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Health & Fitness

Lexitecture: The Twelve-Mile Greenway

People in Lexington need and deserve the option to walk and bike where they need to go, but as it stands, it is difficult to find a decent sidewalk or convenient pedestrian path anywhere.  Believe it or not, Lexington has the potential for a park greenway system that rivals Greenville’s Swamp Rabbit Trail and Falls Park. Seriously.

Look at the first map. Our natural water system, of the Twelve-Mile and Fourteen-Mile Creeks, cuts through downtown, Gibson Pond Park, the Old Mill Pond, and serves as a boundary for many neighborhoods. The creeks essentially run along 1 and 378 and cross Corley Mill Road next to River Bluff High School before joining the Saluda River. Westward, the creeks stretch past Gilbert. The majority of Lexington’s population lives within half a mile of one of the creeks. All the dots are there for us to connect, and we can use a greenway to connect them.

Greenways, which are pedestrian-only paths, are important because they facilitate multimodal transportation while preserving great portions of nature for the public. However, don’t think of this as a nature trail, but a pedestrian highway. The Lake Murray Pedestrian Walkway is more of a nature trail, and not a very good one... I have to drive to get there, and there isn’t much to do on either side, it is narrow, cars are flying past you at 50 mph, there are no trees or grass, and there aren’t even distance markers! But even this is successful because the lake is so beautiful, and the path exists. Imagine a path like this that you could walk to from your house, surrounded by greenery, free from cars, that could actually take you to a destination. Doesn’t that sound great? It is very possible in Lexington.

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The Vision Plan, already approved by Town Council, has laid this out. I’ve included its pg 31 and pg 58 maps. In terms of importance, the Twelve-Mile Greenway project is the most vital to complete in the Vision Plan. It can facilitate the lifestyle change necessary to lessen car traffic, become healthier, and make it easier for people to get downtown and not have to worry about parking, which is what will make all of the downtown improvements economically feasible(especially the Old Mill). It would also make any kind of public transit system make sense, because of the increased accessibility without the need for parking. 

This really makes sense for River Bluff, because it will help keep new teenage drivers off Corley Mill Road, which is a recipe for bad accidents, and help justify the poor site choice for the school. LHS can get greenway access too, from both creeks. Eventually, the path could meet up with the 3 Rivers Greenway and take you all the way to Columbia.

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At the heart of the greenway, where it meets downtown, I envision a new park and mixed-use development that would bring together Main Street, the Old Mill, and Twelve-Mile Creek in a beautiful way that emphasizes our history, similar to what Greenville has done.

The beauty of the whole idea is that this body of water, the Twelve-Mile Creek, which allowed Lexington to prosper from it’s water and hydropower, can once again power a thriving Lexington and make everyone’s lives better.

Let’s build a better Lexington.


(Check out the Lexington Greenway Alliance if this idea interests you.)


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