Charleston County is seeking to tax residents to pay for the outdated, overpriced Mark Clark/I-526 Extension by asking voters to extend a transportation sales tax for 25 years. Nearly half of all the money that would be collected until roughly 2050 would go to pay for one 9-mile-long road that would damage the environment, displace homes and businesses, and only be used by a fraction of Charleston County residents. That’s a bad deal for Charleston County taxpayers.
Beginning next week, Charleston County is hosting a series of drop-in community meetings to share information and collect public comments regarding this proposed tax. We encourage you to attend one of these meetings and share with County officials that I-526 is not a priority for Charleston County residents and that money would be better spent focusing on improving existing roads and intersections.
Charleston County 2024 Sales Tax ReferendumDownload the above printable list of important talking points and alternative projects here.
Sales Tax Drop-In Meetings
Mondays in January and February from 5:00 – 7:00 PM
- January 22 – St. Johns High School (1518 Main Road, Johns Island)
- January 29 – West Ashely High School (4060 West Wildcat Blvd Boulevard, Charleston)
- February 5 – James Island Charter School (1000 Forth Johnson Road, Charleston)
- February 12 – Moultrie Middle School (645 Coleman Boulevard, Mount Pleasant)
- February 26 – North Charleston City Hall (2500 City Hall Lane, North Charleston)
All of these meetings are open to the public. You can attend any, or all, of the meetings you would like.
Comparing Costs of the I-526 Extension
For perspective, we put together a list of comparison projects to show just how expensive building the I-526 Extension really is, and how far that money could go if spent on more strategic regional priorities.
Charleston County is on the hook to provide the vast majority of the funding required for the I-526 Extension because the project IS NOT a priority for state or federal funding. Now, Charleston County leaders are asking taxpayers to foot the bill. Please plan to attend one of these meetings and tell county officials that 526 Ain’t the Fix!