Posted
on Wed, Nov. 12, 2003, The State Newspaper
City should close part of Oak Street to protect students
THE CITY OF COLUMBIA should
restrict vehicle traffic on a small portion of Oak
Street that runs through Benedict College’s campus.
We do not come to that
conclusion based solely on the unfortunate shooting
of two students recently. The students, who — thankfully
— were not seriously injured, were shot by someone
driving through the campus on Oak Street. The shooting
occurred after someone called out to the driver of
a car to slow down; the car stopped, backed up, and
the driver got out and argued with some students. The
driver fired a handgun at students, hitting two not
involved in the argument.
While this is alarming,
a single incident is no reason to close down Oak Street,
or any other street where a similar incident might
occur. The need existed long before this incident to
close down the street, either permanently or at least
during working hours, to ensure the safety of students.
Benedict officials had
asked the city months ago to close the street, which
students cross constantly throughout the day, for safety
and security reasons. The city’s planning department
recommended closing Oak Street from 8 a.m. to 5:30
p.m. during the week and on special occasions. However,
City Council has put the matter off, perhaps because
of community opposition.
Benedict officials want
to close Oak Street between Haskell Avenue on the north
and Taylor Street on the south. While some area residents
use the street as a way to get to school, shopping
centers and churches, closing off the street would
not prohibit them from getting to those destinations.
Although it would take a few minutes longer and may
cause minor inconveniences, there are alternate routes.
While Benedict is asking
for the most extreme form of relief in terms of the
permanent closing of the street, it is not making a
request totally foreign to city officials. When the
University of South Carolina wanted to restrict access
to Greene Street, which runs through its campus and
past the student union, the city obliged. However,
Greene Street has not been completely closed to the
public; it closes during working hours, which has helped
reduce the flow of traffic through USC’s campus. Oak
Street cuts through Benedict’s campus in much the way
Greene runs through USC’s campus. Benedict students
cross Oak Street to go to the student center, cafeteria,
dorms and other buildings.
In reviewing this request,
city officials must consider how the Benedict student
population and campus have grown. Benedict is no longer
the tiny school contained by a fence. It now straddles
Oak Street and has extended into other parts of the
adjacent community. President David Swinton has described
the small section of Oak Street Benedict would like
to turn into a pedestrian-only zone as the center of
campus.
The college’s growth has
played a key role in the revitalization of the surrounding
community. The discussion about closing Oak Street
is merely one of many the college and its neighbors
are sure to have as Benedict continues to develop in
the surrounding areas. In a perfect world, Benedict
officials and area residents would come together and
work this and other matters out in a manner that is
amenable to both sides.
Since we do not live in
a perfect world, Columbia officials must hear both
sides out and then make a decision. That decision should
be to close Oak Street, whether full time or on a limited
basis.
