The North Myrtle Beach Planning Commission met Tuesday evening to talk about relaxing part of their zoning code in hopes it would bring in more tourists and money.
The move, leaders say, is focusing on four locations where they plan to cut prospective businesses some slack when it comes to parking requirements. They hope to attract new restaurants and other tourist attractions.
The four areas the commission is focusing on are:
- Main St. at Hillside Dr. (Ocean Drive)
- 17th Ave. at Holly Dr. (Crescent Beach)
- Sea Mountain Highway at Spring St. (Cherry Grove)
- 37th Ave. South at Seaview St. (Windy Hill)
Tuesday evening in North Myrtle Beach at those locations, it was quiet, and many businesses were empty. The areas are a third of a mile from the beach.
North Myrtle Beach Planning Director James Wood says the relaxed requirements would grow the areas and lead to possible construction in the vacant lots at some of these intersections.
The main issue, Wood says, is parking. The last time the areas were developed was in the 1950's. Since then, North Myrtle Beach's zoning ordinance has required a large number of parking spaces for businesses.
"What this ordinance does is it relieves businesses from having to provide so much parking," Wood says. "Right now, if you were develop a restaurant, you have to have a parking space for every 100 square foot of gross floor area. So if you have a 75 square foot restaurant, you have to provide 75 parking spaces. This ordinance says if you're within the special economic reinvestment zone, then you don't have to provide that many parking spaces."
Tuesday, the Planning Commission approved the proposal. It now moves to the full City Council for consideration.
