Lexington County recently hit a significant benchmark in its efforts to control growth, but with a third of the county council set to change over heading into 2025, it remains to be seen what its approach will be moving forward. Late last month, council gave a unanimous final vote to enact concurrency standards. The new rules mean that entities such as public safety, solid waste and local school districts will have a chance to weigh in on whether they have the capacity to handle proposed residential developments, with the county being empowered to deny requests based on this input.
Council initially voted to move forward with concurrency last fall, working with staff over the past few months to figure out the complexities of coordinating with local agencies, and the precedents and formulas that will shape the county’s standards. During council discussion ahead of the final vote, staff said shaping and reshaping those standards will be a continuing process. “We will be the first county in this state, making South Carolina only the sixth state to add concurrency,” County Councilman Scott Whetstone said ahead of the final unanimous vote.
“And we’re the only one who has gone this far in depth with it and using it in the manner that we are with all of the tools that we are putting in.” With growth continuing to be a divisive issue in the county, the council has instituted other measures in recent years aimed at keeping a hand on the wheel when it comes to new developme.