THEIR VIEWS

DOT badly in need

of more oversight

If substantive and lasting reform comes to the state Department of Transportation, DOT Commission Chairman Tee Hooper of Greenville should get much of the credit. Appointed in 2003 by Gov. Mark Sanford to head the seven-member DOT Commission, Hooper has been persistent and persuasive in his call for reform at this agency that is largely unaccountable.

It's because Hooper raised serious questions about the management and spending habits of DOT that the Legislative Audit Council undertook a yearlong audit ...

DOT is an agency badly in need of more oversight. In almost every other state, the governor appoints the executive director or the governing board. In this state, the governor appoints the chairman, but the six commissioners are legislative appointees from the six congressional districts. Powerful state legislators influence the agency through their hand-picked commissioners.

Giving the governor more authority over DOT is critical to its rehabilitation - but that's an opinion. What the state will soon see are facts about the agency's performance that were uncovered during a yearlong audit. Then a real conversation can start about what needs to take place at DOT.

The Greenville News

School should dole out hard

penalties, pay for damage

The actions of some members of the Georgetown High School football team recently at Hilton Head High School were unacceptable, and the school's administration should dole out hard penalties and pay for the damage.

Following the 14-10 loss, some members of the Georgetown High School team had harsh words with opposing players. While trying to separate the players, Hilton Head football coach Tim Singleton was berated and nearly attacked by a parent of a Georgetown player. Later a locker room was trashed and a water fountain was ripped from the wall, flooding a hall.

Georgetown High Principal Michael Cafaro has apologized and won't allow students

to participate in other sports unless the culprits step forward. That is a good first step, but more should be done. ...

Today's sports teams, of course, have plenty of examples of good players who practice sportsmanship, but too many bad players are commanding the attention. And their punishment often is too lenient, and teenagers notice that little happens.

Administrators and coaches can make a difference by banning the troublemakers from sports, but it also will take a change in attitude from fans who want winning teams at all costs.

The Beaufort Gazette

New owners offer hope

for undeveloped land

The land once used by Bowater as a seed orchard no longer will be used exclusively for hunting, camping and fishing. But the new owner of the property offers hope that many of the natural assets will remain unspoiled by development.

Newland Communities, a national developer, bought 1,000 acres of undeveloped land near Catawba earlier this year. The land, which borders 2 1/2 miles of the Catawba River, is a hilly blend of hardwood and pine forest containing several small lakes. While trees have been harvested from about half the acreage, much of the rest still is heavily forested. ...

The developer pledged to preserve significant open space for parks, including a wide area along the river that could be used for walking and biking trails. Newland also plans to donate land to the Rock Hill school district, contribute $8 million to the future Dave Lyle Boulevard extension and hopes to turn an island in the river into a park and canoe/kayak landing.

Concerns remain about the utilities and infrastructure required to serve residents of the more than 2,000 homes that could be build on this property and an adjacent 2,000- acre tract Newland has purchased. But the developer's announced intention to cluster residential development and allow public use of much of the remaining green space gives hope to those concerned about preserving some of the best aspects of this region while allowing for sensible growth.

The (Rock Hill) Herald