CONWAY, SC (WBTW) – Horry County sees plenty of large housing development proposals, but the houses some neighbors near Surfside Beach and Garden City are concerned about aren’t big at all.
They’re a national trend that are getting larger, even with their own TV shows: tiny homes.
“Tiny homes are probably going to be the wave of the future, I think,” said Steve Powell, who’s the president of Venture Engineering.
There’s one development for very small houses in the county in Carolina Forest, but another proposed just south of Surfside has neighbors concerned.
“It’s the wrong site,” said Dennis Permenter, who lives near where the development is proposed. “These tiny home projects should be isolated by themselves, so that they can handle their own drainage, their own (property) values and not be a problem for their neighbors.”
“A lot of these places, and (county council) didn’t question it, you can put your arms between the homes and touch both homes,” said Thomas Winslow, a lawyer representing neighbors of the project. “That’s a lot of concrete and concrete doesn’t allow drainage.”
Myrtlewood Realty Associates is looking to put 221 tiny homes on about 25 acres of land off Kings Highway next to Tupelo Bay Golf Center. The houses would be between 600 and 2,000 square feet in size.
In an 8-2 vote, Horry County Council passed second reading of the proposal Tuesday night. Council members Dennis DiSabato and Tyler Servant were not at the meeting. Council must pass one more reading before it’s approved.
The developers say the project would benefit nearby flood-prone areas.
“Most of that water would naturally go south to the major outfall on Calhoun Drive, which is underneath Woodland Drive Extension where Seaside Elementary School is, but it can only get there if we go in and fix the outfall that’s under Woodland Drive,” Powell said.
Winslow says while some are definitely against the tiny homes, many are worried the plans are being rushed.
“The great thing about this project, with this new, novel concept in Horry County, is that we can help set that precedent of how it’s going to work out in other areas of the county if we choose to work together,” he said.
The developers and neighbors are expected to meet to discuss traffic and stormwater studies before the next council meeting on Nov. 5.
