CONWAY, SC (WBTW) – A Carolina Forest neighborhood could see fewer homes than expected, but it may also leave less open space to absorb rain.
The Clear Pond neighborhood off Gardner Lacy Road has been growing for nearly two decades. The next phase of it was expected to have 2,206 single- and multi-family homes.
That may change.
“Effectively, 1,118 multi-family units would vaporize as a result of your approval here tonight,” said Felix Pitts of G3 Engineering.
Clear Pond’s developers have proposed reducing the number of homes on open land to 1,575, all of them single-family units. Horry County’s planning commission unanimously recommended approval of the change Thursday night.
County leaders have been pushing to improve flood resiliency as a major goal for 2020. The proposal also includes some traffic improvements, like a new roundabout at one intersection.
The proposal would also create another entrance to clear pond if an extension of Gardner Lacy is built. The county is looking into what’s called a wetlands mitigation bank to help fund a project to extend the road to International Drive.
The developers say this change will result in more homes being built on higher ground.
“We talked about the requirement of roughly 25 acres of uplands,” Pitts said. “We’re providing in excess of 60 with this plan.”
The plan does not goes to Horry County Council, since it’s only a design modification.
