MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – The performing arts center in Myrtle Beach was originally planned as an addition to the Myrtle Beach Convention Center. That changed after the city bought the property beside the new Myrtle Beach sports center.

Tuesday, the Performing Arts and Amphitheater Design Committee met with builders to discuss the project.

Committee Chairman Ron Andrews says it’s a project that’s been in the making for more than a decade.

“This is a little complicated because we’re asking for a lot,” said Andrews.

Jamie Broadhurst and Penny Boling have been working on the project for years, and they say Tuesday’s meeting has been a long time coming.

“We’ve been working on this process together for five years, and this is the farthest that this process has ever gotten with this performing arts center. We are so excited to be the ones to bring it to the table,” saod Boling.

Tuesday morning, the project’s design committee told architects and builders this would be a 9.8 million dollar project for the amphitheater and the performing arts center.

“We knew we didn’t have enough money to do both so we put them together and hopefully we’ll rely on the expertise of these great architectural firms to provide what we need,” said Andrews.

Andrews says nearly two years ago, the people of Myrtle Beach voted to tax themselves for a performing arts center.

“Since that time, the city has had some indebtedness that was paid off, that was also supported by taxes, and the city council, it looks like, is going to consider issuing debt without increasing millage,” said Andrews.

They’re looking for the arts center to house about 600 and an amphitheater to accommodate 14 to 15 thousand people.

The hope is to bring large-scale events to the area, like Carolina Country Music Fest, year-round.

“To have dedicated so much time and energy to this for the community and for my mother having dedicated so much time to this previously, for both of us, it’s a huge success to be able to actually sit down and see something, pardon my pun,  in concrete,” said Broadhurst.

The builders and architects that met with the committee are split up into three different teams.

Each group will draft a plan for the performing arts center and amphitheater.

The committee will vote on the plan it likes best and take it to city council.