The Environmental process is intended to promote informed decision-making by federal, state, and local agencies by making information concerning environmental impacts available to both agency leaders and the public. Collaboration, communication, and cooperation between all who are involved in environmental decisions, including government officials, private businesses, and the public is vital. Stakeholder and public input are critical to providing important insight to Charleston County as it refines which alternative is the best for a given locality and corridor as a whole. Public and agency input will be integrated into the technical evaluation process to ensure their insight is considered before decisions are made.
The goal of public involvement on this project is to encourage and promote open communication between the public, cooperating and participating agencies, stakeholders, and the Project Management Team to gather and incorporate productive input leading to better decisions that meet the community needs.
Two public meetings will be held at key project milestones. The timing of these meetings, project materials to be presented, and notification process for the meetings will meet all regulatory requirements and be conducted at convenient locations within or near the project study area. All activities will be documented for use in the decision-making process. The meetings will likely include both in-person and virtual options. In-person meeting size and location will follow regulations related to COVID-19 protocols in place at the time of the meeting. The two Public Meetings would also include concurrent stakeholder, business, and elected officials’ meetings, as needed. Specific community-based meetings are also planned to occur during the project development process, during Phase 1 of the project as needed.
Newsletters will be prepared prior to each public meeting to provide timely information about the study to the public. The newsletter will detail the overall project, project process, and current status. The newsletter will be distributed digitally through social media and the project website.
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