Horry County Infrastructure & Regulation Committee Meeting – October 8, 2024
Horry County Infrastructure & Regulation Committee Meeting – October 8, 2024
On October 8, 2024, the Horry County Infrastructure & Regulation Committee met to approve routine road acceptances, consider several lease agreements, amend a zoning ordinance, and receive a workshop on land use forecasts. The committee recognized staff for hurricane response efforts and celebrated Myrtle Beach International Airport being named Best Small Airport by USA Today.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Agenda and Minutes – The agenda and minutes from September 10, 2024, were approved unanimously.
- Resolution to Accept Roads and Drainage – Four subdivisions (Cypress Ridge Phase 1, Handfield Place Phase 1A, Spring View Landing, and Sugar Loaf Phase 2) were accepted into the Horry County Maintenance System. All passed unanimously.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No public input was received.
Discussion Items
- Staff Recognition – David Gilreath recognized departments (EMD, Code Enforcement, Public Works, Stormwater, Fire, EMS) for responding to hurricane damage in Spartanburg, Saluda, and Anderson counties. Also presented a 15-year service award to Andy.
- Land Use Forecasts & Analyses – Rajiv Myana presented a new modeling tool showing potential housing capacity based on current zoning and development trends. The model estimates about 480,000 units could be built by 2060 at the current burn rate of ~5,200 permits per year. Council members Bill Howard and others discussed concerns about rapid growth and the desire to slow it, while acknowledging the economic impacts of slowing growth. The tool is intended to help evaluate future land use map amendments and comprehensive plan updates.
Key Outcomes
- Ordinance – Lease of Hangar 1 at Grand Strand Airport (MACH Aero LLP) – Approved unanimously. 5-year lease at $11,760/year ($980/month) with CPI adjustments, for an aircraft maintenance and repair business.
- Ordinance – Lease of Old Wampee Fire Station to Horry County Council on Aging – Approved unanimously. 10-year lease at $1/year with two 5-year renewal options; Council on Aging will renovate the property for a senior center.
- Ordinance – Amending Section 919 (Non-Commercial Personal Use Buildings) – Approved unanimously. Reduces minimum parcel size from 3 acres to the district’s minimum lot size in LFA, FA, and AG2 zones, allowing accessory buildings on smaller lots.
- Airport Award – Myrtle Beach International Airport was named Best Small Airport in the USA Today 10Best Readers' Choice Awards for 2024, the second time receiving this honor.
Meeting Transcript
Regulation subcommittee meeting for the month of October and as always we'll start with the invocation and pledge if we can all stand. Let us pray. Praise God. Heavenly Father, we're so thankful to have this opportunity to come together here today. Encourage our hearts and uplift us. Yes, so Lord, and be with those who are within the hurricane pathways. Touch those. Help them, encourage them, meet their needs, dear Lord, keep the hands upon the workers. Yes, Lord, help us this day so that we might be able to help others. Touch each and every heart within a very special way today. Encourage us, uplift us with good health, and all things we'll praise and honor you for asking in Christ's name. Amen. Pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Amen. Thank you. We don't have any public input today, so we're looking for a motion for the approval, Mr. Chairman. Seconded. Approval of the minutes. Any changes, guys? Approval of the minutes. Seconded. Thank you, sir. Discussion items, Mr. Gilrey. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Wanted to take this uh brief opportunity to recognize some folks that most of them are not here. As you everyone knows, about a week and a half, two weeks ago, Hurricane Helene hit the United States, came in through Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Tennessee, caused some devastating uh and made some devastating impacts throughout its whole path. You can see it on satellite photos. If you go Google, you can see some lack of lights where they take a satellite photo at night. There's just so much, there was so much devastation. Things that we have been a part of over the time over time, but most of those folks have not. As such, the administrator approved us to uh take the opportunity to serve some of those folks that don't often get those kinds of impacts. And uh just just as a in a brief way is just by department. These are the ones that I know of and may have been others, EMD, code enforcement, uh public works, stormwater, fire, EMS, uh, and maybe others have all responded to areas outside of our county to take time away from their families to uh do things that needed to be done. Uh they went to as far as I know Spartanburg County, Saluda County, and uh Anderson County and did a yeoman's work. Uh I want to take a moment to acknowledge that and to express our our appreciation of staff, and I know council has said the same uh before as well. So with that said, we've also got another hurricane uh coming towards Florida. Who knows what that's gonna look like? So while we're recognizing folks, and if you would come up here for a second, you ain't only one of us. So getting letters you want to pay an attention in class. I was saying face at Randy. A long time ago, about 15 years ago, Steve and I sat in office and interviewed uh Andy to be our deputy county engineer. Uh turned out to be one of the best hired with uh intelligent to the extreme, likeable, laughable, uh applicable, all those good things. Uh he is a uh he's kind of a pillar of our organization and does so much to help us to do good things. Uh and with that, I'd like to give him this 15-year service pen. Thank you. Appreciate it.
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