CONWAY, SC (WBTW) – The Imagine 2040 committee has worked to create a long-range plan for Horry County using feedback from residents. On Thursday, they’ll be taking that input and combining it with city, county, and community leaders to address how land will be used in Horry County through the year 2040.
Leigh Kane with the Planning and Zoning department said they’re expecting about 100 people at the workshop, ranging from environmental groups, engineers, and elected officials. She said Thursday’s meeting will be different from previous meetings because they will be more hands-on in creating the plan.
Leaders will be broken up into different groups and each group will be given a section of unincorporated Horry County to work with. They will be placing stickers on different parts of the map to represent their thoughts on development. “Going through each geography of the county and really trying to hone in on specifics about what growth is appropriate in certain areas of the county,” said Kane. She said groups will cover areas like Longs, Little River, Green Sea, Bucksport, areas directly outside of Conway, and parts of the South Strand as well.
Kane said many people indicated they wanted to see more development of abandoned sites. She also said people in unincorporated parts of the county want a stronger sense of “downtown” through commercial shopping and dining areas.
At the workshop, there will also be leaders from surrounding counties like Brunswick and Columbus County to share what growth they’re anticipating. “We need to know what their growth plans are, so what we’re doing in Horry County is compatible with the areas that meet up with those jurisdictional lines,” said Kane. “Everything that happens in unincorporated Horry County will inevitably have an impact on area municipalities, and vice versa.”
The Imagine 2040 meeting is today from 5:30 to 7:30 at the Horry County Government and Justice Building in Multipurpose Room B. If you want to sign up for email updates about the progression of the Imagine 2040 long-range plan, click here.