Putting the pieces together

Mapping the future

Go ahead. In your mind, climb one of the Cooper River bridge's diamond towers, 575 feet above the harbor, and enjoy the view.

Pretend the sun is low because the softer light brings out the colors of the marshes, rivers and ocean–features that have guided the area's growth for three centuries.

Now, from this lofty throne, imagine how you would shape the area in the next 10 years.

Would you build new roads? Where? How about new sewer lines? Would you try to slow the growth of new subdivisions? Or create new ones on the edge of this urban blanket?

While you can't legally scale the bridge without a good connection at the highway department, you do have a chance in coming months to map how the area will grow.

In conference rooms and cubicles, planners and politicians are penciling in places that might see heavy development, and which areas could remain as they are. They're calculating how much this growth will cost taxpayers.

Now, many of these government bodies are unveiling their plans and proposals in workshops and public meetings. With this feedback, officials will craft final blueprints in the coming months.

All this is part of a state law requiring governments every 10 years to create comprehensive plans for growth, and some argue that the decisions in the coming months could have huge implications for our tax bills and quality of life.

Read more Sunday when the series "Mapping the Future" kicks off in The Post and Courier.