CONWAY, SC (WBTW) – A $53 million senior living complex may be one of the newest developments in the growing Carolina Forest community of Horry County.
Some people who live near the proposed complex site say it could reduce unwanted visitors to their neighborhood.
“My son, he couldn’t go over there because you don’t know,” said Elizabeth Gibbs, a resident of the Canterbury Apartments complex. “There could be needles or anything.”
Gibbs and Amanda Saxon, who also lives in the Canterbury Apartments, say the woods next to their homes can attract garbage, trespassers and crime.
“People want to live out there,” Gibbs said.
Saxon agrees.
“People go back there, park, do drugs, hang out and party,” she said. “That spills over into this area, so our children can’t be left alone to play.”
The woods could soon be the home to something much different: a senior living complex.
Horry County’s administration committee is expected to discuss the plans on Tuesday for what would be called The Villas at Carolina Forest. It would have 166 units on about 18 acres of land off Carolina Forest Boulevard next to the Canterbury Apartments.
The project could receive $50 million in bonds from the South Carolina Jobs-Economic Development Authority. The Villas at Carolina Forest would have assisted living and memory care units. It would also have space for physical rehabilitation, theraputic services, dining facilites and common areas for social activities.
While Carolina Forest is one of the fastest growing areas in Horry County, Gibbs and Saxon say they think 166 units won’t cause added congestion in the area.
“It’s going to be one or two people at most in each unit,” Saxon said. “If they’re senior citizens, they’re not going to have a lot of people usually.”
The developer says The Villas at Carolina Forest could employ about 85 people within two years.
County council may discuss the project and hold a public hearing about it in February.
