Lowcountry Regional Transportation Authority Names New Board Chairman
Staff Report From Low Country CEO
Thursday, April 2nd, 2020
The Board of Directors of the Lowcountry Regional Transportation Authority (LRTA), operators of Palmetto Breeze Transit and The Breeze Trolley, recently elected Susan Zellman of Bluffton as Chairman for 2020 – 2022.
Zellman, who resides in Sun City, is one of three representatives on the LRTA Board from Beaufort County. She has served on the LRTA Board since 2016.
Zellman’s background in transportation and affordable housing makes her ideally suited for the Palmetto Breeze board. A native of New Jersey, she served as Chairman of her local planning board, on the Sussex County Planning Board and as a member of County Council (known as the Freeholder Board) in Sussex County, NJ for 12 years. There, she served two terms as Director and as liaison to Transit and Human Services.
She also represented Sussex County on the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA), a Metropolitan Planning Organization representing the 13 northern New Jersey counties with an annual transportation budget of $2.5 billion. She served on the Executive Board for eight years, including two years as Chairman, only the second woman in the NJTPA’s 25-year history to hold that office.
As the Executive Director of the Housing Partnership, a NeighborWorks America Homeownership Center, for over 20 years, she promoted responsible homeownership and affordable housing to help improve communities and family lives. According to Zellman, “Affordable transportation and affordable housing go hand-in-hand to help communities, businesses, and families remain sustainable. As Board Chairman I am committed to Palmetto Breeze and our continued ability to provide excellent service for the workers, businesses and visitors to the Lowcountry.”
“We are so pleased to have Susan as our new Board Chair,” said Mary Lou Franzoni, Palmetto Breeze Executive Director. “Susan has led by example since joining our Board in 2016. She is sincerely invested in our operations, our passengers, and our employees. She and our entire Board of Directors have always been so supportive, especially as our services continue to expand to connect more of the Lowcountry than ever before.”