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Lake Users Say South Carolina Electric & Gas Needs to Spruce Up Sites

Posted on: Monday, 15 August 2005, 21:00 CDT

Aug. 14--Some recreation areas SCE&G oversees at Lake Murray are showing wear, users say, with problems from inadequate parking to insufficient picnic equipment.

South Carolina Electric & Gas plans some improvements to four of the nine sites it oversees but said facilities are not intended to be deluxe.

"We're not going to make these things like an upscale park," said Tommy Boozer, who oversees the lake for the utility. "They'll be basic."

The complaints come as the Midlands-based utility prepares to add sites to satisfy demands from shoreline groups that say growth is reducing free access on the 47,500-acre lake.

"There needs to be initiative shown to make those facilities a little more user-friendly," said Robert Keener of Gilbert, a leader of the Lake Murray South Side Community Association.

To Keener, that means swimming areas well separated from boat ramps, better parking, boat docks and picnic shelters.

SCE&G is committed to steady improvement at its sites but doesn't see a need for similar amenities at each, Boozer said. Personnel check each site at least three times weekly, he added.

Some of the heavily used recreation areas -- the beach on the south side of the dam and boat landing on the north -- receive regular upgrades, such as repairing broken or worn equipment and renourishing beach sand.

But most of the other sites are small and isolated. All have concrete boat ramps, and most have picnic facilities and parking. Swimming is at your own risk, wherever you can wade in. SCE&G said there are no plans to open new beaches.

It's these small facilities, such as Hilton Recreation Area near Chapin, that need attention, according to regular visitors like Paul Humphrey.

"It's rundown," the West Columbia resident said, adding SCE&G is "doing the bare minimum" there.

The gravel parking area is eroding, and parking often is helter-skelter, interfering with boat launches and pull-outs. Doors are missing in the women's restroom, and deteriorating wood on the dock can jab bare feet. Brush towers over one part of the swimming area but can't be removed because of restrictions on removal of fish habitat. So some swimmers splash in the clear area around the dock near the boat ramp, ignoring a sign warning them to stay away.

Boozer said SCE&G plans improvements not only at Hilton but also at three other areas in the rural western half of the lake:

--A paved and expanded parking area and new restroom doors at Hilton

--A new ramp, dock and parking at Kempson Bridge in Newberry County

--More parking at Riverbend in Saluda County

--A new fishing dock at Sunset in Newberry County.

Some of the problems at SCE&G sites are created by users, Keener said.

"There's a lack of respect and care at these areas that's unfortunate," he said, citing trash left behind and noise from late-night parties in isolated rural areas.

SCE&G hires off-duty deputies to keep an eye on the sites and asks law enforcement to increase patrols when it learns of problem areas, Boozer said.

The prospect of new recreation areas is good news for Midlands residents like Dianna Taylor, who takes her four children swimming at the Hilton site near her home.

It's the only way her boatless family can enjoy the water inexpensively, she said.

"To my kids, this is a huge treat."

While the push for more recreation areas is commendable, Humphrey said the step is useless without a guarantee of proper upkeep.

"If you're going to do it," he said, "you need to do it right."

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Source: The State (Columbia, S.C.)

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