Location: Charleston, SC

Sam Rittenberg Boulevard Redesign

Closing: January 31, 2025 at 1pm eastern standard time.

Description

The City of Charleston, South Carolina, is seeking qualified firm(s) to create a complete street redesign for the Sam Rittenberg Boulevard Corridor.

The Sam Rittenberg Boulevard Corridor Redesign is an opportunity to create an attractive, functional, multi-modal main street in West Ashley that supports vibrant neighborhoods and mixed use redevelopment opportunities. It is currently designed to accommodate automotive movement first and foremost. Sam Rittenberg Boulevard bisects the other main corridors traversing the length of West Ashley and was originally designed as a way to connect the burgeoning suburban community to the naval yard for employment. In a span of sixty years it evolved into the suburban commercial corridor with wide multilane travel adjoining large surface parking fields. At first, this contributed to the growth of West Ashley into the bedroom community for peninsular Charleston and North Charleston. We now have the opportunity to recreate this corridor for the same reasons. Sam Rittenberg Boulevard presents excellent development opportunities for existing businesses, new businesses, housing, and community services; it also presents opportunities for improved connectivity, a more walkable multi-modal design, and beautification.

The corridor has been studied by the City’s Design Division (2014) and Plan West Ashley (2017). Both identified opportunities to improve not only the look and function of the street but encourage revitalization of surrounding properties. Since those efforts, there has been some commercial redevelopment along the corridor, however these changes did not include right-of-way improvements or substantially enhanced the character of the community. The Sam Rittenberg Boulevard Redesign will produce a set of documents which will prioritize the closing of excessive drive cuts, extend the multi-use trail from the Old Towne District section of the corridor, where and how to install traffic control medians and planted medians. Corridor improvements will also need agreements with SCDOT and County for pedestrian and vehicular lighting, installation of HAWK midblock crossings on longer stretches of roadway, reconstruction of utilities along it including stormwater and sewer, burying power lines and telecommunication, and possible installation of fiber optic conduits. Other options for redesign can include road diets, or multiway boulevards slip lanes, to allow for on street parking.

A TIF district was created in 2016 to improve the Sam Rittenberg Boulevard area and provide a funding mechanism for infrastructure upgrades. The TIF district redevelopment plan includes the following goals for public infrastructure improvements: 1) improvements to streetscaping including installation of street lighting, street trees, landscaped medians, and utility improvements; 2) improvements to the transportation infrastructure including the construction of pedestrian, bicycle, and transit facilities; 3) improvements to the street/highway network, including improvements to existing streets, the creation of new connecting streets, and intersection improvements; 4) improvements to stormwater management infrastructure.

For more information visit https://www.charleston-sc.gov/bids.aspx?bidID=818

Questions regarding this solicitation must be submitted in writing to Robin B. Robinson no later than 1:00pm on January 6, 2025. Questions may either be faxed to 843-720-3872 or emailed to Robin B. Robinson, robinsonr@charleston-sc.gov.