Mark Your Calendars:

Housing Strategy Workshop

July 31, Kroc Center

   

Wrapping Up: 

Transit Feasibility Study 

Although the Connections for Sustainability planning project will continue through next year, the first steps of the process are starting to wrap up. The last public workshop for the Transit Economic Oriented Development and Transit Feasibility Study was held at the West Greenville Community Center on May 31st. The presentation from that meeting is posted on our website, and the outcomes are summarized below.

The Transit Feasibility Study has identified a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) route that makes the best use of available resources, maximixes the utility and connectivity of those resources to serve the most riders, and optimimizes opportunities for funding and economic development.

The identified route runs along Laurens road to connect the Amtrack station downtown to the CUICAR campus at the Interstate, as well as several other stops along the way (or just beyond). The route would use an abandoned rail corridor for a majority of the distance outside of the downtown area, and this would let the bus move more quickly.

The BRT is different from a regular bus route because it has fewer stops, uses its own dedicated roadway for at least a protion of the route, and has a passenger wait time of 15 minutes or less. The BRT is only along one route at first, but over time can connect to other regional high-speed transportation networks. The BRT would help the whole bus system by reducing the need for the city buses to travel to the dowtown transfer station. 

Stay tuned to our website and newsletter for the complete reports, as well as the date for the final public meeting where the study findings will be presented. As always, your comments are appreciated, so please let us know if you have any questions or comments. The next steps once the Transit Feasibility Study is complete will involve searching for funding and partners to raise the money needed to pave the rail corridor, build the bus stops, aquire the buses, and fund the operation and maintenance of the BRT. These next steps will not happen overnight, and public comment will be sought at various times along the way.

Taking Action:

A.J Whittenburg 

wins award  

South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SC DHEC) hosted their annual Take Action Today Conference on June 20. A. J. Whittenberg Elementary School of Engineering was recognized for their efforts to reduce their environmental impact. A. J. Whittenberg received a Green Step for their compost program, and won SC DHEC's annual Take Action Award for "Outstanding School Waste Reduction or Reuse Program."

Keeping Cool While

Going Green

by Jaclin DuRant and Gillian Small 

Sometimes, it can be difficult to worry about conserving energy when the temperature outside is rising. Well, it's easy to keep your home cool, be sustainable, and save money all at once. First of all, set your thermostat to 78�F to help lower your cooling bill and have less of an impact on the environment. While that may seem a little high for the summer temperatures, the following easy tips will help you keep cool and save some money:

- Make sure you are closing the blinds or curtains during the day (especially on the Southern side of your home) to keep the sunlight from shining directly into your house.

- Try installing ceiling fans in the main living areas of your home. Ceiling fans are a great energy efficient way to cool your home in the hot summer months.

- Don't do laundry or dishes in the heat of the day to avoid adding extra heat to your home. Instead, save these tasks for the evening or night. If you have the space, try hanging your clothes outside on a line to dry in order to reduce energy use and the heat added to your home by the clothes dryer.

- Instead of using your oven for day time cooking, try using a microwave or stove top. An oven is energy intensive and adds extra heat to your house. Even better, throw some food on the grill and keep all of that extra heat outside.

- Turn on the exhaust fan in the bathroom when taking a hot shower or turn the water temperature down and take a quick cool shower. This will decrease the heat in the room and generally make the whole house cooler.

- Finally, the landscape around your home can help save you energy. Planting large shade trees on the southern side of your home helps keep your home cooler, and many native plants, once established, use less water than non-natives.

The summer heat is always a challenge in the South, but hopefully these easy energy saving tips will help you stay cool and sustainable this summer.