By Dan McCue
Staff Writer

U.S. Rep. James E. Clyburn, D-S.C., believes a new cloverleaf interchange at the crossroads of Interstate 95 and S.C. Highway 301 is so vital to the development of Orangeburg’s Global Logistics Triangle that he’s vowed to reorder his legislative priorities to get the project funded.

“Over the past two legislative sessions I’ve gotten a total of $4 million for the project, but I’ve never sought a large sum of money for it because I didn’t want to tie up precious federal dollars in someone’s dreams of building a logistics center in Santee if they couldn’t make it a reality,” said Clyburn, House Majority Whip.

Clyburn’s priorities changed when Jafza International, a company owned by the royal family of Dubai through its Dubai World holding company, announced its intention to build a $600 million logistics hub that will eventually employ between 8,000 and 10,000 people.

“When somebody comes along and commits to a project like that, and can carry it off, that changed things considerably,” Clyburn said. “From the first, I asked them to convince me they were for real, and they have.

“I’ve already told several of my colleagues (in Washington) that I’m going to need their help on this.”

The interchange could cost between $40 million and $60 million, according to the S.C. Department of Transportation. Currently, about $10.5 million has been committed to the project, with state and local funds being added to the $4 million the congressman has earmarked for the work.

Clyburn said revitalizing Orangeburg, which is part of his congressional district, has been a priority since he first was elected to Congress 15 years ago. For 13 to 14 of those years, he’s also been a champion of developing an “inland port” or logistics facility in the area, he said.

“But the real credit for keeping this idea alive goes to others,” Clyburn said.

Among those he credited for keeping the dream of a logistics triangle alive until someone could come along to fulfill it were the Orangeburg Economic Development Commission, the old tri-county Chamber of Commerce that included Orangeburg, Dorchester and Berkeley counties, the Rotary Club of Santee, and state Sen. John W. Matthews, D-Orangeburg, whom Clyburn described as a visionary.

“And while it may not be politically correct, I give a lot of credit to former Orangeburg County Council Chairman John Rickenbacker,” Clyburn said.

Last year, Rickenbacker was indicted on charges that he solicited and accepted $50,000 in bribes from a health care company consultant for inside information relating to contracts at the Regional Medical Center of Orangeburg and Calhoun counties.

Clyburn said the first mention he ever heard of creating a logistics center in Orangeburg was on a golf course in 1999.

“I’d talk to these people—even David Summers, who’s chairman of the Calhoun County Council and a Republican, but still a good friend of mine—I would listen to their vision and then I come up to Washington and watch what was happening in the various committees I serve on, hoping to turn something into legislation or appropriations that would move the process forward back home,” Clyburn said.

Clyburn became well schooled in logistics and in the vision that was taking hold in the community as a result of these efforts and conversations. What he couldn’t understand was why the creation of a logistics triangle was taking so long, he said.

“In Orangeburg I’d sit in on these PowerPoint presentations and then reflect on everything the community had going for it in regard to this type of operation—the two interstates, the numerous highways, the presence of two railroads, CSX and Norfolk Southern, the Orangeburg County Technical College, Claflin University and South Carolina State University,” he said.

Clyburn said the last he heard, Jafza International was close to closing on 800 acres of the 1,300 acres it wants to develop, and hoped to secure the rest by Thanksgiving.

“My role now is to convince my colleagues in Washington to allow me to reorganize some of the priorities we’ve had. I’ve never gotten a whole bunch of money for this, but an investment of this size, $600 million, that’s transformational,” he said.

“It’s not going to be an easy thing to pull off, but all things in business are a matter of timing. Certainly, I think I’m well positioned to get it done. People in leadership positions in the Congress tend to get a lot of favorable attention from their colleagues.”

Dan McCue is a staff writer for the Business Journal. E-mail him at dmccue@setcommedia.com.

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