Grand Strand leaders took another step early last month toward standardizing beach rules for all local towns and unincorporated areas, as the Atlantic Beach Town Council voted to adopt the rules.
The Grand Strand Coastal Alliance unanimously approved a list of 23 recommended ordinances in early February. The alliance is made up of the mayors of Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Atlantic Beach and the Horry County Council Chairman.
"If Atlantic Beach has one ordinance and they can go to North Myrtle Beach and do it, visa versa, and so if we all have the same ordinance, they can't come from one beach to the other and set up tents or walk dogs or whatever, and so I think this is a good thing to have this," Atlantic Beach Mayor Charlene Taylor says.
The proposed laws would create uniform Grand Strand beach rules for things like fishing, jetskiing and the use of beach tents.
Sgt. Phillip Cain of the Myrtle Beach Police Beach Patrol chaired the committee that came up with the recommendations.
Back when the Coastal Alliance passed the rules, he said the task turned out to be easier than he had expected.
"Everybody had some pretty solid ordinances and the majority of them were already similar, with the exception of the times and the dates on most of them."
Tuesday night's vote was just a first reading. The Atlantic Beach Town Council will now review the rules again, and then they'll vote on a second reading. Atlantic Beach's mayor hopes for that to happen before the start of this tourist season.
Each city council and Horry County Council have to pass the recommendations for them to take effect county-wide.
