Dorchester growth plan heading for council

SUMMERVILLE - It could be a milestone in the move to control growth in Dorchester County.

The long-awaited update to the county's comprehensive plan should get first-reading approval at Tuesday's Council meeting.

The new plan, which has been in the works for about two years, includes a section saying a development can't be approved if roads and schools can't handle it. Final approval is expected in November, after more public hearings, Council Chairman Larry Hargett said.

Residents have been complaining that the county allowed too many new houses the past few years, overcrowding roads and schools around Summerville. A six-month moratorium on major new residential developments was passed last December and then extended for another three months. The moratorium expires Oct 1.

Some key details of the growth plan still need to be hammered out, Hargett said, such as defining how much growth roads and schools can handle. Council will hold several more public hearings before final approval.

Read more in tomorrow's editions of The Post and Courier.