Roofing Contractor in Lexington, SC

LEXINGTON COUNTY, S.C. (WIS) - Members of the Lexington County community gathered Wednesday to share their opinions on potential changes to the county’s busiest corridors.

The project, “Links to Lake Murray,” was initiated by the Central Midlands Council of Governments (CMCG) and the South Carolina Department of Transportation.

The project focuses on parts of Highway 6 and 60, specifically on North Lake Drive from Dreher Shoals Road to Lake Murray Boulevard and Lake Murray Boulevard from North Lake to St. Andrews Road.

The drop-in public input sessions were held at the Meech House on Lake Murray Boulevard and at Ballentine Park. Each presented the community results from an online study where residents were able to pick parts of the corridor that were in need of repair or modification earlier this year.

Results from those surveys showed residents think traffic congestion, poor intersections and railroad crossings are issues on both Highway 6 and 60. Those results also show road maintenance is the most suggested improvement for each of the corridors, followed by improved traffic signals and center medians or dedicated turn lanes.

The intersection of Lake Murray Boulevard and St. Andrews Road is the most dangerous section of Highway 6 and 60, according to CCMG. There were 552 crashes between 2021 and 2024 on the two corridors, with most of those wrecks being rear-end crashes.

“I am concerned about growth, it’s good to see that the planning is being done on the roads first,” said Marvin DuBois a resident who attended the meeting.

CMCG said around 30,000 vehicles drive along Highway 6 and 60 each day. It’s a project that’s still in its early stages but has been rooted in community input.

Officials have created three different concepts for residents to vote on and provide suggestions. Highway 60 would stay the same with five lanes, but CMCG recommends sidewalks be widened on one side of the road and raised landscape medians in certain areas.

There are three options for changes to Highway 6:

Alternative A: CCMG suggests roundabouts in a few sections like Salem Church Road, Farming Creed Road and Irmo Drive

Alternative B: Highway 6 would include landscape medians and instead of roundabouts, turn signals.

Alternative C: A mix of both A and B, with a proposed a 5 lane stretch from Highway 76 to Irmo Drive and from Irmo Drive down only 3 lanes with new roundabouts.

“I realize that traffic circles are great they are more aesthetic and are more free flowing, but then I worry about how a decade or so down the road they may not be as adequate,” DuBois said when asked about what he thought about the suggestions.

WIS spoke with residents who have mixed feelings about the proposals. Many said they know growth in Lexington County is inevitable and argue the plans offered don’t accommodate for current and future development in the county.

“I’m frustrated,” said Sue Kemming, a longtime Ballentine resident, “They still have their hands up trying to get feedback but developers are building no matter what.”

While others say they are thankful that organizations have gone as far as mapping out suggestions and meeting with the community. Residents said they are thankful they get the ability to voice their concerns to areas that specifically impact their daily commutes.

No funding source has been allocated for the project yet. Once the study is finalized, it will be presented before the CMCG and SCDOT.

For more information and further details on this project, click here.

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A hotly anticipated new restaurant has officially joined downtown Lexington’s culinary scene.

Ember, a high-end steakhouse from a group of well-known local restaurateurs, has opened its doors at 101 W. Main St., at the southwest corner of the intersection of Main and Church streets, adjacent to the popular Icehouse Amphitheater.

The new restaurant had a soft opening last week, co-owner Steve Cook said, and is now open on a reservation-only basis. Diners can make reservations through the online service Resy, which is also linked via emberlexington.com.

Ember is the newest offering from a handful of restaurateurs who are familiar to many in the Midlands. They include Cook, who owns Saluda’s fine dining restaurant and Arroyo Mexican restaurant in Five Points; Joe Walker III, the former Richland County Councilman who has franchised Marco’s Pizza and Scooter’s Coffee locations; and Ryan Jones, the former general manager of Hall’s Chophouse in Columbia.

As Ember launches, Cook said the early reaction from Lexington residents has been encouraging.

“We are very happy that we’ve had a great demand from the community so far,” Cook said. “It’s been great. Like any restaurant, we are working out the kinks at the very beginning. I’ve done a lot of stuff over the years, and I’ve never seen this kind of outpouring of enthusiasm for a project. It has been pretty cool to see, honestly.

“The Lexington market is exciting and we’re happy to be a part of it.”

Ember’s arrival stokes the flames of downtown Lexington, which has become a bustling hub with a host of restaurants, bars, shops and other services. Popular downtown eateries include O’Hara’s Public House, Keg Cowboy, Bodhi Thai Dining, Groucho’s Deli, Barrio, Craft Axe Throwing, Cribb’s, Bubba’s Biscuit, Libby’s, and Nicky’s Pizzeria. There are also a host of stores, such as Craig Reagin Clothiers and The Kindred Boutique, and a Voodoo Brewing location is under construction.

The menu at Ember features a host of options, including, of course, a roster of steaks, including filet mignon, a Japanese wagyu New York strip, a USDA prime ribeye and others. The eatery also features pork chops, seafood, pasta, salads, soups, an extensive wine list, a host of cocktails and more.

Cook said customers have been enjoying various parts of the menu in Ember’s early days.

“The steaks have been popular, obviously,” Cook said. “The pasta is so good. We make the pasta in house. The fresh seafood and the seafood tower have been really popular. There’s also a pickled shrimp appetizer that is so good. It’s sort of a refreshing take on the shrimp cocktail.

“And the short rib is awesome. If you go and are not in the mood for a steak, the short rib is one of those dishes that will be on the menu for 20 years.”

The State

Chris Trainor is a retail reporter for The State and has been working for newspapers in South Carolina for more than 20 years, including previous stops at the (Greenwood) Index-Journal and the (Columbia) Free Times. He is the winner of a host of South Carolina Press Association awards, including honors in column writing, government beat reporting, profile writing, food writing, business beat reporting, election coverage, social media and more.

A new Mexican restaurant has set its sights on a well known shopping center in the heart of Lexington.

Na’cho Margarita, which already has a popular Mexican restaurant along the shores of Lake Murray, is planning a new location at 712 W. Main St. near downtown Lexington. Public records indicate that Na’cho Margarita has applied to the SC Department of Revenue for its licenses to sell alcohol at the address. There also was a Department of Revenue application notice for Na’cho Margarita in the window at the Main Street spot when a reporter went by Monday morning.

The restaurant space at 712 W. Main St. in Lexington formerly was home to RF’s Corner Grill, which closed in March. RF’s had been at that location for more than six years.

Na’cho Margarita opened a Mexican restaurant with a full bar at 745 Marina Way in Prosperity, at Lake Murray, in summer 2023. That lakeside location’s menu features a host of Mexican favorites, including tacos, burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas, poblanos, sizzling fajitas and more.

The location along W. Main Street will be in the Town Square shopping center that is anchored by a Food Lion supermarket. Other businesses in the plaza include Musician Supply, Terry’s Barber Shop, Black Tiger Tae Kwan Do, and a Wingstop chicken place, among others. Lexington County’s auxiliary administration building is across the street.

It’s in a high-traffic area near downtown Lexington. About 40,000 cars per day travel down that stretch of W. Main Street, per state Department of Transportation data.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Lexington County State House Representative RJ May from Lexington County has been indicted on nearly a dozen federal child sex abuse material charges, according to federal court filings unsealed Thursday.

In the government’s motion for detention explaining why prosecutors feel May should be behind bars before trial, it says May used four different apps to distribute child sexual assault material (CSAM), Kik, Telegram, Mega, and Loki Messenger.

Federal investigators say all four of those apps were deleted within seconds of each other in April of last year, just four months before May’s home was searched. Kik is a digital app that allows users to message and live stream without a cell phone number registered on their account. Meaning anyone with access to a digital device can use the app.

Telegram is a messaging app, and Mega is used for file hosting. Both are cloud-based apps, and according to investigators, are frequently used by individuals engaged in CSAM because of their encryption and foreign ownership. Loki Messenger is another messaging app that has end-to-end encryption.

“Kik, like you said, you don’t need to have a phone number for so the accessibility is the problem there, so kids can try and figure out these things without us knowing,” said Rebecca Lorik, the executive director of Pathways to Healing.

Prosecutors say the apps May used all have free subscriptions and millions of users. Rebecca Lorick, with Pathways to Healing, tells me the dangers of social media are rising, and parents need to get involved.

“We have to be parents, we have to parent them, we need to realize that we are not their friends. We have to be the parents; we need to set guidelines and guardrails.

Lorick urges parents to communicate with their children and check in on their social media apps and devices.

“Number one, know your child, have conversations with your child, set those guidelines, be a parent to your child. Number two, educate yourselves on the online dangers and what our kids are facing. New technology pops up every single day, and we need to be on top of that as parents. And number three, reach out to the experts”.

Lorik said parents should be mindful of software platforms like Kik that provide easy access to communication with strangers across the world.

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RJ May was arrested Wednesday and appeared in federal court for a detention hearing Thursday.

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A Lexington County state lawmaker is being held without bond after federal authorities charged him with sharing more than 200 videos of child sex abuse material online.

Rep. RJ May, R-Lexington, was arrested Wednesday at his West Columbia home. On Thursday, Judge Shiva Hodges ordered him to remain in federal custody, citing concerns he could be a flight risk or a danger to the community.

The nearly two-hour detention hearing at the Matthew J. Perry US Courthouse included testimony from a federal agent who investigates internet crimes against children. The agent said the case began with a tip from the messaging app Kik, which flagged an account for sharing child sexual abuse material.

According to the agent, the flagged account was registered using May’s home IP address. Investigators say more than 200 explicit videos were shared nearly 500 times in March and April of this year. In August, agents searched May’s home and seized several devices. Although May had deleted Kik and other apps on April 4, officials said his phone still saved the username and email linked to the flagged account.

May’s defense attorneys argued that no sexual content was found stored directly on his hard drives.

Interim U.S. Attorney Bryan Stirling, who attended the hearing, said, “He is innocent until proven guilty in the court of law, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office only comment would be to direct you to the testimony today and the filings at the Clerk of Court’s office. Besides that, we have no comment.”

May has been suspended from the South Carolina House of Representatives while the case proceeds.

May co-founded the ultra-conservative South Carolina Freedom Caucus, but the group said in a statement Wednesday that he has not been involved since August 2024 and has now been formally expelled.

If convicted, May faces up to 20 years in prison.