NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – Friday, the City of North Myrtle Beach announced it was prepared for people who live along the canal in Cherry Grove to take legal action against its dredging project.

The project was supposed to start last fall, but hit several road blocks.

People who live along the canal were put in a special tax district and tasked with paying $23,582 over a decade to fund the project.

“It’s mud flats. You can see the oysters; you can count the oysters out here,” said John Creel, who is in favor of the tax.

Creel says his neighbors need to come together to get the dredging project going.

“We’re very concerned the city is going to say, ‘we’re just not going to fight for another law suit’,” he said.

Creel lives along the canal on 45th avenue. He wants to keep the view from his deck, but he’s also a realtor and has sold a few houses along the canal. He says property values will go down if dredging does not happen.

“If it’s important to you, you got to be willing to pay for it. You can’t expect other people to pick up the tab for you,” said Creel.

At sunset it’s quite a view, one Creel says is worth investing in, but not everyone is on the same page.

Dean Cribb’s family leaves along the channel, however Cribb says their house does not sit on a canal, and does not need dredging.

“I don’t think it’s fair that two-houses-down is exempt and we’re in the same spot they’re in,” he said.

He’s says it’s especially hard to understand the assessed $23,582 cost of dredging when his family paid only $28,000 for the home decades ago when they bought it.

Cribb says his family is considering taking legal action.

“As of this point, no one has actually filed a lawsuit,” said North Myrtle Beach City Spokesperson Pat Dowling.

However, Dowling says the city has been notified at least 30 people plan to take legal action against the dredging.

“If someone wants to shut down the project simply for the sake of shutting it down forever, then they will file a lawsuit. No doubt,” he said.

The city already spent more than $3 million dollars on the project. If a lawsuit is filed, it could take years to settle, and Dowling says cost more than the actual dredging assessments.

So now it’s a waiting game to see what happens.

Saturday morning a group of canal home owners will meet to discuss filing suit against the city to fight the assessed tax.