Thousands of Horry County residents have signed a petition to ask the county to temporarily stop new housing developments, until it addresses flooding issues. One petitioner, Timothy Irving, says one recommendation made at the county’s planning commission meeting Thursday night could hinder flood preparation and recovery.
“Our citizens really want something to be done about the flooding,” said Irving.
Irving and thousands of other Horry County residents, some still without a home after Hurricane Florence, look for flooding solutions.
He is concerned about a county planning commission recommendation that developers pay a fee and make plot size changes, instead of creating an open space around developments to help reduce flooding.
Irving says that open space is required under the Imagine 2040 plan.
“You know, if they allow the builders to just simply pay a fee, or a kick back to the county and not have that land there, or designate that for water shedding infrastructure, then it’s, I mean, it’s just useless, it’s pointless,” said Irving.
The fee would go to capital expenditures.
“With some of these rural areas, like this, where they’re building a major development, although pretty small compared to the ones East of the river, it makes more sense for them to pay out that fee, and that fee goes to capital expenditures,” Horry County Planning and Zoning’s David Schwerd said in a video provided by Irving.
Irving says there’s a few options developers could install in the open space near their developments, to help with flooding.
“Concrete drainage, or even the plastic corrugated drain pipes,” he said. “You know, something to help move the water along.”
Horry County Council will have final say on the developer fee recommendation. News13 reached out to Horry County Council and Planning and Zoning, but did not hear back.