the top voter getter (31%) in a four person race in which Mr. Carnes came in a close second with 29%. Throughout their terms, these two Councilmen have consistently been acclaimed for their community and constituent service. I encourage voters to allow them to continue their tenures in office.

Campaign literature and social media posts for challengers to Councilmen Carnes and Williams address the usual issues with the customary promises to “fix,” “fight for,” and “work with,” etc. All fine things to say because that’s what voters want to hear, but how honest are these platitudes?

As an example, consider the main issue, not only in this election, but in every conversation about Lexington; traffic. There are pledges by challengers to “tackle” traffic congestion. It’s a promise unlikely to be fulfilled because most of the roads within Town limits belong to either federal, state or county authorities as does the funding for them.

The two major routes traversing the Town of Lexington are US 1 and US 378, both federal highways. About nine and a half miles of US 378 are in Lexington, all four lanes plus a center turning/emergency lane. What do challengers expect to “tackle?” Town Council has addressed a major choke point in creating the Sunset Split project to alleviate congestion at the Corely Mill/Ginny Lane and 378 intersections. That effort was turbo-charged when Mayor Hazel Livingston and State Rep. Chris Wooten arranged to have $16M reallocated from the Smallwood Cove project to the Split. That’s a pretty good open field tackle in itself!

US 1 in Lexington runs about seven miles, all but a mile and a half is four lanes plus a center lane. That short distance – Swartz Rd to the US 378 intersection – is, clearly, a major bottleneck, but what do the challengers propose to improve that clog? Spend tens of millions of dollars to acquire properties through eminent domain and millions more to bulldoze them followed by a few million more for the construction?

What ARE the properties that would be affected? Parts of the Old Mill (including Creekside), Lexington Baptist Church, Lexington Methodist Church, all of Rhoten’s, law offices and shops. The bridge over Twelve Mile Creek would have to be widened, approvals for which would have to be acquired from the Army Corps of Engineers because of the impact on wetlands. More bureaucracy and time and money.

Street parking in the center of town would disappear as would parts of the sidewalks. And what of the disruption to traffic, both vehicular and pedestrian? A years-long project of this magnitude would shut down all movement to and through town with a devastating impact on businesses.

Traffic is but one of the issues over-simplified by detractors. Lexington is in good hands. A 2024 ranking noted Lexington as “one of the best places to live in the state due to its low crime, low unemployment, and solid median income." The Niche website ranked Lexington the #7 “Best Places to Live in South Carolina” ahead of Sullivan’s Island, Greenville and Charleston. There are very few vacant store fronts in Lexington and when businesses do relocate or close, those properties are quickly replaced with new establishments. The Town is safe, prosperous and thriving and traffic, as frustrating as it may be at times, is actually a testament to our good fortune.

We residents of the Town of Lexington welcome honest, responsible candidates for leadership roles. We all want the best people and ideas to govern our community. That means truthful and sincere discourse so we can make the best choices. Credibility and integrity are critical decision points in choosing our elected officials.

To that, I believe Councilmen Carnes and Williams are doing the job to which they were voted four years ago, and we should return them to office in 2025