Today's BJU Link

BJU proposal draws skeptical crowd

It appears from this article that the BJU proposal to build a development along Pleasantburg Drive is giving people a chance to vent off their frustrations toward existing problems. This seems to be more about past and present than one about the future proposed development.

Ben Szobody (a BJU grad - shows that not all grads get lock-step orders from the campus) reports, "But the timing plays into the hands of frustrated residents in the adjacent neighborhood who have watched a new shopping center to the south and Wade Hampton High School construction to the north funnel extraordinarily heavy rains into their neighborhood streams..."

The architect Ken Betsch is attributed as saying "that while the project won't exacerbate drainage problems, it probably won't help either." So the point is that even if the project goes in and there is no adverse impact, the residents still will not be happy with the situation.

However, the lack of rezoning does not stop the development of the property. As Bob Wood, executive vice president of BJU, points out, "'[I] wonder if they understand the potential' of an office development, which could be built without county approval."

Oh, well, you feel for the residents and hope they can find a way to resolve their neighborhood problems. Unfortunately for them, it doesn't matter whether the development goes in or not. They will still have their issues. Unfortunately for BJU, it ends up being used as a leverage tool by the residents seeking to find a solution.