LANDRUM – The City of Landrum has approved a resolution that will allow the city to match a minimum five percent of a $25,000 Hometown Economic Development Grant provided by the Municipal Association of South Carolina.

The approval, which was unanimous during a special meeting held Monday, Sept. 26, allowed Landrum Mayor Robert Briggs to sign the “No. 2016-2” resolution to allow a minimum of $1,250, be contributed by the city for the grant application on or before the Sept. 30 application deadline.

According to the resolution, these grant and local matching funds will be used for downtown gateway signage, pedestrian usage and bicycle racks. 

During the meeting, city council members and city administrator Rich Caplan discussed using the grant towards crosswalks and signage at the Hwy. 14 (W. Rutherford Street)/U.S. 176 (N. Howard Avenue) intersection next to The Hare and Hound restaurant beyond the railroad tracks.

“This is an intersection that we are all familiar with, and this grant will allow the intersection to be pedestrian and bike safe,” Briggs said during the meeting.

It was determined during the council’s Sept. 13 work session that city council members should choose a project of high priority to be put on the application for the Hometown Economic Development Grant. City council, during their regular meeting, subsequently approved the scheduling of the special meeting Monday night this week to agree on their project and approve the match to be made for the grant.

The City of Landrum approved the project be split up into two phases to be completed in a six-month time frame, according to Caplan, after the approval from state engineers. 

Caplan also suggested that the city consider an additional 17.6 percent match, which he said would require drawing money from the city’s hospitality fund for a “Welcome to Landrum” sign to go above Hwy. 176 at the intersection and high visibility crosswalks as part of phase one. The inclusion of bike racks along the downtown corridor on Rutherford Street at retail and cultural destinations would be part of phase two.

“I think it may strengthen our application if we say we’re putting in more than the minimum five percent,” Caplan said while addressing city council. “It’s part of the grant application that was suggested, and the Municipal League indicates that we have to committedly provide five percent. We won’t know if that 17 percent is 19 percent or 10 percent until we actually have a bid on the project. That was a budget estimate, so the council doesn’t need to take any action and they won’t appropriate any money until we get the grant and we get real bids for the project.”

Caplan said he looks forward to beginning the project in spring 2018 after getting approval from the state engineers and Department of Transportation.

“Realistically, this project should not take more than six months, so if we get the grant, I would imagine that the biggest obstacle might be getting approval from the state Department of Transportation to review the plans and sign off on it,” Caplan explained. “But, realistically, by the spring of 2018 because it’s a pretty small project, though it will take more than 30 days to design the project and more than 60 days to get the state to approve the plan and then 60 days to bid it.”

Altogether, the Hwy. 14/Hwy. 176 intersection design project would cost an estimated $57,887 according to an estimate drafted by Alta Planning and Design. The first phase is estimated to cost $30,342, while the second phase is estimated to cost $27,545. The project, assuming the grant is given, is expected to be done in the 2017-2018 fiscal year.