Studio 221 Interiors announced July 18 that it will close its West Columbia shop.

The decor, furniture and design store is located at 536 Meeting St.

Studio 221 announced the closure of its original store, located in Chapin, in April.

“Logistically, prices continue to increase, supply continues to be a challenge, and traffic continues to slow down. It is a very challenging time for small businesses,” the store posted to Facebook. “Personally, as much as this outcome is not what we wanted it to be, we know this was in God’s plan for us all along. This shop, while a failure in the simplest sense, was our greatest success.”

Nearly 200 New Hotel Rooms Coming to Sunset Boulevard

A pair of new hotels are coming to Sunset Boulevard in West Columbia, The Post and Courier’s Jessica Holdman reports:

“Florence-based Naman Hotels plans to construct a pair of Hilton-branded hotels with a total of 194 rooms on land at the corner of Pine Lake Drive, just west of Lexington Medical Center’s main hospital campus,” CEO Ashok Patel is quoted.

Contractors are expected to break ground on the project by the end of 2022 or early 2023. One of the hotels is set to be an extended-stay property. All told, the properties are projected to employ about 50 people.

The story notes that Naman Hotels already operates a Hilton Garden Inn off Sunset Boulevard near the road’s interchange with Interstate 26.

Residents Wary of New Lake Murray State Park

The Post and Courier reports that residents expressed concern about a potential new state park near Lake Murray at a community meeting on July 18.

“Months after the state announced its intention to transform Pine Island, a small Lake Murray island that is currently owned by Dominion Energy, into a state park, neighbors of the property are outraged at the lack of research done to prepare for its opening next year,” Leah Hincks writes.

“[At the meeting], neighbors of Pine Island repeatedly asked S.C. Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism officials to perform traffic and stormwater management studies, work with local law enforcement and gather a solid estimate of the property’s capacity before moving forward with the project.”

Pine Island is a peninsula on Lake Murray located about five miles from Irmo.

The property is one of three properties set to transfer to state ownership as part of a settlement between Dominion and the state forgiving the company for unpaid taxes on the failed V.C. Summer nuclear power plant.

Cayce Announces Plans for New Riverwalk Mural

The City of Cayce has issued a call for artists for an upcoming mural along its Riverwalk

“The [Cayce] Beautification Foundation in partnership with the City is in the process of developing a mural on the Cayce Riverwalk underneath the Blossom Street Bridge, to build upon the momentum of our ‘previtalization’ success and nurture the City’s vibrant arts community,” the city posted to Facebook.

The mural will be added to one of the bridge’s stanchions along the riverwalk.

The foundation plans to host a  farm-to-table style dinner at the historic Guignard Brick Kilns in October to raise funds for the the mural.

“Public art is essential to the vision for the Cayce River Arts District along with the Riverwalk,” the city posted. “Thus, the Beautification Foundation is commissioning artists to design and create a mural that will be visible to the public as they walk along the Cayce Riverwalk.”

The new mural will face the “The Steamboat Ruth II” mural, installed in 2004 on another one of the stanchions that support the bridge.

The budget for the mural is $10,000. More info on how to submit can be found at facebook.com/cityofcayce.

Lexington County Gas Prices Still Among State’s Lowest

Lexington County remains a great place to fill up.

According to AAA, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline was $3.658 in the county as of July 26.

Lexington was one of just four S.C. counties with an average price below $3.70.

A week before, the county had the state’s lowest price at $3.812.

The average price statewide was $3.84 (down from $3.998). The average price nationwide was $4.327 (down from $4.495).

Richland County joined Lexington in having one of the state’s five lowest average gas prices at $3.708.